# Chirunning – Using Gravity to Pull you Forward – Possible? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 4, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563 "2005-08-04T14:37:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![billsfootballbuffulo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dec6dc/32.png) [@billsfootballbuffulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billsfootballbuffulo)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/1 "2005-08-04T14:37:28Z")
One of the claims made by the inventor of Chirunning, Danny Dreyer, is that by leaning the whole body forward from the ankles a running can using gravity to pull himself forward. Is this even physically possible? Won’t the gravity pull the person straight down and the only thing that would pull the runner forward would be inertia and the effort of running. In fact would not gravity not only not help the runner but would hurt him by pulling him down? > [@](#): > > Is ChiRunning® good for Triathletes? > Triathletes love ChiRunning® because when they get off their bike their legs can take a rest with ChiRunning®. In ChiRunning® you can rest and relax your legs while gravity does the work of pulling you foward. > What is the difference between ChiRunning® and other running methods? > Most other running methods depend on strong leg muscles to get the job done so the emphasis is on conditioning. ChiRunning® focuses on using minimal leg muscles with more emphasis on using core muscles which are stronger and more efficient. As you learn to lean using core muscles, gravity does the work. In ChiRunning® the emphasis is on maintaining optimal running form. As we say, “it ain’t the muscle, it’s the motion [http://www.chirunning.com/about/faqs.php](http://www.chirunning.com/about/faqs.php) ---
**Author:** ![Hoodoo\_Ulove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/58956e/32.png) [@Hoodoo\_Ulove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoodoo_Ulove)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/2 "2005-08-04T14:52:47Z")
> [@billsfootballbuffulo](#): > > One of the claims made by the inventor of Chirunning, Danny Dreyer, is that by leaning the whole body forward from the ankles a running can using gravity to pull himself forward. Is this even physically possible? Unless you have a tailwind, you _must_ lean forward to counteract aerodynamic drag. Of course, you do this unconsciously and without the aid of expensive videos. The only way, on level ground, gravity pulls you forward is if you fall on your face, and this is good for only a short distance. ---
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/3 "2005-08-04T14:56:38Z")
sOUNDS TO ME LIKE HE IS LYING TO HIMSELF, AS A TECHNIQUE TO HELP HIMSELF RUN FASTER. ---
**Author:** ![Can\_Handle\_the\_Truth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Can\_Handle\_the\_Truth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Can_Handle_the_Truth)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/4 "2005-08-04T15:46:47Z")
Seems like you could accomplish the same thing by running downhill. Also it looks like it would be a better technique for rollerblading than for running. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/5 "2005-08-04T16:14:59Z")
The only picture I could find on a brief jog through their web site shows a runner **who is not leaning forward.** ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/6 "2005-08-04T16:25:36Z")
Using the method suggested in the OP; everything you gain in leaning forward, you would lose in having to push yourself back up. Sure, for your first step you gain the benefit of gravity without any extra effort in your part. But if you don’t devote extra energy to elevating yourself upwards in your very next step; within a few steps you’re going to find your face acquainted with the ground. The very mention of “Chi” is usually enough to set my BS detector off. Basically what’s being recommended here is that you don’t use your muscles to run, you use your ‘chi’. What’s 'chi"? To quote the web-site; “Chi is energy - the life giving energy that unites body, mind and spirit.” :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/7 "2005-08-04T18:16:39Z")
It’s also worth pointing out that walking, and especially running, relies on gravity already. Some writers have described walking and running as controlled falling, which is a fair description. The method described in the OP is a scam. ---
**Author:** ![billsfootballbuffulo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dec6dc/32.png) [@billsfootballbuffulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billsfootballbuffulo)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/8 "2005-08-04T18:48:15Z")
I don’t know if the scam is the way I would describe this. His reasons for running like this seem to be a scam, but actually running the way he proposes would help most people (I don’t think it would work well for heavy runners or runners who don’t have reasonably neutral biomechanics). Basically, the author is describing a running style that is popular among certain Africans (Ethiopians and Kenyans mostly) except he has changed the forefoot strike to a midfoot strike for some reason. This method should be vastly more efficient for people than jogging. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/9 "2005-08-04T19:16:37Z")
