Mighty Oak Athletic Podcast S3:E72 - Run Like a Super Bowl MVP: The Real Reason Kenneth Walker III Is So Hard to Tackle Running is one of the most natural things athletes do. You put on your shoes, lean forward, and go. Because it feels simple, many athletes assume that if they just run more, they’ll become faster, more explosive, and harder to stop. But that assumption is where most athletes get stuck. If running alone were enough, distance runners would dominate football fields. They don’t. The athletes who look fast in games aren’t just moving their legs quickly—they’re producing and controlling force with every step. That difference comes from strength. What We’re Really Watching on Sundays When you watch a Super Bowl MVP-level running back like Kenneth Walker III, you’re not just watching speed. You’re watching power expressed through movement. His running style is calm, violent, and efficient all at once. He doesn’t waste steps. He doesn’t lose balance through contact. He explodes out of cuts and keeps his legs driving when defenders reach him. That kind of running is not built by conditioning alone. It’s built by strong hips, powerful legs, and training that prepares the body for chaos. The Engine Matters More Than the Gas Think about the body like a car. Running is the gas pedal. Strength training is the engine. You can press the gas harder and harder, but if the engine is weak, the car won’t go faster—and it will break down sooner. A stronger engine doesn’t just make the car quicker. It makes it more efficient, more reliable, and more durable over long distances. Strong muscles work the same way. They produce more force with less wasted energy. They allow athletes to sprint, cut, and absorb contact without leaking power or losing control. That’s why elite runners don’t look frantic. They look smooth. Why Hip Strength Changes Everything Elite running starts at the hips. The hips are the bridge between the upper and lower body, and they are responsible for transferring force from the ground into forward motion. At Mighty Oak Athletic, we prioritize hip strength through movements like deadlifts, squats, and lunges. These aren’t just “leg exercises.” They teach athletes how to produce force, control force, and redirect force—exactly what happens during a game. When hips are strong, athletes stay upright through contact. They decelerate under control. They reaccelerate without hesitation. That’s how speed becomes usable. Turning Strength Into Speed Strength alone isn’t enough. It has to show up quickly. That’s why explosive training is a major part of how we train athletes. Movements like box jumps, jump lunges, sumo jumps, cleans, snatches, and clean and jerks teach the body to apply force fast. Fast force is speed. Fast force with control is game speed. This is where you see the difference between athletes who can run fast in a straight line and athletes who can run fast when it matters. Why “Just Running” Falls Short Running is predictable. Games are not. Sports demand sudden stops, sharp cuts, awkward contact, and constant changes of direction. Without strength, athletes lose energy, lose balance, and eventually lose availability. That’s when injuries show up. Not because athletes weren’t tough enough—but because they weren’t prepared enough. Strength training doesn’t slow athletes down. It gives their speed structure. It helps reduce injury risk by making the body more resilient under stress. The Mighty Oak Athletic Philosophy We don’t choose between running and strength. We build both. We train athletes to move well, get strong, express power, and stay durable over the long term. That’s how speed lasts past halftime. That’s how confidence shows up on game day. That’s how athletes start to look less like joggers in pads and more like Super Bowl-level runners. Final Thought If you want to run better, don’t just run more. Build the engine. Strength turns effort into output. Power turns strength into speed. That’s how you run like a Super Bowl MVP. ORIGINAL ESSAY CAN BE FOUND HERE ON MIGHTY OAK ATHLETIC. Get full access to Mighty Oak Athletic Free Newsletter at mightyoak.substack.com/subscribe
