Natalia from Top Sante has decided it’s time to unleash her inner runner!
Natalia Lubomirski tries a Running Assessment
Between the hare and the tortoise, I’m the latter – but I’m keen to unleash my inner runner, so I’ve got a running assessment at Six Physio (which has 10 clinics around London). Demand for sessions has increased by 350% since the Olympics, as we’ve all been inspired to pound the pavement a la Mo. After a questionnaire, my assessor, Gemma, looks at my posture, stability and flexibility. Then I jump on the treadmill to have my erunning style eassessed, film d and analys d in detail. Seems there’s work to be done. To improve my posture, Gemma shows me stretches to get my body aligned correctly. These include the posterior pelvic tilt, where you lie on your back, engage your abs and roll your pelvis back to flatten your lower back. This gets you used to the right position to hold when running, stopping you pushing your hips forward. She also suggests I use a foam roller to loosen my leg muscles before I run, for fluid movement. Best tip of the day? Before setting out, stand with your back against a wall and memorise this posture, as it’s the one you should adopt for running. I’m not breaking any speed records yet, but now I know I can go longer and harder without risk of injury. Slow and steady may just win the race.
