Fix Running Injuries: Why Your Head & Feet Matter More Than Your Legs | Helen Hall

What if the pain in your knee, your Achilles or your foot has almost nothing to do with the spot that hurts?

In this episode of The Aerobic Edge, I sit down with movement specialist Helen Hall — the person runners often turn to as a last resort, after they've tried everything and been told they might never run again.

Using one of the most advanced motion analysis systems in the world (affectionately known as Doris), Helen has spent decades uncovering why repetitive injuries keep coming back.

Her core message is deceptively simple: most injuries below the waist have their root cause above the waist — in your head and shoulders — or in your feet. Pain shows up where your body works hardest, but that's rarely where the problem actually begins.

We start with the head. Helen walks through what a forward-leaning head really does to your body: at 15 degrees it effectively weighs around 12 kilos, at 30 degrees roughly 18, at 45 degrees about 22. That's not a strength problem — as Helen puts it, there isn't a weak sinew in your body. It's a massive energy leak, and your hardest-working joints pay the price.

From there we get practical: how to use nothing more than your phone to see your own posture honestly, her wall exercise for finding true upright (which I try live on the recording), and why "upright and at ease" feels like leaning back to almost everyone.

Then one of my favourite parts: the arm swing. Helen invented a cue she calls the lemme — a figure-of-eight, the sideways infinity symbol. She shows the difference between pumping your elbows (which roots you to the spot) and rolling the shoulder girdle in that figure-of-eight (which sends you forward, opens your stride and makes you lighter on your feet).

We also cover walk-run strategy — including a runner in her sixties who ran a 4:19 marathon off almost no training — and go deep on feet: Morton's neuroma, numb toes, and a remarkably simple foot-wiping habit that helped one barefoot marathoner drop from 5.5 hours to 5 hours with no other training.

A quick note: Helen demonstrates several of these exercises on camera. If you're listening to the audio, you'll be missing those visuals — so for the movements, I'd recommend watching the video version on YouTube.

What you'll learn:

Why pain below the waist usually starts above it

What a forward head really costs you — energy leak, not weakness

How to check your posture with just your phone

The wall exercise for finding true upright

The lemme: how a figure-of-eight arm swing opens your stride

Why walk-run can make you faster, not slower

How to wake up "asleep" feet with a simple daily habit

About Helen Hall:

Movement specialist and author. Her second book, The Smooth Runner: 20 Ways to More Speed for Less Effort, is on the way.

Find Helen:

Website: helen-hall.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helenhallpfm/

Connect with Pace Buddies / The Aerobic Edge:

Website: pacebuddies.com

Book a free call: cal.eu/pacebuddies/freecall

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