Run 8% Faster With Less Effort! Here's How | Jay Dicharry

11 snips

Feb 25, 2026

Jay Dicharry, a board-certified sports clinical specialist and running biomechanist, explains how better mechanics, tendon elasticity, and durability trump gadgets. He discusses running as elastic energy exchange, posture tweaks that can improve economy by up to 8%, why short ground contact and proper plyometrics matter, and practical strength and foot-control work to stay faster and more resilient.

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INSIGHT

Tiny Posture Changes Shift Economy By 8 Percent

Small posture shifts change running economy substantially; Jay's lab found up to an 8% change just by leaning slightly forward or back.
He tested runners at the same speed and captured power and economy metrics to show posture-driven differences.

ANECDOTE

NCAA 800m Footage Shows Form Collapse Costs Races

Jay showed NCAA 800m footage where four athletes began perfectly but form-broke under fatigue, losing ground and TV frame spots.
He used this to illustrate how fatigue-driven posture shifts cause seconds or minutes lost in races.

ADVICE

Train Plyos With Extremely Short Contact Time

Do plyometrics with very short ground contact times to train tendon recoil; target stance times similar to your running (≈0.19–0.24s for easy marathon paces).
Break jumps into small sets (e.g., 4 reps), keep them fresh, and favour a 6 in / curb height rather than tall box jumps.

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Most runners try to “get fitter” with more miles, more intensity, better shoes, more gadgets. Jay Deshari (board-certified sports clinical specialist, PT, biomechanist, researcher, and author of Running Rewired) makes the case that the biggest gains often come from something way less sexy: Better mechanics + better elasticity + better durability.

In this episode, we go deep on why distance running is largely elastic (tendons storing + releasing energy) and how small posture and movement changes can shift running economy by up to 8%, which can beat the benefit of most “super shoe” upgrades.

What we cover

• Why running economy is largely elastic energy transfer (joint to joint)

• The slingshot idea: you must absorb/storing energy first to release it

• Why “land under your body” can be misleading (you often contact slightly in front to load tendons)

• Jay’s lab observation: running economy changed up to 8% just from posture orientation (slight lean forward/back)

• What “form breakdown under fatigue” really costs you (seconds → minutes)

• Why plyometrics are the fastest way to train elastic return (and how most people do them wrong)

• Short ground contact is the point (don’t “hang out” on the ground)

• Avoid ego box jumps (knee-height max)

• Do them fresh, not cooked after a hard session

• A simple strength template for runners (especially 40+)

• 3 quality sets × 4 exercises (done fast, done right)

• 6–8 rep range, rest long enough to actually lift heavy

• Over 40: 2×/week strength often beats another run day for durability + longevity

• The truth about “stability shoes,” pronation/supination, and what actually matters

• Heel striking: not the villain. Where your foot lands relative to your body matters more than what part hits first.

If you’re a masters runner (or just injury-prone), this one is a goldmine.

Chapters

0:00 Intro

8:47 Run 8% faster with less effort

22:40 Muscles vs tendons for running

29:18 Plyometrics

36:38 Strength training

47:47 MOBO Board

1:01:48 Supination, pronation & stability shoes

1:0:31 Heel vs mid vs forefoot strike

#Running #RunningEconomy #RunFaster #Biomechanics #RunningForm #InjuryPrevention #MastersRunning #Plyometrics #StrengthTrainingForRunners #RunningRewired #JayDeshari #EnduranceLab #Zone2 #VO2max #TempoRun #SuperShoes #MarathonTraining #TrailRunning #Mobility #FootStrength