I'm working on my running technique, so why are my calves sore?
A common complaint I hear from people who are working on their running technique is, “Why are my calves sore?” Let me start by saying that if you just have some mild soreness, then it’s probably just due to increased use of your calves as you transition from landing on your heel to landing on your forefoot. There may be some time while your calves adapt. This is, of course, assuming there are no underlying conditions or injuries affect the calves. However, if you experiencing severe soreness or soreness for an extended period of time then there are a couple of likely reasons for this, but they all stem from a common misunderstanding about running technique.
A Common Misunderstanding
About a decade ago, when barefoot and minimalist running were big topics in the running community, the most common advice for improving your technique was to shorten your stride and land on your forefoot. While it is true that people with good running technique will usually have an apparently shorter stride and will usually land on their forefoot, it is not true that simply adjusting your stride length and landing on your forefoot will result in better running technique. This is an important point, so let me restate it. Landing on your forefoot and shortening your stride is the result of good running technique, NOT the cause of good running technique. So the question remains, “Why are my calves sore from running?” There are a couple of likely reasons.
Runners with Bad Technique
The most common problem is that you are forcing a forefoot strike. If your running technique is good, you will land on your forefoot without thinking about it. It will just happen as a natural result of adjusting how you move your legs. If you are overstriding and forcing a forefoot strike, then you are putting a lot of extra strain on your calves, because you are not landing under your center-of-gravity.
Runners with Mostly Good Technique
Another common reason is overthinking your technique. Even if you are working on your technique and adjusting the movement of your legs appropriately, you might still be overemphasizing the forefoot strike, pointing your foot into the ground, and landing with an exaggerated angle.
What do I mean by “landing with an exaggerated angle?” Ideally, when you run with good technique, you land on your forefoot and under your center of gravity. When your forefoot touches the ground, an angle is formed between your foot and the ground. With a normal forefoot strike, the angle is very shallow. After the forefoot touches the ground, the heel will often touch the ground, particularly at slower speeds. To the casual observer, the runner may look like the runner is landing flat-footed. An actual flat-footed landing, also known as a “midfoot strike,” is very unusual, and it’s more of a marketing term than a realistic way to land when running, but that’s a topic for another discussion.
When a runner overthinks his technique and tries to ensure a forefoot landing, he will often point his foot into the ground as he is landing, increasing the angle between the foot and the ground. Doing this will put a lot of unnecessary stress on the calves.
So, what should I do about my sore calves?
When you are running, NEVER try to make a forefoot landing happen. Just let your feet land naturally. If you are naturally landing on your forefoot, that’s a good sign that you can focus on other elements of your running form. If you are landing on your heel, then you have work to do correcting your stride. The bottom line is that whatever you do, don’t try to force a forefoot landing.
