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Stability is easy when we aren’t moving. But as we run, and indeed run faster or longer, we introduce more movement and more fatigue to the equation.
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In my previous article looking at injury prevention for runners, I spoke about the vital role of our calf and quad muscles. To reiterate: the calves and quads do most of the heavy lifting when we run. But what about your glutes and core?
If you've read anything about running and injury, you've almost certainly heard inactive glutes or a weak core blamed. Glutes and “activation” have become synonymous with injury. And what exactly is your core? Is it that visible (or invisible) six-pack, or something more?
Is there any truth to what you know about your glutes and core, and their importance to a strong and injury-resilient stride?
This article is partly myth-busting, partly a reminder of what we do and don't know, partly a call to consider context (i.e., if it works for you, stick with it!), and partly pointers on when, why, and how you might train your glutes and core.
So, let's start with some running biomechanics – and what our glutes and core do each time we hit the ground.
What do our glutes and core do when we run?
If you've ever carried a very full and hot cup of coffee down some stairs or across a room, you know what ensues is a very careful and slow procession aimed at reducing movement of that cup and its hot contents.
When we run, our glutes and core serve an analogous function. Imagine our pelvis was that cup of hot coffee – our core and glutes work from above and below to prevent it moving too much as our legs move us across the ground.
To start, our glutes are a group of three muscles – gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus – that attach our pelvis to our thigh bone. Activity of these muscles produce and control movement at our hip joint (a ball and socket joint that can flex and extend, abduct and adduct, and rotate our thigh bone).
Unlike a simple hinge joint that can only bend and straighten in one direction, our hip joint requires an interplay between mobility and stability; mobility so that our hip can bend and straighten and carry us across the ground, and stability to control how much adduction and rotation occurs as we hit the ground.
In my previous article, the key role of our calves and quads in absorbing load and propelling us across the ground was discussed. While weak glutes have popularly been blamed for a lot of problems in runners, it might surprise you that the peak forces they contend with when jogging and running (sprinting being a different kettle of fish) are very modest compared to our calves and quads – only around 5–10% comparatively (Dorn et al., 2012).
It takes a great deal more force to create movement than it does to stabilise something. This difference in force production we see at the glutes points to their primary role as stabilisers. Specifically, stabilising the thigh so that it doesn't adduct or internally rotate under the buckling loads of gravity.
Given running is mostly concerned with creating movement of the leg back and forth, the stability demands relate to limiting adduction and rotation when we hit the ground. And while the three gluteal muscles – max, med, and min – are so named because of their size, they are not named because of the proportional role they play.
When running, gluteus medius produces twice as much force as gluteus maximus, and even gluteus minimus produces about 50% more force than maximus (Lenhart et al., 2014). This is because medius and minimus are located more around the side of the hip, much more appropriately placed to combat collapse of the hip as we hit the ground and force is transmitted up the leg.
When it comes to our core, different articles and authors will include different muscles under the core umbrella, but in our case, we'll consider our abdominal and back muscles – the muscles attaching our pelvis to our spine and ribs, which contribute to core stability for runners.
Part of the function of our core ties back to the function of our glutes. The force our glutes impart on our thigh bone, and the stability it creates depends on how still we can keep our pelvis. Our glutes would have a harder time at preventing hip collapse and thigh rotation if our pelvis was moving, and so our core controls that, creating stability from above to allow more efficient stability below at the hip.
Stability is easy when we aren't moving. But as we run, and indeed run faster or longer, we introduce more movement and more fatigue to the equation. With increasing speed and/or fatigue, our pelvis is more susceptible to tilting anteriorly (Maas et al., 2018), side-bending (Willwacher et al., 2020), and rotating (Saunders et al., 2005). Our abdominal and back muscles play a key role in controlling how much of this movement occurs. By doing so, our stride is more effective, in much the same way a sturdy hammer handle is much more effective than a floppy hammer handle at hammering a nail.
Do core and glute weakness cause injury?
Historically, glutes have been blamed for many injuries. But is that blame founded?
Take patellofemoral pain and iliotibial band pain – two common running injuries discussed in our first article. Since glutes attach partly to the iliotibial band and control thigh-bone movement (which links to the kneecap), you might assume weak glutes cause these injuries.
Nope. Glute weakness has been disproven as a cause of patellofemoral pain (Rathleff et al., 2014) and iliotibial band pain (Grau et al., 2008). So, if a physio blamed your weak glutes, don't feel bad. While strengthening might still be part of your rehab, these injuries are more likely caused by other factors such as a loading error.
What about strengthening your core? To say it prevents injury, we have to make some inferences. One study showed runners with less side plank endurance had higher peak hip internal rotation during running (Schmitz et al., 2014). Another showed injured runners had more hip internal rotation during gait (Burke et al., 2023). Putting those together might suggest core endurance helps mediate hip control.
