Race Walking Technique

Carry that Knee Low

To remain efficient, race walkers must pay careful attention to how their legs swing forward after push off. Drive your leg forward with the knee as low to the ground as possible. While some upwards motion is necessary to break contact with the ground, it should be minimized. Therefore, when the rear foot lifts up, it rises only an inch or two off the ground. This is seen throughout Figures A to C.  By the time your foot swings under your body, it is almost parallel with the ground (Figure B).