The Run Walk Run Method

by Jeff Galloway

  There are other races.

  I can do it.

  Why are you doing this?

  I‘m getting tougher.

  Evaluate whether there is a real medical reason (which is rare). If there is a health problem, back off and conserve—there will be another day.

  Most commonly, the subconscious reflex brain is responding to the stress buildup of the workout/race by triggering negative peptides, creating a negative emotional environment. A successful strategy during the first onset of this attitude downturn is to glide a little. If needed, take an extra walk break (2-3 minutes) to mentally re-group and focus on the next segment of the race.

  To do your best in a race, you must manage the stress buildup by using a routine such as those that follow. You are training yourself to keep going, which is 90% of the battle. You are also programming the conscious brain to regularly check on the reflex brain, stop the negative thoughts, and insert positive beliefs.

  Continue to confront monkey brain messages with strength statements: Don’t quit! I can do it!

  In your speed workouts, practice the following drill. Fine-tune this so that when you run your goal race, you will have a strategy for staying mentally focused and positive. Your belief in a plan will increase the production of positive motivational hormones.

  The scene: You’re getting very tired and stressed in a race, you’d really like to call it quits, or at least slow down significantly.

  Quick strategies

  Break up the remaining race into segments that you know you can do.

  Tell yourself “Just one more minute.” Run for one minute, then reduce pace slightly for a few seconds, then say “One more minute” again, and again (or 30 seconds, or 15 seconds, etc.).

  Tell yourself you will take just “Ten more steps.” Run about 10 steps, take a couple of easy steps, then say “Ten more steps.”

  Tell yourself “One more step.” Keep saying this over and over—you’ll get there.

  Take an extra walk break to gather yourself if you need it.

  Take some gliding breaks. By doing the acceleration-glider drill, you will be prepared to do this in the race.

  Reduce the tension in your leg muscles and feet by gliding for a few strides every 1-2 minutes. The acceleration-glider drill prepares you for this moment, particularly when coasting downhill.

  Segment by segment

  In the race, if you really question your ability to finish, start each race segment, saying to yourself—“just one more” or “10 more steps”. You’ll make it the whole way.

  Teamwork! You are needed by the team. Belonging to a larger group with team spirit can pull you through many difficult workouts. Even if you have a long-distance friend that you are going to report to, it helps to have that connection. Some runners bring their cellphone on long runs and call their friend as a lifeline, during the walk breaks.

  When you are getting close to the end and really feel like you can’t keep going, say to yourself “I am tough,” “I can endure,” “Yes, I can,” or “One more step.”

  “I CAN DO IT... I AM DOING IT... I DID IT!

  Mantras

  Mantras can distract you from negative feelings generated by the subconscious brain under stress. But they can also actually shift mental gears. When you say a mantra and think about the meaning of the words, you stimulate the conscious brain. This component can override the negative actions of the subconscious brain and allow you to stimulate positive attitude hormones.

  Having a list of mantras that deal with Run Walk Run® issues will keep you focused on the next run segment and then the next walk break. This is a cognitive strategy that keeps you in control over your attitude.

  As you say each mantra over and over, believe in it. If you need to edit to believe, do it.

  I’m in control!

  I can change the run amount.

  I can change the walk amount.

  I have the strength.

  On to the next walk break!

  I can run _______ (amount of the run segment).

  One run at a time.

  One walk at a time.

  Walk breaks erase fatigue.

  I can do it!

  Run Walk Run® to the finish line.

  Chapter 19:

  Run Walk Run® Issues and Problems

  How fast do I have to run during my running segment to maintain a certain pace in a race?

  Sorry but I can’t tell you. In numerous surveys we’ve found that runners run and walk at different paces during a long race or training run. To stay on pace, look at your stopwatch each mile. If you are too fast, take an extra walk break. If you are too slow, pick up your running pace during the next mile.

  Knees, hips, or legs tighten or ache when going into a walk break or coming out of one.

  Be sure to do the acceleration-glider drill which is described in this book. By doing 4-8 of this AG every week, you can teach yourself to seamlessly move from a walk into a shuffle, easing then into a slow jog, a regular jog, and then gliding gently back into a walk. Practice makes you seamless.

  It is hard to start up after a walk break.

  Don’t walk longer than 30 seconds, and work on the AG drill every week. Shortening the run segment has reduced fatigue at the end of runs. At the end of races, if you are having trouble getting back into the run, just shuffle through the walk breaks.

  Slowing down at the end of a running segment.

  This is usually due to having run segments that are too long. Try shortening both the run and the walk segments.

  Walk breaks mess up my rhythm.

  When runners start using the method or change to shorter segments, this is a common complaint. The primary benefit of the right Run Walk Run® strategy is strong legs at the end of a race or long run, and quick recovery. The human organism is capable of adapting to changes in rhythm and the Galloway timer speeds up this process. There are wonderful benefits from making the shift: faster times, never being out of commission after a long run, and passing people at the end of a race. Practice can get you into a new rhythm, with all the Run Walk Run® benefits.

