I hope you all enjoyed Week Six. This week we take some time to listen to our body and take the necessary steps to avoid injury and pain when running. We discuss recovery strategies, including baths, leg drains, foam rollers and plenty more. We also try increasing the speed of our run gradually over a 30-minute session, working on pacing and a strong finish.
Looking after our body: We need to remind ourselves to look after and to listen to our body to avoid pain and injury. We need to take responsibility for our body and make our running habit more than just pounding the pavements. There is nothing worse than being an injured runner. To help you avoid injury, I have put together my top tips for looking after your body. In the video, I talk about stretches, foam rolling, tennis balls, leg drains, baths, sports massage, food and good rest. There is a lot more to running than adding up the miles. It’s important to look after your body.
Speeding up along the run: Here is a new way to add variety to your run. Start very slowly, and every time the clock hits five minutes increase your pace a little. Over the 30 minutes you will increase your pace. Be sure to start slowly and build up gradually.
Be sure to warm up with a brisk five-minute walk before you start to run. At the end of your run, I would also like you to walk for five minutes to cool down. After your run, please follow the stretching video from Week Three, which reminds you of all the stretches.
Homework: We will have three runs this week. Spread them out through the week to allow your body to recover.
Week Seven Training Plan
Homework 1
- Warmup A brisk five-minute walk
- Run/walk session A 30-minute run. Start very slowly and gradually increase pace each five minutes. By the time you get to the last five minutes you should be feeling strong and be able to finish strong. Please start slowly or you won’t get the most out of the session. Finish with a plank
- Cooldown and stretch A five-minute walk and stretches
Homework 2 (a day or two after Homework 1)
- Warmup A brisk five-minute walk
- Run/walk session A 30-minute run on a hilly route. Run slowly and experiment with the hill technique tips. Finish with three exercises
- Cooldown and stretch A five-minute walk and stretches
Homework 3 (a day or two after Homework 2)
- Warmup A brisk five-minute walk
- Run/walk session A 5k run on a hilly route; practise technique, and smile to trick your body into enjoying the hills
- Cooldown and stretch A five-minute walk and stretches
Best of luck, I’ll be back with you next week to see how you are getting on.
