The first thing to remember is that the most important thing in training is recovery. This is where any training should begin, if it is a proper running school. Otherwise, you can go straight to the section on sports injuries for runners.
A training plan for beginners is extremely simple, unlike those elaborate spreadsheets that try to chart everything by the second. Such training plans are confusing and distract from the main thing: your own well-being.
Let’s try to create a couple of individual running lesson plans and justify them.
Running Program #1. The hard case
Initially, for a training program, we will assume that the future runner has never played a sport. Especially not cycling. Hardly ever walks, has just quit smoking and drinking (or wants to do so). And in addition, he has solid ballast in the form of excess weight.
That is, the body has absolutely no bonuses other than any motivation to change anything. Based on this data, regardless of the gender of the future athlete, you can break down the first week of training into this pattern:
- MON. 2-3 km hike
- WT. Rest
- SR. Rotation exercises, very light running for up to 30 seconds, stretching exercises
- TH. Rest
- PT. Walking 2-3 km, general physical exercises, stretching, massage
- Sat. Rest
- Sun. Rotating exercises, warming up 1 km walking, light running for 30 seconds, stretching exercises
- ПН. Rest
We end the week on Monday for clarity, so you can see that running is immediately followed by a rest day.
In the second week, one rest day can be rearranged so that there are two in a row (but no more) for convenience.
Don’t be surprised at the numbers. As you remember, we took into account the very critical situation of a person with no physical training and overweight. Unfortunately, for many modern people, even walking a kilometer is a whole workout.
Running Program #2. The average person
Now let’s say our athlete likes to walk and even walks 1-2 km every day, such as from home to the subway or work. In this case, he can start right away with a 30-second running workout.
We don’t need to run longer, we will still have time for that. And to live up to it, we have to start loading our joints and the entire musculoskeletal system very carefully in the first weeks of training.
A running program for the first week might look something like this:
- Mon. Rotary exercises, warm-up walking 1 km, very light running for 30 seconds
- Tues. Rest
- Wed. Rotation exercises, warm-up walk 1 km, very easy run for 1 minute, easy stretching
- Thurs. Rest
- Fri. Rotation exercises, warm-up walk 1 km, easy run for 1 minute, easy stretching exercises
- Sat. Rest
- Sun. General physical exercises, massage
- Mon. Rest
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a cyclist or a lifelong swimmer can immediately begin training for running, in which the distance is measured in kilometers and the duration is measured in hours.
You can indeed have amazing aerobic fitness and amazing endurance, harmoniously developed muscles and a healthy cardiovascular system. But the fact is that the listed sports are shockless, that is, the joints are not used to the constant shock load that accompanies a runner.
Of course, the more professional the running technique, the less shock loads the joints experience. But perfect technique is not achieved immediately, and the musculoskeletal system needs long training in any case.
For those who want to lose weight by running, this rule is even more true, because the shock load on the joints greatly increases with every extra pound.
From the third or fourth week of training, you can switch to counting kilometers. That is, if before you ran based on time, now we will rely on distance. And the main indicator will be the pace of running.
Running pace is the time it takes you to run one kilometer. It can be maximum (in a certain section), or it can be average over the whole distance.
When we say that you should run at a very easy pace (in the first weeks of training it is the only way), we mean that you should cover 1 kilometer in about 9 minutes or, as it will look later in your training log, 9 minutes/km. In principle, this is the easiest jogging. Accordingly, the less time you run a kilometer, the higher your running pace is.
Note that the main indicator of productivity is the pace of running, that is, the inverse of speed, and not the usual speed measured in km/h. It’s all about simplifying calculations and making the load more obvious. When they say that it is necessary to increase speed, they are talking about increasing the average pace of running.
The main load parameter is heart rate
The two correct reference points for the pace of running are heart rate and well-being. Heart rate is the main indicator of acceptable exertion, but even if it allows you to increase your running pace, any musculoskeletal pain is a priority to reduce it. Up to a complete stop of the training process in order to find out what is wrong. I believe this point does not require any explanation.
It is very rare to start preparing for a running workout by buying a heart rate monitor, let alone a full-fledged running computer. In this case, there is an alternative method of measuring the acceptable heart rate zone.
No, not with your hands and a stopwatch-it’s problematic to do that on the run. But with the conversational method, which is that on the run you can say a complete one-syllable sentence without really knocking your breath out. If the sentence is pronounced in fragments, in words, or even worse, in syllables, you need to slow down.
Don’t assume that we’re talking about some mythical fat-burning heart rate zones here. No, we’re talking about a heart-safe workout to develop your heart and your endurance in general. In further training, the cardiovascular system will be able to handle longer and more powerful loads, at a higher pace, over longer distances and without going beyond a safe heart rate. This is our main goal, in addition to improving running technique.
Calculating a safe heart rate zone
Классический расчет максимально допустимого пульса (максимальной частоты сердечных сокращений) выглядит вот так: МЧСС = 220 – возраст. Но, конечно, эта формула не лишена неточностей и не учитывает многих нюансов. Хотя в целом, на нее ориентироваться можно для человека средних лет в нормальном состоянии здоровья.
Use it to calculate your MHR and 60-65% of the resulting number will be your upper heart rate threshold, which it is advisable not to exceed for at least the first month of training. If you have not been a heavy smoker and your resting heart rate is in the normal range, you should not exceed it.
This heart rate can be accepted as safe for most more or less healthy people. It is what it is called: the heart health zone. If you feel or see on your heart rate monitor that your heart rate is off the scale even at a low pace of running, then switch to a stride.
To determine your allowable heart rate zones, it is, of course, better to use the most correct and accurate method. This is to take a test using a gas analyzer and with accompanying blood tests for lactate.
What will happen if you continue training at a higher heart rate? In addition to absolutely unnecessary at this stage increased load on the heart muscle, pretty soon there will come overexertion and a feeling of constant fatigue. And the recovery process will take longer.
Gradually increase the distance and pace
After the first week of training, you can adjust the level of load and make an individual training plan for the month. According to the plan, the total load should increase by no more than 10% per week. However, in the next six months, it is better to pay attention to increasing the distance rather than the pace of running. That is, work on endurance.
In parallel, be sure to engage in general physical training, necessary for the runner to strengthen the muscles of the bark and legs.