by featured Local Legend Adam Kimble
As a professional ultra-runner, running coach, and race director, I’ve learned a lot of important lessons over my years of training and racing. Some of those lessons were a result of successes, others were a result of missteps. Some of the lessons were a result of my own personal experience in races and training, others were tidbits that I picked up from coaching athletes, race directing, and speaking with other running friends about their experiences. Running has been life-changing for me in that it has taught me more valuable lessons than I can count, but here are five of my favorite running tips that always seem to be relevant, regardless of what is going on in my life:
- The body doesn’t know miles, it knows stress. A lot of runners focus solely on volume, and don’t account for the other things impacting their lives. It’s important to find balance and be willing to adjust your training when life is telling you that something’s got to give.
- When you set out to achieve your running goals, identify your motivations ahead of time so that you have a strong foundation to rely on when things get tough. Motivation can be hard to find in our most difficult moments, so it’s important to have that tool prepared in advance and ready at our disposal.
- Cross-training is an important piece to the overall health of a runner. Consider incorporating activities like cycling, strength work or yoga into your training plan. This applies to any activity…cross-training is helpful for all sports, not just running!
- Seek out variety in your training as much as possible. We are all creatures of habit, so sometimes we end up doing a lot of the same workouts instead of mixing things up. Push yourself outside of your comfort zone and do a little of everything: hill workouts, speed workouts, easy runs, and everything in between!
- Align yourself with similarly minded people who share your passion! There are few things that have helped my career more than finding training partners who have pushed me on workouts, inspired me with their own goals and accomplishments, and encouraged me to achieve the impossible. Just like in any aspect of life, a great team always make you better as an individual!
So, whether you are a seasoned veteran or just started running, I think these tips serve as a good reminder for us all. I hope you found them to be helpful and I encourage you to incorporate some of these ideas into your training plan moving forward!
