Sitting Makes You a Slower Runner

Did you know the average person that works in an office sits up to 12 hours a day? I get it…we all have to sit at your desk, in your car, and in front of the television. For years, researchers have been warning us about the dangers of prolonged sitting. It is associated with higher risks of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, cancer, depression and pain. Some experts even described sitting as “more dangerous than smoking.” Did I give you enough reasons as to why you shouldn’t sit so much? Well, if you are a runner, I should mention that it will also make you slower. Now I got your attention!

Let’s dive right into the mechanical reasons as to why you will be a slower runner if you sit too much.

The Forgotten Muscle: Iliopsoas

Ilio-what? The iliopsoas is one of the most important muscles in your body because it is a large muscle that connects your lower back to the pelvis to your femur (thigh bone). You’ve heard how important it is to work on your core? Unfortunately, many people often forget that this muscle is part of your core!

The iliopsoas consists of 2 muscles:

• Iliacus muscle

• Psoas muscle

This muscle is the PRIMARY hip flexor muscle, as it responsible for swinging your leg forward when you walk/run. Every time you lift your knee, it contracts and every time the leg swings back, the muscle lengthens. It’s designed to be very strong, as it needs to handle a lot of repetitive force. When you run faster, the iliopsoas activates more since it drives the leg through the air as the stride length increases.

In addition, a healthy iliopsoas allows us to maintain good upright posture and stabilizes the pelvis and spine.

Effects of Sitting on Our Muscles

When we sit, the iliopsoas muscle, along with hamstrings and quadriceps are in a shortened stated. With prolonged sitting position, these muscles become tighter and cause a swayback posture. When the body is out of alignment, muscle fibers lose the ability cause tension. Prolonged sitting causes the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and iliopsoas muscles to become inefficient and impairs running form and efficiency, ultimately slowing you down.

Get Up and Move

Most people believe that doing exercises cancels out the negative effects of sitting; however, studies show that this is false. Instead of exercising/running more in an efficient manner, you have to address the cause of the problem. Take a break from sitting by getting up as much as you can. And if you can’t, make sure you stretch the iliopsoas, quads and hamstring daily. Remember that the cure for sitting is not exercising more, it’s sitting less. We should spend at least 2 hours of our workday not sitting. At first, this may sound like an unrealistic challenge but when you break it down it becomes much more doable.

Here are few tips on ways to take a break from sitting:

Drinking a lot of water means more bathroom breaks
Take phone calls while standing
Walk to talk co-worker’s desk instead of messaging them
Use stairs instead of taking the elevator
Use a kneeling chair
Use at standing desk
Use a reminder on your phone to stand up

Easy Stretches at the Office

These are 3 easy and effective stretches that can be done at the office. Stretches should be gentle and be held for 30 seconds. Do them few times a day and you’ll notice less pressure in your low back and feel taller and faster when you run.

Hamstring Stretch

This is one of my favorite ways to stretch the hamstring muscles because I can sit on my chair, work and stretch at the same time. Sit on the edge of your chair. Keep one knee straight so the heel is on the floor. Make sure your knee is straight. Bending at your hips, like a hinge, and gently lean forward slowly. Make sure you keep your chest up. You should feel a pull behind your leg. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times a day.

Quad Stretch

Stand with one foot behind back of a chair or arm rest. Make sure you are standing up tall and that your knees are next to each other. You should feel a stretch on your quad muscle. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat 3 times a day.

Half Kneeling Stretch

The half kneeling position will target your iliopsoas muscle. Get into a half kneeling. Place a pad under your knee if you have knee pain or problems. Make sure your knees are bent at 90 degrees. You may hold onto a stable surface to maintain good balance. Hold this position for 30 seconds. This stretch can be progressed by raising both arms up.

Summary

Don’t let tight muscles from sitting too long get in your way of running faster. Above stretches and tips will help you break the sitting cycle. If you are not seeing improvements or need immediate help with stretching, visit us at www.fpphysicaltherapy.com.