Keeping Things Consistent in Running
Jennifer Heiner is a retail director at a New Jersey running company. Working closely with the company’s founders, Jennifer Heiner assists with the operation of three retail stores that furnish high-end performance apparel. This requires managing inventory control and hiring new associates during peak shopping periods. Additionally, she aids the company’s business development initiatives, which include hosting multiple races each year. In this capacity, she offers coaching, race directing, and organizational assistance, from ensuring aid stations are stocked to securing winners’ medals. Prior to her current position, Jennifer Heiner helped to coordinate foster families at a dog rescue in New Jersey. As part of her responsibilities, she worked to expand the organization’s impact by recruiting more foster families and volunteers. She also assisted in providing more than 100 dogs a month with foster homes by addressing immediate issues that might arise during the fostering experience. She prepared for her career by earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and ethics from Lehigh University. She earned multiple distinctions as a student, such as achieving the Faculty Invitational for Outstanding Scholars and membership in The National Scholars Honor Society.
Jennifer Heiner is an avid runner — she got into the sport after being a lifelong athlete without an outlet after organized sports in school were over. Now that COVID is waning and more and more races are being put on again, Jennifer has gotten involved with another NYC area running group, NYCRUNS, and is helping with race day events and customer service questions.
To be a marathoner, consistency is KEY. Planning out your weekly run schedule — which the rest of your life usually revolves around, is incredibly important to staying on track for your running goals. Recently, Six Minute Mile and Life Hacker blogs discussed this very topic:
Six Minute Mile:
Minute 1: Consistency and routine can improve your running
The most significant benefits of exercise come after long-term, dedicated work. That’s why healthy routines can be such a powerful tool, according to: “The Secret to Becoming a Runner Is a Good Routine.” Planning a solid foundation makes building a house a lot easier. In the same way, writing down your goals and schedule can help solidify your routine. Additionally, some athletes like to organize their gear ahead of time to keep things running smoothly. Pre-planning a running outfit is especially effective for those who like to run first thing in the morning, and for more tips on that, you can check out: “10 Tips for Running in the Morning.” A good morning run starts with a commitment to a good night’s rest, so put away the screens and caffeine well before your bedtime. Be sure to hydrate as you wake as well, because after 7 or 8 hours without a drink, your body sure will need it. Consistency is key for a solid morning routine, and there have been a lot of remarkable people throughout history who are proof of that. To see what we’re talking about, just look at: “What’s the best morning routine? History may have the answer.” What did Marcus Aurelius, Ben Franklin, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Beethoven all have in common? A commitment to waking early and starting the day with methodical and decisive action.
#ForceOfHabit
LifeHacker:
The Secret to Becoming a Runner Is a Good Routine
Become the type of person who does’t think twice before lacing up their shoes.
It’s been nearly a month since I ran the NYC marathon. I knew that after such an emotional experience, the longer I took to lace up my shoes again, the harder it was going to be. I’ve missed writing my weekly posts about all things marathon training, and now that I’m finally back pounding the pavement, I thought I’d sling a running hack your way.
For me, the toughest part about returning to running after taking time off is establishing a new routine. When you’re not following a strict (well, semi-strict) training plan, what do you do? Especially for people who don’t consider themselves to be runners in the first place — what do you do? There are a lot of reasons someone might struggle to get into running, but I find a top culprit to be a lack of planning. You have to strike a balance between ambition and flexibility, and then actually hold yourself accountable to your plan. Let’s take a look at why the secret to becoming a runner is the strength of your routine, and how you can establish a running routine yourself.
How to establish a running routine
Time and time again, my friends will tell me they’ve started to get into running, only to lose interest (or quit) within a few weeks. The figures vary, but one study suggests that it usually takes around two months of doing something to make it a habit — and a lot of us don’t make it that long. Then again, as Lifehacker senior health editor Beth Skwarecki has explained before, a lot of our talk about “habits” is not actually about habit formation, but behavior change. She provides this example: “You might think of ‘go for a run every morning’ as a simple habit. But there are a lot of things that go into becoming the sort of person who actually finds it simple to go for a run every morning.”
Your routine — and how well you stick to it — is what makes the difference between whether or not you incorporate running into your life in the long term. Here are some tips for becoming the sort of person who finds it simple to go on a run every morning.
Set realistic goals
You are more likely to stick with a running habit if you start with small goals. That may mean holding yourself back a bit, both in terms of pace and distance. (This topic means a lot to me; one of my first posts at Lifehacker was all about how you need to run slower to run faster.)
Don’t expect to complete your first marathon next week if you’re just starting. Give yourself progressive mini-goals to reach like running a mile without walking, being able to jog for 30 minutes continuously, or taking 5–10 minutes off your 5K time. This will help track progress and keep you motivated.
Create calendar events for yourself
Actually schedule your runs as you would other important commitments. It’s easy to make excuses if your running is random or sporadic. Ensure it’s in your calendar like clockwork; mornings are great for avoiding fatigue and life getting in the way later.
Build up gradually, and slow down
I believe the reason so many people claim to hate running is because what they’re actually doing is sprinting. This dooms them to tire out sooner than they’d like — convincing them that they can’t run long distances, and confirming their assumption that “running isn’t for them.”
Respect that your cardiovascular fitness and musculoskeletal systems need time to adapt. Start with short runs mixed with walking once or twice a week and increase duration, distance, and frequency by no more than 10% each week to prevent overuse injuries.
Prep your gear
Prepping gear ahead of time such as your running watch, shoes, weather-appropriate apparel, water bottle, and headphones goes a long way versus scrambling or postponing if you can’t find an item. Being ready to go makes sticking to your routine much more seamless.
Skip the numbers (for now)
Runners are obsessed wearables or apps to monitor metrics like distance, pace, heart rate, and splits. I get it — reviewing patterns provides valuable feedback, exposes strengths and weaknesses, and keeps you striving towards new marks like an upcoming 5K PR.
But if your main goal right now is simply to establish a routine, I suggest you ditch the metrics. Your priority right now is consistency. Try intuitive running and taking it slow, and maybe you’ll even start to like running. Personally, I think there’s nothing more promising for your routine than actually enjoying the routine.
