If I Knew Then What I Know Now... E-Book

Gavin Spickett

• Herausgeber: The Crowood Press
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 332

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

From park run to ultras, this book gives you the support and encouragement you need to start – and keep you – running injury-free This thorough handbook gives detailed practical advice to all adult runners. It covers everything you need to embark on a running career, but goes further and explains training needs and regimes to established runners. Written in an accessible easy style, it answers all your questions – before you've thought of them – and encourages everyone to get fit and enjoy your running safely.

Leseprobe

Finlay Wild in the 2015 Ben Nevis Race. (Photo: Paul Dobson/Wikimedia Commons)

First published in 2023 by

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

[email protected]

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2023

© Dr Gavin Spickett 2023

All rights reserved. This e-book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 0 7198 4292 4

Cover design by Sergey Tsvetkov

Disclaimer

This book is based on the author’s knowledge and personal experience. Information has been checked carefully. This book is not a substitute for taking personal professional advice, especially in regard to illness or injury and the information therein is supplied without liability. The Author and Publisher will not be liable for any possible disadvantage, injury or damages.

Gavin Spickett has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

CONTENTS

Preface

1 GETTING INTO RUNNING

2 WHERE NEXT?

3 EQUIPMENT

4 NUTRITION, HYDRATION, SLEEP AND OTHER SKILLS

5 BASICS OF TRAINING

6 TYPES OF TRAINING

7 PREPARING FOR A RACE

8 RACE DAY AND AFTER

9 INJURIES AND ILLNESS

Further Reading

Resources

Acknowledgements

Index

PREFACE

Why have I come to write this book? I am not a famous runner, I have not achieved fastest known times, represented my country or indeed been anything other than a well-established local runner, doing road races, trail races and ultra-events. I have been running now for over 25 years. I have recently retired as a consultant after 41 years in the NHS and 30 years working as a consultant in the North East, dealing with allergy and immunology. I have also been involved in setting up running the regional service for chronic fatigue syndrome (ME) and have become involved with athletes who have developed the overtraining syndrome. I have been directly involved in sports medicine and I’ve latterly qualified as a fitness instructor. I’m a member of my local running club as well as professional bodies for strength and conditioning trainers and fitness professionals.

The author competing in the Lakeland Trails Hellvellyn Challenge. Reproduced with permission from Lakeland Trails, photographed by Carlos Reina.

I have run and trained pretty consistently over the last 25 years and along the way I have picked up lots of useful information. A lot of this was not available to me when I started off on my running journey. As a doctor and a research scientist, I am always evaluating information rather than blindly accepting it. My opinions may therefore diverge from orthodoxy and I make no apology for this! Reading published information can be extremely confusing, especially for new runners, with completely contradictory advice available. Even supposedly simple books can have a lot of confusing and complicated science, none of which is really relevant to day-to-day running. How do you choose what is best? I hope that this book will add some clarity.

When I started running equipment was simpler, the choice of shoes and clothing was simpler, GPS watches had not been invented and for average club runners, advice on training and preparation was fairly limited. Shoes, clothing and other equipment have improved beyond recognition and the latest generation of sports watches can, if used correctly, provide valuable insights into training. However, the bottom line remains that running in its simplest form is exercise which can be done with fairly basic shoes and clothing and for the majority of people setting out on their running journey, expensive fancy equipment is unnecessary.

Thirty years ago, apart from large events such as the London Marathon and the Great North Run, most running events were directly organised by the running clubs themselves. The workload of dealing with the police, local councils, private landowners, obtaining first-aid cover and arranging insurance has meant that many of the running clubs have ceased to organise events and most are coordinated by specific event management companies. This development has had a positive benefit in the quality of support, from the moment of booking a place to the end of the event. Nonetheless on race day, all the events are still dependent on the time and dedication of volunteers to man marshalling points, registration and the finish line. These volunteers give up their time so that runners can undertake their hobby: it is important the participants should always thank volunteers and the organisers. Be courteous to marshals. Without the volunteers, many events would not be allowed to take place. Be prepared to volunteer yourself.

