Assuming that you are self-motivated to challenge yourself and grow your fitness level from 0 to finishing a half marathon. You will go through following 3 phases during your journey, (a) preparation, (b) the race day, (c) after the race and up to 7 next days.
Phase -1] Preparation phase
To most people the first thing comes to their mind is training/workout-plan/how long, how many time per week to run etc. But training is just one side of the golden-triangle you need to be considering.
The golden triangle has sides as - (a) training & rest, (b) Food/water, (c) consistency.
All three aspects are equally important, and only together they will bring the best possible transformational results for you.
(a) Training: "Run slow" is the mantra, you should remember while your training. If you can speak full sentence/s while running then that is the pace you should be aiming at.
You build your endurance by accumulating distances done from several slow runs. 20% of the total runs could be made of "mixed runs", i.e. either (1) running 1km fast - rest 5 mins - run 1km fast, repeat or (2) run 2km slow - rest 1 min - run 1km fast - rest 5 mins, repeat.
Running alternate days is a good starting point. On the rest of the days you can do some upper body workouts to strengthen your core body muscles.
(b) Food/water: When it comes to nutrition, you will be bombarded with "... proteins, proteins, proteins ...". People who do trainings of 100-150 kms per week, and the recommendations of proteins and carbs for that kind of people is very different than a person like me who has just started running and barely do 15-25km per week of training. Therefore stop worrying about proteins and carb loading etc. In fact, most of people tend to over eat by simple thinking that "now they deserve this cheese cake" or "they must eat an extra peanut-butter sandwich". But you dont.
Below are some most essential tips to consider.
(1) Drink enough water every day! What is 'enough' amount? The color of your urine should be "pale straw" (yes thats the name, google it).
(2) Eat a lot of green leafy vegetables. Eat at least twice the volume of both-palms-together filled green leafy vegetables. You will get all the essential nutrition required for your workouts. Eat whole fruits. Not juices, not even fresh pressed filtered fruit juices, but whole fruits.
The best way to eat enough green leafy vegetables and fruits without having to say 'No' to your usual meals is to have smoothies.
How to make a good smoothie?
1] Take a large volume mixer blender.
2] Put twice the volume of both-palms-together filled green leafy vegetables.
(dont worry about the volume, after blending it takes surprisingly small).
Green leafy vegetables whichever you find in your region. I find spinach, iceberg lettuce, jumbo lettuce, romaine lettuce, little gem, kale, veldsla etc.
3] Put 1 palm full of fresh or frozen fruits - bananas or strawberries, mangos, blue berries etc.
4] 1-2 table spoons yogurt (unsweetened).
5] and water only essential for the stuff to move inside the blender properly.
Additional things you can put are,
1] Chia seeds, 1 table spoon
2] hemp seeds, 1 table spoon
3] turmeric powder, 1/4th or even less
4] dates
5] Cashews, almonds, walnuts and other nuts.
Phase -3] After the run
Getting recovered faster. Finding right foods to get the essential micro and macro nutrients is extremely confusing and misleading. Stuff that I have found best and natural in a way are -
1] drinking plenty of smoothies, especially with bananas, kale, and turmeric as main ingradients as they provide essential salts, calories, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits.
Further things like flaxseeds based wraps etc are best to get proteins and salts.
Phase -1] Preparation phase
To most people the first thing comes to their mind is training/workout-plan/how long, how many time per week to run etc. But training is just one side of the golden-triangle you need to be considering.
The golden triangle has sides as - (a) training & rest, (b) Food/water, (c) consistency.
All three aspects are equally important, and only together they will bring the best possible transformational results for you.
(a) Training: "Run slow" is the mantra, you should remember while your training. If you can speak full sentence/s while running then that is the pace you should be aiming at.
You build your endurance by accumulating distances done from several slow runs. 20% of the total runs could be made of "mixed runs", i.e. either (1) running 1km fast - rest 5 mins - run 1km fast, repeat or (2) run 2km slow - rest 1 min - run 1km fast - rest 5 mins, repeat.
Running alternate days is a good starting point. On the rest of the days you can do some upper body workouts to strengthen your core body muscles.
(b) Food/water: When it comes to nutrition, you will be bombarded with "... proteins, proteins, proteins ...". People who do trainings of 100-150 kms per week, and the recommendations of proteins and carbs for that kind of people is very different than a person like me who has just started running and barely do 15-25km per week of training. Therefore stop worrying about proteins and carb loading etc. In fact, most of people tend to over eat by simple thinking that "now they deserve this cheese cake" or "they must eat an extra peanut-butter sandwich". But you dont.
Below are some most essential tips to consider.
(1) Drink enough water every day! What is 'enough' amount? The color of your urine should be "pale straw" (yes thats the name, google it).
(2) Eat a lot of green leafy vegetables. Eat at least twice the volume of both-palms-together filled green leafy vegetables. You will get all the essential nutrition required for your workouts. Eat whole fruits. Not juices, not even fresh pressed filtered fruit juices, but whole fruits.
The best way to eat enough green leafy vegetables and fruits without having to say 'No' to your usual meals is to have smoothies.
How to make a good smoothie?
1] Take a large volume mixer blender.
2] Put twice the volume of both-palms-together filled green leafy vegetables.
(dont worry about the volume, after blending it takes surprisingly small).
Green leafy vegetables whichever you find in your region. I find spinach, iceberg lettuce, jumbo lettuce, romaine lettuce, little gem, kale, veldsla etc.
3] Put 1 palm full of fresh or frozen fruits - bananas or strawberries, mangos, blue berries etc.
4] 1-2 table spoons yogurt (unsweetened).
5] and water only essential for the stuff to move inside the blender properly.
Additional things you can put are,
1] Chia seeds, 1 table spoon
2] hemp seeds, 1 table spoon
3] turmeric powder, 1/4th or even less
4] dates
5] Cashews, almonds, walnuts and other nuts.
Phase -3] After the run
Getting recovered faster. Finding right foods to get the essential micro and macro nutrients is extremely confusing and misleading. Stuff that I have found best and natural in a way are -
1] drinking plenty of smoothies, especially with bananas, kale, and turmeric as main ingradients as they provide essential salts, calories, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits.
Further things like flaxseeds based wraps etc are best to get proteins and salts.
