Your personal running journal

or she chooses. Walk breaks are the most important component for the first time runner, and can even give the veteran a chance to improve time. Here’s how it works:
Walk before you get tired
    Most of us, even when untrained, can walk for several miles before fatigue sets in, because walking is an extremely efficient activity that we are bio-engineered to do for hours. Running is more work, because you have to lift your body off the ground and then absorb the shock of the landing, over and over. This is why the continuous use of the running muscles will produce fatigue, aches and pains much more quickly. If you insert a walk break into a run before your running muscles start to get tired, you allow the muscle to recover quickly during the walk. This increases your capacity for exercise, extending your endurance, while reducing the chance of soreness later that day or the next day.
    The “method” concept means that you have a strategy. By using a ratio of running and walking, listed below, you will manage your fatigue. When your walk early and often from the beginning, you’ll save energy resources, significantly reduce fatigue buildup, and bestow the mental confidence to cope with any challenges that may come later. Even when you don’t need the extra muscle stamina and resiliency bestowed by the method, you will feel better during and after your run, and finish knowing that you could have gone further.
    Beginning Runners: Insert short segments of running into a walk every minute to let the feet, muscles, joints, etc. adapt to running, without getting overwhelmed. As youimprove your running ability, you will reach a point where you can set the ratio of running and walking – for that day. See the GETTING STARTED book which has a 6 month entry level program.
    Those who are currently running two miles or more without problems can use the table below as a guideline for the ratio of running to walking. It is always OK to insert more walking – especially in the beginning of a run.
    Veteran runners tell me, almost every day, that using the correct walk break strategy allowed them to set personal records, qualify for Boston, etc., while enjoying the race experience.
    â€œThe run-walk-run method is very simple: You run for a short segment and then take a walk break, and keep repeating this pattern.”
Walk breaks . . .
    Erase fatigue
Give you control over aches, pains and injury risk
Push back your tiredness “wall”
Allow for endorphins to collect during each walk break – you feel good!
Break up the distance into manageable units. (“one more minute until a walk break”)
Speed recovery
Allow you to feel good afterward – doing what you need to do without debilitating fatigue
Give you all of the endurance of the distance of each session – without the pain
Allow older or heavier runners to recover fast, and feel as good or better than the younger/ligher days

A short and gentle walking stride
    Prime reason for the walk break is to rest the running muscles. It’s better to walk slowly, with a short stride. When walking stride is too long, there has been some irritation of the shins, hamstrings and tendons behind the knee.
No need to eliminate the walk breaks
    Some beginners assume that they must work toward the day when they don’t have to take any walk breaks at all. This is up to the individual, but is not recommended. Remember that you decide what strategy of run-walk-run to use. There is no rule that requires you to run any ratio of run-walk on any given day. I suggest that you adjust the ratio to how you feel.
    I’ve run for over 50 years, and enjoy running more than ever because of walk breaks. Each run I take energizes my day. I would not be able to run almost every day if I didn’t insert the walk breaks early and often. I start most runs taking a short walk break every minute.
How to keep track of the walk breaks
    We now have a run-walk-run timer which can be set to beep when it’s time to walk, and then beep again when it’s time to start up again. Check our website www.jeffgalloway.com .
Beginner’s use of walk breaks
    Start by running for 5-10 seconds, and walking 1-2 minutes
If you feel good during and after the run, continue with this ratio. If not, run less until you feel good.
After 3-6 sessions at the ratio, add 5-10 seconds of running, maintaining the same amount of walking
When you can run for 30 seconds, gradually