A very simple way to enjoy running, it seems almost superfluous to say, is to avoid injury. Running should be fun and a desire to improve oneself, but if it turns into an alternative and creative way to hurt oneself something is not working.
To avoid unpleasantness-while having to take into account that, sooner or later, something can go wrong-you can follow these simple rules.
Don’t overdo it
Caught up in enthusiasm and initial results, many think they can safely overdo it. It is a trap that so many end up in: going from being part of the couch upholstery to being able to run for more and more miles can give a certain feeling of omnipotence. Instead, it is in these early stages that one must be most careful not to overdo it because a body accustomed to a sedentary lifestyle needs time to adapt to radical life changes. In short, however elated you feel about the results, don’t think you have discovered the new Kipchoge in you: the chances of that really being the case, sorry to say, are next to zero.
The wisest attitude is to approach running gradually, especially in the early stages. It will help you to avoid injury and stress on your body, and above all, to never lose the enthusiasm to train.
Don’t imitate the strong ones
Speaking of the really cool ones: remember when you were a teenager and you were crazy about some singer or actor? They were idols and maybe you had their poster in your room. As an adult not much changes, there is perhaps just more discretion in manifesting these passions. You would never put a poster of a world marathon champion in your room (although as a Facebook profile picture you might have had an idea…) however, you certainly take an interest in How they train. Do not even think vaguely of imitating their workloads: they put up with them because they are used to them. Instead, what you need to do is to follow a program that gradually leads you to run more and more loosely and consciously. How? Following our easy-to-follow program to start running, especially if you have recently started running or are thinking of trying.
Don’t neglect the core
A body that has been accustomed to inactivity for too long is weak not only in the legs but just about everywhere. That’s why it’s important to alternate running workouts with some preparation and strengthening of the rest of your body, practicing core, for example.
Don’t use the wrong shoes
It might make you smile, but there are also those who believe that all you need to run are the famous “tennis shoes,” a generic yet overused term that in Italy defines any pair of shoes devoted to sporting activity (one does not really understand this hegemony of tennis).
Even assuming that it is really tennis shoes, each sport involves the use of different techniques and therefore also different equipment and clothing. Tennis shoes are for playing tennis, soccer shoes are for playing soccer. After all, have you ever thought you could run in soccer shoes with cleats? No, indeed.
Of guides to figuring out which shoe to choose for your feet, you’ll find several on RunLovers. Here is one.
Le scarpe da running: quali scegliere e come trovare quelle giuste (per te)
Listen to your body
Do you have a headache? Take the analgesic. Do you have a bad back? Put on cortisone ointment. Do you have some gastritis? Take the Malox.
Accustomed to silencing any symptom or malaise that happens to us with medication, we no longer ask ourselves what it originated from and most importantly, by silencing it with medication, we never find out the cause.
The body is a very complex system and always searching for balance: if our right knee hurts, it is not necessarily the problem there: it could be an effect of load transfer operated almost unconsciously to balance an imbalance, for example, in the left ankle.
Therefore, the aches and pains that follow running should never be overlooked. Subject to normal leg soreness, certain localized pains often indicate more or less severe trauma. If they persist it is wise to see a specialist, but in any case it is always wise not to run on a body part that hurts you.
As you can see, it doesn’t take much to not hurt yourself or at least to not hurt yourself stupidly: just go slow, strengthen the rest of your body (besides your legs) and know how to listen to yourself.
Happy racing!