I need to get fit & want to try running, any advice for a first time runner?
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 at
6:01 am
Runner’s Question: I’ve tried running 3 times before and each time I’ve come out of it not being able to walk for three days! Ouch! Is it just a case of persistance and determination? Any advice for a first time runner? Length of run, speed? Should I be expecting it to hurt? How far should I be aiming to run in the beginning? Any tips at all? Thanks ; )
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Add your two cents! Answer this question (or check out the other answers) in the comments section below.
Tagged with: advice • Fit • Persistance • Running • Time Runner
Filed under: Runner's Advice
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keep running after a while the pain in your legs will go away.
I went through this difficult phase. But you are right – running is a great way to get fit FAST.
Always warm up properly. Walk briskly for at least 3-5 minutes, then increase your pace slowly. Jog for a few minutes, walk fast for a few minutes, jog, walk… do this for the first week.
Then try small goals. Jog for a mile (no matter how long it takes you) Your knees and joints will thank you for starting slow.
Increase each week or every other week. By the 6 month mark, you should be able to run 3 miles without any pain.
start out by warming up & finishing with stretches. Make sure you’ve got comfortable, good-fitting sneakers, too.
Start slow; jogging is better than running. Start with a half mile or so. Stay with this until it’s an easy jog. Increase it as you grow. Don’t swing or pump your arms a lot as this burns a lot of calories. Eat & drink some water at least 1 1/2 hours before you jog. Don’t do it when you’re real hungry as you won’t have the enrgy to sustain the jog. But, don’t jog on a full stomach either, or you may toss your cookies. Finish with more stretches. Don’t stop joggin suddenly, or you’ll cramp up. Before you stop, slow down your pace gradually. Finish by walking a little.
Pain is not good. If you cramp up, bend over & untie/tie your shoe. The cramp will be gone.
Hydrate when finished.
Everyone is different. My advice to anyone interested in running, is to take is slow, and gradually build up. People who do it the fast and hard way (yes, I was one of them at one point in my life too), almost never stick to it (too much pain). So here’s the plan:
Start by just walking a brisk pace for a half hour. When you’re comfortable with that, then do 4 minutes of brisk walking with 1 minute of slow jogging, repeating for the full 30 minutes. Once again, wait until you’re comfortable with that before you change to 3 minutes walking with 2 minutes of slow jogging. Continue adding a minute more of jogging, only after you can comfortably do a weeks workout at the previous level. Finally, you’ll be jogging the whole 30 minutes. From there, it’s up to you as to what you want to do. You’ll have good days and bad days, but make sure you listen to your body, and change your workout to how you feel. If you don’t and hurt yourself, you’ll end up being out much longer.
Once you’ve mastered being able to go 30 minutes without stopping, then you should begin to build a distance base (increasing your mileage is more important than increasing your speed). I typically ran shorter mileage on Tuesday’s, Thursday’s, and Saturday’s, with my long mileage day on Sunday, taking Monday, Wednesday, and Friday off. Adding rest to your schedule is important, because you need to allow your body to recover to get stronger.
Unless you’re specifically training to increase your pace speed, always try training at a speed at which your could comfortably talk with someone else if they were jogging with you.
This is the method I used myself when I began running again at the age of 36, and I just completed my 6th marathon or greater race this past Sunday.