Training Tips

We want everyone to enjoy the day without injury, so to ensure you don't need Sanats Little Helpers please take a look and try some of these training tips.

Training tips

1. Warming-up
As we get older, the need to do a proper warm-up and cool-down is paramount. Since our muscles become brittle and lose their elasticity as we grow older, the chances of injury increase dramatically. By taking 10 to 15 minutes to thoroughly warm-up your muscles before a workout, you could save yourself from months of time off due to injury. Stretching is important, but never stretch cold muscles. Before you begin your stretching routine jog lightly to warm-up your muscles. If you are unsure of the correct warming-up / stretching procedures, you could download our Warming-up guide. (html link to warming-up PDF)

2. Running technique
There are no hard and fast rules as to how to run as everyone has their own style. However, here are a few pointers to help improve your performance:

1. Head – Look straight ahead. Focus on a point 10 to 15 yards in front and try to run in a straight line.
2. Body – Keep you body upright with your back straight. Try not to lean, even when running up hill.
3. Arms – Let your arms swing naturally and in rhythm with your legs while loosely cupping your hands.
4. Feet – Naturally, the ball of the foot lands first, followed by the heel, and the toes push off a fraction after that.

3. Stay hydrated
On an average day we need to drink about two litres of fluid a day to be properly hydrated. During training you will need more than this as we lose on average 500-1000ml of fluid per hour. If you exercise while dehydrated, your temperature can rise quickly and cause heatstroke, which is potentially fatal. The colour of your urine is probably the easiest indicator of fluid loss. If it’s pale and plentiful you’re well hydrated, whereas if it’s dark and sparse, you need more fluid. A loss of just 2% in your body weight may affect your ability to exercise and a 4% loss can cause exhaustion. When you are competing, for every 1% drop in body weight there’s about a 5% drop in performance.

4. Be seen!
Avoiding running in the dark is difficult at this time of year. The most important thing is to make sure you can be seen. Dark clothes and shoes can make you virtually invisible to motorists. Wear bright clothing and light colours, at the very least wear a white t-shirt as a top layer. Look for wind jackets, tops and tights with reflective strips that are highly visible even on the darkest road.
Alternatively, invest in a lightweight reflective running bib in luminous green or yellow with reflective strips around the middle. You cannot be missed in these cheap but highly effective tops that tie at the sides, so even if you are padded up in many layers on the coldest of days, they will still fit.
If some of your routes are along darker streets and roads, you could try a head torch which will light up both you and your path. There are a number of designs that are small and compact enough to run with and bright enough to see and be seen.

5. Stretching
Don’t skimp on your stretching! Stretching is vital and should only be done after a full warm-up. Muscles are susceptible to injury if stretched when cold. Think of them like a cold metal bar. Try and bend it cold and it will crack, splinter or even break. However, if you warm the bar up it bends without too much effort. Cold ligaments (which stabilise joints) and tendons (which attach muscles to bones) can only be stretched when fully warmed-up.

6. The right gear
Feeling comfortable in your running gear is key to a successful training session. Common mistakes for particularly beginner runners are wearing too much so you end up all sweaty and clammy and/or simply not wearing enough so your joints and muscles start to feel cold.
In cold winter months the key to comfort is to run wearing layers. Two or three lightweight layers allow perspiration to escape while retaining the heat, so you'll feel warmer and drier throughout your run. If you feel too hot during your workout you can remove a layer, and when you start to cool down you can put it back on.
Three layers are usually sufficient for a runner. For the first layer it's important to wear wicking materials such as CoolMax or polypropylene, which will draw moisture away from your skin. Cotton is a definite no no as it retains moisture next to the skin. The next layer, only really needed in very cold weather, should increase insulation around your body by creating room for air. This layer will probably be thicker than the first but should still wick moisture away, it should also be easy to pull on and off. The final layer should act as protection against rain, wind, snow etc. so it should be windproof and waterproof or water-resistant. Make sure this layer is loose to enable ventilation, as this will increase the performance of your first two layers.
Don't forget about your legs, hands and head too. Particularly in very cold weather, it may be necessary to layer your legs. If you normally wear jog pants then you could wear nylon tights underneath or if you prefer to just wear tights, you could opt for heavier ones. In cold weather a hat is a must. They insulate you so you warm up quicker and you'll really feel the benefit of the extra heat being circulated around the body when you wear one. Gloves are also a must but make sure they wick moisture away from the skin, the same goes for socks too - you don't need to layers socks but ones that wick moisture will feel more comfortable when running.

7. Plan your route!
Most beginners start off by running around the block or down roads by their home, but ideal places are parks, running tracks or on short cut grass. Beginners may suffer from common aches and pains such as 'shin-splints' as result of running on hard surfaces. If you HAVE to run on busy roads, make sure you run facing the traffic so you can see cars coming at you.

8. Ditch the stitch
Every runner has experienced a stitch – that sudden sharp pain in the side of the upper abdomen at the base of the ribs. The pain is caused by a spasm of the diaphragm. A stitch will usually go away quickly after slowing down or stopping. However, you can often make it go away by bringing your breathing into careful control during running.
Concentrate on belly breathing, pushing your belly out when you breathe in and relaxing it as you breathe out. Take deep breaths on the intake, and exhale suddenly, even noisily. To get the diaphragm to contract in rhythm with your steps, try to inhale and exhale as you land on your left foot. This can help prevent spasms by encouraging the diaphragm to bounce along in sync with your stride.

