Recently there was an explanatory article in English about the habits of effective runners and the correct approach to running. I think it will be useful for beginners and some continuing students, so I partially translated it, supplementing it with information from other resources and examples from my own experience.
Correct running here does not mean "heel or toe" and not a magic formula that allows you to determine how much you need to run and at what heart rate. We are talking about boring habits that should be developed by those who want to run for many years, developing and progressing with health benefits.
1. Goals are not only in numbers
Usually, when it comes to running goals, something like: "run a marathon", "run a half marathon under two hours", "improve a personal record" and everything in that spirit comes to mind. On the one hand, this is logical: goals as a result are specific, easily measured in numbers and have clear deadlines.
But you should not focus exclusively on them. The time shown in the competition depends not only on the effort invested in training and effort on the course, but also on many external factors that are beyond our control (hello captain obvious). On the one hand, such unpredictability is invigorating and adds adrenaline, but on the other hand, it often leads to disappointment, self-doubt and loss of motivation.
It is equally important to have goals related not only to the result in hours/minutes/seconds, but also to the process. After all, development and progress in running can be reflected not only in numbers. "Process" goals are the regular performance of some actions that in the long run have a positive effect on your running and help you achieve the outcome goals.
Here are some examples of such goals from my experience.
During the training cycle:
- improve running technique by working on its various elements during light training
- strengthen muscles by performing a set of exercises for the core, OFP
- strengthen legs by doing running exercises, running up hills
- approach training planning sensibly: listen to yourself, avoid overtraining and reduced immunity
During the competition, work on skills:
- to start calmly and control the pace in the first kilometers, when the adrenaline rushes with the crowd
- cope with negative thinking in difficult moments
- eat/drink on the go
- relax, don't clench your shoulders, don't tense your arms
- finish with a smile, not a beastly face, pressing the button on the harmin (epic fail every time)
And so on - I think the idea is clear.
It happens that the result of a specific start in numbers is not very high (too high-hurricane-heat-diarrhea-it didn't work-your option), but the achievement of "process" goals during preparation and competition becomes a good finish for further growth.
2. Enjoyment of the process
Many amateur runners associate success solely with results: the time shown in competitions or training, or the place occupied. It oppresses, causes unnecessary tension and dissatisfaction with oneself if the goals cannot be achieved. When the fun factor disappears from your favorite activity, and it turns into just a race for the result - it's not healthy. Effective runners enjoy the process of both training and competition.
Starts are the culmination of weeks or months of preparation, but after any competition we go back to training and further improvement. The ability to find "non-digital" joy will come in handy along the way. You should not fall into a gloomy mood after an unsuccessful race or a training session in which you failed to complete the tasks. Remember those moments and feelings that are valuable to you in running and bring pleasure. After all, this is not just another improved mansion?
Simple running joys - you just need to get out into the forest
Jogging in the forest, new routes, sunrises and sunsets, good company, the thrill of being in a healthy active body, a cleared brain - surely you will find something special for which you love running.
3. Consistency and systematicity
The surefire way to become better at anything is to do it consistently and systematically. It sounds easier than it is in practice. It's not just about running regularly, it's about developing healthy habits that will become part of your running approach and lifestyle.
Choose an exercise program that suits you and stick with it instead of chasing every new fad. Make a realistic weekly schedule that you can definitely follow without having to look for excuses in the form of a lack of time. Do not make sudden jerks and attempts to make up for lost time in a short time: it is much more effective to advance in small but regular steps. Success is the result of actions in the right direction, repeated day after day, week after week.
4. Training with different intensity
Don't always run at the same pace: Even if you don't intend to compete and consider yourself a turtle, it's worth getting out of your comfort zone several times a week by training at different levels of intensity.
Regular running at an easy pace helps maintain overall fitness and basic endurance, but a lack of variety and monotony in training eventually leads to a physical and mental plateau. Intervals, fartleks, hills, runs on hilly terrain and forest paths - all this is not only useful for running development, but also exciting.
Intervals bring special joy after their completion
5. Attention to general physical training
Moderate strength training aimed at strengthening the muscles helps the runner to balance the load, reduce the risk of injury and improve the form. You won't have to turn into a "duck" and disappear in the gym - functional exercises (squats, push-ups, pull-ups, planks, etc.) with your own weight or a small weight are much more beneficial. If there is an opportunity, he does exercises with stairs, running up and down
The minimum program: a complex of six ZFP exercises performed 2-3 times a week in several approaches.
6. Mandatory warm-up and stretching
Dynamic articular warm-up before running helps to prepare the body for more intense loads, light static stretching after - to return the muscles to their usual length, relieve tension. Training should be started and finished with a slow jog, so as not to put a sharp stress on the cardiovascular system.
Everyone knows about the benefits, but few actually practice it before/after every run. Little time, lazy, no habit. I also have work to do here.
Now things are like this:
- I start every workout with 2-3 km of easy "jogging" running
- before high-speed training, competitions - I always do joint warm-up, but before light runs - I'm lazy
- I finish training with a slow run, then another 5 minutes of jogging or brisk walking
- I stretch more often in the warm season than not, but the opposite is true in the cold season. At minus temperatures, it is better to move it to a warm room, but once there, you want to drink hot tea with something harmful rather than engage in additional body movements.
