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Jogging A lot of people hate jogging. I did too at first. After a little while, though, I really started enjoying it. Now, I try to run at least twice a week (more in the winter when I use a local indoor track because I can't bike outside). I bring along my little MP3 player and either listen to music or some talk radio while I run. The indoor track is nice because I can go regardless of the weather - and they have stairs there that I can go up and down on too! Now, don't fall victim to the: longer, faster, harder mentality. You don't have to go killing yourself trying to run a marathon if you're not in shape. Even now, I only run for 30 minutes at a time at a moderate intensity, and I consider myself in fairly good shape. Sure, I work in occasional stairs and a sprint here and there, but you don't have to! Take it easy and enjoy the run. Above all else - if you feel pain, STOP! The old saying "no pain, no gain" is a load of crap. You shouldn't feel any pain or discomfort while you're running... or doing any exercise for that matter. Also, don't push yourself to exhaustion. Just run until you break a lite sweat, and break. You can walk for a minute or two between running spurts... the running police aren't going to pull you over and give you a ticket. If you're tired, stop or walk. Don't forget to begin with a light jog for 5 minutes, then do your stretching, then do your main jogging. The circle I live on is about a third of a mile. I take a nice leisurely jog once around the block first. Then I stop and stretch on my front lawn. Then I do my main running... wherever it may take me. When you're done, don't forget to stretch again. You'll keep those leg muscles from getting sore tomorrow. Drink often. Make sure to hydrate yourself well before going for your run. Dring 12 to 16 oz of fluids (I prefer water) before you start. If you're going to be running for more than 30 minutes, bring a water bottle with you and drink 5 to 10 oz of water every 20 minutes or so. Remember, those sports drinks have plenty of calories in them. They're good for performance atheletes who need to keep their carbs up (I sometimes bring a Gatorade to my softball games in the summer to replenish my carbs while I'm playing - you don't want to feel run-down during a game) but for just general exercise, water is best. We want to burn calories! |
