At first glance, people can run from childhood, and in order to improve their health or lose weight, no technique of running is needed. But usually at the very beginning of the “natural” training, beginners face muscle and joint pain, and especially stubborn ones, who continued to practice despite the discomfort, go to the raid by doctors. So, after all, there are some subtleties as to how to run correctly, and before you start to go in for running sports, you should familiarize yourself with them.
Beginner’s runner’s mistakes – why it is important to master the technique of running
Take a walk in the morning to the nearest park and watch the runners there. Traditionally, most of them consist of young boys and girls, women and men of 30–40 years old are in the minority. Most likely, there are no professional runners among them; most of the runners try to lose weight and improve their physical fitness. Take a closer look at how they run:
- keep asphalt pavement;
- talking with a companion, noisy and uneven breathing;
- loudly, with cotton, lower the supporting leg;
- swinging the body, waving their arms strongly;
- they often stop, then start abruptly again, trying to catch up with the lost time.
All these are clear harbingers of the fact that today or tomorrow these people will feel physical fatigue, pain in the knees or in the spine, tingling in the side or in the heart. Beginners often run cold, injure joints and stretch ligaments, feel sudden surges in blood pressure, or simply do not see the planned result. It is quite natural that after running a week and a half, they stop classes.
And all that they should have done was to consult about the characteristics of their body with a family doctor, read several competent articles explaining how to run and technique of running at a short distance, preferably with a trainer-runner.
Running for weight loss: how to competently and safely start training
Recreational jogging is truly one of the physiologically correct and accessible types of physical education. Regularly going out for jogging, you can not only lose weight but also cope with stress and depression, improve performance, look and feel much better. But before you start running, you need to be well prepared by examining some of the recommendations that are important for a beginner.
Decide where to run
Of course, the ideal place for healthy loads on the body is a cultivated forest or boron. But the opportunity to run through the forest paths, breathing rich fresh air, is not at all. Many have to be content with just the street. However, remember that even for the sake of losing weight, you do not have to run along busy highways – inhaling exhaust gases has not made anyone healthier.
So consider if you are near your house:
- culture park, square, holiday village;
- fitness club, stadium, sports base, football field;
- Embankment, boulevard, Pedestrian Avenue.
If there is no special coverage on the chosen terrain, as in the stadium, it is important that you do not run on the asphalt, but on the ground – this will be correct from the point of view of the load on the joints.
Choose a season and time to practice.
The optimal time of year to learn how to run and not to quit this activity prematurely is late spring or summer. You, as a beginner, will be helped by a strong motivation for losing weight, along light day, the right temperature regime and rare weather vagaries. Before the onset of autumn, it is likely that you will already feel the taste of the first achievements and will be ready to continue. But if it’s winter outside, and you’ve got the idea to do it right now, don’t wait for good weather – go to the gym with running machines and work out the technique of running there.
With regard to the timing of classes during the day, focus on your own schedule. Highlight specific days and plan the windows in them, otherwise, inertia and omissions are inevitable. Novice runners need to train 2-3 times a week for an hour – half an hour of them plan to run and 15 minutes to warm up and hitch. One of the most common mistakes is to start running without knowing the technique of running. Such an approach cannot be categorically considered correct, as it directly leads to injuries.
There is no single opinion on the question of when it is better to practice – in the morning or in the evening. It all depends on your well-being during this period, the daily routine and the convenience of jogging in a particular place at one time or another. For example, in the park you chose in the morning, many dog lovers walk, and it is impossible to run without looking around at the “peacefully” dogs playing alongside without leashes. Or vice versa, in the evening here there are companies of drinking people who may inadequately behave.
Still, need to take into account meals. Physically loading the body immediately after eating is harmful – between training and breakfast should be no less than 1 hour, and preferably one and a half. It is impossible to observe this rule in the early morning, and many donate their breakfast for the sake of training. But it happens that people can not run on an empty stomach (that’s how it is recommended to do it if you want to lose weight), because their eyes are getting darker, they feel weak and can lose consciousness at any time. In this case, be sure to consult with the doctor and in coordination with him to continue training in the evening.