  My running friend doesn’t want to take walk breaks.

  Just ask your friend to try the method on one long run. In most cases the benefits are dramatic and you have a new convert. You can certainly run non-stop on short runs together. But if the friend chooses not to take walk breaks on long runs, explain that you need to stay injury free, avoid exhaustion, and enjoy friends and family after long runs—and Run Walk Run® allows you to do this.

  Run Walk Run® delivers…

  Faster races, no more injuries, and never being out of commission!

  “Jeff Galloway not only has an amazing knowledge about the spectrum of running issues, he cuts through conflicting information with a simple plan.”

  “Run Walk Run® is taking over because it really works: all of the empowerment of finishing with no more pain and exhaustion.”

  “There is no way I would have started running if it weren’t for your method.”

  “I qualified for the Boston Marathon because of Run Walk Run®.”

  “I used to be out of commission after all of my long runs. With Galloway, I can do anything with my family, friends—even after a 26-mile run!”

  “I started running again using your method after 20 sedentary years. I’m not only experiencing the joy of running for the first time, I’m also faster!”

  “A friend improved his best time for the 5K from 19:07 to 16:47 using Run Walk Run® and won the race!”

  “Your method of Run Walk Run® has turned me into a HAPPY runner; I look forward to my training.”

  “Your program is amazing. PERIOD. I see men and women go from no running to half marathons regularly now.”

  “You delivered what you promised. You got me across the finish line smiling, and injury free.”

  “Everything you said was 100% right on. I was so strong at the finish it amazed me!”

  “I felt the very best that I
have ever felt after a full marathon. I was recovered and ready to run the following morning.”

  “Because of your method my love-hate relationship with running has turned into a love-love relationship. I’ve PR’d in my last two races and simply feel great!”

  “Your training programs have gotten me to where I am today. I couldn’t run one quarter mile, now I‘m a Boston Qualifier. “

  “Jeff, your methods and education have changed my life forever. In just one year I went from 44 years old and ZERO exercise for the past 20 years to 45 lbs. lighter and just ran a 4:41 marathon.”

  “Before your program I was not able to run to the end of my street. I have lost almost 70 lbs. since I met you earlier this year and have run 3 marathons.”

  Author and Olympian Jeff Galloway has helped over one million runners get into running or improve. He came up with the Run Walk Run® method in 1973 to help beginners but found that all runners reduce injury using the method. In numerous surveys, most former non-stop runners find that they can run faster with the Run Walk Run® method. Through his consulting with running events, Galloway Training Programs in about 90 cities, retreats and daily consultations with runners, he has a unique and extensive understanding of running issues and solutions to problems.

  Chapter 20:

  Testimonials

  Thousands of runners tell me every year that they started running only because they discovered my Run Walk Run® method. Until then, most thought that you had to run continuously in order to be considered a runner and they originally tried to do this. When they became winded, exhausted, sore, or nauseous they assumed that their bodies weren’t designed for running.

  Everything changed when they started inserting walk breaks after a few minutes (or a few seconds) into the run; huffing and puffing stopped, pain went away, and muscles were strong to the finish. Replacing the negatives was the glow of accomplishment, a better attitude, and vitality that enhanced their run and their life. YOU CAN TOO!

  I doubt that you will find any training component that will help you in more ways than my Run Walk Run® method. I continue to be amazed, every week, at the reports of how strategic walk breaks help runners enjoy every run—even those which started to be difficult. When placed appropriately for the individual, walk breaks erase debilitating tiredness, reduce stress, improve motivation, increase running enjoyment and speed of recovery, and allow the runner to finish with strength.

  Some of the stories below deal with the shift in mental activity when you have a strategy of Run Walk Run® or change it. When we start any run, the subconscious brain uses existing patterns of motion learned in childhood, on a sports team, etc., when the current physical capabilities are not what they were back then. Stress builds up quickly and the subconscious brain will trigger the release of negative attitude hormones.

  By focusing on the Run Walk Run® method and monitoring the amount of running and walking, you shift mental action out of the subconscious brain and into your frontal lobe, the strategy center. This allows you to control your pace and your comfort zone. Conscious activity in the frontal lobe overrides the subconscious reflex brain and puts you in control of your workout and your life.

  Many of the folks below appreciate the control. Others are struck by the amazing feeling of strength to the end with quick recovery. By having a strategy, monitoring your breathing, and making adjustments, you can stay mentally focused. There is no need to be totally exhausted at the end of any long run.

  “I don‘t have to run a marathon...only one minute at a time.”

  Elaine W.

  Elaine used to have to walk the last 2-3 miles of every marathon. By running a minute and walking a minute she focused on each run segment to the finish line. She explained how the accomplishment gave meaning to the long journey of training and empowered her to make several significant changes in other areas of life.

