YOUR TRI QUESTIONS ANSWERED
STABILITY RUN SHOES
Q What are stability run shoes exactly? Why are they useful, and how do you know if you need them? Jason Kileen
A Stability run shoes have a little more support and cushioning than your average neutral shoe. They’re primarily for runners who need a more structured and supportive shoe, or require help with gait correction.
Stability shoes often aim to help those who overpronate, this refers to when the foot rolls inwards on foot strike when running, which can cause pain along the ankle and shin as a result. Often, overpronation will lead to overuse injuries such as Achilles heel, IBS, and shin splints, to name a few.
To help correct this, some stability shoes are built with additional support in the arch and along the midsole of the shoe to discourage inwards rolling of the foot. Though neutral shoes will have some level of in-built cushioning and stability, if you’re an overpronator, it could be worth investing in a stability shoe.
One simple way of figuring out if you need extra support in your running shoe is to take a look at the pattern of wear along the sole of an old pair of runners. If the sole is significantly more worn on the inside edge than outer part of the shoe, this could be an indication that you’re overpronating, and you should head to your nearest run shop to have your gait properly assessed so they can fit you with the right shoes for your feet and run style. Kate Milsom
HOW TO STRENGTHEN FEET
Q In my strength training, should I be working on my feet as well? I figure we put them through quite a bit doing tri! Lawrence Horton
A Our feet are pivotable for keeping us upright. They give us stability, balance, grip and act as shock absorbers to cushion every movement. Not only that, but on average we walk around 110,000 miles in our lifetime, which is four times the circumference of the globe!
Each foot, in each stride, takes around 1.5 times your body weight, and if you want to run, we’re talking more like 4-5 times. So here are some simple exercises we try and encourage triathletes to do to help strengthen their feet and ankles:
PLANTARFASCIA ROLLING
You can do this in sitting or standing. The ball should have a bit of give in it so a golf ball is normally too hard. Ideally, you want something which is roughly a tennis ball size. Start at the front of your foot, just behind the ball of your feet, and press down, rolling your foot forwards until you get to the heel pad. Make sure that you’re covering the whole of the foot including the entire arch. To do this roll your foot inwards to get right onto the side.
MASSAGE AND TOUCH YOUR FEET
Every time you have a shower or bath, spend 30secs to one minute just massaging the bottom of the foot, touching and spreading the toes and working through the tops. This will help stimulate all the nerves and wake up the muscles in your foot, and also allow you time to check on your foot health – do you have any corns or calluses, verrucas or ingrowing toenails?
TOE YOGA
Lift your big toes, keep the four toes down. Press the big toe down and lift the four toes. Spread your four toes as you put them down and lift the big toe. Spread your big toe as you press it down and lift the four toes.
LUMBRICAL WORK
People often do this very badly. You will often see people using a tea towel or theraband on the floor and you have to slowly drag it towards you and scrunch it up. But this often encourages the external muscles of your feet to work rather than the intrinsic lumbricals. If you’ve been given this and you notice that as you do it your toes are scrunching and curling then these are not the right muscles!
Put your feet on the floor and spread your toes. You’re then aiming to press the toes down and lift the joint at the ball of your foot (metatarsal heads). The arch of your foot should lift but the foot stays square to the floor and toes long. Helen O’Leary
YOUR QUICK-FIRE QUESTIONS
Q What’s the benefit of swimming with hand paddles?
A Hand paddles have a surface area greater than your hand width, which allows you to hold to more water and produce more leverage to pull through it. Paddles can also assist with balance in the water, and allow you to spend more time on each specific pull, making sure that you can really work on finishing your stroke, which in turn should lower your stroke count. They’re also great for mastering the catch and for longer-distance sets, making for a tougher workout as they recruit more muscle groups.
Q How can I get used to bilateral breathing?
A If you’ve not come to tri from a swim background, you may have difficulties getting used to breathing naturally with your swim stoke. One key technique to help combat this is bilateral breathing, which is where you breathe to both sides when swimming. Breathing after an odd number (usually every three arm pulls) helps to maintain a fluid movement in the water, encouraging symmetry in your stroke and avoiding any muscle imbalances from only using one side. Having the confidence to breathe on both sides is also useful when sighting or avoiding waves when open-water swimming, and keeping an eye on those alongside you. Useful drills to help even out your breathing include 6-3-6, single arm, and double-arm pulls. Take a look at 220tri. com for key drills and how to do them.
Q Why is glute activation is important for running?
A The glutes – aka your bottom muscles – are key to your kinetic chain of movement when running. They’re the driving force behind the power behind toe-off and forward momentum when running. They should take the lion’s share of the work, but if you’re not using them enough when running, this will put extra strain on the rest of your muscles. Runners who don’t activate the glutes when running will find they’re more prone to sore legs, especially sore calves, after a run. To rectify this, do a few simple exercises before setting off. E.g. hip bridges, single-leg chair to standing squats, and step-ups. Then when running, focus on squeezing the glutes and firing them up when powering through your stride.
