Great Tips for Runners
I was chatting with one of my cousins, and I was surprised to hear that she had no idea that I was a runner.
“I love going for a run! It is one of the most refreshing activities I do,” I told her.
At the end of a long day working with my clients, I go for a run to burn off any excess energy. It is also so important for my mental and physical health! One of my main rituals is to sweat every day. Whether it is going for a run, killing it at the gym, or just watching and following along to a YouTube workout video in the studio, it is vital to me to get in a daily sweat.
These are my main reasons:
Sweating allows me to put my big noisy brain aside and just get into my body a little. It is almost a form of meditation for me. When I get past 4 km, my mind starts releasing these happy chemicals called endorphins and I am in a bliss state.
Sweating daily allows me to have a daily ritual devoted to detoxification. Sweating is one of the main ways that our bodies detoxify. If you know that you are going to get a good sweat in every day, this helps you not freak out when you are indulging in an extra piece of cake every once in a while.
Running is a well-documented treatment for anxiety and depression. For instance, exercising increases nerve growth factors, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factors, which can increase the gray matter throughout the prefrontal cortex (which is a fancy way of saying that the area of your brain devoted to higher thinking literally grows in size!) It also helps elevate levels of serotonin, which helps increase your motivation and willpower. Being someone who is in charge of so many projects and tasks, I find having a daily exercising regime vital for optimizing my mental health. If you want to see more information on how exercise can grossly benefit your mental health, I recommend checking out the book “The Upward Spiral” by Alex Korb. \
Running helps me look good! I know this is a vain concept and shouldn’t be a factor. However, I think it is valuable to mention that when I look good, feel strong, and have pushed myself in some way through an exercise regime every day, I feel much better about myself and I work better, feel happier, and look great in my clothes!
Here are some great tips that I have learned about running. This isn’t going to be a list for people who want to win races or compete at a high level. These tips are for beginners or for people who simply want to enjoy the benefits that I enjoy in a non-competitive way.
Tip #1: Dress for Success
Your clothing can make or break an enjoyable run. Here are my outfits by season:
Winter: I will wear sweatpants, a long sleeve shirt, with a sweater over top. I will also wear a warm headband to cover my ears and running gloves so my hands don’t get too cold. If it is raining, I will swap out my sweater for a rain jacket that I dedicate to running; if it is raining and cold, I will wear both!
Spring and Fall: I will wear leggings with either a long sleeve shirt or my lightweight rain jacket that I got from the Running Room. I will still wear a headband to cover my ears, but it will be lighter and more so my ears don’t get irritated by the wind instead of for warmth.
Summer: Shorts and a tank top time! I also always bring my sunglasses and a hat so I can prevent overheating and sun damage. I recommend getting a hat made from cotton or another breathable fabric. I prefer running in the shade in the summer, but if I can’t avoid it I will make sure I have some sunblock on as well.
I used to pass on running if it was raining or too hot outside, but then I realized that was just an excuse that I built up over time. Now, I LOVE running in the rain. You just need to wear a hat and have a breathable waterproof (or even water resistant) jacket. The rain makes the air so fresh! And on those sunny days, I just get up early and go before it gets too hot. Luckily the hotter days in Vancouver coincides with the longer days. In June, the sun is up by 5am making it easy and safe to get up and go for a run before work.
Tip #2: Hydrate and Optimize your Nutrition
My soon to be husband bought me a beautiful Yeti water bottle that fits a litre of water, and it has turned into my favourite thing. Not only does it fit a litre of water, but it also keeps it cold (or warm) all day, is dishwasher safe, and has a fancy handle that makes it easy to bring along with you. I thought it would be awkward and heavy, but it is not in the slightest! My goal is to drink 2 of those a day, and on hot days I might add some coconut water, some orange juice, and a pinch of salt for electrolytes. I definitely recommend investing in a favourite water bottle as it maximizes your ability to keep track of your drinking habits!
Tip #3: Avoid Burnout and Cross Train
When first starting out, don’t try to run a 10k. That is simply a recipe for waking up the next day sore, tired and frustrated! On my first day, my goal was to run to the end of my street and back, which is definitely less than ½ km. I just wanted to get my body into the idea that running might be in its future. Then I slowly increased from there.
I have definitely done it the other way where you try to run as far as you can the first day and push yourself to your limit, and afterwards you feel so great! But, the next following days are full of ice, soreness, and fatigue. It takes me a week to recover from a super intense workout, and so I simply prefer to take it slow and enjoy the ride. As long as I get my sweat in, I am happy.
The second side to this is that I highly recommend cross training, the biggest being core training. I am not saying you need to become a super gymnast or anything, but some light cross training can do wonders in your ability to run and enjoy it. Currently I am going to the gym to do weights on Fridays, and doing a basic Pilates core workout 2x a week. The best is when I have the time to do my core work before my run because then I feel so strong when I am running!
Tip #4: Get some Gadgets
If you are getting into it and want to make it more enjoyable, I recommend getting yourself a Smart watch and Bluetooth headphones. Smart watches are great because they can record your distance, heart rate, and play your favourite music along the way! I simply carry my iPhone in an arm band and that seems to do the trick, but for those who need motivational help, I highly recommend investing in a smart watch.
I also thought that my wire headphones were good enough at first, but once I switched to Bluetooth headphones I couldn’t go back. It really is worth the investment to invest in some quality headphones for your run, especially if you plan to go every day.
Tip #5: Make it a Habit
This tip was shown throughout my post, but it is definitely worth saying again. Make your run a habit! A habit is built on 3 main parts, a stimulus, an action, and a reward. If you can identify the time in your day that you want to go for a run, identify what exactly you are doing beforehand so you can clearly have a stimulus. For instance, here is my habit loop:
Stimulus: I close my laptop at the end of my workday
Action: I put on my running shoes and running clothes
Reward: The meditative and happy state I feel after I hit my 4km mark.
It is best to make your stimulus precise like “closing my laptop” instead of “finishing my work day” because the end of the work day is malleable and therefore will give you room to make excuses. Also, notice that I made my action “put on my running shoes and running clothes” instead of “I will go for a run.” Research shows that if you can make your action under 2 minutes you are much more likely to complete it. I don’t know about you, but once I am in my running gear it is pretty hard to take it all off before I go for a run! Lastly, it is great to make your reward a feeling instead of an action. Research shows that a feeling reward is more effective in closing a habit loop.
If you want more information on how to succeed in habit formation, I recommend checking out my course Lasting Change. In that 8-week course we dive deep into exactly how to create lasting change in your life, the most common blocks to change, and we help you create a perfect strategy to achieve your goals – including all the most up-to-date tips and tricks on successful habit formation.