Running in Reverse-why going backward is forward thinking!!
Running backward, also known as reverse or retro running is not as popular as running barefoot on a beach and will never be mistaken for the natural way to run. But a small number of scientists think that running backward enables people to recover from injuries, burn extra calories, sharpen their balance, and change their regular routine.
In a study published last year, Italian biochemists had a group of runners stride forward and backward at a steady pace. They found nearly 30% more energy was needed to run backward than forward. They think this can really help those with bad knees. They found that backward running causes less impact to the front of the knee. In a more recent study of female college athletes who replaced running forward with running backwards for 15-45 minutes, three times per week for six weeks lost almost 2.5% more body fat.
It has its drawbacks. The obvious one, you cannot see where you are going. It is recommended that it should be done on a track or with side by side runners with one facing forward.
The good news for serious runners is that backward does not mean slow. The best recorded backward 5K is 19:31; faster than most of us can hit the finish line going forward. The fastest mile is 5:46 and the fastest marathon, that’s right someone ran a marathon backward with a time of 3 hours 42 minutes. Now that is picking them up and putting them down or putting them down and picking them up….I’m confused.
