Running & Jogging – Before You Start
Beginning a Running Program
Running or Jogging may be performed in a lot of ways
* Long distance jogging 6-20 km in a moderate speed on even roads or paths.
* Short distance jogging 3-6 km in a high speed.
* Jogging upwards in a steep terrain 3-4 km, in a speed adjusted to the steepness
* Jogging in a hilly terrain with paths going both up an down 4-8 km
It is advisable to vary the type of jogging from day to day. Then the jogging gets more enjoyable and you get a variable type of training.
You should move slowly with little efforts the first few hundred meters to warm up your muscles. Then you gradually increase your muscular work and speed. When you have done half the route, you can take a speedy spurt using most of your capacity. If the route is long enough, you can take two or three spurts using nearly full capacity.The last hundred meters you gradually slow down again.
It is advisable to stretch out both before and after each running or jogging session, and not only the muscles in your feet, but your whole body 2 minutes before and 3-4 minutes after the session. When stretching out do the following movements:
* Bend forward and touch your toes.
* Kneel down on one of your feet, and stretch the other out backwards.
* Bend your body to both sides.
* Stretch out an arm, grab something, and turn your body round so that your arm is bent backwards.
* Shoot your abdomen foreword, so that your spinal column is stretched into a bow.
* Place your hands behind your neck and stretch your arms backwards. Then twist your body to left and right, also bend to each side.
After running or jogging it is sometimes best to wait for some minutes before you stretch out, so that the worst tiredness has gone away first.
If jogging is the only sport activity done, a jogging session every second day is ideal. This is enough to give all the health benefits and increase your condition and endurance gradually, but without wearing yourself out. If you combine jogging by other types of sport activities, 2 times a week may be enough.
You should not be too hungry before jogging, but it is not advisable to take a jogging session straight after a big meal. The time of the day does not matter, but your jogging should not be the first thing you do in the morning.
If you are not accustomed to physical activity before you start jogging, it is advisable to consult a doctor before you start. You may have health issues that is not compatible with jogging activities, or that you must consider when doing your jogging.
Beginning a Running Program, for the first few times, you should only jog on plain ground and only for 10 minutes. Then you can increase the time, distance and speed, and choose steeper and more difficult paths.
Tip and Ideas for getting healthy for Healthy People 2020