It began this morning.
I’d long wanted to do it, but I needed some added input and motivation. And now it’s actually happened.
At six a.m. I got up, changed into my new running gear (shoes, trousers, tee and stopwatch) and headed out the door for the first stage of my freshly-downloaded running program.
It’s called Start to Run and has been rather popular recently. It begins with a mere 9 minutes of running spread over 18, and promises to have me doing 5 kms in 10 weeks.
I’ve no idea if this is a lot, or in a reasonable period of time, but I’m excited to get at it. This morning went well, the will and urge are there, what could go wrong?
If you’d like to try it, I translated and put up a PDF of the schedule.
Or, maybe you’re more experienced than I am, young Marathon Man that you are… In that case, what mileage are you at, what are the pitfalls a new runner will face? Advice, tips and support (particularly the latter) are welcome.
In short, what could indeed go wrong?
9 May 2008 at 1:57 pm
Good for you, man. It takes (I think) a lot of willpower to up and start something like that, especially if you’ve not done anything like it in a long time (which I don’t know is the case with you, but anyway).
Let us know how it goes. Don’t overdo it. :)
9 May 2008 at 2:01 pm
Make sure you stretch immediately after running. It is very important and will help you not feel sore. Hold each stretch for 30 seconds. Stretching before (after a little warm-up) is also a good idea.
9 May 2008 at 2:10 pm
Thanks guys.
Josh, you think rightly. Motivation, motivation, motivation is what you need. I hope I have enough of the stuff. Also, yes: I had begun to do a bit of DIY workout at home, but nothing this ‘drastic’. I’ll keep you posted.
Joe, I knew about the stretching after, but except for jumping around a bit out of sheer nervousness I didn’t get much of a warm-up. And I didn’t know about the 30 second thing either, so thanks for that.
9 May 2008 at 5:34 pm
Good for you, Nils! I’ve trained for and run a marathon before but had problems immediately after. I had knee problems on one side – but I can definitely say your run-walk program is a great way to get started. :) It’ll build up your endurance and get your muscle memory trained to go longer.
I have to stress that there are a few stretches that are really important. Stretch your IT bands (the ones on the outer side of each thigh). They tend to get tight with running and track your patella (kneecap) to the side. Also with running your inner thigh muscles tend to get weak because with all the pushing forward, you don’t use those very much (which enable you to go side to side). Strength train them by doing hip abductors and adductors. You can google all the terms above. :)
9 May 2008 at 6:44 pm
Excellent news Nls. I think you’re making a great choice by undertaking this.
Whilst I certainly haven’t run a marathon I did jog for a long time. I had a 4km loop that I’d jog once or twice depending on how much time I had.
My only problem starting out, and I would offer this opinion, was the mental aspect of actually getting out. I would recommend you don’t think too much about jogging, don’t talk too much about it, and don’t focus on it when you’re doing it. Just do it as Nike says. Treat it like teeth brushing in the morning, not overly fun but useful.
Over time you’ll become addicted to running if you’re that type of personality. I found that you can measurably track your progress when running and that becomes a goal of sorts.
As was mentioned by others, stretching is crucial. But e*star has much more knowledge in that respect so listen to him :).
9 May 2008 at 10:42 pm
Esther, thanks a lot! A mate of mine ran one and I know about the possible complications. These are some great pointers.
And Tom, thanks too, because that is exactly what I was aiming for: make it a second nature to run, not a chore.
I’ll definitely keep you posted.
14 May 2008 at 6:17 am
Good for you Nils. My wife and I went from living completely sedentary lifestyles to running a marathon in four months on a program like that. Unfortunately, only one of us has decided to keep up with any sort of physical activity.
The other one of us decided to crawl back into his cubicle and slowly become a square again.