Chi Running

by Jennifer Fields (Subscribe to Jennifer Fields's posts)
Jul 2nd 2009 4:00PM

Categories: Fitness

As an avid runner for many years, I've suffered through the gamut of injuries associated with this high-impact sport -- stress fracture, plantar fasciitis, IT band injuries, knee pain and bursitis. The countless specialists I've seen all seem to agree that this is the price you pay to participate in a dangerous sport.

Danny Dreyer, author of "ChiRunning: A Revolutionary Approach to Effortless, Injury-Free Running" paints a different picture. He rejects the idea that running itself causes injuries. Instead, he says, the primary cause of running pain is bad form and poor biomechanics. Dreyer, who has spent years studying the physics of running, argues that by making a shift in your posture and foot-strike, you'll enjoy easier, more efficient and injury-free runs.

Lured in by the promise of pain-free runs, I attended one of Dreyer's Chi Running workshops along with about 30 others in New York City (he holds them around the country), hoping for a total running makeover. Dreyer opened the workshop with this whopper -- "Everything you know about running is wrong," he said.

Apparently, we all had it right when we were tearing up the playground as kids, heels high behind us with relaxed arms and shoulders. Turns out this whole adulthood thing, with the accompanying stress, the constant slouching over desks and lugging kids around, has a cumulative effect on how we hold our bodies. Not to mention years of bad running tips from well-meaning coaches.

For the first hour, Dreyer helped us repair our posture. This means standing with softened knees, lengthened back, chin dropped, pelvis level and core engaged. Alignment is crucial, says Dreyer, to lessen the impact on your body. Once we had our posture down, we tackled the art of falling. That is, instead of kicking or pushing off with your toes, you essentially lean forward slightly (while maintaining your good posture) and allow gravity to pull you forward. All you have to do is catch yourself with your feet. This is where another important tenet of Chi Running comes in -- the mid-foot strike. Your foot should land mid-foot, rather than on your toe or heel, which lessens the force on the lower part of your body.

It's a lot to remember, and by the end of a full-day workshop, I still didn't have it all down. In fact, weeks later, I still don't have it down. But I refer to the book often and I can tell you that in the short time I've been putting Dreyer's tips into practice, I've greatly reduced the pain in my hips and knees. I'm not sure running will ever feel effortless to me, but I'm willing to keep trying Chi Running to find out.

Has Chi Running changed your run?

Comments (8)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

BlogViet 7-03-2009 @ 2:23AM

I would love to have this guide as I am pro runner too. I hope to share this guide on my new blog at http://blogviet.info

Keith 7-20-2009 @ 10:41AM

When I was in my early teens, I used to run 6 miles/day barefoot! This was back in the 70s when such things weren't quite so unusual. LOL Anyway, as I grew older and started wearing running shoes and straightened my posture from a natural lean to the "straight line" posture that so many well-meaning long distance runners told me I should be doing (along with the accompanying heel strike), guess what happened? I started to get injuries. It got so bad that I abandoned running, something I had always loved, and chalked it up to too much pounding/repetitive stress/etc. Then I found Chi Running online. I bought the book and DVD and now I am running again just a month and half shy of my 50th birthday! It feels great. As Jennifer mentioned in her post, there is a lot to be mindful of, so I, too, am still getting used to all the focuses. I really think anyone that used to run and stopped due to nagging injuries should give Chi Running a try.

Mary Lindahl 7-20-2009 @ 10:43AM

ChiRunning has changed my running so much that I now teach ChiRunning full time. Last week a student commented "Wow - you're really passionate about this." I paused a minute to think about that and then explained how much ChiRunning had changed my life. I've been running marathons since 1977, but had chronic knee pain until 2004 when I discovered ChiRunning. I had tried every possible solution western and eastern medicine could offer over the years. With ChiRunning, I found out the answer was inside me the whole time. I just needed to change how I run. Actually, I needed to change how I stand, walk and run. I learned how to align my column so my bone structure could support my body weight rather than my muscles, and how to engage my core to reduce side to side motion while running. This took so much stress off of my ITB that I've now been running pain-free for almost 5 years. I'm still learning new ways to relax around this alignment while running and also how to apply this alignment and relaxation to other activities. I love teaching ChiRunning and being a part of this holistic approach to running and to life. As more Doctors become aware of ChiRunning, they are now prescribing it as treatment for their patients. As Danny says, "it is not running that hurts you -- it's how you run." http://www.chirunning.com/shop/profile.php?firstname=Mary&lastname=Lindahl

