The watch needs to have a chronograph (stopwatch) feature, they all seem to have one, even a $25 sports watch has so many features it seems impossible to figure it out. You only need to know how to put the watch into the chronograph mode. From there you need to know what to push to start the time, stop the time and clear the time. Dont leave the store until you can do it. Ignore all the other functions for now.
What to wear? Yes its cold out there but as a beginning runner you wont be out there long. You can get away with old sweats and a windbreaker. Just head out into the wind on the way out and even if you are wet and cold you will have a tail wind to get you home. In the winter, always run upwind or cross wind, never down wind, you may not make it back. Once you are running longer youll want more tech clothing of course!
Follow a schedule and keep a log: The schedule is what you follow. The running log is to record how the run went. You can keep information on pace, weather, how you felt, the course and any other significant occurrences such as new aches or pain, something interesting you saw, a thought you had.
Everyday make an entry into your log...even if it is just a big fat ZERO! A few zeros in a row might motivate you out the door; keep writing zeros daily...or run! Perhaps the most motivational tool in the, "get your butt out the door arsenal", will be your log. In your log keep track of your personal records or "P.R.s" in runners lingo. Examples of P.R.s would be: the fastest time you ran around the 2 mile loop from your house, the most days you ran in a row, the most miles you ran in a week, month or year or the longest run you ever ran. Imagine that one day as you read over your log you realize that it has been 10 weeks since you ran less than 3 days in a week, or less than 8 miles in a week. Imagine that it is a rainy Sunday and you have only run 2 times this week for a total of 6 miles. You are considering blowing the day off but the log will haunt you, knowing you only need 2 miles to keep your streaks alive! You will run the two miles and record the new P.R., 11 weeks of your streaks!
Follow a schedule: Stop the habit of running when you have time (No one has time). Plan the time you run. For the workouts to get done, they will need to be scheduled. Put your daily run in your appointment book and give it the same priority of any other scheduled meeting. When friend calls to invite you to dinner at 7 PM on a night you have scheduled a 6:30 PM run, explain that you have a late appointment but you can make it at 8 PM or perhaps another night. Lie! Never tell them you are going out running, you will loose your friends and family. Selfish? No, becoming a slob, having a heart attack or stroke and needing someone to feed you with a spoon would be selfish! Hey, my job as coach is to get you motivated!
You can write your own schedule, one that fits the parameters of your life. The schedule should alternate hard and easy days. Easy days are short days or days off. Start with 2 weeks of every other day running with one long run day with a day off on either side of it. Start with a mile every other day and a two-mile long run day, run/walk it if you need to. Do not run until you have to walk but find a pattern that you can stick to. Example: If I tell you to run 3 miles today, how can you possible do it, never having run before? Run 2 minutes, walk 2 minutes. Too easy? Run 3 minutes walk 1 minute. Just find a pattern that works for you you have the watch to guide you. On the long run day double your average weekly run distance. Do not increase total weekly mileage by more than 10%, 10 miles this week, 11 the next.
Getting Out the Door: There will be plenty of days that your body just doesn't feel like it has the energy to run. You might just want to hit the couch and click on the tube after a long day of work, days when even the numbers in the log dont stir your soul. This is the time to lie to your body. Promise it that you just want to go out for a 10 minute jog and that if it still wants to go home and lay on the couch after that you will let it. Actually you arent lying because once you have gone through the trouble of getting on the running gear and are heading up the street 10 minutes will pass and your energy level will rise. After the run you will be saying to yourself, "I feel great, what a great run, Im sure glad I got out the door". Its strange how many times I have gone through this scenario. I just cant seem to remember how great I feel once I run until I am actually running. Just get out the door and the run is licked.
Run a race! Once you get through a 3 mile run its time to sign up for a 5K race (3.1 miles) You wont be last, in all 5Ks there are people who will be running and walking to get to the end. Yes, you will feel nervous and intimidated; it will feel as though you are running in the Olympics! Do it anyway. When its over you will see that it was no big deal and lots of people sign up for these event that have not trained at all. You will be ready to enter another and set a new P.R.!
Yes, you can run indoors or on a treadmill, but do put in at least one of your runs each week outside, preferably the long run.
Remember, run or walk to get the mile miles done, but try to stick to it!
