New Year's resolution

It's that awful time of the year again when we all make vows we know (in our hearts) that we are going to break.

Okay, at the time we make them, we don't really intend to break them, we just know that we usually do and probably will again. Let's try one more time and see if maybe we can keep this one we are about to make.

Since you are reading this, I'm going to guess that you are either someone who takes part, or someone who would love to take part in the half marathon.

Assuming it's the latter, maybe you've shown up at the finish line for years, just to cheer, or perhaps to watch other family members take part, and you've always had this secret wish you've never shared that you'd love to take part yourself.

Let's assume you do some jogging yourself on a semi-regular basis (say 2-3 times per week), and, although you don't run that far every time, you know you could manage up to 30 minutes at one time before you would have to stop.

The thing is, 30 minutes seems like a long time (to you) and you simply cannot imagine running all the way from Mdina to Sliema.

Let me tell you about a guy called Joe Henderson.

He found that if he stopped jogging after every mile and walked for exactly one minute, he could double the length of his longest run (without making it feel a lot harder to do).

Try this yourself, give yourself a one-minute walk break after every seven minutes of running, and you should find that you can go further (than your regular 30 minutes) without feeling any more tired than usual.

Now the first time Henderson was told this tip, he was appalled, and you might be too.

Runners don't walk. Walking, thought Henderson, was for wimps.

Nonsense. As he was soon to learn, breaking up his runs with short walks meant that he could greatly increase their length, without adding to the toll on his body.

Let's face it, none of us are getting any younger. So that means we have to overcome the effects of ageing by getting smarter.

If a one-minute walk break after every seven minutes of jogging helps someone to run longer and enjoy it more, I'm all for it.

I have been to the Dublin Marathon in Ireland a number of times, and they always have thousands of walkers and joggers taking part. Most come in organised tours, like the Team in Training (from the USA), a charity group aimed at raising money for those less fortunate.

There are Cancer Aid groups, Leukemia groups, and one thing they all have in common is infectious enthusiasm. The participants come in all shapes, ages, sizes and fitness levels. They whoop and holler, as perhaps only Americans can, all colourfully and sensibly dressed in wooly hats and gloves, all wearing trackers or running tights, and often with water-bottles and snacks stuffed in bum-bags around their waists.

Not a single one of them is sitting at home thinking, I wish I could...

So why not take a tip from Henderson? There are many runners who train really seriously and still run out of steam in the closing miles of the half marathon and are forced to walk. So why not use the head and plan the walks?

From the very start in Mdina, begin inserting a one-minute walk-break after every seven minutes of jogging.

As Henderson showed, and you can learn, just that simple short break will allow you to go a whole lot further and should help you to keep this year's resolution of standing on the startline of the BMW Malta half Marathon come next February.

So, let's have no half-hearted resolutions this time. Don't just wish you could do something. Begin today. It's the start of a whole new year.