Running is as democratic as a sport can get. Experience barely matters as in the same event there is room for a long-time marathon runner and a newcomer, for example. 

The plurality in the nature of running is what is behind the advice I give when people ask me about how to start. Start slowly. But start anyway. 

It takes a long time for a person to get into competitive running. Though, running as a hobby allows you to take your time to progress and, more importantly, respect your body. 

There is no need for you to be running exhausting sets of interval training, 3km sprints or fartlek workouts. Consistently jogging at a comfortable pace will get your body accustomed to this kind of effort. 

The improvement should come naturally, as you build on your cardiorespiratory endurance as well as your general body conditioning.  Before that, there is no reason to put yourself at risk of injury, which usually derive from excessive training. 

Training in isolation

COVID-19 has changed the dynamics of everything in our lives, as I highlighted in the last post. 

However, form drills are an excellent kind of training and it can be done indoors. Times of physical distancing might be ideal for you to work on drills that come in very handy in order to improve your running technique. 

The video above gives you a good outline of drills to improve your technique. It is also very efficient in order to prevent injury, since these drills help building correct muscle memory. 

So why not trying to incorporate them in times of limited space for training? 

Running is not a special talent. It may take discipline, but can bring lots of mental health benefits

Mental health is currently one of the most common debated topics around the world. “But Ivo, wait a second”, one might say. “Why are you starting your first ever Run The World post with a subject that has nothing to do with running?” Dissociating exercises and mental health is a misconception, a subject I want to shed light on it as much as I can during our journey. This is also key to answer the question that headlines this post. Running is much more related to our well-being than to super humans, people with strict training regimen trying to achieve what is deemed impossible. 

Keep that in mind while I take you through my perception of what running can do for you. The physical benefit is undeniable. It helps your conditioning, it prevents diseases and makes you breath better and your body works more efficiently. However, the underrated part of running has to do with how it may help you fight stress disorders, anxiety and depression, according to organizations such as the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. 

I am not going to pretend I had this mindset two years ago, when I started running more frequently. As most people do, I started running because I wanted to improve my conditioning and it would help me play other sports, particularly soccer, the number one sport in my home country, Brazil. Results were glaring, though. And again, I am not talking about physical improvements. The anxiety symptoms which I daily dealt with, such as feeling restless and an  increased heart rate, went away almost instantly. 

That is why I, a regular person, decided to run a marathon. More specifically, May 3 Toronto’s Marathon. Through running, I was able to be at a good place mentally in the last couple of years. I could enjoy aspects of my life I didn’t before. I felt capable of doing things once unfathomable to me. So it does not matter if it is 100 metres or 42.195 kilometres. Running can change you in a way few things have the power to.