Sometimes You Just Gotta Hit The Road
Posted on 18 January 2009
Healthy Mind and Body
2008 and 2009 seem to be the generation of high intensity short and quick workouts. They are what seem to be capturing the world of fitness and with good reason! Things like HIIT, Tabata Intervals and Weight Training Circuits produce phenomenal results. You only have to look at the amazing shape the crossfit gang are in to realize that short and intense workouts are amazingly effective:
- They Produce unrivaled levels of Growth Hormone helping you stay younger and fitter.
- High Intensity Weight training can increase fat burning for hours after workouts. Burning more calories and triggering growth of lean muscle mass
-They are far less time consuming than normal cardio. You could get a great workout in under 15 minutes with routines like this....
All being said I am writing this post as I feel that old fashioned fitness methods are being unfairly neglected. They should have their place in everyone’s fitness regime.
Its called cardio for a reason and it trains your body differently to any other kind of high intensity workouts, by getting you heart pumping for a pro-longed period of time. Enough time in fact to release solid levels of feel good endorphins as well as get your blood flowing properly around your body; flushing toxins and invigorating the lymphatic system through the improved breathing it induces.
This has not been written from a scientific perspective but rather through feeling the body and how it reacts to exercise. Do you remember the high you used to get playing sports at school/college. That rush of feel good energy that would fill your veins while running around playing games as a kid? I am convinced that is why people still run and the streets are filled with joggers. To get that feel good rush through your body through a 15 minute weights circuit is impossible, there just isn’t enough flow.
Whereas this great feeling can be achieved through listening to some of your favorite music and hitting the road for 25 minutes. If your ever feeling anxious, worried, depressed grab your gym shoes and hit the road I guarantee you’ll come back feeling better.
Running is a movement that humans developed and evolved to do, not for long periods of time but short steady runs are very natural. And Beneficial to Health:
- Improved Cardiovascular Health
- Psychological benefits; Less stress and more feel good
- Improved Coordination
- Better blood flow
- Improved bone health
Running is an extremely useful way of clearing your mind of distractions and focusing on problems that need to be solved. I think its the combination of physical exertion, time alone and the great outdoors, but I find it gives me more perspective on life, and the ability to not worry about things so much.
What I Propose?
Well this is where is gets interesting I challenge anyone who hasn’t been on a run in a while to hit the road twice this week for just 25 minutes. Feel free to get creative; throw in some sprints, drop and do 20 pushups but still try to develop some rhythm with your run allow it to flow and experience the feel good energy it will give you.
While I love short intense workouts with either body weight circuits or Power Law Training in the gym, short and invigorating run’s are still something amazing and should not be totally dropped in favor of resistance training. Also if your lucky enough to live somewhere with sun at this time of year you can make the most of the freely available Vitamin D……
19 comments so far
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Comment by David at Animal-Kingdom-Workouts.com
18 January 2009
I’m not really big on running, and definitely prefer exercises like Hill Sprints. However, you do mention short runs of 25 minutes, which are not exactly marathons. At the end of the day, you have to do what works for you. If you like running, do it. It’s better than sitting on the couch eating chips.
- Dave
Comment by Chris
18 January 2009
Great comment David, Hill sprints are amazing in fact I did some this morning instead of normal sprints just to change things up. I usually cap my runs to 20-30 minutes anything more and they tire me out too much instead of energizing me.
Comment by Dan - Home Calisthenics
18 January 2009
Fair point well made.
Just to add though, I enjoy the rain and the cold as much as the sun. The feel good feeling is even better when you get out in the wet and cold knowing that most other people are slacking in front of the TV.
Also, run xcountry if poss. Much better for you that pounding the tarmac.
Regards,
Dan.
Comment by Nick
18 January 2009
Great post, I really think standard cardio is getting a bad rap these days. I, for one, much prefer doing longer steady runs- it’s something I enjoy and the way I have done cardio for over 8 years. HIIT and interval workouts are important to include as well but I think the best is a mixture of the two.
Comment by TrailGrrl
19 January 2009
I still do longer runs. I don’t get the same “happy endorphin” feeling from sprinting or intervals. Probably because they hurt so much. I used to feel that I had to do 50 min to feel good, and I wouldn’t bother running if I didn’t have that much time. Now I do 20-30 min and it’s not overkill but manageable. I tell myself that I will do 10-15 min and then I usually do more. That clears my head and makes me feel more energetic the rest of the day. I like the results from the shorter, high-intensity stuff, but I always feel like I’ve been beaten up and the recovery seems to take a bit. Sometimes I just need a lunchtime pick-me-up for stress reduction and to get in that zone where nothing else matters right now. Too cold and dark to get to the trails in the evening. I really prefer a good trail run.
Thanks for giving just plain running its props. Strength training and bodyweight exercises and intervals are all great, but sometimes it’s good to just keep moving for a while.
TrailGrrl
Comment by hogtownhealth
19 January 2009
Good post. I’ve been on an interval kick, as I am from time to time but always drift back to longer runs. There’s no doubt in my mind that a run once or twice a week is definitely a great stress reducer. And you’re right the roads and gyms are full of people doing steady cardio. Although I won’t be hitting the road exactly (it’s bloody freezing in Toronto) I did a couple of 5ks this weekend and feel the better for it.
Comment by hogtownhealth
19 January 2009
The photo is wonderful, by the way. Nice find.
Comment by Daniel Richard
19 January 2009
Twice a week, 25minutes each outing. Righty Chris – I’m gonna go for the first this week!
Comment by Chris
19 January 2009
@ Richard: Great stuff I am sure you will feel so much better for it, one of the best stress relievers in the business. I love your blog BTW its got amazing diversity and high quality stuff.
@ Hogtown Health: Thats the problem with winter its too darn cold to get outside and run, For some reason I find it easy to run outdoors but stick me on a treadmill for 25 minutes and forget about it…..
@ Trail Grrl: I knew this post would strike a cord with someone, glad to hear your still enjoying the occasional run!
Comment by Mary
30 November 2009
Glad I ran across this before the new year! Great idea and totally do-able. 25 min 2 x a week? yeah i fit that in.
Comment by Vasopro
9 December 2009
I love running…it gets me outdoors and I can enjoy the scenary and fresh air.
Unfortunately I can’t run as much as I’d like because I have flat feet. After about 5-10 minutes of running, my feet are killing me and I have to stop & walk. I’m not tired at all and feel I can keep going if it wasn’t for my feet.
Any ideas for flat footed runners to last longer?
Comment by Kieran
14 February 2010
Finally!!! An article that is pro-running! I came across this post just today (Feb 14, 2010)so this comment is kind of a late addition to the above comments. I second the opinions of many of the contributors; running is COOL. I’ve ran all my life for exercise (I’m 43) and have always gotten great results from it. I also do bodyweight intervals. But if you asked me what my all-time favourite exercise is, it’s got to be plain, old-fashioned running. No sprinting, no hills – just a simple 30-35 minute run. There’s way too much written these days about ‘fat loss’ and ‘afterburn’ and about how running isn’t as good as HIIT or sprinting, blah blah blah. What a lot of these people don’t get is that running is good for your MIND. Hey, it’s not all about fat loss. Losing weight is great, but there’s a reason why the streets are still filled with runners. The reason? RUNNING MAKES YOU FEEL GREAT. It’s not for everyone; some people consider running a kind of self-imposed torture. Not me. I love that post-run feeling. Running is the best stress buster there is. I’m sick of websites that hail running as ‘long, boring cardio.’ Well, that depends on your opinion. It’s refreshing to read an article like this. Running really has been getting a bad rap recently, and it’s nice to see somebody set the record straight. Great post.