Run downhill with help from Fat Joe and Michael Jackson... seriously

There is an art, it says, or a knack to flying.  The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.’- Douglas Adams ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’

Running down hills.  Hard to do it right.

Leaning back is what we want to do.  Leaning back is easy.

Because we’re tired.

It takes effort to run down hill.

The added speed makes us feel like we’re out of control.

I’d rather just do it like Fat Joe cause Runner’s ‘don’t dance, they just pull up their pants and do the roc- away, now lean back, lean back’.

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It’s what most runners do when they come to a downhill.  They lean back.

Your foot fall will get really loud (Warning!  Loud runners aren’t graceful or efficient).

Lean back and let your calcaneus (heel) slam into your cushiony running shoe.

Buuuuut now that force of impact is moving up the kinetic chain.  First stop is your ankle.  Slam that joint closed.

Athlete’s rule: Jammed joints create global weakness.  Ask your chiropractor.

Next stop your knee.  Another joint smushed… and Bye Bye cartilage.

Then your hip.  Joint three.  Crunch.

Then your lower back.  More joints.  Ouch.

Running down a hill can hurt more than running up one.

But it doesn’t have to.

Develop that ‘knack’.  Throw yourself at the ground… and miss.

‘Most people fail to miss, and if they are really trying properly, the likelihood is that they will fail to miss it quite hard.’

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No need to throw yourself really.

Lean FORWARD (Thanks MJ).

Don’t lean forward at the waist.  Stay tall.  But lean forward.

Keep your body at a 90 degree angle with the hill you’re running down.

You may pick up a LOT of speed.

You might feel a little out of control.

You might feel like you’re sprinting.  It’s ok.  I sprinted once and lived to tell.  Just pick up that turnover.

‘Running down a hill should feel like a controlled fall.’ someone once said.  Tried to find the exact quote but Google has failed me.

But here’s the Truth, Ruth, you’re actually saving energy by leaning into a hill… as well as saving your ankles, knees, hips and low back.

And you’ll pass people.  How’s my back look chumps?

So Lean forward.  It’s usually a good idea.

Usually?  What do you mean usually?

Well if the hill is reaaaaaaally long,

and reaaaaaaaally steep,

and reaaaaaaaally slick…

well then you gotta stay on your feet.

So then ‘Runners don’t dance they just pull up their pants and, do the roc-away, and lean back, lean back, lean back.’