I love learning and I especially love learning about running! I recently did a gait analysis course at The Runner’s Academy. I was able to talk about running all day and learn with a group of awesome runners – what a great day!

The course was led by Dr. Kris Sheppard (Chiropractor and owner of The Runner’s Academy), Lindsay Scott (Physiotherapist and coach), and Dr. Brittany Moran (Chiropractor, elite runner, and coach). I love that their vision is to raise the bar for runners and they base all their training and clinical practice on science. In addition to improving our form as one piece of the puzzle to improve efficiency, speed, and decrease injury risk, Dr Sheppard also emphasized that we should have JOY in our running which I obviously loved. ❤️

We learned the basics of how to do a gait analysis through watching slow motion videos of runners running on a treadmill. I also learned some helpful demos to show why over-reaching is bad, how to show why we shouldn’t crossover, and how to show that we have more power when our foot is in a neutral position vs pointed position. At the end, we took it outside and learned some drills to help improve our form.

As part of the training, I even got a mini gait analysis which was a bonus! I learned that I don’t over-reach (good), don’t crossover (good), don’t over-rotate (good), don’t hip-drop (good). But I am shuffling instead of running (bad!). So I got some tips on how to pick up my knees more so I’m not shuffling so much. The term for this issue, coined by Dr. Sheppard, is the “sad tear drop” runner 😂.

All in all, it was a fun day. I am glad I learned a lot about how to do a gait analysis and can immediately put it into practice for myself and as I observe runners around me. I won’t be offering gait analysis any time soon but if you are interested to learn how you can improve your speed, efficiency, and reduce risk of injury, make an appointment at The Runner’s Academy. Pro-tip: if you have benefits, it’s covered!