Top 25 Tips and Health Benefits of Running
Trot your way to fitness and better overall health with this aerobic exercise.
Kristen is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and a board-certified specialist in Sports Dietetics with 9 years of experience. She also has a Master’s in Human Nutrition from The Ohio State University. She owns a private practice nutrition counseling business focusing on performance nutrition for athletes.
Read full bio of Kristen Arnold
Experience: 6 yearsCharushila is an ISSA certified Fitness Nutritionist and a Physical Exercise Therapist. Over a span of 6 years, she has authored more than 400 articles on diet, lifestyle, exercises, healthy food, and fitness equipment. She strives to inform, educate, and motivate her readers via authentic, straightforward, and fact-checked information.
Read full bio of Charushila Biswas
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The benefits of running go beyond shedding a few pounds. Research reported in the American College of Cardiology journal suggests running for 5-10 minutes each day at a speed of 6 miles per hour could lower the risk of death from any causes (1). According to William Haskell, the previous chair of the Health and Human Services Department (HHS), running can extend your life by 3-7 years (2). It can enhance your mental and physical health to great degrees. We discuss the benefits of running and the best ways to boost your motivation for the long run. Scroll down.
In This Article
Best Running Tips
1. Invest In Good Running Shoes
A crucial and critical tip for running: Buy the right running shoes, or you will end up injuring yourself. Running can be strenuous if you do not have the right kind of shoes.
2. Always Warm Up
Always remember to warm up a little before you actually start running. This prepares your body and mind for the physical activity that you are about to begin.
3. Right Body Form
Always maintain the right posture while running. The wrong posture can do more harm than good – it can lead to pain in your back, neck, and even shoulders. Keep your spine erect, don’t raise your hands above the waist, and keep your elbows out.
4. Maintain A Steady Pace
Run at a pace that suits you the best. Beginners must gradually increase their pace. Sudden and frequent pace change can lead to injury and fatigue.
5. Practise The Run And Walk Technique
If you are a beginner, run a little and then walk for some time. This will help your body get used to the exercise. As you proceed, increase the running time and decrease the walking time.
6. Breathe Right
Make sure you are breathing right. You must breathe through your mouth as well as nose. This helps you get enough oxygen for your muscles while you are running and also helps strengthen your lungs. The best breathing exercise is one that is borrowed from chi-running. It says,‘Breathe in for two steps, out for three steps.’
7. Time Yourself
If you have just started, time yourself first. Do not go by the miles. Track the total time you run in minutes. This is important because when you start, you start slow, and this would not result in too many miles. The idea is not to get discouraged.
8. Run Uphill
Racing uphill tends to keep you fit and increases your body strength. All you need to do is run with short strides while you pump your arms. While going downhill, go for longer strides and relax your arms.
9. Rest The Body When Needed
It is very important that you listen to your body. If it gets sore, take a day off to allow it to rest and recover.
10. Run Barefoot
Running barefoot on grass is very good for the acupressure points present on our feet and heels. It helps in healing various diseases and acne. However, be careful as you might end up pricking your feet. If you can’t go running barefooted, try minimalist shoes to simulate barefoot running. Go slow – take a jog instead of a run.
11. Increase Foot Turnovers
Increasing your foot turnovers (taking shorter strides) can strengthen your body, which helps in skin tightening and toning of the muscles. Experts suggest you take 180 steps per minute. This will also help in avoiding shin injuries.
12. Run On Sand
Did you know that running on sand or the beach can improve your muscle tone? A study says that running on sand requires 1.6 times more energy than running on a track or in the park. This is because your body needs to work harder to deal with the unstable and soft surface.
These tips will help you run efficiently, burn calories, and feel less fatigued. Now, let’s see how running regularly can benefit you.
Benefits Of Running
13. Reduces Belly Fat
Running is an excellent way to reduce your bulging belly. It helps to strengthen the core muscles like the transverse abdominis, erector spinae, and the obliques that help tone and suck in your belly. Moreover, the flab on the muscles is whittled away, making your belly look toned and slim.
