Real Men Jeff: Why The Smartest Runners Are Jeffing Their Way To Finish Line
Adding the running technique, jeffing, to you work out itinerary, can massively improve your running performance
The myth about marathon runners avoiding walking to improve their running performance is about to be busted. A popular technique making rounds in the fitness circle suggests combining running and walking as a training method that can make you faster, your knees injury-free and recovery quick. It is something that Galloway-trained Boston qualifiers are swear by!
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Think again, if you believe, walking during a run is for quitters. The art of rub walking, or Jeffing, calls for fewer injuries and faster pace by maximising endurance. Jeffing makes it all happen without ruining your knees and running till you drop. So, for the dreamers and aimers struggling to sprint beyond your neigbourhood barefoot, it's time to get pounding on the track. Even chasing Milind Soman's ghost isn't an impossible now. True runners know, it's not about confusing brute force with endurance, rather pushing when it matters.
Eponymous to ex-Olympian, Jeff Galloway, who also popularised the magic mile test, Jeffing is a run-walk technique that alternates between running fast for a few miles and then walking. As opposed to "taking it easy", what makes this structured run-walk method so efficient is that it helps in reducing the fatigue and lower your risk of injuries.
As a beginner or even a seasoned marathoner, you don't stop; you pace with precision with jeffing as it prevents exhaustion. You may have witnessed marathoners who start out really well on the D-day and then become tired in the second leg of the race. But if they were jeffing, they wouldn't have run out of energy or overheated their bodies. I mean, would you rather have your feet feel like concrete post-race or go a little longer, even after crossing the finishing line?
Nobody ever said running is about crawling till you make it to the finishing point or grinding yourself into the ground. Running, indeed, is testing your endurance and pacing yourself for dominance in a race based on the pillars of longevity, strength, and resilience.
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One way to incorporate this strategic running style is to use the 5:1 ratio (run for 5 min, walk for 1). You can alternate between the two and change the duration of your run as per your suitability. Rather than overexerting yourself which makes recovery slower, do it the way it best suits you. Remember walking is a break from the high intensity running so stick to your scheduled intervals. Without discipline there is no progress, no finish line worth crossing, or endurance.
Also, you know how every running group has that guy who sprints like he's been blessed by Hermes? He is swift, smart, isn't crippled before the finish line. Even at the age of 79, Jeff Galloway is that man doing that, so what's stopping you buddy? Put on your running shoes and off you go training.