How does this exercise help a runner? Hey its JP and this is a question that constantly
goes through my mind when creating a training routine. I believe it is KEY to understand
WHY you do an exercise. If not, how can you tailor an exercise routine based on that specific
individual's needs. So in this video, I will give some insight on certain exercises and
why it may be relevant to running! Today, let's start with the exercise known as the
bird dog. People typically think about this as a "core stabilization" exercise and do
it to further supplement his or her training. While this is not necessarily a bad thing,
sometimes it's good to dig a little deeper on its relevance. So, now I'll share some
of my insight.
When typically incorporating this exercise, my primary intention more to work on CONTROL
and COORDINATION of muscles around the LUMBOPELVIC HIP COMPLEX, which is a fancy term for muscles
in the core, trunk, and pelvic region. These muscles play some key roles, especially to
control the pelvis in the mid stance phase and prevent excessive movement of the area.
By improving control in the area, this may help optimize force produced from the legs.
Now, as I just elluded to...my focus is usually NOT on STRENGTH. I just think there are better
options to truly work on strength in the area. The next question you may ask yourself is...How
may this be beneficial for a runner, especially if STRENGTH is not the focus?
Based on some recent running focused research, it introduces the idea that running may be
considered more of a SKILL. With this in mind, improving coordination of muscles that typically
work together as you run may help further improve your technique and overall performance!
Now, since we just went over some rationale on utilizing the Bird Dog, I figured I'd talk
about the Bird Dog as well some variations of it. The first thing I will go over is the
bird dog itself. I'll be brief since I just went through my primary intentions for incorporating
this exercise. I guess the thing I will go over is relevant cues to remember when doing
this. The most important one is to pretend like you are balancing plates on your lower
back. This helps improve engagement and control of the muscles around the core and trunk as
well as the hip and pelvic region, which is typically my intention. Another thing to remember
is to try to get your shoulders and hips fully extended as this really challenges the lumbopelvic-hip
region. If this is tough, you can try a regression, which I will go over next.
The second exercise we will go over is Donkey Toes. This is a decent option to decrease
difficulty of the exercise if you had some trouble with the standard Bird Dog. Shoutout
to Jay Dicharry for this one. Now, if you guys know your exercises this almost looks
like the donkey kicks which is the standard regression of the bird dog. This is similar
since you only really use your legs, but with a bit of a twist. Here, you'll notice that
with this exercise you are on the toe. This works on a number of things that is relevant
to a runner. Being on the toes may help with big toe mobility, which is important to have
as you push off the ground. Another is that it incorporates engagement of the quads, which
is another relevant muscle as a runner.
Now, since we went with a regression, lets go over a fun progression of the bird dog.
This is known as the Loaded Bird Dog. This one is similar to bird dog, but instead of
extending the shoulder, you incoporate a weight and perform a row on that side instead. This
progression requires increased demands from the upper back. This shifts focus toward control
and coordination of the trunk or torso region. This may be something to consider if you want
to work on trunk posture.
Anyway, I hope my little rant helped you understand the relevance of the Bird Dog and whether
or not it addresses your needs for running! I'd love to hear your thoughts and if I should
continue to make these kinds of videos each week. And as always, THANK YOU FOR WATCHING!