How to Start Jogging
How to start jogging is your guide to starting jogging safely while burning calories for weight loss and reducing body fat. If you've never jogged before but are looking for an interesting and effective form of exercise than read on. I hope this guide will prove helpful to those joggers who have tried jogging before, but lost motivation, injured themselves or simply didn't start off correctly and gave up.
Start Jogging - Warm up. You should warm up your muscles for at least five minutes. They need to get prepared for the work you're going to demand of them. The warm up gets the oxygen moving to the muscles which will allow them to work longer while also helping to prevent injuries. This is a very important pre jog tip to practice.
- Practice good form. Start jogging. You may feel a little uncomfortable at first, but with time you'll get better and feel more confident. Keep the correct running form in mind. There's a lot written about proper running form, but you're really going to need to do what feels good to you. You should keep some basic things in mind, however:
- Your arms should be relaxed, no clenched fists. Easy swinging motion.
- Try to land on your heels and let your foot roll forward and then push off with the ball of your foot. Don't think too much about this just let it happen naturally.
- Don't shuffle your feet or drag them. Conversely don't let them slap against the ground either. Neither movement is desirable and both can cause foot pain, shin splints and other trouble.
- Don't look down...too much. You do need to see where you're going but it's best to keep your head up and shoulders back. Hunching forward will hurt your back and shoulders. You may also be pushing too hard so relax and slow down.
- Let your body be the boss. When you start jogging let it happen slowly. This means you may only jog for a minute or five minutes. But take a break. Breathe. You want to have a good experience so that you return to jogging feeling encouraged not discouraged. Stop well before you begin to breathe too heavily. You don't want to pass out. Remember, you're introducing a
new activity
to your body so take your time.
- Recover. Take a breather and walk for a little while to build up your energy again. How long this takes is entirely up to you and your body. I like to use a marker such as a tree or sign or person that once I pass it or him/her I'll start jogging again.
- Try again. Start jogging again but just until you feel you've had enough. This may only be a few minutes or seconds. That's okay. You're building up endurance and that takes time.
- Cool down. The last part of your exercise should always include a cool down period. This tells your body it's job is done and it can begin slowing down the blood flow to the muscles and focus it back on your internal organs.
- S-T-R-E-T-C-H. Thank your body for its performance by giving it a nice long stretch. Your neck all the way down to your feet really need a good stretch so that you'll feel better, have less tightness in your muscles and increase flexibility.
After your workout be sure to rest your muscles. You'll be tired from your efforts and from trying something new. Your body needs to recover from the demands you've placed on it so go to bed and get eight hours of sleep. Your body will take this time to repair and strengthen your muscles. You will increase your performance by getting enough regular rest between workouts.
Expect a few days of discomfort. You shouldn't experience serious pain unless you've hurt yourself but check in with your doctor just to be sure. Address any injuries early so you recover sooner and to avoid making things worse. Walk, swim or ride a bike on your recovery days to rest your muscles.
Source: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/sleep/healthysleepfs.pdf
Start Jogging Back to Jogging101
Nutrition Health Supplements
Facts about nutrition and health supplementation. A natural way to healthy living for men, women, children and pets. Informative and experienced knowledge on vitamin benefits and anti-aging nutrition.
|
