In honor of my first race of the 2014 season (Love Run Half Marathon this Sunday!) I’d like to introduce you to Alicia’s 7 Healthy Habits for Runners. These are all super important so read up and adjust your routine as needed!
Running offers many health benefits; disease prevention, stress management, a boost in mood, not to mention it can help you score a rockin’ bod. But if you want to keep up your running lifestyle for the long haul, there are certain things you should be doing on a regular basis.
Click through for the seven healthy habits every runner should start practicing.
1. Ease into Runs With a Warm-Up
Starting your run too fast too early can cause pulled muscles and fatigue. With a warm up, you ease your body into motion, gradually get your heart rate and body temperature up, and loosen up your muscles so that your body is ready to conquer a physically taxing workout.
2. Stretch
After a warm-up, your muscles should have loosened up enough to where you can stretch them. Research has proven this is the best time to stretch, as stretching before a warm-up, when your muscles are still tight, can cause injury. But stretching at this point, after a warm-up, is extremely effective. It improves your flexibility for a better range of motion while running.
3. Be Street Smart
When running on the roads, be aware of your surroundings at all times. Sadly, runners that aren’t paying attention have been hit by cars so to avoid being another statistic, always run facing traffic so that cars can see you and you can see them. Also, if you’re running at night, wear reflective gear like reflective belts, shirts and vests (available specialty running stores).
4. Strength Train
In order to become a faster, more powerful runner, running alone isn’t enough. It’s essential that you put time into strength training, whether it’s lifting at the gym, using resistance bands or doing a kettlebell workout. Regular strength training can also help prevent muscle and tendon injures.
5. Eat Properly
If you want to feel your best, you need to be smart about what you eat. Get a good balance of carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats so that your body is adequately fueled for each run. It’s also strongly recommended that you eat within thirty minutes of completing a workout for optimal recovery (but if you can’t do that, at least have something within two hours). Don’t forget to always drink lots of water.
6. Do Strides
Two to three times a week, you should run strides (otherwise known as shorter distances at a faster pace) to practice proper running form and mechanics. Ideally, these are great to do barefoot on a grassy soccer field where you can do diagonals, striding from one corner of the field to the diagonal one. Repeat about eight times, jogging in between strides.
7. Cross Train
Once every week or so take a break from running and instead do cross training (swim, cycle, etc), which will give your body the chance to heal and recover from the stresses of consistent running. It’s a great way to recharge mentally so that you’re ready to hit another week of training hard.
Running itself is a great habit, but if you’re looking to improve, consider adopting these habits. Make them a part of your routine and after a few weeks and some faster times, you’ll be glad you did!
