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Ian Jones - 5 min read
15 January 2021
AIA Vitality ambassador, Ian Jones, shares his top training tips on preparing for your first 10km run – even if you’ve never run before.
The thing I love most about running is how much control you have: you can control where you run, when you run, how long you’re out and how fast you go. It’s also such a simple thing to do, and you can do it anywhere. I’ve trained in the outdoors my whole life, and I love getting out and exploring our beautiful country.
With Round the Bays just around the corner, it’s a great time to start training. Round the Bays is an AIA-sponsored fun run in Auckland; an 8.4km track taking in the beautiful (and flat!) waterfront of the Hauraki Gulf, with plenty of hydration stations and entertainment along the way. Being amongst 34,000 runners, joggers and walkers, who are all active, motivated and elated, is a pretty special experience!
But even if you’ve never run before, it’s not too late for you to get started. So whether you’re signing up for Round the Bays, or just want to move more in 2021, here are some of my top tips on how to start running.
The hardest thing about running is starting, but we all have to do it! So my advice is to start slow and build on it. On your first day, walk for five minutes and run for one, alternating walking and running for 15 minutes. A few days later, you could try walking for four minutes and running for two. Work your way up slowly. Make it sustainable. You can read more about interval training here.
Don’t go out and try running a marathon in your first week, or go so hard that you can’t do anything for two days. Make it as easy for yourself as you can. Don’t push yourself too hard and make sure you listen to your body.
Over the course of your training, your distance and speed will start to increase naturally, and it’s really motivating knowing you can go a bit longer each day. And remember: it’s OK to walk!
Make up a training plan – write down how many days you’re committing to train each week, for how many kilometres and for how long – and keep it in a prominent place, like in your diary or on the fridge. It needs to be somewhere you’ll see it regularly; that’ll make it easier to stick to. I find having a schedule really motivating, because once you start ticking off the runs you’ve completed, you can see your progress right there in front of you.
It’s good to vary your training routes. Run along a different street each day, or do a reverse loop around your local park. Keep mixing things up so your body’s not getting used to doing the same thing all the time. You want to keep things interesting and stimulating so you don’t get bored with the repetition of running.
When you’re running, you’re really in the moment. So when you’re out running or walking, make sure you look up, look around and take in where you are. A lot of runners put their headphones in, look at the pavement and just grind it out, but that makes your run feel like a grind. If you’re actively taking in your surroundings, particularly if you’re out in nature, you’ll get so much more out of your session; not just physically, but mentally as well.
You don’t need a whole lot of fancy gear to start running. But, you should buy yourself a good pair of shoes. They’re not going to make you run any faster, but they’ll make your runs easier and give you a bit of protection underfoot, along with providing additional support to your joints and ligaments. I’d also recommend wearing good, breathable clothes that will keep you cool. Overheating while running will make it harder to go the distance, and it can be easily avoided!
They’re a great motivator, because you can see how far you’ve run each day, and they help you run at the right pace. When you’re doing a fun run like Round the Bays, it’s really easy to get swept up in the excitement of everybody else at the starting line and start out too fast. But then you get halfway through and it becomes really hard… so use your watch to make sure you’re running at your own pace.
AIA Vitality members can earn an Apple Watch by meeting weekly targets! Find out more
Running isn’t easy, but it’s important to take quitting out of the equation – don’t even have it in your mind. You need to replace any ideas of giving up with positive thoughts: I can do this, I will finish this run, I will make my family and myself really proud.
If you can do all or at least some of the above, you’ll be well on your way to tackling Round the Bays, and hopefully building a strong running foundation that you can take through 2021 and beyond. Good luck!
This content is sponsored by AIA Vitality NZ
AIA Vitality is a personalised, health and wellbeing programme that supports you every day to make healthier lifestyle choices.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is general information only and is not intended as financial, medical, health, nutritional, tax or other advice. It does not take into account any individual’s personal situation or needs. You should consider obtaining professional advice from a financial adviser and/or tax specialist, or medical or health practitioner, in relation to your own circumstances and before acting on this information.