“How long does it take to run 10km?”
Now she’s not a runner, and as far as I know she’s not harbouring a secret longing to become a competitive runner. I didn’t even know running was an activity she ever did! Last time we discussed exercise, it mostly focused on how boring it was, and how great it was that gyms have a lot of different machines as she gets bored after 6 minutes, so at the gym she can switch from treadmill to bike to cross-trainer to rowing machine and still have spent enough time working out to make it worthwhile.
So without really knowing where this was going, whether she was planning for a race, whether she’d just completed 10km, or this was a question at a pub quiz; I replied covering all bases.
An hour is a pretty good target if you’re running a few times a week, 50 minutes requires some definite training and then under 40 minutes is pretty awesome…
It turned out she’d just run 8km in about an hour – which I was pretty impressed with. If you just suddenly decided to go out for a run and cover that sort of distance/time then that’s a pretty good starting point. I mean, that’s definitely not power walking, that’s running! But of course, she was pretty tired afterwards, not helped by choosing to run on one of the hottest days of the year! And of course this tiredness led her to the conclusion I hear from so many people “running is hard.” Lots of my non-sporty friends ask me how I run so much, how I run full stop, isn’t running really hard etc. All this makes me think it would be worth putting the RUNNING = HARD myth to rest and laying out some of my top tips for getting into running...
Is running hard?
For me, some days running feels really hard, some days it feels really easy. Of course that’s got a lot to do with what my training schedule says and how fast I’m trying to run. To all the beginners out there who are looking at the glorious weather and wanting to enjoy the sun whilst getting fitter, I would say: NO running is not hard! However, you do have to approach it in the right way.
At Uni I ran a social running group for new runners and loved seeing everyone develop, improve their fitness, make new friends and get to know their new university environment. I loved helping newbie runners realise that running doesn’t have to be hard! Starting to run for the first time, especially if it’s been years since school cross country, isn’t always the easiest thing, but if you approach it correctly it doesn’t have to be so horribly hard that it puts you off for another few years. Bearing in mind that when I finally get back running after this injury I’m going to have to take a similar approach, I’ve put together my top tips for running newbies.
1. Start off slow and then pick up the pace. It is definitely not possible to sprint flat out for 20 minutes, although this is generally how young children try to run! You can always get faster if you realise you’ve been running for 5 minutes and still feel comfortable. However if you start off fast and then slow down, lactic acid builds up in your muscles making it seem a lot harder, even when you’ve slowed down.
2. Don’t be afraid to walk. After injuries before I’ve had orders from the physio to run for 1 minute, walk for 1 minute, run for 1 minute etc as part of a gradual build up. Recognise your own fitness level and work to this! You should be increasing your heart rate and your breathing but NOT to the level where you’re gasping for breath and considering whether you’re actually experiencing a heart attack!
3. Set targets. If you ran for 5 minutes on Tuesday, try to run for 6 minutes on Thursday and gradually increase your way up to 20 minutes. Don't forget to bask in the sense of achievement once you've hit that target!
4. Build up gradually! Once you’re feeling comfortable running, don’t suddenly try to run every day – your body won’t know what’s hit it and you risk overdoing it. Instead run every couple of days and as things feel easier move to running every other day. Give your body time to adapt to your new running regime and you’ll find it much easier.
5. Variation – the best thing about running outside instead of going to the gym is the scenery! Find a nice park, some woods, a canal or whatever your local area has to offer. And then mix things up – don’t do the same route every time. Try and explore a new park, or even just run your route backwards to keep things interesting.
6. Variation again – use your new found fitness to enjoy other activities. Cycling, swimming, new gym classes will all feel easier now and provide great variation as well as giving different muscles a work out.
7. Variation, yet again! Maybe you’ve been running on your own, or you’ve roped your best friend into running with you. Either way, there are hundreds of thousands of fellow runners out there and Run England have a great service that helps you find local groups to run with: http://www.runengland.info/
10. Enjoy it! Running can be great “me-time” – it’s a great way to unwind from the stresses of the day, listen to music or mull things over whilst getting some fresh air. It can be a great way to meet new friends and build a new social circle. You can set yourself goals and challenge yourself and explore new areas. However hard you want to run, make sure you enjoy yourself. I always do!
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