I'm thinking about jogging (advise please)

coco3382458

I have not jogged in a few years and I am a little skeptical because my right leg has NEVER been the same since I had a spiral fracture on my tibia and fibia. DR inserted titanium rod through my knee and there are pins in my ankle. This happened about 5 years ago and I still have swelling-Anyway that is my biggest challenge and also just the fact I have never been a jogger but I really want to give this a whirl. What do you all do? Find a park? carry a water bottle? time yourself? any tips/advise are welcomed. Thank you

greypilgrimess

I don't know anything about injury so I don't have any advice for that aspect.

As far as beginning running, not taking injuries into consideration... Well when I first tried after a couple of years of a rather sedentary life, I managed 5 minutes of slow jogging before I had to stop. I just ran around the block for that. Within a couple of weeks I was running 2 miles at a time (about 20 minutes). I built up slowly after that, it is recommend to not exceed 10% mileage increase a week (I think). A year later I ran my first half marathon. (If I'd trained for it I could have done an earlier one, but I was happy at my pace).

How much of a beginner are you? As in, do you do other cardio? Leg exercises?

General tips I would give would be:
1. Run where you want to. If you have a nice park nearby, go for it! Depending on where you live you could just run around the block. Or if you're ready to try something a little more challenging, trail running is good.

2. Carry water if you like, though it isn't necessary on the run if you're running less than 30 minutes or so, as long as you're hydrated before, and drink after. I don't like to bother carrying it for anything less, but some people feel better knowing they have a drink with them, especially in warm weather.

3. Run at YOUR pace. Even if that seems really slow at first. Take walk breaks if you feel the need. A lot of people start by jogging for a couple minutes then walking for a couple minutes, and alternating like that, until they build strength up. If you're beyond that, maybe go for a jog at a comfortable pace to get a feel for it and see how long you can run for before you feel really tired.

4. Be amazed and proud of yourself for the progress you will make; it will come fast!

5. You don't need to time yourself in the beginning, but I always liked to so I could track my progress.

6. Wear a good sports bra! And if you decide to stick with it, get some proper running shoes, they are built to support you and cushion some of the impact.

greypilgrimess

Wow, sorry, wall of text!

<Edit> I know a lot of people who have had success with the 'Couch to 5K' program, you can check out the program here: http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch-to-5k-plan.aspx