I don't so much walk as lope, and I don't so much jog as sprint.

April 22, 2007 12:58 PM

Short people, how do you jog?

Okay, for some this may seem plainly absurd. But, it's a real problem that I'm having. I cannot figure out how one jogs.

I'm short; just under 5'2". Over the years, when health and weight allowed, I've went running whenever I needed to release frustration. The problem is that I get extraordinarily tired by this because I actually /run/. More appropriately, I sprint - fast as I can go over short distances. I sprint so hard that my vision blurs or cuts out, tears run down my face and my head hurts. (Luckily, I live on a farm and no one has to see this.) It's like I have no middle speed.

Some say running to appropriate music helps regulate your speed, but my legs are short and I find myself working twice as hard and making half as much progress as anyone else. I will not exercise with a partner for this reason. I find it incredibly frustrating.

Short people, do you have any tips for running? Bonus points if you get shin splints and have found a way to deal with them.

posted by fujiko to health & fitness (20 comments total)

It's not just short people that have this problem, FYI: I'm 5'10" and I've got the same issue.

As far as shins splits go, the only reccomendation I can make to you is that the shoes you wear matters; the way that you stride matters, and where you hit on your foot matters. The best thing to do might be to go to a running shoe store; this depends on how big of a city you live near, but there's one that I know of in Austin TX that I have a visit to scheduled. Bring your shoes and show the people how you run, and they'll help you find shoes that will fit your running style AND help you correct your stride.
posted by SpecialK at 1:08 PM on April 22, 2007

(Note: You'll end up having to buy a couple hundred bucks of sneaker that you'll end up replacing every so often... good running shoes for people who have shin splits are NOT cheap.)
posted by SpecialK at 1:09 PM on April 22, 2007

Well, I'm short.

What you are doing is running anaerobically which as you already know is selflimiting.

You also need to know that your ligaments and joints need time to get used to the pounding of jogging.

what this means is you probably need to run slooowly and mix it up with walking. Speed walking is also another option.

Finally, do you have access to a bike? That might work much better for you. (I go to spin class for exactly the same reason YOU run.)
posted by konolia at 1:14 PM on April 22, 2007

I really don't think this much to do with your height, except obviously your own self-perception of the problem.

I sprint - fast as I can go over short distances. I sprint so hard that my vision blurs or cuts out

Stop doing this. Seriously. It's just going to frustrate you and make you burn out before you get any cardiovascular benefit (or calorie-burning benefit, if that's what you're after).

It's like I have no middle speed.

Yep, that's the problem right there. You definitely have to learn to moderate. Do you have gym access, or is there any chance you can get it? I think you'd really be helped by jumping on an elliptical trainer with a heart monitor. First figure out what your maximum heart rate is - there are calculators, but a good estimate is 220 minus your age.

Then, aim at first to run/jog at no more than 80% of your max. What you'll probably see, if you can run on a heart rate monitor, is that your heart rate will probably spike up to 90 or 95% of max as you run really hard, and then you'll start to get out of breath and everything. So, keep an eye on it and when you get up to 80%, SLOW DOWN. Even cut back to a walking pace if it continues to climb past 90%. Then, when your heart rate drops below 80%, start picking up the pace again.

At first it may be frustrating to cycle fast-slow-fast like this, but you should notice within a couple of workouts that you can at least go longer without getting winded. And after a few weeks, you should be able to determine a relatively stable moderate pace that gets your heart going for 20-30 minutes without knocking you out.

If you can't get into a gym, you can approach the same thing by going through cycles of running and walking. Just stop running before you get exhausted, and walk for a minute or two, then do it all over again. If you still find yourself sprinting all out, count to 10 along with your breaths, and every time you hit 10, remind yourself to slow down.

my legs are short and I find myself working twice as hard and making half as much progress as anyone else.

