Friday's a great day for a steady or easy run - and a good time to try out something new. Running barefoot takes time and effort and it isn't for everyone, but the argument is that it will help to strengthen the feet and calves, and encourage runners to forefoot strike, believed to be more efficient than heel striking.
Cushioning, extra support and too high heels are argued to affect our biomechanics, shifting us out of our natural running gait. The standard advice is to invest in 'minimalist' shoes to start with, so your body can adapt to less.
Begin Barefoot Running: 10 Top Tips
Minimalist shoe reviews:New Balance Minimus Review
Saucony’s Kinvara
Read The Running Ed's experience with Vibram Five Fingers
Just 30-second bursts of energy are great for fat burning and for boosting fitness. In 1994 Canadian researchers found that whilst those who exercise moderately burn twice as many calories as those who follow a HIIT (high intensity interval training) programme, the higher intensity group burnt more subcutaneous fat.
It’s because the high intensity training stimulates the metabolism and creates an excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) which can result in calories being burnt at an increased rate 48 hours after your session – adding to the fat loss effect. Warm up for five to 10 minutes with easy jogging then try 10 to 20 x 30 seconds fast sprints with 30 seconds recovery jog!
Join our Weight Loss Challenge Here!
Find a buddy to go for a long run with, this makes it much easier to stick to your schedule whether it be one or three hours, plus chatting on a long run means it'll go quicker.Remember to keep the pace conversational so that you can build your aerobic base and if you're planning to run a marathon make sure that you add on around 10 to 15 percent a week in terms of volume (or intensity), and ease back every three to four weeks before building on more. For example, week one 10 miles, week two 11 to 12 miles, week three 13 miles or half marathon, week four 11 miles, week five, 13 miles, week six 14.5 miles.
Find Half Marathon Training Plans
Find Marathon Training Plans
Download Lace Up and Run Faster, a motivational combination including 12 minutes of AudioFuel's music, with World Ironman Champion Chrissie Wellington telling you how she gets her mental strength and how to gear up for training. Then, having listened to Lace up, you can get out and go for a run with Chrissie.
Run Faster is an interval training session designed to help people increase the pace at which they run. For the fittest end of the market there is the full 52-minute session. For the less fit, or those with less time available, there are also 25 and 40 minute versions. And when you download the session, you'll be donating to a good cause - as an ambassador of the Challenged Athletes Foundation, Chrissie has decided that 50 percent of all sales will be donated to the charity.
Do some hills! Hill work is great for building strength and also for toning your buttocks! Hills are like the runners leg and butt machine at the gym. But training on hills won’t just tone your glutes. Short hill reps between 30 to 60 seconds to boost your sprint speed and anaerobic capacities. Run up a longer hill of two to three minutes to improve your endurance. And follow the Kenyans by running on a hilly loop of two miles or so interspersing bursts with easy jogging in a fartlek session.
Running Bug Guide: Hill Training Explained
Running Bug Guide: Fartlek Training Explained
Tip 7 is definitely one I am going to try, need to lose the love handles.