Brief praise of jogging

[Grandpa's Spells]

This is one of those things that I always hear the benefit of but generally don' t do, since when I ran in my teens/20's as part of other stuff it didn't seem to do much.

As part of generally focusing on overall health, I started the C25K running program. It's a progressive run/jog program that leads up to running 5K.

Aside from the annoyances of adapting to longer running sessions, I've found the following:

1. Less back stiffness/pain
2. Less shoulder stiffness (surprising)
3. Elevated mood
4. Suppressed appetite

I did something similar in my 30's and didn't really notice much. In my teens-to-mid 20's running was a regular enough thing in sports training and I was good enough at it that I didn't notice any change whether I did it or not. At 45 the difference is pretty real. I'm going to follow the program to completion but then do 2 mile runs a few times a week while trying to improve swimming.

[nafod]

Cool

Since you are spinning back up, I'd recommend using the pose style of running (don't heel strike). Hard to switch to later. Easier on the back and knees.

[Grandpa's Spells]

I associated that with the CFE crowd so I wouldn’t have checked this out otherwise. Thanks for heads up.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

Second the Pose or other "natural" running style, but wouldn't sweat a forefoot/heal landing. Just focus on foot landing under your hips rather than "reaching" and get your cadence up over 170 total footfalls/minute and everything will fall into place.
Make any changes in running form gradually.

[Sangoma]

You may want to check Chi running as well.

[Dunn]

Second the Pose or other "natural" running style, but wouldn't sweat a forefoot/heal landing. Just focus on foot landing under your hips rather than "reaching" and get your cadence up over 170 total footfalls/minute and everything will fall into place.
Make any changes in running form gradually.

Yeah. Solid advice here.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

Second the Pose or other "natural" running style, but wouldn't sweat a forefoot/heal landing. Just focus on foot landing under your hips rather than "reaching" and get your cadence up over 170 total footfalls/minute and everything will fall into place.
Make any changes in running form gradually.

Yeah. Solid advice here.

Wife and I went down the Pose rabbit hole when it first got popular. My calves were so sore after doing too much too soon that I could barely walk for a few days.

[Turdacious]

Suppressed appetite

This is an underrated benefit IMO. I find it holds true even on runs of 6-10 miles.

IMHO one of the best possible companions to running is the old Foundation Training 12 minute lower back routine. Especially if you do it in shoes, it's magic manna for high mileage knees.

[Grandpa's Spells]

get your cadence up over 170 total footfalls/minute and everything will fall into place.

This was extremely effective today. Easier to pace breathing at that rate and HR was several BPM lower. Thanks for heads up. I'm on a treadmill because it's December in Chicago, so keeping the feet under hips is kind of a given for me, but upping steps per minute from 160 to 175+ changes the game.

[Fat Cat]

Running is fun, I’m not surprised you enjoy it. Moving around outside is generally pleasurable.

[Grandpa's Spells]

Running is fun, I’m not surprised you enjoy it.

JME, but the adaptation from not running at all to running can be pretty unpleasant, which is why it's handy to follow a decent beginner's program for the first couple months. What feel like relatively minor changes in pace can change a run from easy to DNF/injured.

[Bennyonesix1]

The high strides per minute is great advice but I'm very tall and 170+ is not gonna work for me. 155-160 moves contact point where I need it.

Also, Van Aaken understood everything long ago. Run a ton, run easy and get skinny af

[Fat Cat]

Running is fun, I’m not surprised you enjoy it.

JME, but the adaptation from not running at all to running can be pretty unpleasant, which is why it's handy to follow a decent beginner's program for the first couple months. What feel like relatively minor changes in pace can change a run from easy to DNF/injured.

No I completely agree. I didn't bother to offer advice because it seems like you're on the right track with a progressive plan.

[Kirk]

I hate running. I've got about 1800 miles of it done so far this year. I want to set a personal best for # of miles this year then I'm going to mix running and cycling next year. I've already bought a bicycle... I think I might like running more if I was skinny.

[Fat Cat]

Why do it if you hate it? Your prior medical issues aside, there's easier ways to meet your health goals. In fact, there's not a lot of information that correlates running and longevity.

[Kirk]

I don't really hate it although I don't like treadmill running or running in the dark and it's difficult to avoid one of those options during this time of year.

The thing that has kept me doing it is the sheer convenience of it. Other things match it but, for me, nothing beats it in that regard. It also has the benefit of allowing me to zone out (or get into the zone, depending on how you look at it) so that I can motor along for a couple hours and barely notice the time passing.

I'd like to do other things now like the cycling and likely some weighted walking/hiking (I've got a 40lb vest).

[Shafpocalypse Now]

Pose and Chi Running are very similar fwiw

[Shafpocalypse Now]

Another good resource is Andrew Read's Run Strong book.

He goes into debunking a lot of the 'chi' and 'pose' stuff, although you may find that if you are just getting back into it, it's worth it. What the 'on the toes' style of running does is shift stresses.

But his break in running program, which is probably detailed on here somewhere, is very good.

[syaigh]

Jogging on pavement kills my knees, but trails feel pretty good and if I have a good podcast to listen to, I find that jogging on the treadmill at a slight incline (1-2) actually feels pretty good, ie, no post jogging joint soreness.

[Sangoma]

Another good resource is Andrew Read's Run Strong book.

He goes into debunking a lot of the 'chi' and 'pose' stuff, although you may find that if you are just getting back into it, it's worth it. What the 'on the toes' style of running does is shift stresses.

But his break in running program, which is probably detailed on here somewhere, is very good.

Some time ago I hurt my lower back, and it took good 4-5 months for it to get better. During that time I went to the beach. On the way back to the car, barefoot, every step on the concrete was hurting my back. I changed my step, instead of landing on the heel I started landing on the forward half of my sole. It wasn't hurting anymore.

It makes perfect sense - the arch of the foot seems to be designed as the perfect shock absorber. Padded shoes taught us to land squarely on the heel. We don't walk much, and the impact during walking is not that significant. During running though the impact is quite strong and is repeated many times, and some force will be transferred to the hips, knees and back. So POSE way of foot landing makes sense for injury prevention.

[newguy]

Andrew Read's Run/Walk program
https://www.wholelifechallenge.com/the- ... -13-weeks/

Really, really good program. I think.

The eccentric calf work helped me a lot.