Fact box sources (note: conversions are from g is to oz (US) and from ml to fl oz (US). (1) UK Department of Health. (2) USGS. (3) UK Department of Health. (4) UK Department of Health: Sport and Exercise Medicine: a Fresh Approach (2012). (5) McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, KFC (all US). (6) P Lally, European Journal of Social Psychology. (7) US National Health Interview Survey (2010). (8) US The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports: Exercise and Weight Control. (9) Coca-Cola (US), Starbucks (US). (10) UK Department of Health: Start Active, Stay Active (2011) and US The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sport. (11) UK Department of Health: Start Active, Stay Active (2011) and www.bootsdiets.com. (12) US National Sleep Foundation (US). (13) UK Government Office for Science: Foresight report ‘Talking Obesities: Future Choices (2007). (14) US The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports: Fast Facts About Sports Nutrition. (15) Drinkaware.co.uk. (16) US The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports: Fast Facts About Sports Nutrition. (17) US The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports: Exercise and Weight Control. (18) AM Williamson and AM Feyer, British Medical Journal (2000). (19) USGS. (20) Fitness Australia. (21) Triathlon: Serious About Your Sport (NHP). (22) Olaf Lahl et al, University of Dusseldorf (2008). (23) JH Stubbe et al, The association between exercise participation and well-being (2006) and various others. Photos: iStockphoto.com and www.sxc.hu, P4-5 Said-w. P15 Ariel da Silva Parreira. P35 John Nyberg, www.hdrfoto.dk. P62 Jesper Markward Olsen, jmolsen.
FROM YOUR ARMCHAIR TO A 5 KM RACE IN 12 WEEKS
Training programme by Paul Cowcher
Making the commitment
An important step is simply deciding to go for it…
Get running
Now it’s time to get moving. Slowly and gently at first, nothing too much to start with…
Stretch out and relax
The importance of rest days, sleep and stretching…
Make exercise a habit
Suddenly running is a regular part of your routine…
In the groove
Running should be feeling easier and smoother. Enjoy the rhythm of it…
Feel the benefits
You will already be starting to feel better and fitter. This is what you’ve been working for…
You’re halfway there
Time to take stock. Think how far you’ve come in a short time…
Recommit and look forward
Remind yourself why you started running and look ahead to the finish…
Now push on
It’s time to crank up the energy levels…
Cruise control
You’re feeling fit and healthy. This running is becoming a stroll in the park…
You’re nearly there
It’s time to start winding down and concentrate on the race…
It’s race week
This is what you’ve been aiming for. You’re ready to run 5 km…
You have already taken the first important step towards completing this challenge, from your armchair to a 5 km race in 12 weeks, because you have seen this book online or in a bookshop and thought to yourself, “This is what I need; this is for me.” The best way to use this book is to view the next 12 weeks as a series of small steps. Add them all up and you will complete the end goal. And because you are reading this you have already completed the first, and probably the most important step of all. Hey, aren’t these steps easy?
Think of it this way: you don’t host a successful dinner party by worrying about the final result and deciding that there is no way you can get all the food and drink together and still welcome your guests with a smile on your face. You simply picture the end result – plates piled high with your delicious food and happy faces supping away – and set about all the small tasks needed to get to that end result. You know it won’t happen with a simple click of the fingers (getting from your armchair to a 5 km race won’t either) so you just concentrate on the small tasks such as marinating the meat, chopping the vegetables, setting the table and so on, because you know all the small tasks will eventually add up to the end result you have pictured in your mind.
one
There is only one thing you should be concentrating on right now and that is to start exercising. Don’t attempt to give up smoking and drinking and start eating salads just yet. You are more likely to give up if you try to change too much at once.
Different people will have different reasons for doing this challenge. Maybe you want to lose a bit of weight? Get into a dress that’s got a bit too tight? Encourage yourself to eat healthier? Feel more energized during the day? Or maybe it was a bet with a friend in the pub who teased you that your sporting days were behind you? All of these are perfectly fine, and are common motivators, but remember the goal is to get out of your armchair and finish a 5 km race. Do not obsess with the other things like weight loss, your diet or losing your bet; these are by-products of what you are doing and will look after themselves.
It’s unlikely, but not impossible, that you cross the line in 12 weeks weighing the same as you do right now, or that you somehow complete the race fuelled on your current diet of pizza and chicken wings. Things take time, every person is different and there are many other factors involved. If you stress that the weight is not falling off after a couple of jogs around the park or that the pizza delivery man still knows you by your first name during these 12 weeks then the only result will be a loss of motivation and you’ll be back where you started – in your armchair.
So the next step is to take a few seconds right now to visualize the end result. Close your eyes if it helps.
hear
Listen to your body. You know when you are feeling good and you know when you are not because your body tells you. Follow the programme and listen to advice but always remember the best guide you will have is your own body.
see
Make sure you visualize your success before you have even taken a physical step towards it. Your mind and body work together as a team and your head is the leader so take time to picture your success right away.
It doesn’t matter if you are on a train, at home, wherever, or if you think this visualization stuff is all a load of old nonsense (most of us think the same) just take a few moments to see the end result. This is all about seeing yourself in 12 weeks’ time bounding across the finish line feeling good with a smile on your face. Picture a few of the details like the sun on your face and the applause from your partner or friends as you finish the challenge. Oh, go on then, you can imagine yourself slimmer and sexier as well…
Oi, you two at the back who have skipped this bit! Come on, picture your success… That’s better.
Right, now you’ve pictured the end result in your mind it’s time to start taking the steps needed to get there. You won’t need to be a rocket scientist to realize that this book is broken down into 12 large steps. Each will include a brief overview of what the focus of that particular week is all about. Read this at the end of the previous week so you’ve got time to digest it. As with above, visualize the success of the week (come on, you’re an old hand at this). Don’t skip these few seconds of visualization as they are important in firming up the week ahead in your mind. You will also find snippets of information on things such as food and drink, mental fitness, sleep, and so on, that you can use during your 12 weeks.
The most important page in each section is Your Training Programme and Diary. Again, look over this page at the end of the previous week so the information has plenty of time to sink in. Also ensure you make space in your diary for each day’s activity and don’t relegate them to, “I’ll fit that in somewhere,” or you’ll get to the end of the day and realize there is no time left. Treat each session as you would an important meeting at work or an appointment with your child’s school.