> [@Futile Gesture](#): > > The very mention of “Chi” is usually enough to set my BS detector off. Basically what’s being recommended here is that you don’t use your muscles to run, you use your ‘chi’. What’s 'chi"? To quote the web-site; “Chi is energy - the life giving energy that unites body, mind and spirit.” :dubious: Actually, the chi reflects off of the tin-foil hat and helps keep you in kinetic balance. You just have to make certain that your free radicals are properly ionized in a ketonic solution than that your scalars are properly polarized, else you might create a short circuit in your neuroquantum filaments. Hey, I could get good at this. I wonder if there’s money in this thing… Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/10 "2005-08-05T03:54:10Z")
Well, I’d say that’s about an 8. For the full ten you would have to have used in addition any two of the following: “penta-, aura, life-force, qi, energy, natural, toxins, purity, holistic”. Not bad though. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/11 "2005-08-05T05:02:43Z")
Maybe it’s like that thing in the _Hitchhiker’s Guide,_ where the secret to flying is not to think about flying. ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/12 "2005-08-05T07:22:18Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > Actually, the chi reflects off of the tin-foil hat and helps keep you in kinetic balance. You just have to make certain that your free radicals are properly ionized in a ketonic solution than that your scalars are properly polarized, else you might create a short circuit in your neuroquantum filaments. > > Hey, I could get good at this. I wonder if there’s money in this thing… > > Stranger Apparently there is: [http://www.chirunning.com/shopping/customer/home.php](http://www.chirunning.com/shopping/customer/home.php)😉 Anyway, I think gravity can be useful in getting yourself started, but not for anything long-term. In fact, a step that dancers often use as a “running start” when they need to get moving quickly in a short time is a _tombè_, which is literally French for “to fall.” Still, the link in the OP is BS. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/13 "2005-08-05T07:54:29Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > For the full ten you would have to have used in addition any two of the following: “penta-, aura, life-force, qi, energy, natural, toxins, purity, holistic”. And/or 'Vibrations, harmonics, energy patterns, force pathways and the prefix _bio~_, in conjunction with anything. ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/14 "2005-08-05T11:03:56Z")
I have created inserts for my shoes that is thin at the toes and quite thick at the heals. Wearing shoes thus modified gives permanent downhill lean, which means the wearer is always running downhill. I call them anteChiShoes®. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/15 "2005-08-05T14:04:14Z")
Leaning forward… isn’t that how everyone runs anyway? I’m a mite suspicious of anyone who liberally sprinkles his text with terms that are registered trademarks. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/16 "2005-08-05T14:17:09Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > I’m a mite suspicious of anyone who liberally sprinkles his text with terms that are registered trademarks. Would that be because as a technical writer you know that only the first instance of a trademark on the page should have the (R) symbol after it? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/17 "2005-08-05T14:34:38Z")
> [@antechinus](#): > > I have created inserts for my shoes that is thin at the toes and quite thick at the heals. > > Wearing shoes thus modified gives permanent downhill lean, which means the wearer is always running downhill. > > I call them anteChiShoes®. I have created a cranked neck brace which forcibly tilts the head of the wearer backwards by about 10 degrees; even if you’re walking up a slight incline, it will _look like it’s downhill_ and will therefore be much easier going. Except for the slight problem of tripping over unseen obstacles, which I have still to solve. ---
**Author:** ![snailboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/97f17d/32.png) [@snailboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snailboy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/18 "2005-08-05T14:41:56Z")
This guy should design vehicles. They wouldn’t even need engines; they can just lean forward. It would solve the energy crisis! ---
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/19 "2005-08-05T14:46:17Z")
> [@Scott Plaid](#): > > sOUNDS TO ME LIKE HE IS LYING TO HIMSELF, AS A TECHNIQUE TO HELP HIMSELF RUN FASTER. To elaborate on what I said, I believe that he is likely to be setting a nice, even pace for himself. Rather than attribute it to mental discipline, perhaps it is better to blame it on nature, or so he thinks. “That is why my strides are so even! Gravity is pushing me into a groove!” , he might say to himself. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563/20 "2005-08-05T14:46:18Z")
There was a ‘revolutionary’ design for bicycle wheels based on this principle a long time back - instead of the wheel being mounted on a single, tightly-fixed axle, it had a ring of pins passing through a ring of holes into which they only fitted loosely; the idea was that each of the pins would be ‘sliding down’ the slope at the back of each of the holes, so in effect the bike would be constantly travelling downhill. Total bunk, of course, but the exact basis on which many a proposed perpetual motion scheme has been based. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chirunning-using-gravity-to-pull-you-forward-possible/315563.md?page=2)