Top running tips for beginners and experts from Johnny Harrison
Running is a great form of exercise. It’s free, burns calories and makes you feel good. Well, maybe afterwards. I’ve trained people to run one mile and also trained people for ultra-marathons in excess of 50 miles. The distances are different, but the challenge may be the same for an individual. Here are some tips regardless of your goal.
Have a plan
Whatever your goal, mark it out and create a plan. If it’s to run 5k, pick a time frame and use that as your focus. Don’t max out every run and vary the distances. Always do one short run a week as part of your plan. Pick a distance you can run even if its 800m and run it as quick as possible. This will increase your anaerobic threshold and fast-twitch muscle fibre performance. In other words, you are moving that wall further away. The other run or runs should be your distance runs increasing steadily over the timeframe set. Be realistic with your timeframe and put in a contingency plan in case something may arise. Remember your body has muscle memory so if you miss a few runs you don’t need to go back to the start, you can keep improving and progressing.
Fuel your journey
Although everybody will have a different approach to the preparation for and recovery after a run, it is important to look after the basics. Stay hydrated! I don’t mean one hour before start guzzling water, I mean water is part of your plan. Try to eat after a run, even a banana within 20 minutes will speed up your recovery. Remember, a run is a deposit into the bank of fitness, make your withdrawal by refuelling and make sure you stretch.
Train the whole body
Running uses a lot of the same muscle groups so even if you are having rest days, eating properly, hydrating, stretching and following a plan, there is a risk of injuries long term. One way to help with this is cross-training and training the whole body. No need for a gym, you can do bodyweight exercises such as press-ups, squats, tricep dips or copy some of the exercises that are in our fit boost sessions or even go for a walk. Don’t feel you are slacking; this is all part of your masterplan.
Don’t be too harsh on yourself
You’ve bought the right trainers; you’ve made a plan, but you didn’t go for that run. Don’t be too harsh on yourself, look at your plan and make the distance up by spreading it across future weeks.
On the other hand, you are super committed but eight weeks in you feel fatigued just when you feel you should be pushing on. Trust me, you don’t decondition in a week. Listen to your body do a recovery run and I promise you will reach that goal. You will be lapping the person that ran through the pain and now has a chronic injury.
Running is great and it is so nice to see so many people enjoying this fantastic fitness activity at any level. Keep it fresh and keep it safe. Remember, you are in it for the long run.
Johnny