14. Keeps Your Heart Healthy
According to an article published in Clinics in Sports Medicine, long distance running has a positive effect on the heart and helps lower the risk of cardiovascular disease (3). Slow and steady jogging on the treadmill or the road can work your heart properly, help mobilize the fat, and prevent artery clogging.
15. Tones The Legs
Toned legs always look good. Running helps tone your outer thighs, inner thighs, hamstrings, quads, glutes, and calves. When you run, you use all the muscles in your legs, buttocks, core, and arms. When you work these muscles, they undergo wear and tear, but they grow stronger when you get proper rest and help them recover.
16. Aids Weight Loss
Running is an excellent workout for weight loss. It helps burn more calories, works on both small and large muscle groups, helps mobilize the fat, and reduces visceral fat. American scientists studied the effect of running and walking on weight loss. Their study concluded that running is more effective than walking when it comes to weight loss (4).
17. Helps Fight Depression
According to WHO, about 300 million people of all ages suffer from depression (5). It is a serious issue and should not be ignored. Scientists have found that running can stimulate the release of serotonin (the feel-good hormone) and is as effective psychotherapy in treating depression (6).
18. Strengthens The Bones And Joints
Running helps strengthen the bones and joints. Numerous studies have found that it has the upper hand over walking or any other exercise when it comes to boosting the strength of the bones and joints. Running reduces the risk of osteoarthritis and hip replacement and strengthens the intervertebral disc (7), (8).
20. Relieves Stress
If you feel stressed out, stop whatever you are doing and run for a good 20 minutes. By the end of it, your stress will vanish like magic. Running helps improve your mood, flushes out toxins, and is a great way to eliminate negative thoughts. It helps you think clearly about situations you are worried about and enables you to take better decisions.
21. Running Is A Healthy High
I say this from firsthand experience that running gives you a high – a healthy one. No side effects, only benefits. Once you get used to running for at least 10 minutes a day, you will feel the urge to run every day and also have a competitive spirit to outdo the previous day’s performance.
22. You Can Run Anytime, Anywhere
You do not need a special suit, equipment or specific time to run. You can just run anytime and anywhere. You may run in the morning or evening, on the treadmill or in the park. In fact, if you are stressed out or feel depressed, run. Don’t bother if it is afternoon or midnight.
23. Fights Off Common Cold
According to the British Journal of Sports Medicine Study, people who performed an aerobic activity at least five days a week suffered 43% lesser from upper respiratory tract infections. Also, if runners caught a cold, the symptoms were less severe. So, if you have the common cold, get on the treadmill and run to give your immunity a boost.
24. Helps You Get A Good Dose Of Vitamin D
Vitamin D is produced when you are out in the morning sun. It is important for your bones, skin, and immunity. But most of the times, we do not get proper sun exposure, leading to weak immunity and bones and increased risk of skin cancer. Get up early in the morning and run to get your dose of vitamin D. It will also make you feel energetic for the rest of the day.
25. Helps You Live Long
Scientists have found that running helps prevent cardiovascular disease, fever, and allergies, reduces the risk of diabetes, stress, and depression, and improves brain function (9). It can make you immune to any cause of death and disease.
Running is a great form of exercise, and you will surely love it. Of course, along with running, you must eat healthy and do strength training if you want to build muscle. So, go get your running shoes and start running! Cheers!
The benefits of running are quite the same as those of walking, like aiding weight loss, increasing life span, managing anxiety, depression, and stress, strengthening the bones and joints, toning the legs and muscles, and reducing the risk of chronic diseases. However, how you run plays an important role in achieving the desired results. Invest in good running shoes, maintain proper form and steady pace, do warm-up exercises, and get your breathing technique right. If you are a beginner, try the run-and-walk technique. You can also try running barefoot to stimulate the acupressure points and improve blood circulation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can running give you abs?
No. Running is a cardio exercise; while it may help strengthen your core muscles, including the abs, it cannot help build your abs or give you a six-pack.
How quickly does running change your body?
You may see positive results within 2-3 months if you maintain consistency in the running exercise.
Read full bio of Kristen Arnold
Read full bio of Charushila Biswas
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