Step Into Proper Running and Walking Form

More than two dozen Duke faculty and staff gathered at Wallace Wade Stadium on a sticky, late-summer evening to get pointers on an everyday activity they have all been doing for 90 percent of their lives.

They came to learn how to walk properly.

Live for Life, Duke's employee wellness program, offered the opportunity to learn the basics of good form and technique and ease into walking and running for exercise during the first of three workshops coinciding with its 12-week Run/Walk program. During the September workshop, faculty and staff got pointers from Al Buehler, Duke's former track and field coach of 45 years.

He offered the group bountiful advice:

Al Buehler's Tips

* Be selfish enough to put an hour aside for yourself.

* Cold and stiff muscles are more susceptible to injury. Warm up first to get the blood circulating, and then stretch.

* A full arm swing keeps the body balanced. Arms serve as a pump, which helps distribute oxygen throughout the body.

* Pain means you probably have overdone it. Listen to your body.

Get Fit! The next Duke Run/Walk Club begins in the spring. To learn more, click here.

"Technique is very simple," said Buehler, who is 77 and served as head manager of the U.S. track and field team at the Olympic games in Munich, Los Angeles and Seoul. "You land on your ball first and roll up to the top of your foot. You want to be as light on your feet as you can possibly be."

"Always breathe. That's important. If you're gasping, slow down."

"Your stride length should be natural. Be relaxed."

After listening to Buehler's tips, the group hiked down Wallace Wade Stadium's 95 steps to the track encircling the football field to apply some of Buehler's lessons.

Charmaine Jones, a medical center facilities staff specialist, gingerly made her way around the quarter-mile oval. She is in Duke's Run/Walk Club and has increased her walking time from 20 to 35 minutes.

"Mr. Buehler was very informative," she said after the workshop. "He told us when walking to walk with our heads up, not looking down at the ground. He made walking seem fun."

After a few laps, the group congregated in one corner of the stadium, their foreheads dotted with perspiration and their faces filled with smiles.

"Did you see how easy it was to break into joy?" Buehler asked.

The joy, however, was fleeting.

As the walkers disbanded, they collectively arrived at one conclusion: they still had 95 steps to climb. At least they had learned properly how to walk back up them.