With the recent release of our new Stryd power meter, we are more excited than ever about the possibilities of helping people run faster. Not only does Stryd measure how hard you are running, but it also measures how effectively you are running. In our recently released white paper download it here we discuss running economy – a measure of the metabolic cost of running – how it impacts performance and how you can use Stryd to help you improve it.

Leg Spring Stiffness and Form Power#

In many ways, running economy has remained somewhat of a mystery due to the fact that it is effected by numerous biomechanical variables. We mentioned many of these in Part Two of this series. Reasearch has shown that our newest metric, Leg Spring Stiffness (LSS), could be a major piece of the running economy puzzle.

Think of your leg as a spring upon which your body “bounces." The stiffer the spring, the less energy you must produce to propel yourself forward with each step. This new metric measures the stiffness of the muscles and tendons in your leg. Increases in LSS can indicate economy improvement over time.

Form Power is essentially your “running in place” power. It is another metric that is now available in Stryd’s PowerCenter. Decreases in your Form Power over time, when running at similar training speeds, is a good indication that you have improved your running economy. Highly trained and economical runners may already have near optimal running form but can monitor how Form Power changes with fatigue.

Now that we have discussed Stryd's new metrics, our upcoming posts will address the question, “How do I get faster?” Next week we will investigate the types of workouts and supplemental training that have been proven to improve running economy.