But that conclusion relies on assumptions – and another study found side plank endurance didn't predict overuse injury (Luedke & Rauh, 2022). So we should be cautious about attributing core strength directly to prevention.
Beyond strength, what about trunk and core control? An Irish group studied 258 runners over 12 months, looking at characteristics of those who got injured. Increased trunk side-bend during running was identified as a risk factor for developing an injury (Burke et al., 2023).
So more than being strong, our glutes and core need to stabilise the trunk and pelvis. If it's not just strength, do we have an activation problem? Do we need to “activate” them to prime them for running and improve running efficiency?
Do our glutes require activation to run effectively?
Besides being called weak, glutes are also often called inactive or lazy, or declared incapable of firing on their own. In order to run, does some kind of pre-activation help them to function more effectively as part of a running warm up routine?
When we speak of muscle activation, we're talking about the signal being sent from a nerve to a muscle. The strength of the signal can be altered in two ways – by either sending signals down more nerves (called motor unit recruitment) or sending the signals faster (called rate coding). Both strategies have a similar outcome, which is to increase the strength of the contraction.
Both strategies – motor unit recruitment and rate coding – can be trained to be more potent (Duchateau et al., 2006). However, this is a long-term adaptation, not something that happens acutely in response to a so-called activation exercise.
Simply standing up right is an adequate stimulus to activate our glutes. We cannot stand upright without our glutes being active. Since we must stand before we run, our glutes do not have an activation problem, and do not need to be activated before we run.
It is possible however to acutely affect the strength of a muscle contraction for a given level of activation. This is called post-activation potentiation (PAP), where brief, high-load, non-fatiguing contractions produce more force in subsequent contractions for the same work (Lorenz, 2011).
If, before we ran, we wanted to use PAP to prime our glutes to work more effectively, would popular exercises such as side planks, clamshells or crab walks prime our glutes?
Remember PAP only works in response to brief, high-load, non-fatiguing contractions. These exercises produce only a small fraction of the glute work that running does (DiStefano et al., 2009; Connelly et al., 2020) or even what common heavy gym exercises like a Bulgarian split squat do (Collings et al., 2023). So, they fail on “brief” and “high-load”.
Side planks, crab walks, and clamshells probably don't do a particularly good job at that acutely, considering the demands of running. What these exercises may do acutely is reduce pain in the region by warming up the tissue. With long-term exposure, they may provide a gateway to develop neural patterns associated with stability across the pelvis, as is required when we run.
Tying things together, and practical takeaways
By now, you've hopefully picked up that:
- Your core and glute muscles primarily stabilise and prevent excessive movement at the trunk and pelvis when you run, supporting better running posture.
- The muscles on the side of the hip (gluteus medius and minimus) do most of the stabilising work.
- Strength in these muscles doesn't necessarily prevent injury on its own.
- Your glutes probably don't need “activating”, but they may need to get better at stabilising your pelvis.
One final bit of evidence: when comparing well-trained and untrained runners taken to exhaustion, trained runners maintained trunk position, while untrained runners couldn't (Maas et al., 2018).
Running itself – and the associated improvements in fitness and economy – may contribute to better trunk/hip stability over time. Never underestimate consistent, steadily progressed run training for your body's ability to stabilise around your trunk and pelvis.
If you're looking for ways to support a more stable trunk and pelvis, keep these points in mind:
- Don't pick core and hip exercises purely for strength. Also choose exercises that challenge your ability to hold stable trunk and hip positions, ideally in running-like positions (e.g., single-leg standing with a soft bend in hip, knee, and ankle). Standing Pilates-style work can be great.
- Jogging is a perfectly acceptable way to “activate” your glutes. Unless clams and crab walks relieve stiffness, reduce pain, or simply feel good, you can skip them.
- Building your running gradually may also improve stability as your body finds more economical ways to move.
- If you continue to struggle with trunk and pelvis stability despite the above, a physio or run-gait specialist may help with technique.
A person is performing a resistance band exercise in a gym, focusing on glute and hip strength to improve running stability
Disclaimer
The information provided in this article is of a general nature only and is not intended to replace professional medical, health, or fitness advice. It does not take into account your individual objectives, physical condition, medical history, or needs. Before acting on any of the guidance or recommendations provided, you should consider whether it is appropriate for you in light of your personal circumstances. You should always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare professional (such as a physiotherapist, podiatrist, dietitian, or medical doctor) before starting, changing, or relying on any exercise, training, or nutrition program. Rebel Sport accepts no liability for any loss, injury, or damage suffered by any person relying on the information provided.
References
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- Collings, T. J., Bourne, M. N., Barrett, R. S., Meinders, E., GONçALVES, B. A. M., Shield, A. J., & Diamond, L. E. (2023). Gluteal Muscle Forces during Hip-Focused Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation Exercises. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 55(4), 650–660. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000003091
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