Passionate runners come from all walks of life and represent every kind of person you can think of. If there’s one thing they have in common though is that they can sometimes very determined and committed to their one, true love – running.
We’re all for running. In fact, we love it so much we host weekly fun runs when the weather is nice. But we also know that even the most serious runners can benefit from other physical activities that not only help improve their runs, but also prevent common problems that come with the sport. And here are just a few reasons why…
1. Head to Toe Health
There’s no doubt that running is an excellent physical activity for overall health and fitness. But running alone may not be enough. In fact, even some running coaches and trainers say that one-sport runners have less than optimal skeletal health above the waist. So, unless you’re training for the Olympics or something, you’d benefit from adding physical activities that work all parts of your body. You can even focus on muscle groups that don’t get worked much during running.
2. Prevent Injury
The hard truth that all runners must face is that running frequently causes overuse injuries. But the good news is that you can take actions to prevent them. Participating in other fitness activities can help build strength in the muscles needed for running and they can give your body a break from the same, repetitive impact that comes with daily running. Doing things like yoga, swimming or even walking are still great for physical fitness but work your muscles in different ways from running.
3. Active Recovery
As you probably know, a good amount of running injuries are actually reinjuries. So, while you heal it’s worth finding out what the root cause of your injury is and looking for activities that will help you avoid recurrences of the same injury in the future. Just think of your time out from running as a great opportunity to try other fitness activities that will benefit your running in the long run.
4. Increase Efficiency
Running long distances isn’t really a natural thing, so our bodies put up resistance. Basically they’re saying, “Hey, I’m not meant to move like this!” That resistance makes running harder. Runners can reduce resistance by doing dynamic stretches that mimic the way your body moves during running. Over time this will make your running more efficient in the sense that your body won’t have to work so hard to keep up.
5. Added Aerobics
Due to the high impact nature of running, even the most highly trained runners can only take so much per week. So it’s important to supplement your aerobic exercise with low-impact activities that will still keep you in shape without putting so much stress on your body.
6. Keep It Fresh
Variety is the spice of life, even (and especially) in fitness. No matter how much you love running, it’s easy to get bored if you don’t switch it up from time to time. Swapping out some of your running days with other activities will help you keep your love for running alive while also providing some much-needed variety to your routine.
We have nothing but love and respect for runners and running. It’s because we’re such fans that we heartily encourage passionate runners to keep their bodies balanced and healthy with a variety of beneficial activities. I
f you’re looking for some fresh ways to keep fit, check out our classes that range from get-your-sweat-on aerobic to relaxed & restorative. And if you have any questions about which classes might be right for you based on an injury or goal, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.