This book is primarily for adults starting out on their running journey or who have reached a point where they are looking towards new and different challenges. However, established runners can skip the ‘how to begin’ chapters and move on to how to progress. This book is not necessarily meant to be read from start to finish, but the list of contents should point you in the direction of what you want to know. I would also like to think that people in the manufacturing industries that support runners may take note of some of the issues I have raised, particularly with regard to clothing and equipment. I have focused on getting the right equipment, not necessarily the most expensive equipment, and on safety. The latter is particularly important for people venturing out on to trails and away from roads – although there is plenty that needs to be said about running safely on roads! I have signposted appropriate resources through books and websites.

So, what is stopping you? Get out into the fresh air. Get fit and enjoy your running safely.

Dr Gavin SpickettDipEFL DipCBT MA BM BCh LLM DPhilFRCPath FRCP FRCP(Edin)

1

GETTING INTO RUNNING

There is plenty of evidence about the benefits of exercise and running. Despite this, there are plenty of naysayers who will try to discourage you. I shall discuss some of the problems that can arise from running but compared to the benefits, these are relatively small.

The main benefit of running will be general improvement in cardiovascular respiratory fitness. The blood flow to the heart and into the muscles will improve, which will also reduce the risks of arterial blockage. Impact exercise like running has a profoundly beneficial effect on preventing the development of osteoporosis or if osteopenia (thinning of bones before osteoporosis occurs) is present, then running will reverse it. Getting outdoors improves levels of vitamin D, and this contributes to protection of the bones, but also improves immunity and helps with depression. This will reduce the risk of premature fractures in old age.

Running has benefits for cognitive function and reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, particularly true for off-road running where a mental focus on balance and neuromuscular co-ordination is important. Running will help in a strategy to reduce weight and lower blood sugar, but only when combined with attention to diet. Runners overall live longer and have reduced risks of strokes, heart attacks and most types of cancer. There is no convincing scientific evidence that running is the primary cause of arthritis, although if the arthritis is present for other reasons it may make it worse. Running has demonstrable mental health benefits, especially for depression.

The message is clear: you can achieve significant and personally satisfying goals through running and you will reap long-term health benefits.

THE ‘WHY’

Everyone has a reason for starting running. Whatever drives you to think about running will be personal to you. The most common reasons for wanting to take up running tend to be related to concerns about weight; new health issues such as type two diabetes; heart and lung problems; as a response to life stress or as part of a general re-evaluation of life goals. To run successfully, there needs to be considerable motivation maintained over a long period of time. It is useful to have clear goals – targeted weight loss, improvement of physical health, or perhaps most powerfully to raise money for charities, perhaps in memory of a lost one or for a personally meaningful cause. It can be helpful to set a target to aim for, but this needs to be a realistic target, for example completing a 5k parkrun or something more ambitious. You need to ensure that you have plenty of time to do the necessary training to get you to a level where you will be able to achieve your goal in an enjoyable fashion.

Age is no bar to taking up running (with appropriate medical cautions), and certainly continuing running past retirement age is both possible and excellent for health. You may not be as fast as the youngsters, but you may well be better over longer distances. Care with warm-up and cool-down regimes is more important as you age, to prevent injury.

What tends to work poorly are New Year resolutions with general goals such as to ‘get fit’. In much the same way as gyms make most of their money in the first three months of the year, because of people making New Year’s resolutions which they then don’t keep, runners who start in the depths of winter without clear targets and goals are unlikely to stick at running in the long term. No one can hide the fact that for someone who has no history of running, getting out and starting running is going to be hard and requires meaningful motivation to keep going in the early stages, when it is most difficult.

There is a mass of scientific evidence which confirms the benefits of running. Other benefits are that as a hobby it is relatively cheap and easy to do and you can get outside and enjoy nature. It can be done virtually anywhere. It allows you to set challenges for yourself and gives you the satisfaction of achieving things that perhaps you never thought you could do (run a marathon?). You can start at any age.

This book is the accumulated wisdom, usually through making mistakes, of 30 years of running. My own start in running was much the same as many other people, so I know how hard it is trying to make the transition from an overweight sedentary adult to a fit and active runner.

