Running Buddies PLODCAST: Recent Episodes
Running Buddies
"You wouldn't just get in a car and drive it without knowing HOW. Running is no different. 20 sessions will change your life!"I'm Ann Phillips, and I am an England Athletics Leader in Running Fitness. Me and my mate Andy Canning - he's a Coach in Running Fitness - spend LOADS of our time teaching people how to run. We LOVE it. Partly because we're a bit bossy, but mostly because we get our kicks from helping people to achieve their running goals!We normally 'run' (ha ha) three Couch to 5k courses a year - but the last year has been a little different! English Lockdown 2 during the Covid-19 pandemic came midway through a course, so we went virtual for our gang - and twice a week, we provided a PLODCAST to get them through the course with us in their ears! Every single one of them finished the course and THEY LOVED IT! And then we did more! And they LOVED IT!So, we thought we'd put it out there for everyone. Why should you do Couch to 5k and beyond with us? Well, we'll definitely tell you you when to run and when to walk as you build up towards your 5k. But we'll also tell you HOW to run and walk. It's a gamechanger.
Occasional Choice Language!
Sharon Howell is one of our most inspiring runners. She started with C25K and it was NOT easy.
She kept going, through some fairly tough injuries - knees, hips etc.
She kept going, battling mental demons that told her she couldn't do it.
She kept going, battling weight and losing 3 stone.
She really does just keep going, and this bonus episode is her story. We just ask a couple of questions and it all comes tumbling out.
Do take a listen. You don't even have to be running to listen.
Occasional Choice Language!
Literally, the last input session. It's just us jabbering, and if you're still here by now, you must like that quite a lot! So listen to us telling you about our senior moments!
Occasional Choice Language!
In this episode, we talk about all sorts of stuff, but it's under the umbrella of how do you transition to your next set of goals in running.
You might want to go further, you might want to go faster, you might want to cross train, you might just want to keep doing 5k. Whatever you choose, working through what you need to do to achieve it mindfully is a massive part of your planning success. Take a listen. See what you take away.
Occasional Choice Language!
In this session, we talk about really being mindful about what you've learnt and what you've acheived. Mindfulness leads to a real awareness of what you are ACTUALLY doing; it makes you think about how you feel, what works well, what you want to do again.
As runners, our activity is kind of how we find our peace, so it stands to reason that we should take a moment to be reflective and thankful about what it gives us!
Occasional Choice Language!
WE HAVE A GUEST!
We welcome Mark White, children's author and a huge advocate of mindful running. Mark is the founder of Give Your Town The Runaround, YourTown, The Grateful Mile Initiative, and now, MEUS - an absolute revelation in (mainly) Men's Health and Mindfulness.
Mark talks about how he found his love for running through a chance conversation with a coach and how that then fed his passion to bring running to more and more people. He's now a global concern - take a listen and see what you think.
Occasional Choice Language!
You really are now at the stage where you can do this, and you're going to nail your 30 minutes exercise in the next couple of sessions! Well done.
So, it's fair to say that in this episode, we're mostly just jabbering, but taking you through how to eat as you start to run further.
Occasional Choice Language!
You are 80% of the way through, and today, you will be running for straight 20 minutes.
Andy's going to talk to you about managing your pace, making sure you keep going and get to the end of this milestone session.
Occasional Choice Language!
We all have aspirational goals and targets. So what's the thing that is most likely to stop us achieving them? Is it our ability? Is it our kit? Is it that we're too slow? Is it what we eat?
Nope. None of those things. It's that we try to eat an elephant - and that's hard and it messes with our head. So we have to think about how to break the elephant down into small manageable chunks. This session is all about realistic goal setting and it will truly set you up for success.
Occasional Choice Language!
Well looky here! Everyone wants to be Usain Bolt. But we aren't. We are, however, ALL ATHLETES. You are now part of an elite group of people who get up and get out and get moving. But we do fixate on speed - because that's what we've learnt from watching races, listening to commentary and seeing others run.
So what's PACE all about? Genuinely, do yourself one of the biggest favours you can as a new runner - take a listen, and put all those beliefs about speed in the bin, and run for yourself. Run for fun. It's all in this plodcast!
Occasional Choice Language!
As you get more and more into your running, there will come a time when you want to measure what you're doing.
Everyone can access some measuring devices for free.....and we can also spend an arm and a leg on incredible technologies that just stop short of jabbing you when you fart.....so we're here today to talk about how they work, where to start, and what the information they give you can help you get even better at what you're doing. It's not about how much you spend, it's more about knowing what you want to know and getting the bit of kit that meets your needs.
Occasional Choice Language!
You've got all you need to succeed now, so the role Andy and I play in getting you to the end game is changing. Today, we're just chatting to you about how on earth two old duffers came to be coaching C25k, and how that went digital! And of course, we're encouraging you along the way!
Occasional Choice Language!
A big theme from our new starter groups is hydration! What should I drink? When should I drink? Should I drink? How much should I drink? Should I take a drink on my run? How quickly will I dehydrate?
If any of these questions have perplexed you, you'll know all you need to know in about 40 minutes time!
Occassional Choice Language!
Energy Systems.....Zzzz! No! If you are doing this programme to keep fit and as a bi-product, get a bit slimmer, this is a zinger of an episode!
We talk about building great habits and how that helps you to keep control in times of crisis(running or otherwise!) and about the 3 main energy systems in our bodies that we engage when we run and enable us to burn off those biscuits!
Occassional Choice Language!
Here's a biggy! In this episode, we talk about.....OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD! It is a relationship, and sometimes, it's a really unhealthy one. In fact, if food was a person, we might consider leaving!
We tell ourselves lies to justify what we do, and for many of us, that behaviour will lead us to something like C25K to get fitter and slimmer. We're going to bring some of the myths out into the open - it's really ok to talk about it and get some help to change what you do.
Occasional Choice Language!
Another episode! In this one, we take you through WHY we stretch before and after exercise. How to do it, when to do it, how long to do it for. All of that helps you to minimise the risk of injury as a new runner, so we NEVER underestimate the importance of a good stretch!!
It's all about being flexible!
Occasional Choice Language!
In this episode, we add more to the HOW TO RUN jigsaw puzzle and share what to do with your LEGS when you run. It might sound mad, but you really do need to know how to use the machine properly.
Enjoy!
Occasional Choice Language!
The thing is, when you start your running career, and you start to run for longer, there will come a time when you can't avoid hills anymore.
There are so many types of hills - long, short, steep, sharp, drag. But all you really need to know is that they go up and then they go down and how to deal with them. Once you've got that in the bag, there won't be much left that can stop you!
Occasional Choice Language!
"Hips Not Nips and Pockets to Sockets"
The way you move your shoulders and arms will directly impact the movement in your legs. Trust us when we say that if you can focus on what you do with your arms as you get into running, using your legs to run will get much easier.
Seriously.
We don't joke about this stuff!
Occasional Choice Language!
"Habits are easier to make than break - so let's start building great running habits from Day 1!"
So, you've listened to E1, maybe been out and done it a couple of times, and started to get on top of that breathing thing! The question is now, what the hell do I do with all this other stuff, like my head, my shoulders, my arms, my core, my legs, my feet!
You can just do it, or you can do it really well! Let's start as we mean to go on and build some great running habits, starting now!
Occasional Choice Language!
We know that there are LOTS of things that stop people running. But the single biggest thing that stops beginners running is the feeling that they CAN'T BREATHE.
In this episode, we'll take you through what you need to know as a beginner to make sure that you don't get that feeling. Because once you know how to control your breathing when you're running, most of the other stuff is a breeze!