A Guide to Running: Part 1

Running can sometimes be looked at as an art – some people are born with natural talent and some can learn techniques to help them surpass what they ever thought they could do. Along with all forms of art, running takes a lot of time to master and it takes a lot of mental strength and concentration. Learning correct techniques from a professional (a coach) is very important when beginning your running career simply because it is very easy to develop bad habits. An example of a bad habit is running from your heal to your toe, but we will talk more about that later. In general, if you follow this guide, you will be able to sculpt a workout plan anytime you want. We will be discussing different types of runs, certain habits you should and should not have, and how to find a good place to run.

In a normal running workout routine, you will integrate multiple different types of runs into your program. These workout types include rest days, easy runs, long runs, speed training workouts, and hill runs. Each of these workouts take deep consideration before you actually perform them and you should know what you are doing before you jump into the actual run.

In this part, I will talk about some of the most important parts and types of runs – the warm-up, rest days, and easy days.

You can find the second part of this guide and many more types of runs and techniques to help you get in shape here.

We will begin with discussing the importance of rest days. Although they seem like just a day off, what is happening within your body is extremely important towards your future workouts and your overall performance. If these days in particular are skipped, and you go for a run regardless of the day, your muscles will not have been given time to properly recover from the intense workouts during the week. The word “recover,” though, does not seem realistic because most of the time, your muscles are not aching or sore. Because there are not many physical reminders, if you skip these rest days and do not allocate time each week for your muscle tissue to strengthen properly, your body will eventually become exhausted.

On rest days, if you feel as though you should be working out in a way, do not be scared to do so. Cross training is the performance of an activity other than running (or the sport that you are participating in) and if you would like to swim or bike on these days, it is generally okay.

The warm-up is the most important part of the run. Unlike many activities if you do not complete your warm-up properly, you run the risk of injury throughout your muscles. Think about when you just wake up. As you roll off your bed, your legs normally feel very tight. Because of this, as you begin your run, you need to initially warm-up your muscles to allow more blood-flow. More blood-flow allows your muscles to move easier without the risk of pulling or tearing said muscles.

To begin with the warm-up, you should run anywhere from a quarter to a half of a mile. It may seem like a lot at first, but you have to think about the warm-up as a part of your run. After this, you should be breathing a little bit. As you begin to stretch, know that it is not good to do so in a static manor. It is important to keep moving as you stretch to keep your muscles from cooling down. To do this, you can walk as you stretch. To give an example, as you stretch your hamstrings, do a stretch, take a couple of steps, and do another stretch, and when you make it to a certain point, jog anywhere from 20 and 30 steps. This will allow you to stretch your muscles while not letting your initial half mile jog to go to waste.

Every week, it is important to work very hard some days and work a little less other days. Do not be put off by what these runs are called, though, because you do not want to make the workout pointless. The point of an “easy run” is to keep your progress moving forward without anything really strenuous on your body, increase your cardiovascular abilities, and to recover a little bit from the harder run the day before.

An “easy run” should be planned a little bit ahead of time, and you should definitely know how far you are planning on running. You should choose a distance that feels fairly comfortable based on your current abilities. Do not try to run 6 or 7 miles if you have been running 2 or 3 miles the week before. Finally, your pace should be fairly comfortable too. You should be able to keep a steady conversation going if you are running with someone else. If you are breathing too much, I would slow down, and if you feel as though you are not working at all to keep a pace, I would speed up.

You can find the second part of this guide and many more types of runs and techniques to help you get in shape here.

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.”

“A man can fail many times, but he isn't a failure until he begins to blame somebody else.”

"Some people create with words, or with music, or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say, "I've never seen anyone run like that before." It's more then just a race, it's a style. It's doing something better then anyone else. It's being creative."

"It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse."   - Ann Trason

"I always loved running...it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs."   - Jesse Owens

"The will to win means nothing if you haven't the will to prepare."   - Juma Ikangaa, 1989 NYC Marathon winner