Better Running Through Walking

I just finished reading an interesting article about adding walking to your long distance running program to not only help reduce your risk of injury and make running a little less grueling on the body, but to also help improve your overall running/racing times. The article is from the NY Times Heath section and describes a training method first introduced by former Olympian Jeff Galloway. Here's is an excerpt from his website:

TRAINING PROGRAMS

Jeff's quest for the injury-free marathon training program led him to develop group training programs in 1978, and to author Runner's World articles which have been used by hundreds of thousands of runners of all abilities. His training schedules have inspired the second wave of marathoners who follow the Galloway run-walk, low mileage, three-day, suggestions to an over 98% success rate.

In his walk/run method of training you take short walking breaks at different scheduled times throughout your run whether it is a 5 mile charity event or a 26 mile marathon. These walking breaks can vary in length and frequency with some people walking for a minute then running for a minute while others may take a short walking break after every mile. These short breaks give your muscles and joints a chance to recover during your run which will help you pace yourself better, recover between runs faster and make your finishes stronger.

This method might sound a bit out there for any die hard runners but it makes a lot of sense. By taking short walking breaks you will decrease the amount of stress on your joints, allow your muscles recovery time and extend your running career for many more years!

Exercise & Workout article by Ben on Wednesday, September 02, 2009 4:20:08 PM EST

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