ARE YOU planning to run the Bury 10K?

The race takes place on September 16 and will test your fitness and running ability.

Personal fitness trainer Ben Skinner has some advice for anyone planning to take part.

HAVE you ever thought about running? If not, why not? It’s what we are designed to do.

You are most likely aware that running is a great way to lose weight and get a leaner looking physique; however, running has many more benefits besides the obvious aesthetics.

Running is more about improving overall health and some of the common benefits include a stronger heart, increased bone density, improved state of mind and helping us to live longer, and did you also know that running is a great way to burn calories, burning around 100 calories per hour?

So how do you get started?

It is important to ease yourself into a running routine to build up strength and endurance and to prevent injury.

If you are a complete beginner you need to slowly build up your time and mileage and aim to complete around 20 – 30 minutes of walking, or alternating between walking and running over 3 non-consecutive days.

Your first 3 weeks may look something like this:

Week 1 – run for 1 minute and walk for 3 minutes repeating 5 times;

Week 2 – run for 2 minutes and walk for 2 minutes repeating 6 times;

Week 3 – run for 3 minutes and walk for 1 minute repeating 7 times.

The ultimate aim will be to run non-stop for 20 – 30 minutes. During the first phase you wouldn’t be focusing on distance as such, it’ll be more about acclimatising your body to your new found hobby, and as with anything, the best way to get results is to stay consistent.

During the following weeks you can start to increase the distance duration and intensity of your running sessions, paying attention to how your body feels. If you start to feel any aches or pains in the days following your run, ease back until you feel your body getting stronger and remember that everybody responds differently, so don’t get frustrated if you aren’t progressing at your desired rate, take a step back and repeat the same week again.

Week 4 – run for 5 minutes and walk for 1 minute repeating 6 times;

Week 5 – run for 8 minutes and walk for 1 minute repeating 4 times;

Week 6 – run for 12 minutes and walk for 1 minute repeating 3 times;

Week 7 – run for 15 minutes and walk for 1 minute repeating twice;

Week 8 – complete 2 30 minute runs without any walking.

It is important to warm up prior to your running sessions with a 5 minute walk and some dynamic stretches, and to cool down with a 3-5 minute walk and some static stretches post workout. You would also be running at a comfortable pace during your sessions, a pace where you can still manage to hold a conversation, if this is something you are struggling to do then chances are you are pushing yourself too hard.

To further enhance your running performance and to prevent injury, it may be worth incorporating a cross-training day to your routine; this could be swimming, cycling or even some strength training at least twice per week. So, have you ever thought about running? If not, why not? You will now be well on your way to completing that first 5K!