To start a New Year with some nice goals and training plans can make the New Year more motivating and positive, by feeling more fit, stronger and better. It’s up to each individual to create their own goals, here are 15 tips to get the most out of yourself for 2020.
1. Enter a Race
Whether it’s a shorter distance race, half-marathon, full marathon, or ultra-marathon, to set a new goal for the new year is the best way to keep motivated. Challenging yourself with a race, aiming for big targets will give your year a structure with planned targets and training schedule. Following a planned running schedule makes it much easier to keep running and training.
2. Set a Target
To run a longer distance race, or reach a PB for the same distance, giving yourself a target to aim for, can give some extra motivation in training, and produce an even bigger smile at the finish line, knowing how productive your hard training was.
3. Try Something New
It’s good to plan something more challenging, but also more fun. Look for a type of race you would enjoy, a road marathon, a trail race, an uphill race, an ultra-marathon. You can find some races with different running courses and location.
4. Work on your Weaknesses
If you struggle on the uphill, if your pace is a bit too slow, if your running form is not stable, Identify your weak point and work on it in your training.
5. Connect to Another Runner
Find a runner and make it a project to encourage someone else to run this year. Running is such a great way of keeping fit. Some people just need a little encouragement, and it can be just as fulfilling for you to see a friend reach their goal. It will keep you motivated to reach your own goal.
6. Adjust your Goal According to your Lifestyle
When setting running goals, consider what else is going on in your life in terms of work schedule, family and other commitments. Adding and organizing your training to your weekly work and family schedule makes it much easier to reach your training goals weekly.
7. Dream Big
This might be a bit more challenging with a busy life schedule, but sometimes you just have to look forward to a Big Dream Challenge. It will give you some extra incentive to push a bit more and get the most out of yourself.
8. Increase your Endurance Goals
If you make some endurance goals part of your priority, this will ensure a great year ahead. Whether it’s training for a half-marathon, PR, full-marathon or 100K race. That doesn’t mean that you have to be too stressed about it. It just means you need to be consistent about giving your best effort every single day about how you train, recover, eat, sleep and ultimately reach your race goal.
9. Start the Year with a 30-Day Challenge
If you need to increase your fitness level or get more inspired, start the new year with a 30-day personal challenge. Being consistent trying to reach your fitness goals for a full month will give you a jump start on the year, and also help you boost your inspiration, motivation and good habits to carry throughout the year. Your 30-day challenge can include running several days a week, go to the gym for strength training and cross-training and even add some weekly yoga sessions. Changing your habits for 30 days might help change your lifelong habits.
10. Run More
Increasing your running distance will help improve your endurance level. Try to run 4-5 days/week and gradually increasing your distance, no more than 10% per week according to your average weekly kilometers. Increasing your running distance too quickly might increase the risk of injuries. If your average weekly kilometers for the past year is 40-55K, you can aim for 55-72k/week. If your weekly average is 65K, you can aim for 80K/week. With more muscular strength and greater aerobic strength, you will be able to reach your new goals.
11. Run 2020 Kilometers in 2020 or 2020 Miles for Ultra-Runners
Aiming for this goal can be very motivating to stay consistent throughout the year. To reach the 2,020K running goal for the year is about 39K/week. To reach the 2,020 miles for the year includes running about 62K/week. And to be even more inspired, find a partner to aim for the yearly challenge together.
12. Get Stronger
To efficiently increase your running form, you need to become functionally stronger. Adding some basic core and muscle strengthening workouts a few days a week to your regular training schedule, will help build up a strong foundation. Getting more fit and stronger along the year will make a huge difference in your running form, pace and endurance. Start with some basic core exercises such as plank, push-ups, bridges, squat, lunges, then add some muscle strength exercises. To work and strengthen different muscle groups is very important for runners.
13. Run Faster
If you want to improve your running time, you need to add some speedwork sessions to your weekly training plan. Adding speed workouts will elevate your endorphins, which will be more challenging but it will provide a big boost of your fitness level.
14. Combine Road and Trail Running
To run on the trail twice per week will provide numerous benefits. Running on trails requires increased awareness of not only where you’re stepping, but also how you’re feeling at any given moment. Running on the trail requires the use of a wider range of muscle groups to stay upright and keep moving forward in a proper form. Road running, is also challenging, our muscles follow the same impact during the whole run, which is challenging and we also have to maintain a faster consistent pace. To combine both type of runs, can helps build up muscle strength and mental strength.
15. Do Regular Stretching
To support and make sure you reach your yearly goal, you need to include daily stretches. After each run you need to do some basic stretches, and to include some foam rolling and stretching sessions a few times a week will look after your muscles and prevent injuries.
MOTIVATE YOURSELF, TRAIN WELL & FEEL GREAT! HAPPY NEW YEAR 2020!