Q How can I improve cycling uphill?
A Adding hill training into your weekly bike sessions will make the world of difference. The best way to improve your climbing stamina is to get on the road, find yourself a decent hill and see how many reps you can manage to do up it. At first, this may only be one rep, but try to increase your capacity each session and challenge yourself to beat your personal record. Have a go at doing some out-ofthe-saddle climbing too, where you alternate between 1min seated and 1min standing for a hill of around 10-15mins duration. On all your hill reps, use the downhill for some freewheeling recovery. It’s important to detach yourself from the turbo for hill training, as it won’t work your climbing trunk stability as well as real, outside cycling.
REDUCE EXCESSIVE SWIM KICK
Q I think I kick too much when I swim, is this bad? If so, how can I reduce it? Karen Johnson
A A strong kick can be a powerful tool for a faster freestyle over short distances, especially when you can use this weapon at your disposal.
However, while you want to be able to use a strong kick, you don’t need to use a strong kick. Unfortunately, many triathletes fall into the latter category as they feel like they need to constantly kick throughout their freestyle. This is problematic as your legs use a lot of energy relative to the speed they produce.
Furthermore, as you definitely need your legs for the bike and the run, you want to keep the legs as fresh as possible during the swim.
To put an end to your excessive kicking, you need to learn to use your lungs. As long as they have air in them, your lungs will cause your body to remain at the surface of the water. If you can learn to leverage them, you can use their support to keep the hips up. Try these two exercises:
BALL FLOAT
In shallow water, get into a tight ball, as if you were trying to perform a cannonball. Then just hang out and feel the water support you. You’ll feel your lungs hold you up at the surface. If you have a swimming partner, they can bounce you like a basketball – no, really – and you’ll really feel the lungs supporting you. With that sensation in mind, all you have to do is ‘lean’ into that support when you swim, and you’ll find you’ll feel a lot lighter.
ELEVATOR SWIM
Once you’ve learned to feel the support your lungs can provide you, it’s time to learn how to leverage that support to improve your position in the water. To perform the exercise, start swimming freestyle with your head and chest really high, then gradually lower them by pressing into the water, ultimately to the point where they’re completely submerged. Over the course of the progression, you’ll find that the hips pop right up to the surface. That’s the body position you want to use.
Everyone has different limb length, bone densities, body fat distribution, muscle sizes, lung size, etc. As a result, we all have slightly different natural positions in the water, and we’ll have to use different strategies to maintain position in the water. The key is to find the solution that works best for you. Use the two tools above to figure it out. Andrew Sheaff
PLANKS FOR TRI
Q Should I be planking in training? What’s the benefit for tri? Peter Dixon
A The plank is an isometric bodyweight exercise that strengthens the stabilising muscles of the shoulder, trunk and hips against gravity. Traditionally, it’s performed on either the hands or forearms with both feet on the floor, holding the body off the ground for as long as possible.
The beauty of the plank is that it can be modified to suit the specific needs of triathletes to boost swimming, cycling and running performance. And unlike traditional core exercises such as the sit-up, planks don’t place high compressive loads on the lumbar vertebrae, making it a great option for those with lower back pain.
To get the most out of the plank, it’s important to keep the body in a straight line from head to toe. This means not sagging through the shoulders and lower back, or lifting the hips too high. Your supporting hand/elbow should be stacked directly underneath your shoulders. Avoid holding your breath and squeeze your glutes to bring your pelvis into a slight posterior tilt to avoid excessive lumbar extension.
Here are some more sport-specific benefits:
Swimming Planking challenges the stabilising muscles of the shoulder, which can improve power through the catch and pull. It can also improve energy transfer from the upper body to shoulder to core and hips as we rotate. Cycling Maintaining a time-trial position requires solid abdominal and erector spinae muscle strength and endurance. Planking is a great way to work on this, improving comfort and control.
Running The side plank has also been shown to be one the best exercises for activating the gluteus medius muscle. Deficiencies in this muscle are linked to running-related injuries, such as ITB syndrome, shin splints, and gluteal tendinopathy.
Need advice or help with any aspect of your multisport training and/or racing? Simply send an email to coaching@220triathlon.com for a chance to be featured.
THIS MONTH’S COACHING PANEL
KATE MILSOM – Stability run shoes
Kate is 220’s staff writer and a keen endurance triathlete with particular interests in cycling, nutrition and injury.
HELEN O’LEARY – How to strengthen feet
Helen is a chartered physiotherapist and owner of Complete Pilates in London.
ANDREW SHEAFF – Reduce swim kick
Andrew is a swim coach at the University of Virginia, the reigning NCAA champions.
BRAD BEER – Planks for tri
Brad is a sports & exercise physiotherapist, founder of Pogo Physio, and is head physio for Super