Galloway’s Run-walk-run

CEBU, Philippines - We need to run and run more.

But we have to run with a proper training.

Says triathlete Amale Jopson during the 10th Cebu Orthopaedic Institute Symposium recently: “Running high volume could be scary. Endurance sports lead to serious injury if not in the proper program.”

In her talk on the “Essentials of Running,” she especially mentioned of the Galloway RUN-WALK-RUN Method [all caps emphasize trademark].

Inspirational speaker/running coach Jeff Galloway’s quest for the injury-free marathon training program led him to develop group training programs in 1978, and to author Runner’s World articles which have been used by hundreds of thousands of runners of all abilities. His training schedules have inspired the second wave of marathoners who follow the “Galloway Run-Walk-Run, low mileage, three-day, suggestions to an over 98 percent success rate.” His innovative ideas have opened up the possibility of running and completing a marathon to almost everyone.

Sample of Galloway’s 5K/10K Training Schedule

To begin with, take to heart the following tips: 1) Don’t wait to take walk breaks. By alternating walking and running from the beginning, you seek recovery without losing any of the endurance effect of the long one. Start with jogging one to two minutes and walking two to three minutes. As your training level increases you can adjust your run/walk ratio to running five minutes/walking one minute on your long runs. 2) Be sure to do the running portion slow enough at the beginning of every run (especially the long run) so that you’ll feel tired but strong at the end. The conservatism will allow you to recover faster. 3) Every other day you can cross-train instead of walking. Water running, cycling, and any other mode which you find fun and interesting (but non-pounding) will improve overall fitness. 4) Stay conversational on all of your exercise sessions. This means that you should be exerting yourself at a low enough level that you could talk. It’s okay to take deep breaths between sentences, but you don’t want to “huff and puff” between every word. 5) As the runs get longer, be sure to keep your blood sugar boosted by eating an energy bar (or equivalent) about an hour before exercise. Drink water continuously before and during exercise and with all food.

Before those first steps!

Galloway, however, warns that there are very few people who should not exercise because of cardiovascular, structural, muscular, or other problems. It is very important to ensure that you are not in this risk category. So before beginning any exercise, diet or other improvement program, be sure to have yourself and the program evaluated by specialists in the areas you are pursuing.

The best strike

Amale Jopson clearly said: “We don’t want a heel strike. Striking on a midfoot is how we were born to run. Toes, on the other hand, work well in sprinting.” (FREEMAN)