Extreme Sports Lovers

By Dick Moss

 It’s common to see runners flapping their hands as their arms move back and forth. With their palms pointing down, they allow their wrists to relax, allowing their hands to flop up and down on each arm movement.

Most claim it helps to keep their arms relaxed as they run. For others, it’s simply an unconscious action. Surprisingly, this error in technique is frequently seen among accomplished athletes as well as casual joggers.

However, it’s a technical quirk that should be avoided because it makes runners less efficient. Here are two reasons why:

1. LONGER LEVERS

According to basic physics, a longer lever is harder to move than a shorter lever. Here’s a demonstration. Straighten your arms and swing them as fast as you can. Then, without stopping, bend your arms to a 90 degree angle. They will be able to swing much faster and with less effort. That’s because the length of a bent arm, when measured downward from the shoulder joint, is only the distance from the shoulder to the elbow - about half the length of a straight arm.

When the wrists are allowed to dangle, the length of the arm (when measured downward from the shoulder joint) increases, becoming the distance from the shoulder to the elbow plus the distance from the wrist to the tips of the fingers (which are dangling below the level of the elbow). This lengthens the length of the lever that must be moved, making it slower and harder to swing.

2. TOO MUCH RELAXATION IN THE BICEPS

When swinging the arms, the focus should be on backward movement, not the forward swing. It’s the backward movement of the opposing arm that corresponds to the backward thrust of the drive-leg, and that’s where the propulsion comes from in running.

A good cue for the arm action is to focus on driving the elbows backward when swinging the arms.

In contrast, the forward swing of the arms should be a more relaxed movement, not a driving action. It should be initiated by an elastic stretching of the biceps and shoulder muscles as they reach the end of their backward range of motion. These muscles stretch and rebound the arm forward, keeping it relaxed and saving energy.

And here’s where flapping the hands can cause problems. Rotating the wrists so the palm faces down causes the biceps to relax. As a result, the biceps don’t stretch as the arms are driven backward and can’t contribute to initiating the forward swing of the arms. It’s one case where too much relaxation isn’t good!

BETTER TECHNIQUE

A better technique is to cup the hands slightly, so the thumb rests on top of the slightly bent index finger. The palm should face sideways - not upwards - throughout the arm swing. This will place the hands in an ideal position to minimize the length of the arm-levers and produce a good elastic rebound of the arms after being driven backwards.

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Dick Moss is the editor of Physical Education Update.com, the Fun Stuff for Physical Education Newsletter and the Physical Education Update Blog.

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By MS.LOCALE

 Nothing can be more important than health and fitness. We all need to look after our health and take steps to improve our fitness. What we eat and drink plays a huge part in how healthy we are. Sticking to a healthy diet is as important as taking regular exercise. Many people enjoy going to the gym, others prefer to exercise in the privacy of their own home. It really doesnt matter how, where or when we take exercise, just as long as we are doing a reasonable amount on a regular basis.

Exercise equipment comes in many different forms and at vastly different prices. Buying a simple skipping rope for a few pounds can provide valuable exercise in the same way as paying thousands of pounds for an elaborate gym standard exercise machine. Some people set a room or a garage aside in their home to set up their own gymnasium, others are happy to have an exercise bike in the corner of a room.

Exercise bikes come in all shapes and sizes and in all price ranges. At the lower end of the price range is the basic upright machine that is designed around the same design as a bicycle. At the upper end of the price range is the recumbent, fully programmable machine. Both machines provide aerobic exercise for the user. Many bikes offer options for riding up and down hills and controlling your heart rate.

Treadmills are another popular option for the home gym or those buying a single machine. Again treadmills can be low cost and basic through to fully programmable. Some are foldable for easy storage and others are solid and can take up a fairly large area of space. All are excellent sources of cardio vascular exercise. Again these machines can be set to simulate going up or down hills, vary the amount of resistance and alter the speed and distance from a slow walk to a full on run.

Rowing machines are available in three different forms: air, water or magnetic rowers. All three provide low impact cardio vascular exercise and are suitable for all age groups as they work all the major muscle groups. These machines offer good value for money as they provide good a good all round workout.

Elliptical cross trainers again provide an all round workout that is effective and low impact. They are now almost as popular as treadmills and exercise bikes. However, these are quite complex machines and caution should be practised when buying a cheaper machine.

As with all exercise equipment it is best to go for the best you can afford. Horizon and York are popular manufacturers of exercise machines and are best seller at Argos Sports from many years. However, many exercise machines are purchased each year and are never used. It is worth working out how much it would cost to be a member at the gym and how much you can save by exercising at home. Another important consideration is the space that you have avai

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