PERFORMANCE
your partner running
Non-running partners often don’t understand what all the fuss is about when it comes to running. How can something that makes your legs sore and have your lungs gasping for air be enjoyable? They see you come back from a run exhausted and wonder why on earth you would voluntarily put yourself through that. Alternatively they may see the benefits in running but don’t feel fit enough to join you. Follow these Top Tips to get you partner to enjoy running as much as you do.
1
Persuade Them To Watch You Race Seeing runners of all ages, all
levels of fitness and all shapes and sizes shows them that you don’t have to be super fit or look like an elite athlete to run. They get a chance to see that not everyone obsesses over the latest GPS watch or minimalist shoe and that it certainly isn’t a requirement to finishing a race. Most of all they get to experience the smile on people’s faces when they finish and see the enjoyment that running brings them.
2 3
Encourage Them To Try A Run With You Choose your most scenic route,
pick a nice day and suggest you go for a short run together. Emphasise that it will be short and easy. Bribe them if you have to with the promise of a foot massage or a home cooked meal (presuming you can cook!) Once you have them out the door make sure you run with them, no matter how slow they run. After one minute of running stop and walk for a minute and then repeat 10-15 times. This allows them to enjoy the experience rather than finish feeling exhausted.
Make It Fun
Choosing a scenic location to run in helps but so does what
you do after the run. Popping in to the local cafe for a post run coffee or tea, or stopping by the local farmers market to pick up something for a post run snack adds to the experience. I remember seeing a group of runners in the Gardens of Versailles, who, upon
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finishing their run, opened the car boot and brought out a bottle of champagne. Several of my non-running friends commented that they would take up running if this happened every week!
run with them for a while until their confidence grows. Make it a recovery session for you or get up early and do a run beforehand using the run together as a cool down. Stay with them untill they are able to run for 15-20 minutes without stopping. Once they reach this stage they should feel confident enough to run by themselves, but still make an effort to run with them once a week. If you are much faster you could try running ahead of them then doubling back. Just make sure you double back in time so they know where they are going!
4
Encourage Them To Join A Running Club Many beginners are reluctant to join a club since clubs are full of runners and they certainly don’t consider themselves to be a runner. Most clubs however have a wide range of abilities from people who run 10K in under 40 minutes to some who take well over an hour. There is sure to be someone roughly the same speed as them. Running with people of a similar ability can be very encouraging since they no longer feel like the inferior running partner.
5
Run Together Even though your pace may be significantly different to theirs,
6 7
Be Supportive But Not Pushy Just because you love running
marathons doesn’t mean they eventually will. Some people are happy running a couple of times a week just for fun and have no intention of ever entering a race. Be supportive of any decisions they make. As their confidence grows they may decide to start racing or they may not. Let them know that it doesn’t matter if they don’t race since simply enjoying the feeling of running is the most important thing.
Help Them Learn From Your Mistakes Many of us had to learn the hard
way about increasing mileage too quickly, running every run as fast as possible and all the other training errors we made when we started. Don’t let them make the same mistakes. Build up the distance slowly and focus on enjoyment rather than distance or speed.
better runner than you. If this is the case then swallow your pride and keep encouraging them. It can be hard to take when someone who hasn’t run for years turns out to be faster than you after 2 weeks of training but that’s life!
8
ANDY DUBOIS Andy is an elite ultra marathon runner and a qualified personal trainer and exercise coach.
www.andydubois.
blogspot.com,
andydubois@hotmail.co.uk.
Swallow Your Pride Sometimes your non running partner can turn out to be a
to get
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