Run Smarter, Not Harder: 5 Tips for Beginner Runners

The number one running question on every AI chat site is the exact same:

Of all the running issues, challenges, questions, and topics, the number one thing people want to know is simply how to begin. Which should not surprise anyone at all.

Runner’s love to talk about running. It’s a thing we do. You could be in a grocery store on Mars, and if someone three aisles away overhears anything even hinting at running, they will make their way over to start a conversation about where they are in their running journey.

Though my running friends and family do want to talk about running, I have found that I get many more questions from my non-running friends, colleagues, and even complete strangers. I always ask if they’d like to join me, and always get, “Oh, no! I can’t run” in return.

And, always, we both know, that’s not true.

I think it’s the fact that people don’t know where to begin that keeps them believing - albeit, erroneously- that they “can’t” run. Let me tell you, without a shadow of a doubt:

YOU CAN RUN.

Yes, you. And, you, too.

Yes, no, yes, yes you can. Stop it now.

Anyway. If you’re here, you’re probably one of those people who is intrigued by the running community, wants to begin running for your health or for fun, or wants to set your sights on a race.

So, back to the main question most people have: How DOES someone literally begin to run if they have never run before? Here’s is exactly how to do it:

First, you walk.

Let’s go back, and I mean, waaay back. Return to the time when you were only able to say one word, then two, then you eventually had a whopping vocabulary of six whole words! That, my friends, is how you began talking. Now, the average vocabulary of an English-speaking adult is 20,000 words, with another 20,000 familiar to them. That’s a far cry from the one or two you were saying when you first learned to speak.

Running is like that.

First step (pun intended!) to running is to lace up some shoes, and head out on a walk.

Even on the first walk, you can begin picking up the pace, or even running a little. Here’s how to do it, pick either a short time limit like 20 or 30 seconds, or a distance, such as from one mailbox to the next, and slowly jog the entire duration or distance. Continue with that time or distance throughout that walk, and do those jogs every time you go out walking.

*Of course, if you have any health concerns please consult with your physician before beginning a new exercise program.

It will look like this, you head out to walk for 5 minutes to warm-up, at the 5 minute mark, you jog for 30 seconds, then walk again for 1 minute before jogging for another 30 seconds. If too difficult or easy, just decrease or increase the jogging or walking time - but don’t give up! If you have to walk at 20 seconds, then walk. Start your one minute timer and do it again. If 20 seconds is your time, that’s ok! If you need 2 minutes to walk in-between, that’s okay too! But keep trying. You’ll eventually be able to increase your running time, and decrease your walking time. Believe me, it can be done, I’m proof of that!

It’s a good idea to stick with your new running time or distance until it is easy for you to complete, or you notice you are picking up speed and finishing much faster than when you started. At that point, you can expand your running.

Step two is to increase your running time and distance. Once you’re running multiple 30 second intervals, increase the time to 45-seconds, or a minute at a time. Likewise, for distance measurements, if you can run the gap between every other mailbox, make the effort to run the entire length of the street - unless you’re on a road that goes on for miles, don’t do that, set a different limit.

Now you should start increasing your running time, and decreasing your walking time. If you were running for 30 seconds and walking for 1 minute, increase your running time to 1 minute and walk for 1 minute. Then run 1 minute, walk 30 seconds. Then progress to running for 2 minutes and walking for 1 minute, and so on, until you don’t need to time your walking, but may need to just take a small walking break occasionally.

Look at you! With only two steps, you are running! I mean, you’re taking multiple steps when you run, not just two. The steps are what you’re following, I mean. Oh, never mind. But way to go!

Step three is to make running a routine. Now that you’re doing it, start taking running more seriously. At this point, you know you can run so you should begin running more regularly. Instead of taking walks, you should now make a plan to head out the door for some runs.

But slowly.

Yes, run slowly as well as slowly increasing the distance you are running. Once you are running a few minutes at a time, or up and down your block, begin tracking the distance or duration, and number of times you are completing these runs each week.

Back to planning. If you map out what you’ve been doing, and discover that you’ve been running a quarter of a mile three times a week, make a plan to continue that. And now I’ll let let you in on a little secret about how to achieve success in running:

CONSISTENCY! CONSISTENCY! CONSISTENCY!

Okay, maybe it’s not a secret, it’s just often ignored more than anything. But seriously, if you want to continue, you must continue. If you want to get better, go longer, get faster, see improvement in any way, YOU MUST CONTINUE. It’s like anything, you don’t see results overnight. You must consistently put in the work, consistently try, consistently run in order to get better. Step three is to make running a routine - make a plan, and stick to it!

Make running a priority. Make yourself a priority. Running provides a ton of benefits for physical, mental, and emotional well-being, and if you’re still reading, you have already decided to take this leap, so I won’t go into more here and now. However, I know that scheduling time to run or workout is the best way to make sure it happens. Make it happen!

Step four. If you’ve made it this far, you are already running. Steps four and five are for those of you who want to go further. Yes, I mean distance! Or maybe faster, but further will help in that regard, too. You are running around, maybe doing walk/runs up to a half mile, mile, or maybe even more, and you want to increase your distance. What you need to do is just a little bit of math.

In running we have what we call a 10% Rule. Yes, really! Runners and coaches should only ever increase a runner’s weekly distance by 10%, which prevents injury by allowing your body to gradually adapt to the increased workload slowly and safely.

To do this, pull out that schedule you created in step three and total the distance or time you are currently running in a week. Then you’ll add 10% to that distance and split that up across the days you are running. That’s it. Here’s an example of what that might look like:

10 x .1 = 1

10 + 1 = 11

If you are currently running 10 miles in a week, you can add one mile to your total for the following week.

New schedule with the mile added in can look like this (changes highlighted):

If you are completing this total, even if you’re still splitting the distance between walking and running, then you can continue to increase every single week using this method. Although, I would highly recommend that you hold at that new total for 2-4 weeks before increasing.

Which brings us to step five! Step five is to set a goal to reach a new target, or to sign up to do something in the future that is beyond what you thought imaginable.

Let’s say you are currently running two miles a week, but you want to complete a 5k (3.1 miles) in your community race- Register for it now! Don’t delay, do it, then make a schedule to consistently train for that distance using the above steps and incremental increases.

Maybe you are currently running the 11 miles each week according to the chart above and want to join co-workers on their Saturday morning five mile fun runs. You can get to five miles in just a matter of weeks! Set a date and tell them that you are going to meet them there - then do it! Follow these same steps to slowly increase your mileage so that you are comfortably running 5 miles at one time.

The most important thing to remember is that you can always go back to step one in order to achieve more. You do it now with anything new you begin in life.

Want to learn a new language? You start by saying, ‘Hello,’ ‘Please,’ ‘Where’s the toilet?’ You don’t first sign up to give a speech in that language.

Have plans to start a YouTube channel? You start by publishing a video with no edits and zero audience. You don’t start with cinematic quality, and a million subscribers.

You want to run a 5k, 10k, or even a marathon? You absolutely don’t lace up shoes and run 3.1, 6.2 or even 26.2 miles! You start by walking, and gradually increase your running. You can find the best gadgets, gear, and clothes along the way, but really you have to start at the beginning!

And, please, always remember, that you CAN do it.

*Do not forget to add time to stretch, warm-up, and cooldown before and after every run! The Roadmap is simply a guide on how to start running.

**And always, listen to your body! Do not push yourself to run if you are injured or overly fatigued.

Gotta Run!

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