Be realistic 

Yes, you heard! Time waits for no man or woman, you must make a deal with yourself that you can’t put 12 weeks of training into the next month. Starting today will make you fitter person than if you began tomorrow but don’t see the next few weeks as ‘playing catch-up’ with those on longer training plans. Taking part in the event is your goal at this point and to that end, visualise success as crossing the finishing line regardless of a time or a position. You will win the admiration of your nearest and dearest for embracing this month’s challenge so don’t think of your goal being anything other than getting to the start (and finish line) in one piece!.

Back to basics

It’s perfectly natural to want to start your month’s training at a rate of knots to get those fitness levels topped up to their max ASAP. However, your body still needs an adaptation period regardless of timelines to get used to a training program. Over the next 4 weeks, keep reminding yourself, you need to do the simple things well. Give your body the best possible chance to perform well by making simple lifestyle commitments to yourself. Drink at least 2 litres of water a day, look at establishing a really good sleep routine and try and prioritise your training times in your daily life. This doesn’t mean having to become a certified fitness guru overnight but just taking time to do the basics well for 4 weeks to give yourself a great platform to run well and run healthy.

The law of 20%

We don’t want to clutter your thoughts too much here, but again our goal is to arrive on the start line in one piece and therefore we need to stay healthy and injury free. Your weekly time on your feet from running can’t be forced and by building up things too quickly you risk your body reacting badly and causing injury. So if for example you manage to run for 15km over the course of Week One, don’t look to increase this by any more than 20% come Week 2 and so on into Week 3 etc. Your body will thank you for this patient approach and will help you adapt to this manageable increases in volume week by week. There’s no panic and a month is still a long time, so stay patient and look after your body so it can look after you!

Blue sky thinking

Good news! There is a benefit to starting your training slightly later than others! Namely that despite it maybe not being obvious on a daily basis, spring has in fact sprung! And so now hopefully the prospect of heading out after work for a run or two is slightly more appealing than on a dark winter’s night. Use the brighter nights to get off road and onto more interesting trails and paths if you can. This will have the dual benefit of invigorating the senses and also being easier on your body as well. Planning your routes and making the most of time at weekends can make you run even more fun!

Spread the word!

We know you barely need any more encouragement or support to get yourself ready for your 10km, but on the off chance you do, it’s always a good idea to let your nearest and dearest aware of what you’re up to! Getting ready for a 10km in a month as discussed above will possibly require a few changes to your daily routine, which may alter the day to day of your family and social life! Letting everyone know you are channelling your inner-amazing over the next 4 weeks will help make life easier!