A Passion for Running

Condensing this past weekend into a single post is going to be very difficult. There’s just so much ground to cover (pardon the pun) but I feel compelled to at least attempt to do the weekend justice.

Arrival
We checked into the hotel late Friday evening feeling nervous and excited and having no idea what to expect. What if the POSE method was too hard to master over a weekend? Or worse, what if the instruction sucked or if the method itself was hogwash? After all if we were to listen to many people, and even some so-called experts, a runner can’t change his or her god-given form so why even try. Right?

Saturday Morning
We woke up with open hearts and minds, and to what we hoped would be a pot of gold at the end of a Los Angeles rainbow –
every runner’s dream of learning to run with good form, less effort, the promise of an injury-free future and maybe, just maybe, to get a little faster on our feet.

Good Morning Dr. Romanov
Aaron and I arrived thirty minutes early like eager Canadian beavers. Fifteen minutes passed and just as we began to wonder if we were at the wrong place, Dr. Romanov and our clinic host Christopher Drozd (one of Romanov’s coaches/disciples) arrived.

It was an awkward meeting. Partly because I was a little in awe of Romanov, having read extensively about him and his method on his book and website. Awkward also because when I introduced myself, Romanov himself seemed a bit uncomfortable. The surprise I soon realized was that with all his accomplishments, he was still a very modest – perhaps even slightly shy man.

The other ten clinic participants (12 in total) slowly arrived while Romanov and Chris got things set up. At around 9:15, with a brief introduction from his disciple, Dr. Romanov began speaking.

During the first few minutes of what would eventually become twenty hours of instruction, Romanov seemed somewhat uncomfortable. But then something happened. He stared getting to know our names and, with this newfound familiarity, his confidence grew. That was when his undeniable passion for the POSE method emerged. He spoke with such fire in his belly (and with such a terrific Russian accent!). It was easy to see that the most important thing in the world to him was spreading his message and filling the world with happy, functionally correct, healthy runners.

The Set Up
Romanov talked about the prevailing thought among most runners, coaches etc that running is “natural”. His point: If running is natural, then why are two thirds of runners injured each year? He used another example to further illustrate the point: Is eating natural? If it IS natural, then why are over 50% of North Americans obese? His last illustrating example was to ask if having sex was natural. Dead silence was followed by my best line of the weekend. So, what did I say? “I’m afraid to answer!”. After the laugh, he continued by saying that if sex is natural, then why do we have the Kama Sutra? Anyway, once his point had been clearly made, Romanov began comparing running to other “skill” sports such as swimming, karate, ballet and dance – sports requiring instruction to do them well and not become injured. Why then, is running with all it’s injuries STILL supposed to be natural? Of course, his conclusion was that running IS a skill sport and that he has a universal method for teaching that skill.

The Invitation
The next few minutes of Romanov’s presentation were about putting us in the proper frame of mind. His invitation was simply to “become a student”. To listen with open hearts and minds. To forget what we thought we knew about running and to discover the truth. The last part of his opening remarks were to clearly state that he was a coach who would issue commands. The message: If we wanted to learn the method well, we would have to “accept” his commands. Now, he was sounding like a real Russian coach!

Some History
Romanov first conceived the POSE method in Russia in 1977 – almost thirty years ago. Over the years, he has researched thousands of elite and non-elite athletes looking for the keys to good running form (I am oversimplifying GREATLY). His credentials are in biomechanics, sport physiology and psychology, physics and some other stuff I cannot remember. He also has extensive background in “skill sports” such as ballet and dance and he himself was an accomplished high jump track athlete. Of course, he has also been a running coach for many many years. All of these components converged in the development of the POSE method – a system for teaching correct running form. A system FIRMLY grounded in mathematics and physics.

The Method
The PRIMARY focus of the POSE method is using GRAVITY to advantage. Romanov originated this concept THIRTY years ago in well documented research which I’m sure he’d be happy to share if asked. The forward lean is a large component of the POSE method’s use of gravity.

So what are we to make of others who say they discovered the use of gravity and the lean as they apply to running? My advice is compare their dates of publication with Romanov’s. You may want to ask them when they began developing their concepts AND if they have a background for fully exploring the physics of unleashing gravity. Then, you might want to ask them if they ever read Romanov’s writings, or participated in one of his clinics. You might be surprised with the answers you find. The other thing you might do is read Romanov’s book. You simply will not find a more clear or comprehensive explanation of gravity and the lean as they relate to running form. So, if you feel so inclined, do a bit of research and see where it takes you!

