Want to know how to start running? It’s relatively easy and has great benefits for you if you stick with a good routine. Running can help you lose weight, improve your cardiovascular health, improve your bone health, improve your mood and even help with improving your coordination. In order to start running there are a few key things that you should know and do to be successful in reaching your goals.

1. Set Goals

Its important to have some kind of goals set when you first begin your running regimen. Without anything to strive or aim for, your motivation will lack and running will become a tedious chore rather than a fun hobby or activity. If your just beginning, maybe you should set a goal to be able to run in a community 5k race, or even less. If you’ve been running for awhile you should think about training for a marathon or even a triathlon. The goals you make for yourself can be anything, you just have to make sure you have goals to work towards.

2. Get Shoes

Not just any shoes, but shoes that are made for running and fit comfortably around your feet. Running will become more and more difficult if your footwear is straining your legs and not helping you with making every step relatively comfortable.

Did you know it’s actually proven to be better for your knees and body as a whole to run barefoot? Now I’m not saying that you should go around the city running barefoot, but the way the human stride has adapted to the shoe has made the heel of the foot hit the ground first rather than the balls of your feet hitting the ground first which creates less impact. If your around a beach then barefoot running is ideal!

3. Plan out a workout schedule

Try to set aside 20-30 minutes a day for 3-4 days a week to run. If running is your primary workout and your looking to run in a marathon then think about adding some more time dedicated to running. If you have a whole other workout routine but your trying to integrate running in with it, then you might want to consider taking less time running. How much you run is all dependent on the individual. Just take in consideration your goals, your availability, your energy levels and your mood when you set up a schedule for running.

4. Learn Basic Running Technique

You want to feel relaxed when your running, so keep your arms around waist level, let your hands and shoulders relax and maintain good posture. Don’t bounce up and down, try to land softly to it reduces the impact and stress on the joints.

And like I was saying before, when you run barefoot your toes hits before your heels its creating less impact on your joints... so if your able to, try to train your body to run by using a toe-heel stride rather than a heel-toe stride. It might take a little time to transition, but the benefits of running the right way is unparalleled.

5. Breathe

If you ever have the chance to take yoga I would highly recommend it for the sole reason that it helps you relax, clear your mind an focus on your breathing. What you want to try and do is breathe in your nose, fully expanding your lungs, and breathe out your mouth.

6. Have fun!

If your not having fun or at least trying to have fun while your running, it’s going to become more and more like something you ‘have’ to do rather than something you ‘want’ to do. There are plenty of ways to add fun to your run, find good outdoor places to run, listen to some motivating music or find a partner to run with! Running helps clear your mind and relax more than most people think.

7)Start Slow

If your just beginning to run it’s a good idea to start with a walk to warm up and gradually speed up to a jog or run. Start off by running by timing yourself for a certain amount of time, lets say 20 minutes... or you cant start running based on distance and keep track that way. Everyone is different so everyone is going to be starting somewhere else for the most part, the key is to find what time limit or distance works best for you.

8. Push yourself

After you being the running program and you start feeling comfortable with running a decent amount, you want to start pushing yourself to go that so to speak extra mile! In order to get the best results out of any workout plan you need to be able to push yourself and work hard each and every time you set out to run or workout. It’s all mind over matter and persevering when you feel like you can’t go much longer.

9. Stay Motivated

The initial burst of motivation you have to begin running probably won’t stick around for the long term. It’s important to find new ways to motivate yourself and keep things fun and exciting. If you get bored of running the same road everyday, run a different road up in the mountains or out near a lake! If you can’t get out of bed in the morning learn how to motivate yourself!

10. Relax

If you’ve been pushing yourself, running almost everyday and doing everything your supposed to be doing, don’t feel guilty about relaxing every once in awhile to let your batteries recharge so you can come back stronger the next day. Rest is vital for any athlete or anyone trying to get in better shape, without it the body won’t function at 100%.