Comparing road running to trail running is like comparing apples to oranges. The good thing about asphalt is that there is nothing to get in your way; however, in mountainous terrain you have to do it on leaves, stones or mud, so you have to constantly adapt your body to what nature throws at you even if you wear good mountain running shoes. Because of this difference in terrain, of course the physiological demands on your body will be different. If you're thinking of making the leap from asphalt to trail, this is what will happen to your body (and your mind).
No matter what terrain you're on [The best trail routes in Spain], you're always putting one foot in front of the other. But on a smooth, flat trail, "it's all about metronomic efficiency," says David Roche, running coach and two-time USATF 10K trail national champion. "In general, you are repeating the same movement over and over again." This repetitive movement results in a more even distribution of biomechanical load, adds Dr. Stephanie Howe, running coach and Western States 100 champion. "The quads, hips, hamstrings, glutes and calves all work in harmony." to propel you forward," he tells Runner's World.
On a trail, where you have to negotiate roots, rocks and ditches at every step, that biomechanical load is much more changeable. "You start doing side-to-side movements, more eccentric muscle contractions on the way down, and you engage other muscles on the way up," Roche details. "Both your hips and your stabilizer muscles play a bigger role when you're running down the mountain."
Think about the glutes and the core. These are the muscles that connect to the pelvis, plus the small muscles in the ankles and feet. These stabilizers are especially important, because although the primary muscles, such as the quadriceps, are the ones that do most of the work, these smaller muscles are the ones that help keep you upright when facing obstacles or unstable surfaces, hence why your ankles hurt after a long trail run [4 proprioception exercises to strengthen joints].
In general, trail running is a much more intense type of running for the whole body than running on the asphalt, and that is why it is important to add strength training, as it can help you strengthen all the muscles to that you can safely face the earth and vertigo. Workouts that specifically focus on strength and stability will help you the most, as they will build your primary movements while also challenging your smaller muscles.
Of course it's possible to feel sore after a run on asphalt, as the repetitive motion and constant rotation can lead to chronic overuse injuries. But it's likely that a trail run can have a more aggressive effect on the body, mainly due to one factor: the descents.
On both the road and the track, your quads eccentrically contract (or lengthen) and then rapidly contract (or shorten) to propel you forward. On descents, which you're more likely to encounter frequently on a trail, the quadriceps muscles lengthen more than they would on flat ground or uphill, putting more stress on the muscle fibers.
This leads to lower extremity muscles that can be sore for up to several days after exercise, according to a scientific review published in 2020 in Sports Medicine. Not to mention, soreness in those lesser-used stabilizer muscles is the norm for new trail runners. "The cost of that energy is often underestimated if you're not used to moving that way," says Howe.
On the plus side, dirt, gravel, and grass are natural running surfaces that have significantly less impact on your bones and joints than running on concrete or asphalt. "They absorb shock better," says Howe. "They don't hit as hard as they do on pavement, they have a little more give, which is easier on the body." For example, asphalt runners experience higher loads on the Achilles tendon and have less shock absorption capacity compared to trail runners, which can increase the likelihood of injury, according to a 2020 study published in the journal PM&R .
There is no single approach to what is the correct form to run. Everyone's individual mechanics are different, but you can optimize that running form to improve performance or prevent injury. In asphalt racing, the goal is to set a pace and maintain form and technique throughout the race. On the trails, you have to be more reactive to what's in front of you, Howe says, and "your running technique is going to change depending on how technical the terrain is, the surface, whether you're going up or down."
Climbs and descents require different mechanical patterns, says Roche. Climbs force you to shorten your stride naturally and "you have to have a slight forward tilt of the ankle, so that the center of gravity is slightly forward," he explains. This will help propel you forward and up.
On descents, the tendency is to over stride, but this will actually be more damaging to the muscles. Short steps will protect you from this, and "you want to move your feet as fast as you can while maintaining good posture," says Roche. "That will allow you to adjust as you go. The best downhill runners move their feet quickly enough that any misstep is corrected by the next."
One of the nice things about running on asphalt is that you always know where you're going, you're free to switch off and almost go somewhere else in your mind. At the same time, the road or track allows you to push your limits in terms of pace, even when you're in an almost meditative headspace. However, that does not happen in trail running.
"A trail forces you to be present," says Howe. "You can't totally switch off, because you'll fall flat on your face." That does not mean that you cannot enter a state of disconnection on a path, that is, you can be, but be aware of each step you take. "It's like a mindfulness practice," says Roche. "Your mind may wander, but you come back to what you're doing over and over again."
Running through hilly terrain will also force you to slow down, in a good way. The best way to stay in the moment on a trail is to put the clock aside, or at least stop paying attention to the splits. "Pace on the trails doesn't matter," says Howe. Our technical director Chema Martínez also affirms it and his advice to improve performance in the mountains: "It may be convenient to use a device that measures watts. It is convenient to continue using the principle of progression, and always go from less to more. We will try to minimize the changes sudden rhythms and we will keep the heart rate and intensity constant.
Plan your trail run based on time, not mileage, and "try to look at it from a bigger perspective, like how long it takes you to do a certain loop or finish a climb on a course," he says. You may not be hitting goals in your training, but you better believe that hard work on the trail will contribute to whatever bigger goal you're working toward, whether it's better endurance, a stronger body, or even a new PR. on the asphalt or in the mountains.
Via: Runner's World US