My own journey began around the time of my 40th birthday, when I realised I had to take serious action then if I wanted to avoid being significantly obese in ten years’ time. I was predominantly sedentary, apart from a little walking. At that stage in my career, workload was manageable. I started running round my village – a fairly flat circuit of about one third of a mile. To begin with I could barely do more than one or two laps. I persevered and gradually the number of laps increased.

Our village is built on the side of the Tyne Valley. Once I was able to manage four circuits, I started gradually trying to run up one of the main hills out of the village. This was a very slow process and the hill itself is nearly a mile. It took me three months of daily running trying to push up the hill a little bit further each day before I reached the top. For me, this was a massive achievement.

‘The message is clear: you can achieve significant and personally satisfying goals through running, and you will reap long-term health benefits’

The next stage came when a work colleague suggested I should try the Great North Run, our iconic half marathon. In those days, there was nothing like ballots for places so getting in was quite straightforward. I joined the local running club to train, of which I’ve been a member ever since. I completed the Great North Run in a not very special time and have worked up to marathons and ultras. As age started catching up with me, I made the switch to trail running as it is easier on the joints. My story is not in any way remarkable. It never fails to move me when I read about the people who have gone from being clinically obese to being regular competitive runners, or those who have been able to turn getting fit into raising staggering sums of money for charity.

BENEFITS OF RUNNING

• Living longer

• Reduced risks of heart disease, stroke, diabetes

• Reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s or dementia

• Reduced risk of some types of cancer

• Improved bone density (assuming dietary calcium and vitamin D intake are adequate)

• Boosts vitamin D levels in the summer

• Improved mental health (reduced stress, improved happiness)

TIPS FOR STARTING RUNNING

• Identify a strong motivation

• Choose an appropriate time/place

• Get support from friends and family

• Be prepared to take your time

• Run/walk is a great way to start

• Get simple inexpensive clothing and shoes

• Stick at it!

WEIGHT LOSS AND RUNNING

A word of caution here. Many people start running as part of a weight-loss strategy. However, it is important to recognise that starting any form of consistent exercise programme will increase muscle size: muscle is heavier than fat and while in the early stages there will be loss of fat if food intake is appropriate, there will come a point when muscle bulk increases and the rate of weight loss will slow down. People get very disillusioned at this stage and will sometimes give up. What changes most is body shape. Bad fat (visceral fat within the abdomen) decreases and pot bellies recede. It is important to keep this in mind and not to give up.

There are any number of diets which claim to cause rapid weight loss and undoubtedly some of these do, often by reducing calorific intake to extremely low levels and by restricting fluid intake, clearly undesirable for running. If you are starting to run to help with dietary control for weight, it is important to ensure that your diet is properly balanced. If you have any concerns you should consult a trained state-registered dietician. It is important that the dietician fully understands your goals and your exercise plan. Weight loss of 1–2lb per week is likely to lead to a sustainable long-term change in weight (see ‘Nutrition’, Chapter 4).

Overall, the science is swinging towards focusing on getting fit rather than weight loss, as this tends to lead to greater long-term health benefits.

RUNNING AND WEIGHT LOSS

• Running by itself will not necessarily lead to weight loss

• Reduce calorie intake and choose healthy foods

• Avoid extreme diets when starting to run

• Avoid ‘rewarding’ runs with high-calorie snacks

• Focus on getting fit – weight loss will follow

THE ‘HOW’

If starting with no previous experience of running, turning motivation into action can be extremely hard. It is good to have support and encouragement from friends and family, as this will help through the difficult early stages. Make sure that people know what you’re doing and why. If you are planning to get fit for participation in a charity fundraising event, get people involved early because this will give you additional motivation as you see the list of those who are prepared to donate money for your endeavours. Knowing that people support you will help you get out of the front door when the weather is foul.

If you have never run before and have any health issues or know that you are significantly overweight, then it is prudent to arrange a check with your GP before starting exercising. Get them to check your blood pressure. There are no absolute contraindications to exercise but there may be precautions required.

To begin with, only very basic equipment is required. Wear comfortable and loose-fitting clothes. For women, getting a supportive sports bra is advisable. There is no point in buying expensive trainers at the beginning, but they should be comfortable and supportive and it is essential they fit properly. Painful feet or blisters early on is likely to be highly demotivating. I cannot recommend strongly enough going to a proper running shop for advice about footwear. Use the trainers only for running, as the cushioning becomes degraded over time. The best shoes should be comfortable from the very outset. If they are not comfortable in the shop, they will never be comfortable.

