Race Walking Technique

Hips - Let's Revisit Over Striding

Coaches all agree: overstriding slows you down!  On page 39 you saw that overstriding caused the foot to momentarily suspend in the air after the leg straightened; the extra length in stride was inefficient.  But isn’t lengthening your stride good?

The answer is relatively simple, and highlights the difference between lengthening and overstriding.  Yes, a longer stride is good, but only when it’s achieved by using the hips. Let’s start with a working definition of overstriding.

Overstriding is when a walker takes too long a stride, either in front of or behind the body, such that the extra length actually slows the forward progress.