As someone who starts running just because they want to stay fit, you hardly want to get into numbers. In fact, most people when asked about running will either tell you about the time they spend running or the distance they covered. Even most professionals will prescribe you a 15-minute running span every day or they will tell you to walk for 2 miles per day. All these details miss one of the most important features of running, which is the pace. If your goal is to run for 2 miles every day, you might take an hour or even 4 hours and you will still be able to reach your goal but your body will not show the impact. Similarly, when it comes to time, how much do you think you will be able to run within 15 minutes? So the only thing that will impact your overall running workout will be your pace.
Your pace is the actual speed that will help you to cover a specific distance in a specific time. Overall your pace is the make and breaks factor for your running workout. You can increase the intensity and cover the same distance within a short time interval or you can decrease the pace and cover the same distance within a longer amount of time.
With the help of this article, we will talk about the three most important factors that will help you customize your running. We will further discuss the importance of pace in running, some tricks to improve, and some benefits that will convince you to work on your running pace.
What Are Three Important Factors Of Running?
Most people will tell you that you need to run for fifteen minutes and that will be enough, others will limit you to a distance however there are three of the most important features and we will discuss all three here.
Distance is very important because it will help you know how much you can easily push yourself.
Time is measured in seconds or minutes and this helps you to know how much your body can work in a day.
The pace is also known as the speed or intensity and it helps you relate between the distance and time. This helps you address how much distance you will be able to cover at a specific time.
Why Is Pace Important?
The pace is very deeply linked with your fitness goal. Most people have this fitness goal that they want to get rid of fat but as they start to workout they end up losing the muscle. The main issue is that with intensity your body first starts to attack the muscle. This is one of the major issues because people try to increase speed without increasing time or distances. The ideal running workout will be when you will run for a longer period at a very continuous pace that is not very intense. So if you want to get rid of fat try to decrease pace and increase time and distance.
How to Improve Your Running Pace?
For working at your pace you have to help your body. You cannot increase speed within a few days. Instead, you have to help your body gradually through other simple exercises. Some of the tips that can help you with pace improvement include:
- Taking help from conditioning exercises will improve your pace. You can start HIIT-based training which will help you work for longer hours without getting tired easily.
- Staying energized throughout the workout is very important. Most people try to reduce their calories intake but they as a result reduce the amount of food. It is best to have a good energy drink or you can have a fresh smoothie. Do not take a heavy meal rather rely on snacks.
- Good running gear like comfortable jiggers, sportswear, band, etc. is very important. Good sportswear will offer you the support that your body needs during the workout and a good pair of joggers will support your foot so they do not get tired easily.
- Stretching and warm-up exercises will help your body get prepared for the workout. This will also reduce the chance of injury so you can continue running at a stable pace for a longer time.
- As you start running, focus on your posture because a bad posture might increase your chance of injury. Start with some basic steps and as you ease into a good running posture then you can start your running drill.
- Most people start with taking longer strides because they think it will help them cover the same distance within a limited time. This might be true at the start but soon after you will feel that your body is struggling for oxygen. You will also feel that it is getting tired. The best way to resolve this issue is to take smaller strides and maintain a good ratio.
- Your body needs a good recovery time as you are done with your running session, take a shower, and rest. You can also start with an alternative day rest policy so you do not end up making your muscles sore.
Bottom Line
To sum it all up, your running pace plays a very important role in your exercise. It helps you to gain more control over your health. By changing your pace you will be able to make the most out of your workouts. In fact, you will be able to cover the same distance within a very short time. Your running pace plays a very important role in keeping you motivated throughout and keeping you on track. It is also helpful in tracking your progress. Most people report that their pace has increased as they started their regular run and this is actually a very important factor. As your body starts to get acquainted with running, you will see that you are taking steps with more ease and your body is responding better. Overall, you will also see that with improvement in pace, your muscle memory will improve, your body strength, as well as conditioning, will help you improve the overall performance as well. However, challenging your body doesn’t mean you have to keep pushing your limits or you can overtrain. You have to ensure that you have a good frequency to follow so your body has good enough recovery time.
