Hi team, Coach Alexa here.
Last week I talked a little bit about how walking can be a really useful part of our running training as existing runners. Today, I would like to talk about how walking can be part of a great strategy in your fitness journey.
Start with Walking Before Running
There is the old saying, “Don’t run before you can walk.” If I have somebody coming to me because they want to start running, I often look at how much walking they do as part of their base level of fitness that we then build on.
Everything I do is completely bespoke per person, but in many cases, we start by looking at their walking.
Building Fitness Through Walking
Walking can be a great way of building up the cardiovascular aspects of fitness, improving movement patterns, and introducing an element of impact loading without going straight into the high-impact loading of running.
It can be a really good starting point.
You can also begin working on cardiovascular capacity and intensity by introducing brisk walking. For example, you might try a fartlek-style approach, walking faster between houses down your road.
If you have a hill nearby, a brisk walk uphill can raise your heart rate more than you might expect.
There are lots of effective ways to use walking as a training mechanism in its own right.
Walking in Structured Programmes
If you have ever done, or read about, Couch to 5K, you will know that in the early weeks, walking plays a bigger role than running. This is partly to manage loading, but also because it is a key part of getting people outdoors and active.
This is not about underplaying walking. Walking in its own right is fantastic, and I will talk more about that in future videos.
It is particularly beneficial for people who should not go straight from the sofa to running continuously for 5K. Walking can form part of that progression, but it is also a valuable foundational step on its own.
Accessibility and Low Barriers
Walking is very accessible.
When starting running, you might need to invest in running shoes or a sports bra. However, most people already have a pair of trainers suitable for walking on local pavements.
This makes walking a low-requirement activity, which is ideal. The fewer barriers there are to entry, the easier it is to start being active and doing a little bit more.
Final Thoughts
That is all I am going to say about it for now.
Happy running and walking.
