RUNNING: Running is Medicine

RUNNING

Words & Photos: Elana Meyer

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Running medicine I went for my first-ever run on our farm Skilpadgat, which is 5 km outside Albertinia, many, many years ago. The inspiration behind it was a fun run to be held at the primary school I attended. Excitedly, I put my on white tekkies and off I went.

As I ran along a deserted dirt road framed by golden wheat fields and crossed gurgling streams and fields filled with cows and sheep happily grazing, I felt so free and happy. Without any instructions or rules, I could explore and push myself to see what my limits were, in my own time and at my own pace, and I felt incredibly satisfied when I got home. But what really surprised me was that instead of feeling tired, I felt alive, energised, alert and ready for anything! Right there and then, I fell in love with running and it is a love affair that has yet to end.

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The euphoric feeling I get when running is not unusual, as many studies have shown that people who exercise regularly experience benefits when chemicals, called endorphins, are released and trigger that feeling known as a 'runner's high'.

So how do you get started? Here are some tips to help get you up and running and looking like a pro in no time.

Even more fascinating is recent studies that confirm there is scientific evidence that you can power your brain through exercise. Therefore, the reason why we feel so good when we get our blood pumping is because it causes the brain to function at its best.

• G EAR - First up, kit yourself out with the basics. When it comes to what you wear, choose some funky running gear. And for the shoes, boost yourself with a fun, light and energy-filled running shoe from the Adidas Energy Boost range. Running is fun, so kit yourself out accordingly.

Always remember to wear a hat and sunscreen.

Exercise has become a powerful 'medicine' to improve our children’s learning capacity, reduce the negative effects of stress, manage mental health issues such as ADD, anxiety, depression, and maintain our cognitive abilities as we age.

I believe that running is the number one physical activity in the world. It is part of a warm up and fitness routine for many sports around the world and it's a natural progression from walking to running to sprinting. We are born to run.

Elana and her sister.

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• TRAINING PROGRAMME - If you have never run before, start your programme by walking. Begin with a 20-minute at a brisk pace and increase this time by 5 minutes everyday until you can walk for an hour. Now you can start to introduce running into your programme. Walk for 10 minutes, then run a minute, walk a minute and build up to where you can run / walk for an hour. Do this at a pace you feel confident and comfortable at.

Curious ostriches along my running route.

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Home sweet home.

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Now that you look like a pro and have reached the point where you can keep going for an hour, here are the next steps to maximise your running enjoyment.

• C hoose an event to participate in and allow enough time to prepare for it.

• Enter the event.

• Set up a training programme, which includes a nutritional plan as well. If you are not sure how to do this, enlist the help of a coach like Sanlam Cape Town Marathon coaches' Jacques and Mauritz Jansen van Rensburg.

• Pitch up on race day and enjoy the experience because you are now a runner!

Always remember that running is not about how fast you go, it is about getting out there, doing it and enjoying yourself. There again, how can you not when you consider that: • • • •

unning is GOOD EXERCISE R Running is a MEDICINE Running is a LEGAL DRUG Running MAKES YOU SMART •

More information For more information, visit www.endurocad.co.za To contact coaches Jacques and Mauritz Jansen van Rensburg, visit http://on.fb.me/1nhGRTl

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