Running is something one either hates or loves to do. As a personal trainer, you would meet clients on both ends of the spectrum. The clients who love to run only need a bit of guidance, and they are good to go. The clients who don’t like running, require a lot of motivation and guidance.

You will also meet clients who have never run before. What is the right way to help a non-runner? Following are some tips that can help your non-runner client to start running:

  • Firstly, it is essential that you help your client understand that running is not just physical but mental as well. The mind would keep probing you to quit, long before your body will. It is essential for them to understand this so they can ignore that pessimist voice and trust their body.
  • It is important to help them create realistic and achievable goals. Avoid forcing them to go on long runs in the beginning. They should initiate running in small intervals. Encourage them to combine walking with jogging then gradually increase towards running.
  • Teach them the importance of recovery. It is important that they listen to and respect the needs of their body and have rest days. This allows for muscle repairs and prepares them for the next session.
  • Guide them to relax their chest and shoulders while pumping their arms back and forth, pushing with their elbows.
  • Teach them the right breathing technique while running – inhale from the nose and exhale from the mouth.
  • Run along with them to keep them encouraged and to enhance their motivation levels.
  • Tell them the importance of good running shoes.
  • Help them maintain the right posture as they run to get powerful stride.
  • Get them to strengthen their muscles before they begin their running as this decrease the chances of injury. Focus on the muscles that are used the most while running – legs, core and hips.
  • Stretching is essential after a run. Guide them through a series of stretching exercises once they are done with their session.
  • Encourage them to download an app which can help them with their running. There are a number of free running apps that can be downloaded. This will help them in keeping track of their performance even when they run outside your training hours.
  • Lastly, tell them to hydrate. Dehydration can lead to a number of health issues. Therefore, it is vital that they keep a water bottle with them and keep sipping water after a few minutes to stay hydrated.

For a non-runner, it could get intimidating for them to begin running. Your job as their personal trainer is to help them ease in to it and help them with the right posture and technique. With the right motivation and guidance, your non-runner client will be running with ease and will most definitely love this effective workout. They will learn the freedom of body and mind running offers gradually and will eventually start craving for it. For more tips to help your clients better, browse through a number of useful articles on www.fitnessproincomebooster.com.