Yummy Mummy Sharon D. from Oakville, Ontario asks:
I work for a completely insane person who got it into her head that she wants to run a 15 k race on August 22 and to add to the fun, she's including me! Can you tell me how I would go about training to run this distance in two months? 
Dear Sharon,
That is a great goal to have and anytime you can set a goal to the end of your fitness, it makes the journey that much more enjoyable and easier to motivate oneself to get out there and run, bike etc.
You have not given me any information re: your background in running. If you are totally new to running, then 15km maybe a bit ambitious in 2 months, mostly from the perspective of risking injury and burnout. If you have been running and can comfortably run 5-8km at this time, then my advice is to run at least 3-4 times a week and to make one run the "long run". Add about 1-1.5km to that run each week. In a perfect world periodization is best (where you increase the distance for 3 weeks, then drop it to about 50-75% the 4th week). But since I do not know where you are starting from, I will assume you have not been running up to this distance and then increasing the 1-1.5 km is optimal. You may also want to add walking breaks to the running. Try running 5 mins-10 mins then walking 1 minute. This makes completing the distance easier from both a physical and mental perspective.
Most important is consistency. Try your best to get in the required number of runs per week so that your muscles, joints, ligaments and cardiovascular system are well adapted to running longer distances. Also, make sure your running shoes are in good condition (i.e if you can't remember when you got them they are too old!....5-6 months is average for most runners).
Finally, if you want guidance and are unable to figure out how to train on your own, seek out a running coach who can provide the program for you so that you get to the start line without injury and well prepared. Talk to other runners as well, look up articles in magazines or on the web with regards to nutrition, hydration etc.
Good luck!
"
Printer-friendly version