My 10 Rules on Running ; (first written on 14 June 2008) this blog - a reprint.

Beautiful East Coast Parkway at Early Evening

After almost 25 years of running and 8 as a committed runner taking part in races and marathons, I thought I'd list down my 'Rules' to assist newcomers who want to pick up the sport. These 'rules' or habits have been cultivated after reading running magazines like Runners World,many books on running and just plain trial and error. Here goes :

1. Run against the flow of traffic - If you're running on a road,run against the flow of traffic. This seems logical as you can see the oncoming vehicles and take evasive action by jumping aside into the drain or road shoulder.

2. Wear bright or Reflective Clothing - Another no-brainer.Ideally wear running tank tops which are loose and allow for quick drying. No one likes to run with a soggy sweatshirt especially in our humid
weather.

3. Run Tall - I am guilty of this, but constantly remind myself. The great Emil Zatopek was the epitomy of running with his body erect. Firstly,good posture is beneficial in minimising stress on your backbones and back muscles. Secondly,you can see whats out there in front of you !!

4. Pose Running - Dr. Nicholas Romanov has been touting Pose Running in his much acclaimed book, its very effective and in a nutshell is this. Running well is practising a series of poses just like in martial arts,ballet and yoga and then making the poses dynamic. So, lean forward like you're going to fall and with the back straight, move ahead with the legs hitting the ground on the ball of the feet. More of this in another post.

5. Stretch - This has been argued by many people, but stretching loosens all muscles and preconditions your body for the activity at hand.It also minimises the chances of pulling or cramping your muscles. I stretch BEFORE, DURING and AFTER the run.

6. Tank Up - Drink lots of fluids before and after the run. For me, the ideal is Gatorade Rain or the recovery drink Powerade by PowerGel sold at the Running Lab in Velocity . Both have electrolytes, some calories and other minerals very effective in muscle recovery.

7. Time yourself - Why ? To benchmark your pace and possibly improve on your time for the same distance.

My favourite watch is the Timex Ironman 30 Lap with Chronograph and Split Times.

8. Smile - You're enjoying yourself right ?

9. Warm Down - Stretch, Cool Down.Slow your heartbeat.Walk some more,regulate the bloodflow after the workout.

10. Build up the Distance - Many new runners are not into this; the distance you run especially once you run beyond 1 hour or longer should be respected as it is taxing on any body. Do not push yourself over the limit but have a regulated plan and run slow and short at first before progressing to a longer distance.

Log on your kilometers in a log.