I'm not sure what you mean by "progress" or why you feel you have to measure yours against anyone else's. Unless you're training for a marathon, the point of running is to get cardio exercise, not necessarily to run really fast or far. It's true that being short will make you take shorter strides and thus cover less ground than others, but again this isn't the point. Just quit worrying about how far you go and worry about keeping your breathing regulated, that's WAY more important. And yes, it sounds like you should avoid training with other people for a while, at least if all your potential workout mates are way faster or more in shape.

if you get shin splints and have found a way to deal with them.

Anecdotally (i.e., from a track coach), this happens when you shift the type of terrain you run on. For instance, moving from in indoor track in the winter to a dirt trail in the spring does it for some people. Preventive measures: stretch your shins every time you run. The best way to do this is to point your toes, feet together, and have someone else press down gently to really stretch the shin muscle. If you don't have anyone around to help, use your imagination to find a position that will stretch your leg in this way. Treatment: take a few days off from running and ice your shins for 20-30 minutes a few times a day. Also, do the above stretches throughout the day once you reach the point where it's not tremendously painful.
posted by rkent at 1:22 PM on April 22, 2007

Why not measuring a route, say a 3k or a mile, and committing to running that? If you're just going out to run then I guess sprinting could make sense for you, but running somewhere is a different proposition.

Shin splints: rest, ice, compression, elevation. Build up distance during a season, don't do too much at once. Pay attention to your form when you get tired - don't pound on your feet. Choose grass over pavement whenever possible. Choose streets over sidewalks whenever possible. Run in good shoes.
posted by tmcw at 1:29 PM on April 22, 2007

Yeah, for what it's worth, I'm a hair over six foot and I used to have trouble regulating my speed too. If I did what I thought of as running — the sort of blistering sprint you're describing — I'd get hurt and winded. If I ran at a pace I could sustain, it felt laughably slow and .... well, kind of dull.

So I'm guessing this has less to do with height, and more to do with your sense of what running "ought" to feel like. It won't always be that exhilarating wind-in-the-hair feeling, especially when you're starting out. Sometimes it'll be hard and slow and sweaty. I jogged for a year, and while I got better at it, it was never the sort of rush that I was hoping for.

If you're really hooked on the sensation of speed, you might just do what I did and get a bike.
posted by nebulawindphone at 1:32 PM on April 22, 2007

It's like I have no middle speed.

Get on a treadmill. Set it to various speeds. You will discover that you do, in fact, have a middle speed.
posted by Flunkie at 1:37 PM on April 22, 2007

What happens if you try to run more slowly? A lot of people jog barely faster than a moderate walk. You can even run in place and not get anywhere at all (though I don't know that it's very good for you). Don't worry at all about competing with other people on speed. Jogging, imho, is more about building up distance/endurance.

As for not injuring yourself, be sure to warm up first. I walk 20 minutes before jogging (maybe overkill) as a warm up.
posted by DarkForest at 1:46 PM on April 22, 2007

Try keeping the gliding motion when you jog. A lot of people tend to bounce on their feet when they slow down, which is very counterproductive. Even jogging you should try not to have your head go up & down. It'll put more strain on your calves, which'll take a while to build up, but once you get that out of the way I'm betting you'd feel a lot better.
posted by devilsbrigade at 2:02 PM on April 22, 2007

A good way to self limit is to talk while jogging. It's silly to do alone but if you focus on talking instead of on your speed you'll naturally slow down enough to keep from really puffing. You live on a farm and no one sees you, so go ahead and compose letters or talk about your day as you run and see if that makes a difference. It's a lot easier to maintain than checking a heart rate monitor.
posted by hindmost at 2:20 PM on April 22, 2007

Again, it's not height. I've run with "short people" who jogged just like the rest of us.

Shin splints: besides buying good shoes, exercise the opposite muscle. Draw the alphabet in the air with your toes. This is what they taught us on cross country team. They also had us run 100s backwards while warming up, but I can't remember if that related to shin splints or not.
posted by ruff at 2:45 PM on April 22, 2007

I am also short (5'3") and I haven't had problems jogging, so I have to agree with the others it's not a height issue.

Why not try some alternatives, such as speed-walking or riding a bike? These might be easier on your joints.
posted by needled at 2:49 PM on April 22, 2007

It's silly to do alone but if you focus on talking instead of on your speed you'll naturally slow down enough to keep from really puffing.

