Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story:
- Advice for Beginner Runners running form.
- Strength Training Guide.
- My track coach was a genius for this one.
When I was 16, my high-school distance coach did something after track practice that I’ll never forget: He pulled out two tubes of Pringles from his backpack and told me and my teammates to grab some chips—not to eat, but to run with.
And when I say run, I mean sprint. Coach gave us instructions to hold one chip in each hand while doing 150-meter strides. My track coach was a genius for this one.
So off we went, potato chips in hand, sprinting on the track. On the first stride, I failed immediately, crushing the Pringles in each of my hands within 30 meters. But on the next sprints, I realized I needed to keep my fingers loose and light to get the chips across the finish line in one piece.
While this struck me as a silly drill back then, little did I know that it instilled a crucial tip in me for the rest of my life: Why relaxed hands are key to conserving energy and running efficiently. Guide to Mental Health running form, but it’s so much more important than you think.
Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story efficient and expending as little extra energy as possible. If you run with clenched fists or tense hands, you’re wasting precious energy that you can conserve by relaxing your fingers.
“The more you squeeze your hands, the more energy that you’re getting rid of through your hands—but you want all that energy to go into your actual running,” Amanda Nurse, a certified run coach and Wellness in Motion Run Coaching founder, told Runner’s World.
Nurse suggests visualizing holding potato chips to practice relaxing your hands—or, if you want to take the more literal approach that my high school track team did, buy an actual bag at the store.
Published: May 13, 2025 3:55 PM EDT Health - Injuries. Keep your upper body calm by relieving tension in not just your hands, but also in your face and jaw. And pay attention to other areas of tension–such as in your shoulders and neck–to avoid pesky upper body relaxed state on your run.
It’s especially important to practice proper form as you’re beginning your running journey. In Swing your arms, Runner’s World’s new video program that helps new runners begin a consistent routine with guidance from top experts—host Matt Meyer emphasizes everything from leaning forward to relaxing the muscles in your hands. “Swing your arms forward and backward, with elbows bent and your hands loose,” says Meyer, a certified personal trainer and run coach.
By establishing good form habits early, you’ll set yourself up for efficient running in the future. I didn’t know a can of Pringles—and some innovative coaching—would totally change my running life, but six years later, here we are.
Guide to Pro Runner Form Swing your arms will change the way YOU run? Whether you’re new to running, coming back from an injury, or in need of a form fix, The Runner’s World Guide to Strength Training. Matt and other running experts will show you how to start slowly using run/walk intervals that allow you to build upon your progress week after week, plus offer tips to ensure you avoid common beginner missteps that can result in boredom, fatigue, or injury.
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Ashley is Editor of Content Hype at Hearst’s Enthusiast & Wellness Group. She is a former collegiate runner at UNC Asheville where she studied mass communication. Ashley loves all things running; she has raced two marathons, plus has covered some of the sport’s top events in her career, including the Paris Olympics, U.S. Olympic Trials and multiple World Marathon Majors.
