If the thought of sticking to a class every week brings you out in a commitment-phobic sweat, the new monthly Run Club & Disco Yoga offering from Fat Buddha Yoga and LDN Brunch Club could be a great option.
Taking place every second Saturday of the month at London’s Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen, you can opt for just yoga (£10), or run and yoga (£15). The first session took place last weekend and it was an awesome way to start the weekend. If you’re thinking of going along, here are a few things to remember:
Turn up a bit early – That goes for both if you’re running or not. The run sets off at 10.15, and yoga starts at 11. Turn up with enough time to nab a yoga mat and go to the loo first.
Take a towel – While the run is only a very laid-back 4-5k warm-up run with one of the team from LDN Brunch Club on a pretty route along the canal, it’s enough to work up a sweat, and the last thing you want is sweat running in your eyes while you downward dog.
Hydrate – Even if you’re not running, the yoga class itself is pretty fast-moving (the moves are all easy enough for beginners, and it starts off slow so you can get the hang of it) and the room soon heats up, so make sure you’ve got some water handy.
Leave any bad feelings at the door – You’ve got a whole morning of releasing endorphins, stretching and relaxing – plus there’ll be tunes from the likes of Chic, Blondie and Earth, Wind & Fire. This is no place to be fuming about work, stressed about Council Tax or anxious about an upcoming Tinder date. This is for good vibes – embrace it.
Stick around for brunch afterwards – Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen is the home for Smokey Tails – the frankly incredible food stuff from Seth Troxler and pals. Seeing as you’re already in the building, it’d be rude not to reward yourself with Breakfast Buns and Bloody Marys.
Wear your brightest, sparkliest activewear – I mean, there’s classic disco tunes and a glitterball, so why the hell not?
You’ll probably have noticed, but the UK’s offering of races has exploded in the last few years; road races, trail races, 5k, 10k, half marathons, marathons, 10 miles, with obstacles, with swimming and/or cycling. You can race in the height and summer and the depths of winter, for a distance of your choosing virtually anywhere in the country. Having recently taken part in the 10k London Winter Run, I know that it can all seem a bit scary if you’ve not done one before. I went into it with a niggling injury that had meant I hadn’t been able to do much training, and had never actually managed to run 10k before that point. But none of that should ever stop you giving it a go.
The vast popularity has driven this increase, so if you haven’t got involved yet, why not? Here, I’m going to debunk some popular reasons and myths why inexperienced runners might shy away from taking part in races:
I can’t run very far – When I first started running, keeping moving for two minutes was a genuine challenge. There are a number of training schedules, apps and podcasts around that can help you gradually increase your running distance and duration. I would personally recommend the Podrunner: Intervals – First Day to 5k, which gets you running 5k in 30 minutes in 10 weeks. The first episode sees you running for a minute, then walking for a minute before slowly building it up, so long as you can commit to sticking at it for three times a week. There’s a specially-made soundtrack to keep you at the right tempo, and ‘DJ Steveboy’ is quite a friendly presence. To get up to 10k, the Nike+ app’s coaching facility is a great one.
I’m intimidated by the ‘fast people’ – Why? Because they have expensive kit and keep bragging about their PB? For one thing, you’ll probably barely come into contact with these pounding beasts, as a lot of races will ask what your target time will be so as to let the fast guys go off first, keeping you with people of the same ability. There will always be people faster than you, and there will always be people slower than you – a few of them will probably be battling with ill-advised fancy dress choices – and they’ll all be concentrating way more on trying to keep breathing and ignoring their aches and pains than one how fast you’re going.
It seems like a miserable experience – Granted, most of these races will involve getting up early at the weekend. You’ll have to drag yourself out several times when you’d rather sit on the sofa in order to train for it – but this is much better than getting there totally unprepared on the day and having to walk your way around. You may begin a new relationship with blister plasters and knee supports. You’ll also have to pay and possibly try to fundraise for this experience. But, when you cross that finish line, knowing you’ve reached this goal, and it will all be worth it. It sounds like a sickly cliché, but it’s honestly true. Plus, completing a morning run is a legitimate reason for pre-lunchtime alcohol.
I don’t know what to start with – The main thing this depends on is the amount of training time you have at your disposal, so don’t go signing up for a half marathon that’s taking place in three weeks’ time. Next, location. It’s worth looking into routes before signing up – firstly, it’s a lot easier to keep going when you have some nice scenery to look at, plus hilly terrain might be another factor you want to avoid, if you can.
And if you’re at all put off by the recent BBC story reporting on research that found too much jogging can be bad for you, don’t be. You’d need to be running at more than 7mph – a pace where you’d finish the marathon in well under four hours – for more than two and a half hours a week (therefore running nearly 19 miles a week). For the average runner, that’s not something you’ll have to worry about – so lace up your trainers already.
Take The Lunge 