WORDS: CLAIRE CHAMBERLA IN ILLUSTRATIONS: BEN FOXAL
With the warmer weather and longer days finally here, it’s the perfect time to turn your thoughts to the trails. As well as being better for your mental health (people who work out in natural spaces report better mental wellbeing in general), trail running is a brilliant way to boost your fitness and help keep injuries at bay, too. How? By running over uneven terrain, you constantly challenge your muscles, tendons and ligaments, in order to stay balanced and upright, in a way that cannot be recreated on either the roads or the treadmill. This both provides a tougher workout and also means each footfall is slightly different, reducing your chance of picking up an injury due to repetitive strain. What’s more, the softer trail surfaces (be it grass, dirt tracks or scree surfaces) are easier on your joints but tougher on your working muscles, again resulting in a great workout with a reduced injury risk.
It’s not just your legs that have to work harder, either. Uneven, rocky terrain, soft surfaces and a greater chance of hills result in you naturally engaging your core and using your arms for balance and propulsion – meaning trail running is the perfect full-body workout. In fact, studies show trail running can help you burn up to 10 per cent more calories than running for the same amount of time on a treadmill. What’s not to love?
If you’re a fan of the great outdoors, your enjoyment doesn’t have to stop at simply running, either. With a little creative thinking, it’s possible to recreate the strength and conditioning workouts you would normally reserve for the gym or your living room while on the trails or in natural spaces, so you get even more fresh air and trail time each week!
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