What are your TOP Beginner Running Tips?

My beginner running tips come from personal experience of running my first marathon, scouring the Internet for answers, reading books and asking fellow marathoners their advice.

They are all fairly straightforward, but I also explain them so they make perfect sense. One thing I found when researching and asking is that most people assumed I knew what I was doing. They assumed I already had base miles. They assumed I already knew that a 9-minute mile pace would get me across the finish line within my four-hour goal.

Well, what assuming did was create more work for me. I didn’t have my base miles and I didn’t know what my pace goal should be. I was a first-time marathoner without an inkling of how to position myself to finish. What pace should I run? What food should I eat? What shoes should I buy? What beer should I drink to celebrate afterward? OK, that was already in my beginner run tips section, but that’s beside the point.

What I’m trying to say is… here is a list of beginner running tips straight from the proving grounds, unedited, not made up, but true and explained because I don’t assume you know what Goo, gait or your magic pace is.

Greg’s Beginner Running Tips, as told by… Greg:

If you want to run, you will find time...
This is motivation in and of itself. If you want to cross the finish line victoriously, if you want to push your body into a zone you’ve never felt before, if you want to feel what it feels like to do your 20-mile training run and know that you still have 6.2 miles to go, then you will find the time to run.

The early runner usually runs...
By your ninth or tenth week of training day in and day out, you will probably have felt what the “pros” call—the WALL. Usually, it is reserved for the actual race and hits most people around the 22-mile range, but for me, it was week nine. I was diligent about running whenever it was on my schedule. Sometimes it was in the morning. Sometimes it was at night.

Then one day. I felt like I couldn’t run anymore. I felt like my legs couldn’t go another step. I got home one day after a long day at work and said “I’ll just run in the morning.” I didn’t. It threw my next few days off too. It took me about 72 hours to rest enough to feel normal again. It was then that I realized I had to overcome my own laziness by tricking it. Instead of waiting until I was dead tired after work, I ate some good running fuel the night before, set my coffee pot for early and made a vow to stick to my plan. It worked. I felt great all day long. I felt accomplished. I felt like I could… well, run a marathon!

Eat, drink and be a runner, but don’t forget to rest...
Do you know the way some fast food makes you feel a little lethargic? Maybe even brings your self confidence down a tad because you just ate 40 grams of McFat. Well, there’s a reason. It’s not a well-balanced meal. It doesn’t have the right mix of carbs, protein and fat. It usually has too much of one thing. I’m no nutritionist, but when I trained my legs, I also trained my stomach. Be diligent about this.

Goo + Shot Bloks + Gatorade = Stomach Problems...
Looking for advice on carbohydrate replacements? Look no further. If you like gooey, milky coagulated consistency, go for the Goo. If you like little square blocks that taste decent and are easy to chew, go with Shot Blocks. If you like an upset stomach, combine all three and wash down with Gatorade. I’m kidding, please don’t do this. This would not be a good addition to the beginner running tips list.

Also note, when you’re training… train with what you’re going to be using during the race. If your first marathon choice uses lemon Gatorade. Train with lemon Gatorade.

Germs are not your friend.
Make sure you wash your water bottle regularly! Studies have shown that water bottles are one of the most germ harboring items. Yuck! Warm water and soap will do the trick.

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