Her legs seemed to be moving at different speeds, she wobbled, nearly fell backward and took no more than nine or 10 steps before ending her stroll with a forward dive onto the rug. Sabrina laughed heartily at her accomplishment, and I laughed, too-and then almost cried, because Sabrina had taken one of life's biggest steps. Since those first shaky steps, Sabrina has quickly become an efficient walker. No one taught her to move in a more economical manner. She taught herself.
New runners go through exactly the same process.
They run inefficiently at first, with less than powerful strides and anything but stability. Like Sabrina, they eventually develop their own unique, considerably more efficient running style. Like Sabrina, they teach themselves. The more efficiently you run, the faster you can go and the better you'll feel. So it's no wonder experts have tried to teach runners to move more efficiently by tinkering with their form.