Assuming that nothing untoward has been flagged up by your GP, then you can start making plans about how to get started. It is important to set a regular scheme on a daily basis so that exercise simply becomes part of your normal everyday routine. Do not allow anything else to interfere with the time set aside – this is ‘me-time’ and is sacrosanct. If you do not, you will fail to establish a regular pattern. To begin with, you need no more than ten to fifteen minutes. Choose a time of day which suits your lifestyle: are you a lark or an owl? One of the best things about running is that it is entirely flexible: just put your shoes on, open the door and go!

Basic running kit: T-shirt/shorts or tights/socks/shoes and fresh air.

If you have never run before it makes sense to do some basic exercises before you start. This will help you avoid injury. Basic exercises can include squats, lunges, hip extensions (also known as bridges) and calf raises. None of these exercises require any special equipment (see ‘Warm up and cool down’, Chapter 5). However, good technique is essential. Runner’s World website has videos of how to do each of these exercises.

Warm-up exercises: It is essential to do good warm-up exercises before running to get the heart rate up, blood circulating and the muscles warm. 1: Upper body twists; 2: Squats; 3: Arm swings; 4: Heel flicks. Other useful exercises include toe touches and running on the spot with knee lifts.

Before each run, you should do a warm-up. The aim of this is to get the muscles moving and raise the heart rate to increase blood flow to the muscles. Each run should start slowly and then be at an even pace. You can slow down or walk on hills. The distance and time are initially not important. Try to get into a routine of exercising but don’t beat yourself up if you miss days. At the end of each run, do a cool-down – this can just be a short period of brisk walking.

One of the biggest deterrents to exercise tends to be embarrassment about body shape and size. You need to be proud of the fact that you are getting out and exercising. If possible, persuade a friend to join you on your running endeavours. If you do feel body conscious, use loose-fitting clothing to begin with. Your first efforts will be very short, and do not be afraid to mix walking and running. Even for famous and experienced runners doing ultramarathons, walking plays an essential part. Walking up steep hills is far more energy efficient than trying to run up them. Walking in this setting needs to be active walking, brisk enough to impact on your pulse rate.

‘Do not allow anything else to interfere with the time set aside for exercise – this is “me-time” and is sacrosanct’

You will need to be patient, as the increase in fitness will develop slowly and only with regular exercise. Do not expect a miraculous reduction in your weight: this will follow in due course. Weight loss also requires attention to diet. Exercise without a change in the diet is not likely to be successful in reducing weight.

If you are worried about motivation, another way of getting into running is through an outdoor fitness class. Again, new starters tend to be anxious that they will be joining a class where there are lots of superfit people. All the classes that I have attended have had good instructors who will set tasks for beginners, intermediates and advanced participants so that everybody gets to join in. In my experience, long-standing members of the classes have always been extremely welcoming. Everybody remembers how it was when they first started, and everybody will applaud that you have made the effort to join the class.

While attention to diet is important, do not try to start running at the same time as beginning an extreme diet. Just try to cut down a little. Smaller helpings will gradually train your stomach to feel full with less (see ‘Nutrition’, Chapter 4). Looking at the composition of the diet is also important. Everyone will require a balance of protein, fat and carbohydrate.

If your motivation to start running is not weight or health, the same basic principles apply in terms of starting off with simple equipment and using a walk/run technique. At the beginning you will not need to increase your food and calorie intake. Rather disappointingly there are enough calories in two digestive biscuits to fuel you for a considerable run.

Some people find listening to music helpful to maintain motivation during runs. Wearing headphones however reduces your situational awareness of hazards. Headphones (except bone conduction headphones) are banned in all England Athletics road races. Why not enjoy nature and focus on being in the moment?

Motivation can also be improved by choosing different places to run. Forestry England have waymarked run routes of varying distances in some of their forests and the National Trust do the same. Both organise their own runs, which is a good way to find out about new routes safely. Parkruns are also a way of finding new routes: all abilities take part.

