Is it possible that it’s still bright out at 7pm? It’s been half a year since we last experienced daylight post supper and I find myself thrilled with the prospect of longer days and the impending warmer weather.
Before long, it will be commonplace to leave the winter accessories at home and go out the door in only one layer of clothing. However, before that time comes, I urge you to relish this additional daylight luxury and the exciting sense of novelty that accompanies the expansion of available paths, opportunities, and time prior to the evening’s curtain call.
Revise your timetable
Many of us have succumbed to the wintertime habit of commencing the wind-down of our day as soon as the sun sets. Dusky evenings coupled with the chill of winter present safety and visibility challenges. Many individuals who enjoy running (and walking) have found it exceedingly difficult to maintain an outdoor evening routine during the winter months in spite of their good intentions. However, now is the moment to invigorate your routine, reorganize your agenda, and inject some life into your evenings, rather than allowing them to fade away within your home. Beginning now, every evening for the next month will gift us an additional two minutes of daylight. How will you utilize this bonus time?
Reacquaint Yourself with Familiar Routes
Roadways that have been cloaked in darkness for months and parks that have been closed are now open, beckoning us to engage in more physical activity. What local routes have been off-limits for you since the previous year? You may now have access to a running track or a traffic-free loop that will enable you to boost your speed, or perhaps a turf route in a park that offers a break from the hard pavement and lets you revel in the feeling of being a cross-country athlete. Numerous opportunities are well within reach and getting your evening routine up and running now will make it considerably easier to persist when daylight extends all the way up till bedtime and beyond. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though.
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What have you been missing?
This week, you could consider dusting your running shoes off and exploring a route you haven’t taken in a while. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a scenic spot miles away; it could be a quiet country lane, a city park, a beach trail or perhaps a regular circuit around a football pitch. Regardless of whether you’re a zealous runner or someone contemplating a comeback, retracing your old routes could help you reminisce about one’s previous running days and encourage future endeavours.
Running Safely and Enjoying the Scene
If you’re not a typical night runner, you may wondering why running in the night attracts attention. As a trainer, I observe that those who run in the winter months exhibit significantly more tension compared to those who run in daytime. Running in the dark involves being vigilant about the terrain, on the lookout for potential obstacles, managing puddles and leaves, dodging people and traffic. Consequently, you end up focusing more on maintaining safety.
When we are unable to feel the surface below our feet, it can lead to continuous gazing at the ground. This, in turn, could hinder our technique and breathing. The ability to see where you’re going provides a sense of liberation and relief. Running during daylight can take the edge off, require less hazard monitoring, and shift focus primarily on performance aspects such as speed and stamina, not forgetting the joy of the scenic views.
Evening Run Struggles
If evening runs are your only recourse, then you might face one significant challenge compared to those who manage to fit in their runs earlier. The possibility of talking yourself out of running increases the longer the day goes on. By evening, it’s only natural to feel drained and fall prey to the lure of the sofa. If this has been a winter pattern, breaking it could might be a daunting task.
What we choose to do within our comfortable home environment can be a strong influencing factor, but it’s the surroundings and the company we choose to keep outside our homes that can significantly aid in evolving these new evening routines. Now is an ideal time to return to your running club or schedule a run with a friend. This can be particularly beneficial if there’s a fear that your self-motivation or willpower may slacken towards the end of the day.
Running into the Sunset
During the chill of winter, sunrises are best enjoyed without needing to rise too early, yet it is the spring evenings that captivate us with their striking sunsets as we amble through our local park or housing complex. This sight injects an invigorating boost into each stride, regardless of your running speed. Make the best of these vibrant evenings, they are a delightful bonus, and provide a pleasing break from our daily routine.
Breathe a new life into your habitual running tracks by exploring alternative routes. As the month draws to a close, the long winter nights will become a distant thought, only returning in October. We have successfully navigated through winter.
So, seize the day and delight in an evening run. Join us in Get Running.
– For beginners: An eight-week plan that steadily increases your stamina to running an uninterrupted 30 minutes.
– Stay on Track scheme: An eight-week course suitable for those managing to squeeze in a 30-minute run multiple times a week.
– Advanced scheme: An eight-week course for runners aspiring to hit the 10km milestone.
Mary Jennings, founder of ForgetTheGym, offers coaching for runners at all levels, promoting enjoyment of outdoor running. Her spring sessions in Dublin have commenced and are also accessible online.