Beginner Runner's Guide

What is the difference between racing and training?

Racing is an all-out, maximal effort, which is a test of an athlete's performance ability.

Training is a series of sub-maximal efforts which together over a period of time (weeks, months etc.) will improve an athlete's overall performance.

Always train with a “hard” training day followed by an “easy” training day

The way a runners trains is by combining “hard” training days followed by “easy” training days. An example of a hard training day would be a track workout or a long run. An easy day is usually a recovery run. Recovery runs are a short distance at an easy pace.

Know Your Training Paces and Obey the Speed Limit

A coach would instruct an athlete of their training paces based on a time-trial or recent race. An athlete can determine what pace they should be training at by using a pace calculator.

There are training paces for different types of training. The different types of training would consist of the easy run, long run, tempo run, and intervals. Each of these, except for the easy run, will have their paces based on the distance, and type of event they are targeted for.

It is very important to obey the training paces for your ability. You will not become faster by training faster. You can not train to a particular performance ability. In other words, you can't become a 30:00 10K runner by training at 30:00 10K runner's training paces. If that was the case, everyone could do it.

Another reason to obey the training pace is to prevent injury. You will increase the possibility of injury by training too fast.

What are the different types of running training?

Running training can consist of easy run, long run, tempo run, fartlek and intervals.

An easy run is a run at an easy pace done on easy days. These can also be called “recovery runs.”

A long run is a runners longest run, in both duration and distance, of the week. Runners will usually only do one long run a week. A long run is also a runner's most important workout of the week.

A tempo run can also be called a “pace run.” It is a run designed to prepare a runner for a race by running at the goal race pace. Tempo are run at a shorter distance and duration than the goal race. If a runner is preparing for a 10K, they would run a temp at the goal 10K pace but at a distance of only up to 3 miles.

Fartlek is not passing gas when running. It actually means “speed play.” In a fartlek a runner would run easy for say 2 miles, then run at race pace (5k, 10k etc.) for either a particular amount of time (2 mins, 3 mins etc) or distance and repeat. Fartleks are a great segway into harder training for runners and can be done anywhere there is open road.

Intervals are either time or distance. Track workouts usually consist of distance intervals. Such as 12 x 400 meter, 6 x 800 meters, 8 x 1000 meters, 5 x 1 mile. Runners can also use timed intervals. Such as 12 x 1:20, 20 x 35 seconds, 8 x 4:00, etc.

What are the benefits of the different types of training?

Long runs build up strength and endurance.

Tempo runs, fartleks, and intervals enhance a runners oxygen volume intake (VO2Max), sharpen a runner for a running event and build strength.

Easy runs are for recovery days. They help clear out the “garbage” that builds up in a runners muscles and help relax a runner's muscles.

What should I do before I run?

Warm up. Your muscles are cold you need to warm up by running easy. Prepare for running with arm and leg movements. This is called dynamic stretching. Dynamic stretching is done by swinging your leg to the front and to the sides repeatedly. You can also rotate your arms and torso to get loose. Static stretching of cold muscles can lead to injury.

What should I do after I run?

Stretch! You should always stretch. Stretching relaxes the muscles. You are better off to cut your workout short by 5 minutes to take the time the to stretch than not to stretch at all.

Drink plenty of fluids

You should drink 40 to 60 fluid ounces of water a day, plus 20 fluid ounces of water for every hour of training. If you follow this, you should not have any dehydration issues and be capable of training no matter what the weather is.