There are countless physical benefits to running, including, improved cardiovascular health, weight loss and improved immune function. Running on a regular basis has also shown to help lower blood pressure and improves arterial elasticity. Interestingly, running also slows down the aging process because it strengthens body tissue and those who run regularly experience less bone and muscle loss as they age.
Psychologically speaking, running on a regular basis has shown to benefit overall mental health. There is substantial scientific evidence indicating that running regularly will cause a dramatic reduction in stress levels and also improve overall mood. In fact, this effect is so powerful that cardiovascular exercise, like running, is often prescribed as treatment for certain cases of depression. Running also presents a healthy arena for challenging oneself, and the psychological benefits of overcoming personal challenges are too many to list.
The purpose of this post is to reach out to all of those looking to start getting into shape and to show you how running can and will be your "gateway" into the fitness realm. Though I'm no expert, I will argue to the grave that the average person does not need a personal trainer. In fact, most of the people I've seen working out with a personal trainer seem bored, unmotivated and don't appear to be even slightly exhausted (what I personally feel indicates you're "working out"). This isn't because personal trainers are inept, but because they are tackling the problem from the wrong perspective. It is my belief that when training somebody who previously has done little to no exercise, it is fundamental to start off with a basic cardiovascular regime that raises the person's heart rate and causes them to break a sweat. My philosophy, if your workouts aren't making you sweat, you're doing something wrong.
So, to those beginners out there who are considering a gym membership as an option to begin getting into shape, I pose the following:
Step 1: Buy yourself a nice pair of running shoes. Don't skimp here, these will be your best friend. Expect to pay anywhere between $120-$200 for good shoes. Consider them an investment, because nothing is worse for your body, especially your ankles and knees than running bad shoes (remember when you run you place 30 to 40 times your body weight on each foot as you land). My advice, hit up your local running store, have them perform an assessment on your stride and buy shoes accordingly. They are the experts ... trust them.
Step 2: Assess your ability to run long distance. You may already know this, but if not go for a few light jogs to gauge your limitations.
The warm up: A proper warm up and cool down will prevent injury and allow you to workout more often and reap the benefits of your improving fitness. Keep warmups very simple, the goal hear is to begin warming up the muscle and lubricating the joints. It is VERY important that you never ever static stretch cold muscles (static stretching refers to what most people consider normal stretching). Static stretching is extremely vital to overall health and fitness, but should only be performed after muscles have been worked. The reason for this is because stretching when you have cold muscles puts a tremendous amount of unnecessary strain on ligaments and connective tissue, which actually causes more injury. Here's the warm up circuit:
- Prisoner Squats (10-15 reps)
- Alternating Split Jumps (20-30 reps)
- Jumping Jacks (15-30 seconds)
- Perform the exercises successively, rest momentarily and repeat once.
The Workout: Now its time to run. In the beginning, aim to run 2 or 3 times a week and increase this when you feel ready. This is where I feel some people go wrong, by focusing too much on one particular type of running. To put it simply, variety is key. Personally, I go on a week by week basis, and within the week I do my best to cover as many styles of running as I can. The following is a list of the basic styles you should cover throughout the week:
1. Short-distance and maintain a 75-80% pace throughout
2. Long-distance at a pace that allows you to carry on a conversation
3. Interval training, run as close to full pace as possible for short periods of time, followed by longer periods of walking.
Once you get a feel for the different styles you can decide what suits your needs and perform that type of running more frequently. Keep in mind, long-distance running at a pace where you can carry on a conversation is the best for fat burning.
The Cool Down: When you get back home, don't sit down right away. It's important to let your muscles cool down gradually, so continue walking around and stay on your feet. Here is where static stretching comes in, just make sure to cover all the majour lower body muscles groups (quads, hamstrings, glutes, calfs). How you stretch is up to you, but I suggest holding your stretches for 15-20 seconds. Another important point is to avoid eating too soon after exercise, since it draws blood to the stomach and away from the healing muscles. I usually have a hunger craving when I get back from runs so I grab a glass of milk. Milk is perfect after workouts since has loads of carbohydrates and protein which will aid in muscle regeneration, allowing one to workout more freqeuntly.