When you start exercising, you can expect that your muscles will be sore. This will usually be the next day or the one after. Unless the pain or discomfort is severe, you can continue to exercise at the same level. Gradually this discomfort will improve and this is the point at which you can start increasing the distance. If there is severe pain, you should stop and rest until it has subsided. It is important to build up the level of exercise quite slowly to allow your muscles, heart and lungs to adjust. Trying to do too much too quickly will inevitably lead to problems and is likely to reduce motivation. You may well have set a particular goal, such as a particular event, so make sure you have left yourself a reasonable amount of time to reach the required level. Running magazines and online sites have a range of ‘Couch to…’ programmes for most event distances. The longer the event, the longer you need to allow for the training. Do not think you can do a couple of runs and then turn up for the Great North Run half-marathon.

‘Do not think you can do a couple of runs and then turn up for the Great North Run half-marathon’

Do not get hung up on running particular distances on a particular day, or running so many miles per week. We all have good days and bad days and if it is a bad day, cutting the run short is best. However, it is important to try to establish a regular routine and stick to it, even if it is only a short run. This helps maintain motivation. Running everyday isn’t essential. Do not feel guilty or beat yourself up if your session is short or you miss a session. Even if you can’t do a run, try to get outside and do a walk instead. Allow yourself a (small) treat for recovery. Running does get easier the more you do, but then you can up the challenges.

If you are starting out and are an older person, then you need to make allowances for this and have longer warm-ups and cool-downs. Doing strength and conditioning is more important. Getting older does not automatically mean getting slower: with the correct training and, if necessary, gait analysis, it is perfectly possible to increase your speed and endurance. As we live longer there are more and more examples of very elderly athletes (even into their 90s or centenarians) running remarkably fast or running long distances (such as marathons) or doing the ultimate endurance event: Ironman Triathlons.

This book is not about providing specific day-by-day guidance on training programmes: running magazines such as Runners’ World, the internet and various books address this far better than I can. The published programmes have usually been produced by experienced run fitness trainers. I shall however cover a range of aspects to consider about training and fitness programmes in later chapters.

DO NOT START RUNNING IF YOU HAVE

• High blood pressure

• Irregular heart beat

• Unexplained chest pains, especially on exertion

• Other significant medical problems

Wait until you have discussed your plans with your doctor.

DYNAMIC WARM-UP EXERCISES

• Arm swings

• Upper body twists

• Hip bends to touch toes

• Squats

• Lunges

• Calf raises

• Jogging on the spot with heel flicks or high knees

HOW TO MAINTAIN MOTIVATION

• Set aside ‘me’ time

• Get into a regular routine

• Find a friend to come with you or go to a parkrun

• Listen to music (but retain situational awareness)

• Be prepared to go out whatever the weather

• Warm up before running to avoid injury

• Accept the aches as normal

• Timetable rest days

HOW TO PROGRESS

Progression in running is going to be dependent upon personal goals and motivation. There is no doubt that the fundamental issue is not going to be about the legs but about the head. Many people get fit for a specific event only, with no long-term expectation of continuing to run. However, some people are captivated by running once they start and carry on. This can be driven by what is commonly known as the ‘runner’s high’. The body releases a range of compounds during and immediately after running which produce a euphoriant effect. These include endorphins, which are the body’s equivalent of morphine (heroin), and endocannabinoids, which are the equivalent of cannabis. These substances assist in coping with the stresses and pain from running. This means that running can be addictive and people who have been running regularly and suddenly stop may suffer what might be described as withdrawal symptoms, which can make it quite hard dealing with illness and injury and means that people will often run when they should be resting.

‘Be kind to yourself and remember to see the positives of what you have achieved and do not dwell on the negatives’

The next stage in your running career is going to be to determine how running will fit in to your life. Many people are quite happy to just go out with friends simply for the benefits of running and for social reasons. Not everyone wants to go to races and not everybody wants to explore their body’s limits. If you’re happy being a social runner, there is plenty in this book in terms of advice about equipment and nutrition and you should go out and enjoy your running. Please however make sure that you take steps to avoid injury and ensure that your social running is safe.

