We Are Making a Difference

Training & Running Tips

How to run more often.
Slowly increase the length of a weekend run until you are up to a couple of hours fairly easily, and build up one other run (mid-week) into a real hard speed session. Treat the other two runs as steady general purpose training. When you are accomplishing all this fairly easily you could consider moving up to five sessions.

 

Find a running partner.
Training with someone else really helps. If you do train with someone else, you can talk and let your minds wander! Before you know it, you'll have been running for an hour and a half!

 

Keep a record.
Get yourself a training diary (just an ordinary diary with "training" written on the front will do). Fill it in every day, even if you fill in "nothing".

 

Blisters.
The night before a long run, put petroleum jelly all over your feet, put socks on and to bed. The petroleum jelly softens the skin while you sleep. On the day of the run, put Body Glide all over toes and areas you might get a blister, and wear double layer socks (Wright makes good ones).

 

Run Better: Join a Club.
If you want to improve your running, joining a club is the best thing you can do. Most clubs have members with a range of experiences, so don't worry that you'll be too slow: look in the results of the last race you did, and you'll see your local club will have several runners ahead of you, and a number behind you.

 

Keep speedwork simple #2: do Yasso 800s.
Yasso 800s are simple speedwork for marathon training. You run four to six 800m efforts, each in a minutes:seconds equivalent to the hours:minutes target you have for the marathon. After each effort, take an equal-time recovery. So, a three-hour 45-minute marathoner would aim to run 4-6x800m in three minutes 45 seconds each, with a 3:45 jog recovery between each. You aren't supposed to run Yasso 800s as hard as you can. Instead, you should be able to complete the number you set out to do at the start. It is okay to take longer recovery periods in order to do the 800s at the pace you have set out to do.

 

Run like a tortoise.
We can't lie to you. This isn't a sport of instant success and miracles. Patience pays off, often in a very big way. At the beginning of a marathon-training programme, many participants can't imagine themselves running more than five miles. Twelve to 16 weeks later, the cheers of the crowd and the unbelievable exhilaration of reaching a marathon finish line are theirs. Stick with the programme, and prepare to be amazed.

 

Pay attention to your shoes.
Some things should be obvious, and this is one of them. But it's worth repeating, if it keeps even one of you from getting injured. Most shoes wear out after 400-600 miles. You often can't see the wear, but your knees, hips, back and Achilles tendons will feel it. Give your old, worn-out shoes to a local charity shop, and get yourself to a specialist running shop for a new pair.

 

Practise good posture.
Not just when you're running, but all the time. This is especially important if you have an office job and are sitting at a computer all day. Make sure your keyboard and monitor are properly positioned, and sit straight but comfortably in your chair. Good posture can improve your running efficiency and decrease injury risk. Ergo: better consistency.

 

Run on different surfaces.
See how many different surfaces you can run on in a week: Tarmac,

gravel, trail, grass, track, treadmill. Each stresses your leg muscles in a slightly different way, helping to prevent injuries. If possible,

avoid concrete, the hardest and least accommodating surface for

runners, altogether.

 

Stay hydrated.
Eat your fruit and vegetables. Get plenty of sleep. We know - you've heard all this stuff before, so we won't nag too much. But remember that the simplest, most basic advice often makes the biggest contribution to improved consistency.

 

Don't obsess about it.

It would be great if every day went exactly as planned, and every run fitted in perfectly. But life has a way of playing tricks on all of us - good and bad. Don't worry about the runs that you miss. When all else is said and done, the best advice is often simply to run with a smile on your face, and to enjoy and appreciate every session. Come to think of it, that's always the best advice.