Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Running Question Challenge - What is the best piece of running advice you've been given?



What is the best piece of running advice you've been given?

You can find running advice everywhere.  Coaches, magazines, blogs, friends, heresay, TV, radio, running stores and podcasts. It ranges from the general, get your training in to more specific of get a good nights sleep 2 nights before a race.  The advice that sticks in my head is something I heard on the podcast The Running Shoe (which I don't think is an active podcast anymore), 
  1. Tie your shoes 
  2. Start slowly
  3. Start slowly
I, like many other runners, have a tendency to dart out of the starting gate and weave my way through runners only to come up short on energy towards the end.  Not wanting to discriminate and have the shorter distances feel lesser, I do this 5K's, 10K,s and half marathons.   Why leave the shorter distances out of this "bat out of hell" mentality at the beginning of a race?   So I pass onto you, my advice for any race is go out slowly.

8 comments:

Pining for Pinterest said...

You are so right!!! My first 10K I was done about 5K into it because I started out too fast!

misszippy said...

Great post. I'd have to say that rest is as important as the training was the best advice I ever got.

Anonymous said...

Great advice. I could have used it this weekend when I decided to go out WAY too fast for my race.
My best piece of advice has been said time and time before, but I really think it's important: listen to your body.

ajh said...

I used to like The Running Shoe. It dropped out with no warning! Best piece of advice - Stretch after and take it easy after a marathon before racing again too soon.

Molly said...

My best advice has been to increase mileage sllllooowwwllly. Otherwise, ouch.

Johann said...

I agree with the start slowly and also for an ultra, start slowly and then slow down. On a run I often use Bruce Fordyce's words...hold back, hold back and hold back.

Glenn Jones said...

It's all about patience. When I was running around 50 lbs heavier and no patience to work it off, my wife reminded me that I didn't seem to have a problem taking several years to add the weight on. Why can't I take a couple years to work it off?

Coachdave said...

It is actually a Jillian quote that does it for me... Unless you faint, puke, or die, KEEP GOING !!!