Running is an activity that people put on a huge pedestal. It seems like a daunting feat to simply run, enjoy it, and continue to run. Let that go! It doesn’t have to be tough. Embrace variety in your runs and you’ll keep coming back. It’s our top running tips!
Diary of a Running Chick: July 31st, 2017
Running, like most anything, can get stale the more you do it. This is especially true if you keep running the same route. I’ll be honest, I get obsessed with certain routes and love running them. But I never let monotony set in. Sometimes I run a route longer than I should, because I get used to it and really enjoy running it. As soon as I find my pace slowing, I reevaluate. I realize that I’m extremely comfortable with my run and my route. If I don’t make a change, I’m heading toward regression. When I find myself in this spot, I embrace variety. I take running off its pedestal, remember my running tips, and try something new!
A sure-fire way to embrace variety in your runs is to have an arsenal of routes available. This comes with time and practice. Embrace your sense of adventure. The longer I run, the more variety of runs I collect. This is something I wish I had early on, but back then I was so focused on building up my running ability that I ignored variety. Being able to work on your consistency and variations of runs will truly help you to love running. Exploring new routes will make you come back for more.
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Avoiding injury is a main benefit of embracing variety in your runs. When I run the same route over and over, I definitely run on auto pilot. This can be nice sometimes, but also makes me less aware of my myself and what’s around me. When I’m less aware, those are the moments when I’ve fallen, twisted my ankle, or come off the curb at a bad angle and hurt myself. I’m always mad when I do that, because I know it was avoidable. I wasn’t paying attention on my run and I wasn’t interested in my route. When I’m able to step back and realize that, I realize that too much consistency was negatively affecting my run.
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Learning to embrace variety in your runs should start from day one! It’s the one tip that I wish I knew when I first started running outside. Now I love bouncing new routes off my man. He tells me when he runs something new in the neighborhood and vice versa. The best part is, sometimes I don’t remember the exact route he took, so I end up doing it slightly different. Often I end up doing it completely different. I create a new route! I’m then able to show that route to my man and he’ll end up showing me his. Now we have two new runs in our arsenal and it was totally an accident!
A great way I motivate myself to embrace variety is by running a variety of distances. I have my shorter 4.25 mile run that I normally do once a week. When I run this, I include a very big hill at the end. Even though it is shorter, I have an intense hill to end my run with! I have my 4.77 mile run that has multiple hills with plateaus and a slight decline at the end. This is the route I do most frequently. I love it, but I know that I need to switch it up and not just run that route! Recently I’ve been craving longer runs. I created a great 5.5 mile run, as well as a 6 mile route!
Embrace variety in your runs. It’s the best of my running tips for a newbie! But it’s also great for veteran runners to remember. Make sure you do different mile distances, as well as different duration runs. This is key to making your running a life long practice. It is also key to you loving running! I love running. Even on days when I know I need to take a break, I don’t want to and I miss the physical act of running. This makes me so excited to run the next day and to embrace the variety in my runs!
Take running down off its pedestal and make it fun. Use our running tips to find what you love about the exercise and make it part of your daily life. Variety is key to enjoying the mundane, and running is no different. My Running Diary continues every week. Comment below with your fitness and health questions. We are always out their running and always looking to help. You can do it!
Mandi Mellen is Lead Editor, Staff Writer, and Featured Vlogger at BuzzChomp. She’s an actress, writer, and producer. Get lost in her youtube comedy channel PillowTalk TV. Follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Instagram
Photo Credits for Running Tips: Yours Truly
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