David Ross - Running Fitness--From 5K to Full Marathon

This book contains ideas about exercise, running, stretching, nutrition and energy food consumption that may not be applicable to everyone. You should always consult a medical practitioner if you are concerned with any aspect of your health or have any doubts about your general ability to take up running as a sport. The content of this book is aimed at senior adults over the age of 18 years but is not specific to either men or women or tailored to any specific personal or health requirements. This book contains information that should be used for general purposes only. Nothing should be taken as professional advice or diagnosis. The activities in this book should not be used as a substitute for any treatment or medication prescribed to you by a medical practitioner. The author and publisher do not accept any responsibility for any adverse effects that may occur as a result of the use of the suggestions or information herein. If you feel that you are experiencing any adverse effects after embarking on any health improvement endeavour, including any of the suggestions made in this book, it is important that you seek medical advice. Results from any of the suggestions in this book may vary from individual to individual. The content of this book does not represent any formal or informal statement on behalf of any running organisation or governing body.

To all runners prepared to work hard and achieve something great

- David Ross

David Ross started running in 1988 and has a full marathon personal best time of 3:24 (Chicago 2006) and a half marathon personal best of 1:30 (Reading 2010). He is a member of the Datchet Dashers running club in Windsor, Berkshire, a Leader in Running Fitness (UK Athletics) and the former race director of the Maidenhead Easter Ten road race (2006-2009).

My thanks go to:

The late Shihan Dominick McCarthy (8 th Dan), Founder of Zen Judo, who back in 1988, gave me the chance to grade for black belt. The whole thing inadvertently led me to discover running and all that it had to offer.

Alex Roslow, for helping with the stretches and core fitness images, and to Jan Frost for her patience and attention to detail in drawing them all.

Gemma Taylor, for her assistance designing the front cover.

Ruth Kitching, for her help and contributions in reviewing the manuscript, and not to mention her unstinting friendship over the years.

Valerie Archibald, for her valuable feedback, plus various other creative inputs that have made all the difference.

Nina Smith, Michael Hill, Cherry Key, Helen Preedy and Jatindra Rakhra, for their feedback and inputs during the review stages.

Kim Cross and the team at Grosvenor House Publishing for turning the manuscript into a formal publication.

My family and close friends for their support and encouragement that I have received.

Enjoy your running practice and I hope that it rewards you.

David P.J. Ross

Maidenhead, Berkshire, UK

January 2015

When it comes to everyday exercising, running is a popular and well known way of keeping fit. The basic practice of running comes naturally to most of us, but as we shall see in later chapters, the development of performance and endurance takes time and persistence. Running can be a highly rewarding experience and the current growth in participation looks set to continue well into the future.

I inadvertently stumbled across running back in my late teens and originally came about as a result of preparing for a judo grading. I started to run on a regular basis as a way of improving my general fitness in advance of the grading day; a useful endeavour that would make all the difference. Then having successfully passed the grading, I still carried on running three to four times a week, the main reason being that I just enjoyed it.

I realised very quickly how important regular running had become. Through running training, I had certainly learnt the benefits of cardiovascular and physical strength development I needed to develop these to survive the judo grading that I mentioned earlier. But as time went by, I also realised how running created an amazing feel-good factor. I also felt more alert and sharp as an individual and I still believe that running has enabled me to bring a great deal of energy and enthusiasm to many personal and professional endeavours throughout the years. As time progressed, I also started to lose some weight and trim up a little.

I found getting into running quite an easy thing to do. I simply bought a pair of running shoes and did a short run one evening and then the rest, as they say, was history. Within a six-month period I simply developed my distance from about 1-mile up to around 5 miles. I tended to run three to four times a week, as I still do now on average.

When I first started regular running, I tended to take things quite gently and never got too ambitious during the early stages. I believe that this was one of the main reasons why I have stuck with the sport for so long. There is no doubt that success and longevity in running is about learning how to train within our individual physical and aerobic limits.

Within a few years of becoming a regular runner I started to take part in races, one of the first being the Portsmouth Half Marathon. Racing taught me about the virtues of having goals and something to aim for. As time went by, I would race more often and eventually join a running club. This gave me the opportunity to do cross country racing and train for a full marathon; the latter being an endeavour that I would do eleven times in total. I would also start to take part in my local parkrun ( www.parkrun.com ).

In summary, it was aerobic development, more energy for everyday living, enhanced personal wellbeing, the drive to achieve goals, plus the added advantage of being able to maintain a healthy body weight that were the main reasons why I stuck with running and perhaps became a bit of a running addict in the process. These are also very similar reasons as to why many other everyday people regularly take to their shoes motivation, challenge, a feel-good factor, and for those who enjoy racing, to get faster.

Running Fitness From 5K to Full Marathon is written for a runner by a runner, and is designed to encourage people to practice the sport in a way that promotes enjoyment, success and longevity. There are seven chapters, each covering a discrete part of running.

Chapter 1 is a general and introductory chapter that focuses on health and fitness assessments. Being in good health is an important part of being a runner, and health and fitness tests are a great way of seeing how fit you are and whether or not there are any health issues that may prevent you from enjoying running. The subject of aerobic exercise and weight loss is also touched upon. Many people practice running because they think that it is an easy solution to a weight problem. Unfortunately, these kinds of messages are a tad oversold.

Chapter 2 is primarily aimed at beginners to running and introduces combinations of Power-walking , Jogging and Easy-paced running as a structured and effective way of getting started. We will also consider some basic warm-up and cool-down routines. This is a critical part of ensuring that training sessions are of a quality nature and that we keep injuries down to a minimum.