Here are some of the other major features of the POSE running method. Please note that these are all tightly integrated with the physics around exploiting gravity:

1-Begin in the POSE stance. Note two things: 1) The knees NEVER fully straighten, and 2) Knees are not lifted – the rise as a result only of the heel being pulled up under the hips.
2-Using gravity to advantage, lean forward and FALL onto the available leg/foot. Make contact with the ground DIRECTLY under one’s center of mass/gravity. Draw a line through the head, torso and pelvis and extend it to the ground and you have the spot where your feet should make contact with the ground. Posers never land ahead of this point since it “puts the brakes on”, sends impact through the body, slows the runner and wastes energy. Poser also make contact with the ground with the balls of their feet. Contrary to something I read recently, this does NOT put a majority of the workload on the calves.
3-PULL your heel straight up off the ground as if to direct it up and under your hip. This requires the HAMSTRING to do the majority of the work involved in the running. It also FORCES your body to change support to the other leg (another important element) or you’d fall all the way to the ground. This part is 100% gravity driven and cannot be avoided unless one WANTS to fall all the way down!

This sequence is repeated over and over: POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL – POSE – FALL – PULL…

I should mention that once the method has been learned, a POSE runner will focus almost entirely on just PULL-PULL-PULL-PULL-PULL-PULL and that there are many technical aspects I have not covered. I recommend you read the book or go here for some much clearer explanations of the POSE method.

Putting Theory Into Practice
On Saturday afternoon, we ventured onto a polo field which also had a paved road at one end. Once there, the first order of business was videotaping. We were instructed to run approximately 50 meters twice – the first time at our long slow distance speed and the second time at our 1500 meter speed (faster).

Then, we worked on all manner of drills and exercises – all designed for helping us learn the POSE stance, changing support and the whole POSE-FALL-PULL concept. Typically, we would do a drill and then run. Each time learning to percieve the differences the drills introduced onto our forms. I imagine we did 30 different drills over a two and a half hour time period. It was LOT of work puntuated with yells from our Russian coach. Typically, we heard a lot of “AM I SPEAKING RUSSIAN?! What is the matter with you?” Aaron got into a LOT of hell that first day. Just ask him! Having said all this, I want to be clear that the “yelling” was ALWAYS done with humour and good will. Romanov is an exceedingly warm, kind man.

For me, the pivotal point in learning the POSE came when we ran down the field with our eyes closed! It was the most AMAZING experience, and the one drill that really drove the POSE home for me that first day. I never imagined I could run so effortlessly without knowing where the ground was!

Our time on the field ended with a second videotaping where we did the same thing – one slow and one fast run.

Back to the Classroom
We spent close to three hours analyzing videotape but what was REALLY great was that Romanov didn’t just TELL us what was right/wrong/good/bad – he showed us what to look for so we could do our own analysis. With 12 clinic participants to analyze, we all got pretty darn good at analyzing good and bad form very quickly and I must say that I am STILL amazed at the difference in our form between the first and second videotaping sessions.

The first recording was FULL of heel striking, plodders. Admittedly, Aaron and I along with maybe one other fellow were the worst heal strikers of the bunch. It was quite frankly very painful to watch and I was amazed I was able to run as long as I did and get the times I did with my BRAKES ON! Aaron was no different. We were astounded.

I remember when Romanov froze the picture of me with that leg straight out in front, knee locked and heel driving into the ground and looked at me saying, “Mark, what za hell iz zatt?” to which I replied, “It’s awful. Just awful Doctor Romanov”. But that was not good enough for our Russian coach who prodded me further. “What specifically, is OWful Mark? Please provide more details of what is OWful”. It may sound harsh but really what he was after from us was two-fold: 1) Total acceptance that what we were doing was BAD for us, and 2) He wanted to see that WE could analyze ourselves. He wanted us to walk away from the clinic with TOOLS to carry on without him.

I LOVE that.

Day One Wrap-Up
Aaron and I finished day one more than a little bit stunned. We had each FELT the POSE very clearly. We had experienced gliding along, barely touching the ground with our feet. And seeing and understanding the before video and after videos was the icing on the cake. We had seen how awful we looked in the “before” tape and good our form looked in the “after” tape. We had seen such a huge transformation in only 10 hours!

The only thing we wondered was whether we would be able to replicate the skill the next morning. We surely did not want to forget how to do it because it felt SO good. We hoped and prayed what we experienced had not been a fleeting moment in time. Turns out it hadn’t been…

On that note, stay tuned for my report on day two of the clinic – tomorrow.

(Looks like I didn’t get it all one post. Give me a break ok? It’s LATE!)