That's an awesome piece of advice! Thanks.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 2:59 PM on April 22, 2007

I agree with a lot of people on here. I recently started running and hope this method will help you.

I started working out on elliptical machines about 30min trying to meet 80-90% of heartrate goal. I did that about 2.5months and after that I got on the treadmill and started running REALLY slow...like 15min/mile but I was able to run for entire 30min. My goal was to build endurance and make my heart stronger. So I ran everyday for 30min at 15min/mile for 1.5week and then I increased it to 14min and now I run 12min/mile. Which is still incredibly slow but I try to keep up with the person next to me which makes it much easier than if you're trying to run by yourself. On several occasions I ran 30min without any music.

I used to have a magazine or bring some work to read during my workouts on elliptical machines but it's hard to do when you're running. I tried to run outside without the machine, and it's harder because you have to control the speed and you see people running fast so you think i should be running faster which makes you run harder but for shorter period of time and you're worn out.

I hope this helps, good luck!
posted by icollectpurses at 3:11 PM on April 22, 2007

Oh I forgot to mention, I am 5'3" so it doesn't have any thing to do with the height. While I would like to have long legs have something to do with how far apart your steps are, when it comes to running, you're in control.
posted by icollectpurses at 3:13 PM on April 22, 2007

Your shin splints could be linked to the way you're running: Your body isn't used to running at all (taken from your anecdote: you run sporadically, not regularly). Both of your problems will clear up if you take time to warm up slowly, stretch that shit, and work your way up to long distances.

Another major point to make: DarkForest has it right, when you're starting out you're going to jog about as fast as you walk. Don't look for progress here, either; it's going to take a few months of daily runs for your relaxed speed to get up. The people you see jogging at your sprinting speed can do that because they've been running religiously for years.

The most important point: Always stretch before and after. Warm up slowly over 15-20 minutes.
posted by tylermoody at 3:32 PM on April 22, 2007

Talking to myself is my entire creative thought process. It keeps my mind from running itself into a wall. Why I never thought of using it to keep from literally running myself into the ground is beyond me. Brilliant.

DarkForest, I think running slower has one major problem for me and that's the one devilsbrigade mentioned. I hit hard and bob my head a lot. This is, coupled with runner's envy, makes it very hard me to slow down. It really kind of hurts my shins, knees and ego (in that order).

To everyone who mentioned elliptical machines: I am deeply in love with ellipticals. I was spoiled by Precors in high school, so if anyone could tell me whether there's a relatively comparable sub-$700 model then that would be awesome. To a few other people: I do have a gym nearby and a bicycle. The bicycle needs a bath, but it's in working order.

I definitely need to set more time aside for cool down and warm up periods. This thing where I run my body down so that I'm too tired to be mad at a bad meeting at work has to stop.
posted by fujiko at 5:02 PM on April 22, 2007

It occurred to me as well that if you find the sensation of extra speed to be pleasant, you might do well to get a bike.
posted by ikkyu2 at 5:30 PM on April 22, 2007

The key for me was realizing that if I stand straighter, I will generally run slower to keep my balance. Pay attention to your posture next time your running, if you're like me, an all out run will have you pitched farther forward than a nice medium run.
posted by !Jim at 9:51 PM on April 22, 2007

Maybe you really just want to run sprints. That's a whole different thing from jogging though.

As for jogging, you might need to get some help with your running form. Get some running friends to help, or some running shoe stores can help guide you. Find some people who run slowly, and go with them, even if you don't go the whole way with them.

Do make sure you have good running shoes. Run on a flat level surface.

I'll go out on a limb and say that a good warm up is more important than stretching. A big stretching regimen would discourage me from running at all. Especially at the beginning, do a good warm up, run some, walk some. Add some stretches as you get more of a routine established. (I'll admit that I have a bad attitude toward stretching; it mostly seems like macho posturing. YMMV. IANAD, etc.)
posted by DarkForest at 6:34 AM on April 23, 2007