terrbp 7-20-2009 @ 11:56AM

Yes! I anticipated my knee feeling better -- which it has. Long runs now feel good the whole time. What I didn't expect was that the tension I used to feel in my neck and shoulders at the start of a run is also gone.

JES 7-23-2009 @ 1:02PM

Absolutely! I ran track in high school and cross country in college, but had a lot of issues with my knees (tendonitis), and had to give it up (especially after having children, my body just couldn't take it). I really missed running and heard a story on NPR about Chi Running two years ago. I bought the DVD and book, and then took a local class. Since then I have trained and run in two 10 mile races (I had never run that far even at the height of my cross country experience). The Chi method has kept me injury free and truly enjoying my runs. My long runs are now my favorite and I look forward to them with great anticipation all week. I had hoped to run a half marathon this fall, but work demands have kept me from buildinig sufficient mileage - the flesh is willing, but the job prevents me. I am extremely happy to be running regularly again and feel great thanks to Chi Running.

Julianne 7-31-2009 @ 12:32AM

I started an exercise program about two years ago that alternated days of weight training with aerobic exercise. It was winter and I had a treadmill at my disposal and a stationary recumbent bike. That was all well and good but once I got back into decent shape I wanted to run but it was something I had never really done. I went online and eventually hooked up with Chi-running/walking and have been able to run and walk/run regularly with no injuries ever, not even the shin-splints that had been the result of every walk or run in the prior 50 years. I got fitted by a pedorthist for the right pair of shoes then I started with the chi running site, got the book and DVD and eventually made it to a Danny Dreyer workshop. Participating in the day long seminar helped reinforce what I had figured out on my own while reading and believe it, it works. The right shoes are essential for a beginner if you have any foot pain.If it hurts, why would you keep doing it? Even the walking program has something to offer. It gives you an alternative on non-running days and you can take the time to tune into your posture. The extra advantage I have is that I had no bad habits to break and no years of bad running dogma to let go of which is a major roadblock to many older runners. I run at 6,000 ft altitude, on roads that go up and then down, nothing flat here. Dannys philosophy of balance and being connected is where its at for me. And yes, I wear the t-shirt.

Louise Anderson 8-10-2009 @ 12:18PM

ChiRunning has significantly improved my running so much so that I no longer need any post-run treatment from chiropractors, physiotherapists, or massage therapists. After learning from the ChiRunning book and DVD for about two years, I took a six-day workshop from Danny Dreyer at the Omega Institute last summer. It was a marvelous experience, and I'll always be grateful for all that I learned there. I will always run healthier and thus longer because of this experience.

Hazel Wood 9-21-2009 @ 9:17PM

After running for over 20 years I still wanted to run but had lost some energy and enthusiasm for the sport. I was incredibly lucky in that Danny Dreyer was in the same running club - Tamalpa Runners and out of curiousity I went along to one of his introductory workshops. That was 8 years ago and the rest is history. It changed my running so much that I was in the first group of Certified ChiRunning Instructors. That year I improved my time on the extremely hilly Dipsea race and I am running just as fast as I did 7 years ago thanks to the technique. At age 55 I decided to truly put the technique to the test - I ran my first 50 mile race. It was great. My husband said I looked fresher at the finish line that in years past when I did shorter events. I have a few before and after photos of my running form on my website.
If you want to keep running without injury you owe it to yourself to check into the technique. It also helps you run smooth and have energy for running.
http://www.stridebystride.com