How to Stay Focused and Motivated in the Months Ahead
This article is by Roberto Mandje, NYRR’s Senior Advisor of Engagement and Training. We’ll continue to bring you advice and tips from Coach Roberto in the months ahead.
Spring is here! There are myriad reasons to get excited about running in the months ahead. You may have secured a coveted spot in the TCS New York City Marathon or one of the other fall Abbott World Marathon Majors, such as Berlin or Chicago, or other upcoming races in your area.
You may be wondering when to start your training and how to stay healthy, motivated, and focused as you progress toward your goals. Read on for some guidance, and if you’re doing the TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 3, check out our blog post “You’re In! What’s Next?” for some helpful tips and tricks.
Ease Into Training
I recommend taking the next few weeks and months to gradually ease into training. Go especially easy if you’re coming off a winter season of sporadic training (or no training). Start by running 2-3 times per week. Aim for minutes of running over miles in the first few weeks.
For those who were more consistent over the winter, you can aim to run 3-5 times per week. It’s not necessary to run 6 or 7 days per week, even if you’re training for a marathon. You can include cross training in your regimen (more on that in an upcoming blog post).
Regardless of where you think your fitness is, don’t ramp up too quickly, especially if you’re a newer runner. Read some guidelines on that here.
Stay Healthy, Stay Motivated
As you train, strive to re-establish a running habit and listen to your body along the way, rather than chase numbers or what others are doing. A little soreness and fatigue are normal at the start of any training cycle; these should lessen as your training progresses. For more information on how to remain injury free while increasing your mileage, click here.
With longer days come opportunities to run at either end of a traditional workday. For tips on finding time to run, click here.
If you need extra motivation or training partners, I recommend joining a club, crew, or training group. NYRR Group Training offers coached workouts across the city all year long catering to all abilities and experience levels. Running with others not only helps and inspires, but also brings a level of accountability that isn’t easily found when training alone.
Keep in mind this is an Olympic year and plan to watch and follow the running events in Paris this summer for extra motivation!
Run Some Tune-Up Races
Planning to run shorter races in spring and summer will ensure that you break up your training and keep things fresh and exciting. It’s also a chance to try out racing gear, nutrition, and hydration as well as practice running in a pack—all things that will come in handy for your goal race later in the year.
While entry is at capacity for most of NYRR’s summer and fall races, there are some charity entries for a few events, and some stand-by entries are available to NYRR members.
Lace up those running shoes, get out the door, stay focused, and have fun!