  “I had trouble running around the block when I was just running without walk breaks. I just ran a half marathon on Saturday and a marathon today because of your method.”

  John B.

  John assumed his running days were over because he couldn’t run continuously—even around his suburban block of less than half a mile. When his sister signed up for the Walt Disney World Goofy Challenge, he couldn’t understand it. In high school, Sis couldn’t make it through gym class. She explained to John how you can melt the fatigue and stress of any distance by running a short segment and then walking to erase the running fatigue. Sis started with 20 seconds running and 40 seconds walking which worked for John also. He used this to get through all of the training, and the two events on race weekend—back to back.

  “I promised my kids that we would go to all of the Disney parks after I ran my race, the Disney Princess Half Marathon. Here I am, having fun. I have at least as much energy as they do.“

  Terri S.

  Terri is one of the growing number of moms who have found that kids will put up with months of training, being late for breakfast on long run mornings, etc. if they get to go to Disney World. She discovered that Run Walk Run® never compromised her family or other activities even after the really long training runs. After the Disney Princess Half Marathon she went all over Disney World and enjoyed being with the kids.

  “I surprised myself today—I qualified for Boston after ten years of trying. My big breakthrough with your method was understanding that I could change the ratio and feel better right away. I shifted from R4min/W1min to R2min/W30sec, and picked up speed.“

  Bob C.

  Running continuously during a segment that is too long for you on that day will result in extreme fatigue, slowdown, and physical exhaustion. There is no ratio that is set in stone. Not only did Bob reduce his fatigue by cutting running and walking segments in half, he felt the empowerment of taking control over his race strategy with more frequent walks before he was exhausted and eliminated a slowdown at the end.

  “Call me what you will but I like to be in control of how I feel. Your method gives me permission to adjust as I go to feel good from start to finish.“

  Susan M.

  The human psyche wants to be in control. Probably the best benefit of Run Walk Run® is that you are in command of how you feel during and after a run. You can enjoy the endorphins that are produced by the run while avoiding the negatives of overexertion. Each time you walk you exercise your power during that moment—and can stay in control to the end of the run and throughout the rest of the day.

  “I run to deal with stress. When running without walk breaks, I increased stress. My walk breaks bring joy while releasing the tension from the stress of the day.“

  Paul S.

  Walk breaks dissolve two types of stress: physical and psychological. Stress to the muscles, tendons, joints, and nerves can be managed with the appropriate Run Walk Run® strategy for the day. Lowering the physical stress will lower the psychological stress. This means that you can reduce the negative attitude hormones and allow the positive endorphins to lock into receptors and send messages of well-being.

  “I ran in college for fitness but couldn’t run very far and I never walked. It hurt after a while so I quit for 15 years. My sister told me about your technique and the short segments of running brought me back to the best part of my college running—being in the moment. Each run is an opportunity to experience the wonderful gift of physical exertion. Each walk allows me to reflect on this.”

  Barbara C.

  From breast cancer and open heart surgery to the marathon!

  When 4-year breast cancer survivor Nancy P. started training with the Galloway Program in Jacksonville FL for the Marathon to Finish Breast Cancer, she inspired her 80-year-old father to experiment with various walk breaks. Nancy was sailing along using R1min/W1min while her father, a survivor of open-heart surgery, tried various ratios on his own. Unfortunately the R1min/W1min was too much for Nancy, and she incurred a stress fracture on the 14-mile run. After a 6-week healing break from running, she conferred with
me about the possibility of resuming her goal after the setback. She didn’t like what I told her:

  “His plan sounded CRAZY! He wanted me to walk the first 10 miles of my next 16-mile long run and then do R15sec/W45sec for the last 6. I couldn‘t believe it! Going from the R1min/W1min and not being particularly fast and now shifting to R15sec/W45sec, I wondered how in the world was going to work.”

  “I showed the plan to my dad and after some discussion we reminded ourselves that Jeff literally wrote the book on the Run Walk Run® method so he must know what he’s doing. We decided to give it a try. Dad and I went out with the Galloway group on a Saturday morning. We positioned ourselves right behind the R1min/W1min marathon group and right in front of the R1min/W1:30min marathon group. To our surprise, we stayed right between them the whole way. This new method hadn’t changed my pace at all. Wow!”

  So Dad got inspired! Nancy was reenergized and her dad was a bit too inspired and tried to maintain a stride that was too long, pulling a muscle—but he was back after his healing vacation, and continued to train. Various muscle issues caused him to think that the half marathon was a better choice for him, even if he didn’t like it.

  But during the last few days before the race, they had a strategy session, did the math on per mile pace, and he believed he could finish the marathon. Using R15sec/W45sec, father and daughter pulled one another along to the finish together.

  “I owe my recovery to you and your Run Walk Run® process! I am living proof of it!”