Run, Forest, Run! Wellness presentation by Scott Scholes, Running coach and enthusiast

Running 101 Decide what you want to get out of running Pleasure Fitness Competition Speed without competition Longevity Sore knees Be evaluated by physician if you’ve been a couch potato Run by time, distance, &/or speed Talk to yourself (or someone else) while you run (lactate threshold)

More Advanced Runners Do an honest evaluation of yourself and your running Do training related research Make a plan W.I.N. (What’s important now!)

Have fun Don’t overdo it. Running too fast, too far or too often in the beginning can cause burn you, soreness, or injury Recover, recover, recover “The body does not get fitter through exercise, it gets fitter through recovering from exercise” Peter Keen (Chris Boardman’s coach) Learn to dress for the weather Pull over cleats or screw shoes Running vs. walking shoes (choose running) Listen to music Use the fitness trail, TF trail system Consider a heart rate monitor Consider a GPS

Stretching (You Do the Research!) See Complete Running Guide

6 Biggest Mistakes 1. Doing too much too soon Whenever starting a new activity such as running, it is important to ease into it. Do not make the mistake of going to far to soon or running too fast before you are ready. Ease into a training program by gradually building up both your distance and your running intensity or pace.

2. Ignoring recovery Running is an intense exercise that requires you take great care of your body to reach your full potential. In order to alleviate the aches and pains involved with running, beginners need to pay special attention to recovery. Recovery starts in the cool down. At the end of any workout it is important to do a cool down by either doing a slow jog or walk for about 5 minutes after your run.

3. Not wearing proper shoes and equipment While it may be true that there are no barriers to entry in running such as high tech and expensive equipment, it should be noted that there are some basic pieces of equipment beginning runners should acquire early on in their running endeavors. The most important piece of equipment for running is a proper pair of running shoes.

4. No goals or plan Create a goal and come up with strong reasons why you want to run and achieve this goal. Running is very challenging. When the going gets tough many will quit. But if you have a strong goal and a well thought out plan for how you can achieve your goal then you are more likely to stick to the intense exercise of running. See: S.M.A.R.T. goal settingS.M.A.R.T. goal setting

5. Learning to properly pace Proper pacing can help the new runner avoid the slow down or forced walk. By learning to run an even pace, new runners will have a much more enjoyable experience with the sport. Not only can running a slower even pace help the runner finish without walking, but by running even pace the whole way the runner is more likely to have an overall better time!

6. No variety in training One of the keys to success in running is variety in training. One of the easiest ways is by running different courses. By running different courses on your different runs you will add variety to your training with hills, flats and possibly even surface conditions. Running different courses can help prevent injury since different surface, hills and flats will work all your different running muscles. Daniel McLaughlin,

Resources for Runners Print Better runs! (great book for all types of runners) Once a runner (novel about a competitive distance runner) Running Research News Web (general running information) (general running & other sport information) (general running information) Local/State Team Weenie (local group) - Magic Valley Runners - (Idaho running/endurance sport event calendar) (calendar connected to Boise store) (Boise store)

Thanks, Scott! See you on the trail.