OK, so we have all having to live and think differently at the moment and that includes how we exercise. We must continue to exercise for our own health and sanity.
I always believe ideally our exercise should include some outdoor activity, that said Joe Wicks, and his 30 mins exercise blast, supposedly for kids, is also very good for adults! I hope I am not the only adult participating!
Anyway, I have definitely noted LOTS more people are running. Our wonderful sunny mornings and the still bright evenings are perfect for this, plus, some off road paths are drying up too now (see if you recognise this local spot - wood anemones galore).
So I’d like to share some Running tips on how to keep injury free, as many of us are getting out more often and increasing distances!
1 - AVOID THE TERRIBLE TOO’S - doing too much, too soon, too fast is the number one cause of running injuries. The body needs time to adapt to your increase in running activity and it needs time to recover.
So follow the 10% rule - this means building up your distance by no more than 10% each week. So if you run 5km, then next week you run 5.5km and the following week about 6km etc. This is the same rule we apply when recovering and building back up from an injury too.
The NHS has its own great program Couch to 5km, which is over a 9 week period. I know lots of people for whom this has really worked.
2 - CHECK YOUR FOOTWEAR - what trainers do you have, how old/or how worn are they?
How comfortable are they? I know currently it will be more difficult to purchase new trainers, as we are reliant on online
shops only, but please try not to wear really old trainers, the support structure will not be good. We should replace our running shoes every 300 to 500 miles. There is not a single best trainer, as everyone’s feet are different and we are all doing different sorts of running. In an ideal world when you start running it is a good idea to visit a specialist running shop
as they can offer good advice. Keep that in mind for when we are able to move round more freely.
3 - LISTEN TO YOUR BODY - if something does not feel right while running or after your run, listen to your body. Running injuries don’t just appear, there are warning signs ache, pains, burning. Take advantage of my Online Video Consultations for advice.
4 - KEEP TRACK - it is a good idea to keep note of your runs, and when you have done some other form of exercise too. This helps keeps you motivated, as you can see your progress, and you can also make a note of how things feel on a run, are you knees or hips feeling OK, if you rest a day, does that help? There are many online training logs or you may have a GPS watch, or the Strava App which help you keep a log of your activities.
Most of all, enjoy your runs - listen to music, podcasts, nature, importantly listen to your body.
If you are an experienced runner, and are seeking to improve further, have a look at my Blog Running Elastically.
Enough from me! Take care, keep well, keep active, keep safe....
