It's a known fact by now that my goal is to run a half marathon this year. Yep, all 21km of it. Instead of shitting my pants and be all nervous about it, I thought I'd better educate myself a little with technique, nutrition and strengthening, so off I went to the Women's Running Seminar held by the WA Marathon Club. I think it may be the best $5 I have spent ever.
I was interested to hear what Lauren Shelley and Alison Lowe had to say. Lauren Shelley, is the Commonwealth Games representative and 2012 Australian Marathon Champion and Alison Lowe is a well known sports physiotherapist. Lauren shared her thoughts and tips about training program. She said if you are a beginner, should aim to try and run 3 times a week and make one of those run a long run. Long run doesn't have to mean mileage, it can also mean just going out on a slow run for a period of time. " Seems doable", I thought. Brilliant. She was inspiring and humble. It felt good to be in the same room with her.
Alison Lowe's talk was the best. She brought a friend who is an expert in incontinence and the importance of having good pelvic floor muscles. We all had a great big laugh when she showed us some examples of the exercise we have to do. Alison's spoke about why runners often get injuries, why is it important to do active stretches and static stretches. The main point of her talk, Strength. Building strength in your body so it would be able to cope with running long distances and that will ultimately prevent injuries from occurring.
Pretty interesting right? If there is a running seminar held some place near you, attend it. Learn from people who have been there and have done it for a long time.