9. Try fartlek!
\"Fartlek\" is Swedish for \"speed play\" and consists of bursts of speed in the middle of a training run. After you warming-up, try running at an easy training pace, throwing in bursts of speed for various distances throughout the run. Vary the speed and times of the speed sections, from as short as 15 seconds to as long as 2-3 minutes. Between these bursts, allow yourself enough recovery time to match roughly 2/3 of the effort time.

10. Don’t be put off by the weather!
If it’s cold or wet, don’t let it stop you. There are ways of getting around this such as training on a treadmill in the warmth of a gym. There is also some great gear available now and if you follow the principal of layering, you shouldn't have too many problems. Dark nights can be a problem, but don’t let them stop you either. Your longer runs at the weekend can be done in daylight and if you do two or three treadmill runs during the week, you’ll never have to venture out in the dark, unless you want to.

11. Enter a few races before the big day.
If you can, start with a 10k and then a half marathon. This will help you get used to running in the ‘event environment’ and help you with things like taking water from drinks stations and the pre-race build up. The bigger the race the better, although the first one should probably be a smaller one of a few hundred runners. Some of the big half marathons can be a great learning curve as they can have fields of many thousands and give you a real feel for what it’ll be like on marathon day. Go to our Race Diary to find out about events coming up.

12. A break in the sun
Take a break from the cold weather with an overseas training weekend. Training weekends are a fairly recent innovation and are now a vital part of many runners’ preparation for events such as the Flora London Marathon. They are often two or three days in length and based in centres that have been established specifically for this purpose with qualified coaches. Perhaps the leading venue and host to thousands of runners over the last few years is Club La Santa in Lanzarote. It opened in June 1983 and immediately established itself as the place for like-minded sports and fitness enthusiasts to get together and train in the perfect warm weather environment. For more details go to www.clublasanta.com

13. Get off-road
Try to avoid hard surfaces like concrete pavements and roads; aim instead for grass or dirt tracks. Find surfaces where the ground will absorb more shock, instead of passing it along to your legs. Having said that, try to be consistent as a sudden change to a new running surface can itself be a cause of injury.

14. Cross-train
The fitter you get, the better your tolerance will be to cold weather running because your capacity to perform will have increased and that will generate more heat. However, if you are truly sick of the cold the cross-training options are plentiful. You could run on a treadmill, swim, cycle, stair climb, the list goes on. To roughly work out the running equivalent of the exercise you choose, divide the time spent cross-training by the pace you would have run at the same effort level. For example, 30 minutes of cross-training is equal to about three miles at 10 minutes per mile running. It is important to remember that it is indeed possible to continue your outdoor running throughout the cold winter months and this is the best training for the race.

15. Run for the hills
Hills are one of the most versatile of all training tools. Not only can they be used to cover all the energy pathways, they also have great variety and can be used in developing the runner’s technique. Incorporating hill work into your weekly training will help strengthen your legs and ankles. If you live in an area without hills, consider using a treadmill or stadium stairs to simulate uphill running. For further details on hill training, download our Hill training guide.(html link to warming-up PDF)

16. Running in the rain
There’s really not much to running in the rain – the hardest part is getting out the door! However, here are a few tips:
1. Be seen! Wear reflective clothing – the glimpse of the reflective glow could be the only warning a driver has that you are there.
2. Slow down! Shorted your stride and stay relaxed.
3. Stay warm! Staying dry will be impossible but staying warm won’t be. Get the right gear and avoid hypothermia.
4. Don’t spin! Don’t be tempted to spin dry your trainers! Artificial heat sources contribute to the breakdown of high-tech shoe rubbers and glues.

17. Get a heart rate monitor!
Heart rate monitors are a very simple and useful aid to the distance runner. When running the athlete can gauge at what percentage of their maximum heart rate they are working. In addition, they can find a comfortable pace, run a specific distance, note what their heart rate was, complete a training programme, run the distance again and then see if their heart rate has dropped. This would be expected, as the heart is now a stronger and more efficient muscle. Heart rate monitors are excellent for noting physiological adaptations. Click here to see heart rate monitors on the market.

18. Bad days?
If you have a bad run, don't worry about it. You're always going to have days when your legs feel dead or the run doesn't go well. If this happens just cut the run short or take it easy the next day. Stay positive, in the knowledge that you'll always have more good days than bad days.

19. Be positive!
Banish all thoughts about not being prepared, or being too tired and concentrate on what you have done and what you have achieved in training in the last few months. It is important to ease back and rest for any race, otherwise you won’t get the best out of yourself and you could under perform. The final week before race day should be a gradual decline in mileage and an increase in rest, recovery and sleep. Not everybody likes to have a complete rest day before they race but it is important to ease back so your body does recover and physically gets ready to perform to new heights. Work backwards from race day and plan your last four to five days like a military operation. Arrange your travel and kit well before race day, pack your bags the day before and make sure you get a couple of early nights to bank some sleep.