Walk — don’t run — to the newest fitness trend: speed-walking

Kimberley McGee

Sunday, Sept. 5, 1999 | 10:12 a.m.

Every once in a while they can be seen, duck-walking down the road at a fast clip, their awkward gait open for mockery. But don't laugh, their numbers are growing.

Speed-walking has jumped in popularity and respect as runners become walkers after getting the bug to high tail it down the road instead of taking a meandering walk.

Connie Boch of the Summerlin Running Club says that walkers are showing up in their early morning runs and can pass the joggers at a good clip.

"I've seen more and more out there," Boch says. "We get together to run and some people come along and (speedwalk)."

Speed-walking is a form of, well, walking -- fast. But there are rules to separate the sport (which has roots dating back to the Romans) from mere strolling or jogging. One foot must be on the ground at all times, which makes the muscles work constantly. The heel of the foot goes down, the weight is rolled along the outside of the foot to push off from the toes while the back leg comes forward and sets down the heel and pulls the body forward. This works the hips in a back-and-forth direction instead of side-to-side, giving the shimmy-in-overdrive appearance.

Victoria Herazo is a two-time race-walking Olympian from Henderson who ran across the sport in 1987 at a marathon. Race-walking is to speed-walking what a game of touch football is to the pros.

"I can get better time on (a mile) walking than I ever did in high school (running)," Herazo says.

The awkward gait came fairly naturally to the athlete who set record times at the Los Angeles Indoor Marathon within four months of her first steps -- racing steps, that is.

"It's certainly better for your health as opposed to running," Herazo says.

Jim Bentley, Herazo's trainer for 12 years, says that race-walking puts only a quarter of the pressure on the body that running does because the feet don't leave the ground, ergo, landing is not as traumatic to the quivering muscles and jolted joints. This form also leads to fewer injuries. A University of Colorado study found that while the cardio fitness levels are the same with race-walking and jogging, runners suffered significantly more injuries than walkers.

For strength, race- or speed-walking tones the buttocks and abdominals more so than running because of the tight concentration.

"You use 12 more muscles than (you do) running," Bentley says. "You use everything from the hip down."

And it can be a faster form of transportation. Experienced race-walkers can pass many joggers with their speedy form.

"Your speed comes from pulling with heels and pushing off with the trailing leg," Bentley says.

Many walkers think a long stride will propel the body forward faster, but that is simply a waste of energy, Bentley says. Shorter, more frequent steps contribute to greater speed.

"I need that quick turnover, I can't get my legs going if I take long strides," Herazo says. By turnover, she means her hips. If they can go through the rotation faster then her stride becomes quicker, like an engine with pistons.

Concentrating on the form, which appears rigid but is actually relaxation in motion, makes for overall concentration.

"It's challenging, you have to maintain (form)," Herazo says.

The morning air lifts the Olympian's hair from her neck, cooling her as she picks up speed, hips rolling through the practiced motions. She practices two hours in the morning, either for distance or sprinting, and another two hours in the evening to total about 20 miles a day.

Race-walking has been an Olympic sport since 1898 and is taken very seriously overseas.

"Here, people just aren't into it as much as in Europe, not at all," Bentley says. "But it's the second oldest sport in track and field."

Roberta Hatfield, race-walking chairwoman for USA Track & Field of Southern Nevada and membership chairwoman of the Las Vegas Race-Walking Club says the sport can be picked up by anyone, but it's not a simple art.

"It's hard work, it's not like running," she says. "You have to keep thinking about it. There is a lot of technique to it. (But) some people who have never exercised picked it up right away. Anyone can pick it up."

Hatfield recommends a little support by a friend to reinforce good form for the mind/body exercise, which requires concentration and stamina.

"You have to think, 'Is my head up? Is my neck straight?' And you think a lot about relaxing," Hatfield says. "You exercise every muscle in your body. It takes more concentration than running because you have to think constantly about all that goes into it."

The hard part is the footwork, which makes the hips drop and, in turn, causes the waddle effect.

"It's really kind of like you are rolling on your feet," Hatfield says. "If you are walking, your feet hit the ground flat. If a person is just trying to walk fast, it's too choppy."

The hips are moving forward and backward, not side to side, creating a fluid motion.

"A lot of the motion is really like running. The only difference is that you are rolling on your feet and your knee is straight when it's in front of you," Hatfield says.

Both beginners and experienced athletes have to get used to the somewhat awkward positioning of the body in the quest to get that aerobic high.

"A person can start walking and maybe get down to 12-minute miles, but then you have to break down into a race-walk speed to get any faster," Hatfield says. "They have to pick up their arms and their toes and get into the rolling gait to pick up speed."

But for runners, old techniques find their way back into the form, which is why it's good to have a buddy to point out those deviations.

"(They're) used to picking their knees up," Hatfield says.

But the good walkers, the ones who have put their heart and sole -- uh, soul -- into the sport, create art out of form.

"The really good walkers float around the track, their heads don't bob, they stay even. They should look relaxed, graceful and fluid," Hatfield says.

Anyone can waddle their way to a healthier heart, from age 2 to 92, and most of the local malls have speed-walking clubs and/or races. The Las Vegas Race-Walking Club, formed in 1993, gets jiggy with it every Saturday morning at Jaycee Park on St. Louis and Eastern avenues and its members are always happy to hear the patter of another pair of feet on their morning walks.

"It's definitely gaining in popularity. It feeds on itself, it attracts more people, there's less injury (than running)," Hatfield says.

"And it's fun."