JOGGING

Question
Hi Nick,

I would like to take up jogging. Would pavement jogging be bad for my joints, everytime I mention taking up jogging everyone seems to think that I will do more harm to myself than good.I intend to jog for about 30 to 40 minutes a day for 6 days with a 1 day rest period.

Also could you recommend a start program.

Thank you.

Answer
Nicola, Jogging is a great desire. If you haven't been jogging 30 to 40 minutes is too long. I believe our bodies were made to run. If it hurts you need to change something. The trick is to find what needs to be changed. That is something that is at times easy and at times very difficult.

I recommend starting with 8 minutes of jogging, 10 minutes of walking, 8 minutes jogging, and 10 minutes of walking. This will give you 36 minutes of exercise and a good start. Steadily increase the jogging time and decrease the walking time until you can do 40 minutes straight of jogging.

One thing to remember is that some days you'll feel great and you may be able to jog longer than the next day. Listen to your body. When you're tired or sore or just not feeling like you have a lot of energy walk more than you jog. When you're feeling fabulous jog more than you walk. A major key is to make sure you do exercise on the days you plan to exercise. Don't let yourself miss.

Good luck and please let me know if you have any more questions!