Progression always requires motivation: remember why you started running. Have a mantra to recite to help your motivation. Use visualisation techniques, imagining yourself running gracefully without effort. If you set a routine, running becomes easier. Try to avoid negative thoughts. Starting a run is always hard, so don’t let that negative thought block you from getting out and running. No one ever said that running was easy, but achieving things that are not easy is important for boosting self-confidence, as is keeping track of your achievements.

Be kind to yourself and remember to see the positives of what you have achieved and do not dwell on the negatives. Try always to have a set of achievable goals, short term, medium term and long term. Always re-evaluate your progress against the goals and don’t be afraid to modify them: that is not failure, that is sensible running. Do not get locked into goals such as ‘I must run 20 miles a week’ – this can be too prescriptive. Be flexible. A week with shorter, faster runs is just as good or better than churning out slow runs just to meet an arbitrary mileage target (‘junk’ miles). As you progress it is important to think about how you train; this needs to be appropriate to your goals and you should avoid getting obsessed. Three to five sessions (running or other fitness training) per week is more than adequate. Trying to run just once a week with no other activity will be difficult and is not likely to lead to much improvement.

For those bitten by the running bug, the next stage will be to look at what else is available. If you plan on making running a more serious hobby, then paying attention to equipment, nutrition and hydration and training as well as injury prevention is critical to gain the maximum enjoyment. Many people starting out will be fearful that they will be embarrassed going to races because that’s where all the superfit people will be. It is not true; races cater for all abilities. So what if you come last – some people will not even have finished and many never even started – be proud that you finished.

Remember that in the races you are really competing against yourself, and entering for the enjoyment of going to new places and meeting new people who share your interest. If you have discovered a natural talent for running, there is plenty of scope for testing yourself out against the best in your region or possibly nationally. Whichever category you fall into, you still need to apply the basic rules of equipment, nutrition and hydration, and training and injury prevention.

‘Maintain motivation and get support through virtual or local running clubs, social media and friends but avoid compare and despair’

Joining a local running club is a good place to start. As well as being a way to meet other people, having the same interest is also the scope for structured training and social events. Again, new runners will be anxious that running clubs are the preserve of the superfit but this is not true: all running clubs cater for all grades of runner and all will welcome new members. There are also a number of online virtual running clubs such as Run Things and Lonely Goat, and clubs for specific groups (see Resources).

If you run regularly with a running club or group it can get competitive and this can increase the risk of injuries, so it is important not to be dragged into doing runs that you know are beyond you. The flip side is that being in a group may make you push your boundaries. Don’t be afraid to give training a miss to have a recovery period. Group runs will lock you into a routine, which can be good and bad: it will make you more likely to get out and run it but equally it might be difficult to fit in with other things in your life. Being part of a group gives a source of running advice from the ‘been there, done that and got the T-shirt’ brigade. However, such advice may be tainted with incorrect running myths, so it is worth sense-checking what you hear. Always think critically about anything you hear or read. Does it make sense for you?

Being a member of a running club will mean that you have registered with England Athletics. This will give you a discount on the entry fee to affiliated races and discounts for various equipment and clothing providers. If you plan on doing a few affiliated road races each year, the discount for EA members will more than cover the costs of the annual registration fee. Not all races are affiliated to EA and most trail races will not offer a discount.

If you don’t fancy joining a club and just like to go out with your friends, you might consider doing virtual challenges. You can usually do these at a time and place of your choosing. Some will require you to submit evidence (such as from a GPS watch or Strava). You can choose between one-off events and events over months or much longer distances. Some will accept lots of different types of exercise (walking, running, biking, swimming) and will accept teams. Again, these will help maintain motivation.

Running magazines provide another useful source of information and inspiration. Runner’s World is the best known, but there are Men’s Running, Women’s Running and Trail Running (now subsumed into Trail magazine sadly). Runner’s World is available in print and digitally, but the others are digital only. Ultra is a print magazine covering running beyond marathons.

