Strength Test

I had an interesting experience yesterday. My interesting experience was that I did a running strength test. What made it so interesting was just how badly I did.

The strength test I did was suggested by my Physio. You can read about it here:

Running Strength Test

The test I did is the preliminary part of the classes described in the website. Unfortunately I don't think I will be able to sign up to the classes since the times just don't work very well for me. But the testing bit gave some very interesting results.

Basically the test involved a bunch of running specific exercises. Unusual exercises like balancing on one leg while reaching as far forward and backwards as possible with the other leg, core stability testing, single leg hops as far as possible. That sort of thing. What the test showed to be is that when it comes to running, my functional strength is terrible. Stability in particular. This isn't exactly news to me, my stability during running has been a problem for a while, which is where a lot of my injuries have stemmed from. It is something that I have been working on for a long time and it has improved a lot over the years. Actually I thought I was doing okay, but apparently not. To give you an idea, I did my test with a couple of slightly older ladies and once the results are normalised for leg length, I suspect they will have both beaten me. It was just a little depressing.

On the up side, it means I have an area just begging for improvement. The sort of strength that was tested helps with injury prevention, but also speed. It is the sort of strength that aids efficient use of elastic energy during the stride, reducing contact time with the ground, producing a strong push off in the stride. That is the next step for me, working with my physio to figure out what I need to be doing to improve these critical areas of strength. Hopefully it can be the source of some more improvements in my running speed, as well as a reduction in injuries.

Hopefully I won't get beaten by little old ladies next time I test.