the rum soaked fist: internal martial arts forum

Why do middle aged people run with what I call

Old Man Shuffle?

How do I prevent or reverse this pattern?

Yeah it's loss of elasticity etc but still.

Don't just lift the foot and shuffle forward. Push off your toes.

friction step

Don't underestimate the shuffle!!!!

Instil in yourself the habit of one-foot balance when standing and walking. Don't just take a step, take a root, at least to some extent: connect to the ground when you walk, at least minimally and momentarily, and make a habit of it.

That is the single most important thing I found in improving the posture and stability of elderly persons, and it is a good idea to get the habit in middle age rather than waiting until your nineties. It is possible to do one-footed ZZ in a Zimmer frame, and show improvements in your balance and stability, but it is better if you are not starting that far behind the game.

When you look carefully at the series of actions involved in the old person shuffle, you see that where the body weight is supported is rather a disorganized and shifting matter. Far better not to let such habits develop. At the conclusion of each step, there should be a clear answer to the question of where the forces are going: into one foot or the other.

See: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=20568

[youtube]https://youtube.com/KymFaQlc2hQ/[/youtube]

lol, ok thanks. for me personally, one footed balance is pretty decent. maybe not compared to younger IMA people but probably way better than middle aged runners. I mostly play soccer (football/futbol) so change of direction and a few sudden sprints and stops is really the name of the game. But running around (indoor on a hard surface), shuffling just seems way easier on all the joints. But I don't necessarily like this habit. When I see myself shuffling around when we sometimes take video, it's a bit troubling. Mind you I don't look like the middle aged "runners" I see around town. Those people - I just want to tell them forget it and take up taijiquan and yoga for a while, but what can you do. I suspect what I and they need is much more flexibility. Maybe jump on the rebounder.

The "old person shuffle" can involve a multitude of issues. One of my old teachers from Taiwan would say that the Rape of Nanjing happened because people couldn't stretch their legs to run away. He complained that the Chinese people then were not physically fit. That didn't include martial artists. But, at any rate, it's what eventually led to the mass physical education programs. Still, we can see elderly Chinese people shuffling.

There are loads of studies on gait. Fwiw, I had to almost completely relearn how to walk after a spinal operation. When they say, "All it takes is putting one foot in front of the other," they're lying . One thing that you can always observe is stride length. Shuffling means taking small steps (for any number of reasons, including balance). A longer stride (if you are lucky enough to be able to stride), indicates a more efficient system. Arm-swing also plays a part. Older people who shuffle do not swing their arms. However, that swing is affected by shoulder, waist, and hip mobility (or spine, generally). If your back is stiff, etc., etc.

Also, because balance is involved (as Klonk importantly points out), eye, ear, and head position is important. If you look down, you throw off the ear orientation. Moreover, now your head wants to pull you forward. So, your body weight goes to the front of your feet, and you are essentially falling into each step. That can lead to hammer toes, but the effect is to slow the gait down to avoid pain in the feet. Slowing down also means that there is a tendency to do less walking, and you can imagine where that leads.

That's my experience.

Interesting. For sport specific reasons I deliberately use short steps for changes of direction and feints. With a little looking down at times. Very rarely is a high speed straight line run needed.

That shouldn't affect normal gait I hope. It's not that bad for me, but I want to be mindful of this pattern. I guess I should probably do some longer length stride runs plus extensive stretching as a balance.

Of course, a larger issue is - why does it feel less good to have all that impact as we age? I think that's why we see these people shuffling. There is less cartilage and elasticity and cushion everywhere.

Walk like a young person Erm, before smartphones and Instagram.

FYI Check out
https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti ... -survival/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3080184/

Skipping rope might be a way to practice impact management, along with timing and balance. You develop a certain vertical elasticity, act like a vertical shock absorber, because you are practicing up-and-down movement in isolation from the forward movement of running.

Some years ago, JW recommended to me that hopping on one foot is a very good way to develop "dynamic rooting" (as a development of the static rooting you develop by standing in a ZZ pose). The longer you think about that advice, the more sense it makes.

I once heard Vladimir Vasiliev say how men die from the feet up. The shuffle can come about through tension and fear of falling or being unsteady, which creates more tension. I have to go round my neighbour's quite regular to assist, he is 90 and often falls over, even with his frame. His upper body is locked solid.

So apart from stretching and the other advice I'd suggest some floor work to develop mobility - especially hips and shoulders - and some falling and rolling to keep the fear out of the body for as long as possible