"It's also totally OK to grab trees and rock walls for balance and leverage", adds Woods. In addition, you can throw your elbows out to your sides to career around corners or hopscotch between boulders if you feel confident doing so instead of slowing to walk. They're doing that for balance", says Woods. "You'll see people flailing their arms running downhill or while traversing technical terrain. On the road, ideal running form means swinging your elbows straight back to maximise speed and efficiency. 1 mistake you see when people transition from road to trails is that they think they have to run everything. "You might be clocking a 20-minute mile up a killer hill, but it's the same effort as cruising at an 8-minute mile down the hill", explains Woods. To ensure you don't flame out on challenging terrain, your goal is to maintain the same RPE on hills as you do on flat ground, even if that means you're basically walking. In science speak, this is called the rate of perceived exertion, or RPE, and is typically measured on a scale of 0–10, with 10 being extremely hard. For this reason, Woods recommends you base your trail run on duration (as in, decide to run for 60 minutes) instead of focusing on an exact mileage or pace.Īs you make your way up a steep incline, think about how hard you feel like your body is working. "A muddy trail can take you twice as long as it would have in beautiful, dry weather". "Even the same trail on a different day can be wildly different", she says. Depending on the surface, covering a mile on a trail could take you 50 percent more time than running a mile on pavement does, says Woods. Think of it as an entirely different sport. You may clock 8-minute miles on the road, but sadly, that speed does not apply to trail running. You can usually find all of this info on the local government website where trails are listed. You also want to look up the terrain type (packed dirt is typically more beginner-friendly than paths with loose gravel are, and anything labelled "technical" is for experienced trail runners) and current trail conditions, including recent weather and closed-off areas. Check out the starting elevation (research shows that anything over 2,000 feet (600 metres) can affect endurance performance) and the elevation gain (a general rule, according to McRae: Climbing 100 or fewer feet (30 metres) within one mile is considered easy, 101–300 feet (31–90 metres) is moderate and anything more is difficult).
But don't just pick one and go.Īlways, but especially as a beginner, know exactly what you're getting into, says McRae. You can search on a trail app, ask a running shop or steal a stretch of a nearby trail race. Live in a city? The lowlands? Local routes are easy to find. And if that includes running up mini mountains, take comfort in this: Conquering tough routes can not only boost your physical strength and endurance, according to a 2019 study published in the "Journal of Physical Education and Sport", it can also build your resilience, helping you face everyday challenges with gusto.
Woods and McRae agree that this new and often varying terrain can engage your muscles and mind in unique ways neither ever know what's coming next. "You might have one mile with a steep uphill, then the next mile is completely flat and you're cruising". Scenery aside, unlike your average road run, "literally every mile of a trail is different", says Woods. A study published in "PNAS" found that brief physical activity in a green space can actually improve your psychological well-being compared to an urban setting, perhaps because these spaces are often open and quiet and feel like an escape. "You get to run through trees, dirt and flowers inhale fresh air hear the wind-it's stress-relieving and rejuvenating". "With trails, you're not stopping at traffic signals, breathing exhaust fumes or hearing honking horns", says Sally McRae, a Nike Trail elite ultramarathoner and trail running coach from Bend, Oregon.
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