Running is a simple and effective aerobic exercise, which is loved by people of all ages. Especially for people over 40 years old, running can not only enhance physical fitness and improve cardiopulmonary function, but also release stress and improve mood.
With the increase of age, the body’s recovery ability and exercise adaptability will gradually decline. If you do not pay attention to the scientific running method, it may cause sports injuries and even affect your health.
Therefore, for runners over 40 years old, there are three “stupid things” that must not be done.
Blind comparison
In the running circle that people are keen on, it is often seen that some runners like to compete with each other in running volume and pace. For runners over 40 years old, this kind of comparison behavior is not only meaningless, but may bring more and more psychological burdens and potential sports injuries.
Everyone’s physical condition and athletic ability are unique. Blind imitation and comparison will only make oneself bear unnecessary pressure, which will eventually affect the fun and fitness effect of running.
The increase in running volume and pace should be gradually adjusted according to personal physical condition, rather than forcibly increasing one’s own exercise volume because of seeing others running fast. This can easily lead to overtraining and increase the risk of injury. Especially for runners over 40 years old, their body recovery ability is not as good as when they were young, so they need to be more cautious about the increase in training volume.
When you see others running farther and faster, you are likely to feel frustrated, which will lead to a decrease in interest in running. This negative psychological suggestion will affect the long-term persistence and enthusiasm of running. The purpose of our running should be for physical and mental health, not for the sake of competitiveness and psychological pressure.
Therefore, everyone should focus on self-improvement during running, rather than competing with others. According to your physical condition and training goals, make a reasonable running plan and gradually improve your running level.
Runners should encourage each other and share the joy and experience of running, rather than competing with each other.
Ignore warm-up
With age, the flexibility of muscles and joints will decrease. If you do not perform sufficient warm-up activities, you are prone to injury during running. Warming up before running can not only improve athletic performance, but also prevent muscle strains and joint injuries.
Especially for runners over 40 years old, warm-up activities are particularly important. Through a full-body warm-up, you can increase your body temperature, improve blood circulation, and make your muscles and joints more flexible. This can not only significantly reduce the risk of injury, but also make you perform better in running.
Don’t ignore the warm-up before running, so that your body can gradually adapt to the intensity of exercise and fully realize your potential. After running, proper muscle stretching and relaxation can help relieve muscle tension and promote body recovery.
These restorative activities should not be ignored either. They can help you avoid muscle stiffness and joint pain on the next run, so as to maintain a good running state.
Remember that adequate warm-up and effective stretching are not only the key to preventing injuries, but also a necessary step to improve sports performance.
Run every day
Although running is a healthy sport, running every day will not give the body enough recovery time and increase the risk of sports injuries.
Especially for people over 40 years old, the body recovers more slowly and needs more rest time. If the body is not given enough time to rest and repair itself, the accumulation of fatigue in muscles, joints and ligaments can lead to overuse injuries, such as tendonitis and stress fractures.
Reasonably arrange the running frequency. It is recommended to control the running frequency to 3-4 times a week to ensure that the body has enough recovery time. In addition, you can also combine other low-intensity exercises, such as swimming, yoga, etc., to help all parts of the body relax and recover better.
This can not only improve cardiopulmonary function, but also enhance the body’s flexibility and coordination, which helps prevent sports injuries. Under the premise of ensuring sufficient running volume, adjusting the running frequency and combining other sports methods can improve the overall effect of exercise and maintain the overall health and balance of the body.
Reasonable arrangement of training
Runners over 40 years old should avoid a large increase in running volume or pace at one time when doing running training, but gradually adapt to the new exercise intensity. The sudden increase in training volume and running speed will not only not improve sports performance, but will easily lead to muscle fatigue, excessive joint pressure and other problems, causing sports injuries.
A scientific and reasonable training plan should gradually increase the number of runs and running distance, increase slightly each week, and help the body gradually adapt to higher exercise loads through a step-by-step approach. The adjustment of the pace should also be based on one’s own exercise level and recovery situation. Too fast or too slow is not conducive to maximizing the exercise effect.
In addition to traditional continuous running, interval training is also an effective training method. By alternating short-term high-intensity running and low-intensity recovery, interval training can significantly improve cardiopulmonary function and endurance, while reducing the load and injury risk of monotonous training mode on the body. Try to arrange one or two interval training sessions a week, which can not only enrich the training content, but also effectively improve the overall sports performance.
With age, the muscle mass of the human body will gradually decrease, and muscles are an important part of supporting the body, especially when running. It plays a role in protecting joints.
Regularly performing strength training 2-3 times a week, combined with muscle group training in various parts of the body, is an important means to maintain a strong body. Strength training can also improve running economy and make every step more efficient.
After adding strength training, many runners found that they can complete running tasks faster and more steadily, while reducing the chance of injury.
For runners over 40 years old, maintaining the habit of running not only helps to improve physical fitness, but also improves mood.
Running is scientific and reasonable, and you should not blindly pursue speed and quantity. Only by arranging training properly and maintaining a healthy mentality can you truly run healthily and achieve all-round development of your body and mind.