Get your own gear
This is probably the favorite item of girls and women because it gives every right to go shopping. But before you buy a new tracksuit or sneakers, find out some of the requirements for running gear:
- High comfort – “right” clothes should not hamper your movements, it is impossible that it is too tight on the body or, on the contrary, was too loose;
- Excellent air permeability – excessively dense or poor-quality synthetic outfit will cause excessive perspiration, which, in turn, may adversely affect the runner’s health;
- Normal moisture removal – T-shirt and leggings material should not absorb moisture, but remove its surface, from where it will quickly evaporate.
That is why it is not recommended to run in ordinary clothes from flax or cotton. Despite their naturalness, these fabrics are inconvenient for active occupations, they are quickly soaked with sweat, and at the slightest draft, the novice risks catching a cold. The optimal composition of sports products – polyester, polyamide with the addition of cotton and elastane.
For the prevention of colds, a kit for running during a cool season must be supplemented with a membrane jacket, fleece jacket, and thermal underwear. In the heat should not run at all, but if you do decide to work out under the sun, be sure to cover your head with a baseball cap or bandanna.
Separately, you need to mention sneakers. There is no question of running in city shoes or moccasins, even if they are made in sport-style. The technique of running requires a functional shoe that combines several characteristics at the same time:
- easy, well kept on a leg and steady on any surface;
- fits snugly and securely support the ankle;
- Has a cushioned heel area and a flexible toe section.
As you can see, classic slippers or sneakers hardly meet one, maximum two requirements, which means you, should not be stingy and get sneakers with the right design.
Learn the functional technique of running
If the park or stadium is far away from you, try to run near your home for a test. Before this, be sure to stand apart – this stage is especially important for beginner’s joggers and those who are engaged in the morning:
- Walk 100–200 meters, first with a calm step, and then gradually increasing the pace of walking.
- Stop at a convenient place and make 10-15 sweeps with your hands, spreading them and reducing them at shoulder level.
- With maximum amplitude, swing your arms up and down.
- Mash lumbar belt, repeating the slopes in different directions. Lean forward as low as you can, but without sudden movements. Avoid severe back bending.
- Start the squat – the heels in the correct performance should remain on the ground, for balance put your feet shoulder-width apart and bring your arms forward.
- Heat the knee and ankle ligaments – rotate the half-bent knees in one and the other way around, then go up 10-15 times on the toes.
Now that you have slightly increased your heart rate and warmed up, start your test run. Do not repeat another common mistake of beginners trying to take records for the speed and duration of the distance. Let the lesson last 10–15 minutes, and all this time you need to control how you run. Gradually accustom your body to correct the technique of running position while you are running:
- the neck is in a neutral position, the eyes are looking forward;
- shoulders straightened and lowered, forearms and wrists relaxed;
- the press is slightly tense, but so that you can breathe freely;
- arms bent at the elbows at an angle of about 90 ° and moving freely along the body;
- when the elbows go back, the arms move in a vertical direction, rather than reaching to the opposite shoulder;
- In the landing phase, the foot descends on the wide front part, which is currently the supporting part, and only then gently touches the ground with the heel.
Breathing while running should also be correct: even, deep, rhythmic. To achieve this, associate the rhythm of breaths with the steps. Try to breathe through your nose, not to talk to your interlocutor or on the phone, and if you are suffocating, it is quite possible to slow down and get breathless with the help of mouth breathing.
Track progress regularly
It is important for a beginner to control the dynamics of their own development. This recommendation is not so much speed and mileage (with these parameters just should not rush), but rather the technique of running. So, when you run, are not allowed:
- Rocking the body – due to improper positioning hands;
- Stamping and shuffling feet – roughly land the heel;
- Excessive pulse rate and shortness of breath – they took a too high rate.
Eliminate the errors you have noticed, and soon you will notice how much easier it has become for you to run. Having perfected the correct technique of running, begin to increase the distance – first by 500 m, and then, when the muscles and ligaments become stronger, by 1 km. However, remember that such challenging types of runs as interval training, training with weighting or jogging, are not recommended for beginner runners.
To understand how your heart handles loads, try to constantly measure the pulse and compare it with previous values and with the maximum allowable. To determine your personal maximum, subtract 220 from your age and multiply the value obtained by 0.6. Remember the result of the calculations and never allow it to exceed in training.