Even Kenyans warm up
7. Taking recovery seriously
The most effective and perfectly practiced training is nullified by insufficient recovery. It is during recovery that the very progress we seek occurs. If you do not rest enough, the body does not have time to adapt to stress and instead of improvements, fatigue accumulates. This leads, at a minimum, to the impossibility of performing the next difficult training session well, and if the case is advanced, then to injuries, reduced immunity and diseases.
When we rest, we get what we earned during hard training. Damaged muscle tissue, "tired" parts of the locomotor apparatus, exhausted energy system are restored, becoming stronger and more adapted to the next load - this is the idea of adaptation and gradual improvement of form.
A sufficient amount of sleep, a balanced diet, alternation of heavy and light training, a plan in which periods of increasing loads are diluted with recovery periods, and just common sense and willingness to listen to the body's signals are the basis of proper recovery and effective running.
My best practical teacher in this matter was my own rake, which hit me hard on the head - overtraining and the subsequent marathon-suffering. After analyzing the flights and analysis, I am guided by the principle "it is better to undertrain than to overtrain". I learned to listen to myself and distinguish well between the states of "the body does not want to run, and it has good reasons" and the usual whining of the brain, when you just need to tune in, be patient and work.
But with sleep, everything is simple for me: a couple of days of lack of sleep is enough, and I stop functioning normally, whether it is work, training or any other daily tasks, probably old age. So all you have to do is stick to your sleep schedule. During peak workloads during preparation for a marathon, the rate of sleep increases - you have to sleep an hour longer than usual on average.
8. Quality is more important than quantity
More is not bad, but it is always the best option. Running races almost every week, long 30s, and impressive weekly volumes certainly encourage improvement (as well as social media bragging rights). But in the end, the most important thing is the quality of training and starts, and not their quantity.
When planning your racing schedule, focus on a few key starts per year to be in peak shape for them. Regardless of your experience and training, it is impossible to constantly be in optimal competition shape, just as it is impossible to improve your personal record every time.
When it comes to training, effective runners don't put in mileage for mileage's sake, and they don't squeeze out a tenth rep on intervals if the pace has already started to drop by ninth. Every kilometer and every workout should have a purpose. To choose the most suitable combination of volume and quality training for you, focus on your experience and self-observation in previous training cycles. Here everything is individual, there is no universal formula for everyone.
It's still too early to talk about my experience: I'm still in the process and just starting to hear schemes that suit me. Of course, it would be faster with a coach, but, firstly, it should be individual work with him (club options are not suitable), and secondly, I am not in a hurry, I like to understand this myself and put rapid experiments on myself.
9. Do not become a slave to gadgets
A watch with GPS is definitely a useful tool for training. But everything is good in moderation, and excessive fixation on the clock readings leads to the fact that the important ability to listen to your body, run freely, at a natural pace and rhythm, and feel speed is lost. At least once a week, try to run without equipment, not focusing on numbers, but on sensations.
The same situation with music, which drowns out the ability to hear your running, and artificially increases the tempo. By the way, at many big races, headphones are officially prohibited for safety reasons, and this is written in the regulations. Usually the ban is violated en masse, but the fact remains: the organizers have every right to disqualify violators if they wish. So if you are too dependent on music in your ears, you should keep this in mind and at least sometimes train to run without it.
The truth of life
Щодо мого досвіду, то без годинника я не бігаю, але на деяких тренуваннях на показники темпу взагалі не звертаю уваги. Наприклад, під час відновлювальних пробіжок орієнтуюсь лише на зусилля. Коли тільки вчилася бігати у відновлювальному темпі, то дивилася на пульс, виводячи на екран годинника тільки цю цифру. Згодом навчилася відчувати його без пульсометра.
Another type of training that is not tied to the pace is hilly forest trails. I don't even look at the clock to be upset, but it seems that the pace is in miles on the screen? I also often do easy runs by feeling - sometimes it turns out faster, and sometimes closer to jogging. But I have not yet tried a competition without a watch and pace control - it would be interesting to run by feel, intuitively.
10. Recognize and appreciate your achievements, even small ones
Effective runners are always looking ahead with a goal in mind – the process of development is endless. But it is equally important to sometimes look back to recognize and rejoice in your achievements, even if they seem frivolous and modest.
Do not devalue what has already been done. Every time you cross the finish line, even without a personal best, be grateful for the work you did. The result is partly a lottery, but every finish is worth celebrating. This also applies to training: even if everything didn't go as planned, you were able to go for that run, which is a good thing.
Everything is strange for me with this item. On the one hand, of course, I realize that I am well done, the progress compared to the past and all things are clearly according to the instructions for slow runners. And on the other hand, my idea of a good result and a decent level is constantly pushed back. And even after successful races, the thought often comes that it could be better. For example, I am very satisfied with the result of the marathon in Berlin, and a year ago it seemed to me that "fast" people were running with such a time. And now a good time looks like 3:35 or faster, but not a minute more. Grandpa?
And how are you doing with proper running habits?