Running Guide for Beginner

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Running Guide for beginner

The running process is not as easy exercise as many think so. You just can’t decide to run on the first day and be a successful running athlete. Running is a challenging sport as one can’t just wake up and run and be a successful running athlete. Before running exercise, proper running sports shoes are advised.

A beginner running athlete should start the exercise by walking at short intervals. Short running intervals with a quick beat stride are advised for a beginner runner. Since the non-runner has little experience with the running process, fast technical running intervals are recommended before acquiring the long stride running skill. Walking for a non-runner with short breaks is an essential exercise in learning how to run in a long stride (Looyestyn et al., 2018). After that, the non-runner should lengthen the walking intervals and include jogging after a few minutes of walking. Jogging at intervals helps in muscle strengthening after and allows the non-runner to energy recovery after any particular exercise.

After walking in short intervals, the non-runner should start running within short divided intervals, and in every break, jogging is also advised. Running at this stage should occur with quick strides. Running at this stage should also be slower to avoid being tired quickly due to little running experience. Running at a slower pace also reduces frustration elements and first-run-related injuries. The rate for the entire intervals should be uniform. The unequal speed in the gaps for the beginner may overstretch the muscles, and the non-runner may quickly become tired or instead may develop thigh injuries.

In the next stage for the beginner runner, running intervals should be increased, and the time frame should be increased slightly. Jogging after each break is also an essential element in ensuring that the thigh muscles are kept active to reduce the chances of injuries. At this stage, the running pace should also be slightly increased with a beat increased strides compared to the initial step. Warm-ups are essential in this stage as it aids in the running consistency and reduces the chances of getting tired quickly.

The next beginner stage is the cadence increase stage. Cadence refers to the stride rate or the steps per minute. At least 160-180 steps per minute while running should be the recommended cadence for a non-runner. Such a pace will gradually increase, and finally, the long stride pace will be achieved. Correct foot strike at the right time is another strategy to reach instead of performing long strides while running. The proper foot strike position is that the foot should be underneath the body and not in front (Maher et al ., 2018).

Symmetrical arm swings are an advantageous activity during running. The ideal arm swing should be at 90 degrees and a front to backswing, not side to side. Excellent arm swing is essential in making long strides, thus increasing pace during running activity. In summary, the running process should start by walking for 10 minutes intervals, followed by running warm-ups before the long-run performance. As initially discussed, expansion of jogging aids in the running persistence. Before you finish the discussed stages, one will be a perfect runner. Running exercise, in general, helps in muscle build-up, maintenance of healthy weight, bone-strengthening, and lowering the levels of cholesterols in the human body.

The provided running guide is helpful as it entails the practices that reduce the chances of injuries during the running exercise. All the running stages start from more straightforward steps to the final stages of becoming a complete runner. It is a safe running guide as all running stages are discussed in a detailed form and also states the importance of running to general human body fitness.

REFERENCES

Looyestyn, J., Kernot, J., Boshoff, K., & Maher, C. (2018). A web-based, social networking beginners’ running intervention for adults aged 18 to 50 years delivered via a Facebook group: randomized controlled trial. Journal of medical Internet research, 20(2), e7862.

Maher, C., Looyestyn, J., Kernot, J., & Boshoff, K. (2018). An 8 week beginners’ running program delivered using via online social networking: A randomised controlled trial. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 21, S26.