Many people start running without preparing themselves & their body before running.

There are many things you can do to improve your running. Out of many we have shortlisted most important once for you here.

First thing you need to focus on is your overall strengthening . It is important to strengthen your leg muscles.

Exercise which is helpful for running is :

1)Lunges – You can do stationary on the spot Lunges or Walking lunges.

It helps you to strengthen your Gluteals,Hamstrings,Quadriceps,calf muscles & also your core muscles .

Lunges is your strength training exercise. You can not do repitative exercise of walking lunges everyday. Doing lunges every day can also make you fatigued and unable to use proper lunge form, causing undue stress to your lower back, knees and calves.

Before you begin any lunge variation, go through this pre-workout checklist:

• Prepare your body for movement through mobilization and a proper warmup
• Drive through your heel(s) to maximally recruit your glutes
• Keep hips aligned to protect any knee deviation
• Brace your core to create intra-abdominal pressure
• Keep your head still throughout every exercise

If you’re a beginner, start with a simple static lunge or walking lunge, concentrating on the quality of each rep. Start with 3 sets of 10 reps for each leg.

2)Squats- Another common exercise which is really important is doing your squats.

Remember not to compromise your technique when doing squats.

It helps you to strengthen your Hamstrings,Quadriceps,Calf muscles & also teaches you great core control.

There are some basics of doing squats.

• Stand with feet a little wider than hip width, toes facing front.
• Bring your hips back—bending at the knees and ankles and pressing your knees slightly open—as you…
• Sit into a squat position while still keeping your heels and toes on the ground, chest up and shoulders back.
• Strive to eventually reach parallel, meaning knees are bent to a 90-degree angle.Remember not to pass your knee over your toes.
• Press into your heels and straighten legs to return to a standing upright position.

  3) Interval Workout:

Before going for long run it is essential to check your body strength and train your body with Interval workout.

We have given here few examples of interval workout that you can follow before running practise.

Plan 1:Beginner workout (30 minutes)

Warm up- Easy jog or Walk – for 5 minutes,

Run- for 1 minute( Go for less incline & progress gradually)

Progress it to walk- for 3 minutes

Run- for 2 minute.Repeat it for 1 week with work/rest interval.

It is also important to control your breathing while you are running.

Plan 2: Intermediate to advanced Runner

• Warm-up: 5 minute easy jog
• Work interval: 5 minutes @ marathon pace (or 5 out of 10 on
• Recovery time: 1 minute at easy pace
• Work interval: 4 minutes @ half marathon pace (or 6 out of 10 PE)
• Recovery time: 1 minute at easy pace
• Work interval: 3 minutes @ 10K pace (7 out of 10 PE)
• Recovery Time: 1 minute at easy pace
• Work interval: 2 minutes @ 5K pace (8 out of 10 PE)
• Recovery Time: 1 minute at easy pace
• Work interval: 1 minute @ hard (sprint) pace (9 out of 10 PE)
• Recovery Time: 1 minute at easy pace
• Cool down: 5 minutes easy jogging

** Followed by your stretching routine.

** PE is – rate of perceived exertion.

*** after doing interval training it is important to check your fitness with Mile test & Beep test to check your strength before your running !!

Doing a timed mile on a track is also great way to assess your fitness and give yourself a goal to work toward. Run a hard mile (4 laps) at a fast but steady pace. You want to go as fast as you can, but maintain an even pace for each lap. For example, if you are aiming for a 6-minute mile, your goal would be to run each lap in 90 seconds.

Do not forget to keep breathing at your normal pace!! Running is also great way to improve your lungs vital capacity.