According to a study at the University of Oregon, running backwards reduces impact on the joints and helps in protecting you from knee & back problems. It is considered to be a shortcut to get fit ! As the study suggested, reverse runners need to move at only 80% speed than forward runners to gain same benifits. Another study by Stellenbosch University in South Africa also suggests that this technique can improve cardio vascular fitness as reported in The Daily Mail.
The study was based on effects of six week, female students running backwards three days/week while others were left to continue with their normal fitness routine. At the end, reverse runners were found to have significant decrease in their oxygen consumption, meaning they were aerobically fitter than before and they had also lost 2.5% of body fat.
James Bamber, the organizer of the UK's backward races, says that running one lap backwards is equivalent to running 6 laps forward. This is not a new concept, emerged during 70s, when sprots doctors started recommending reverse running to injured athletes !
So what do you think now ? Reverse is better ? ;)
