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Initiation into Running

For the veterans and the addicts, running is intuitive and the question by a newcomer as to how to start running seems rather superfluous😏. When my daughter threw me the same question, I had to think for a bit before giving her a useful answer. 


For a new initiate, I feel there are 3 stages to be up and running.


Stage 1.     Focus on time: All you need to do is spend time on your feet. Start with brisk walking, then start doing a walk-jog, walk-jog sequence and then graduate to a slow but continuous jog. The sole aim being to build up the minutes. So you only need a watch to track your progress. Be mindful, focusing on your posture, being aware of your feet hitting the ground, your stride propelling you forward. Starting from a 20 minutes outing and gradually going up to a 40 minute non-stop jog would be a reasonable goal. 


Stage 2.     Focus on distance: Once you have gotten comfortable with jogging and attained some sort of a rhythm, start putting more effort into your jogs. Start feeling the rhythm getting better, leg turnover getting brisker, heart thumping louder and sweat flowing more. Your sense of achievement grows as within the same span of time you start covering greater distances. Now’s the time for a GPS enabled watch that tracks your time and distance. From around 4 kilometers in 25-30 minutes, going up and covering around 5 kilometers in the same time span would be a reasonable target. Next target would be around 7-8K in 45 minutes and 10K in an hour. 


Stage 3.     Focus on pace: Now you are a committed runner and the foremost question in your mind is 'What next?'. Longer distances would be one option, but my suggestion would be to start working on your pace. An app like Strava on your phone or a sports watch like Garmin would be helpful. You get loads of stats and insight into your running form and also virtual coaching on some apps. Terms like cadence, stride length, ground contact time and pace (of course!) start occupying your mind space. From a pace of 6-7 minutes for a kilometer, gradually improve to a 5-6 minutes to a kilometer pace. The more athletic and high-achieving amateur runners are going to end up with a pace of 4-5 minutes to a kilometer. Now is the time when it is important to focus on your running form, build your muscle strength and work on a strong core...all to ensure injury free running and feel the exhilaration.


So there you are, sweet daughter of mine, start clocking  the minutes, then racking up the miles and finally upping the pace. Simple?🤗.... Now GET GOING!! 🏃

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