HOW TO PROGRESS

• Set realistic, achievable targets

• Get into a routine

• Remind yourself why you started running

• Set time aside

• Do not get fixated on running a particular distance each week

• Do other fitness activities as well

• Enjoy your running

MEDICAL CAUTIONS

If you have any underlying medical conditions and wish to start running, it is advisable to have a medical check and discussion with your GP. This is particularly important if you have any history of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney disease or if you are seriously overweight. In almost all circumstances, cautious exercise will be beneficial to the underlying medical conditions but the approach to getting fit may need to be much slower. If you are on regular medication, it is also worth discussing with your GP whether this will have any impact on your fitness regime. For example, beta-blockers will slow the heart rate down and make it much harder to achieve the maximum predicted heart rate on exercise. Diuretic tablets (water tablets) will increase your risk of dehydration in hot weather. If you have arthritis and are taking anti-inflammatory tablets (ibuprofen and similar), these will interfere with kidney function, particularly if you get dehydrated, and may be more likely to cause bleeding from the bowel if you exercise hard.

Asthma can cause some problems and you may need to have your inhalers modified. A lot of asthmatics find when they start running their chest will get quite tight, but then as they continue this improves. Some have asthma that is specifically triggered by exercise, but this can be helped by using the reliever inhaler before running.

If you have already started running and developed any new symptoms, particularly new chest pain or pain radiating from the chest to the neck, the arms or the back while exercising, then you should stop exercising immediately until you have consulted your GP.

Every so often there are reports in the media of apparently fit people with no medical history collapsing and sometimes dying while exercising. These rare cases are usually due to unsuspected and genetically determined diseases of the heart muscle. Anyone contemplating an exercise programme who has a family history, however remote, of sudden unexplained death at an early age is strongly advised to consult their GP before undertaking strenuous activity.

DISABILITY

Disability is no bar to running or fitness training and discrimination is not permitted where reasonable adjustments can be made to enable participation. The successes of Paralympians show just how much can be achieved. Depending on the disability, it will be advisable to discuss plans for running with your medical advisers. It also makes sense to get assistance from a trainer with knowledge of disability. Exercise is just as important for disabled people as for non-disabled, if not more so. It may be advisable to work on strength training and balance exercises, before introducing running, depending on the type of disability. Disability includes those with intellectual impairment or some mental health issues as well as physical disabilities.

For those with lower-limb amputations, the key will be getting advice from the prosthetist about the best limb prosthesis for running and making sure that it fits properly and does not rub. The prosthesis may need regular adjustment as weight and muscle bulk change. Participation in running events in race wheelchairs is also possible, but it is important to check with organisers early on.

For those who are blind or partially sighted, guide runners may be used who are linked to the blind runner and can provide a commentary on hazards. Guides can be found through England Athletics (see Resources). For those with hearing impairment, it is important to have a pencil and paper to write questions and ensure that any run leader has agreed visual signals in advance. Runners with a learning disability often benefit from having a running buddy who knows them well to provide support.

England Athletics and Disability Sport England have plenty of advice, including for coaches and running clubs. Scope, the charity for the disabled, can provide advice on facilities available locally (see Resources).

SOCIAL MEDIA

Many events and running groups have their own social media sites which give you a flavour of how they work. Such groups can be a useful source of advice about how to approach an event, what shoes to wear, where to stay and so on – the sort of questions that you can’t really ask the organiser. Advice is freely offered by those who have done the event before. For some events, key race information may be posted on their Facebook page, and after the race, photos may be uploaded. Virtual running clubs will function mainly through social media and can provide vital encouragement and support.

CHARITIES

Many people start running to raise money for personally meaningful charities. Large charities will often have an allocation of places for major events such as the London Marathon, which you can apply for if not successful in open ballots. The downside is that you will be committing to raise a minimum sum for the charity. Smaller charities will be less likely to have places and will have less support. If you are doing a race for a charity, let the organisers know: they may give you a shout-out at the start or finish. Put it on your social media site and, if possible, have a Just Giving or equivalent page, so that it is easy for people to support you. Having a target to raise and knowing that others are supporting your efforts are powerful motivators.

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WHERE NEXT?

Once you have started running, you will probably find that it is quite addictive, due to the release of endorphins. Try to avoid allowing running to consume your life. However, some people become disillusioned. Often it is due to setting unrealistic and unattainable goals or simply that life gets in the way. The key to progressing is to maintain motivation: running clubs have a role here. It is best to join a running group which fits your aims.