Uniting for a Global Celebration of Running with the NYRR Virtual Global Running Day 1M

For these last few months, the global running community has made readjustments. Our ability to race, train with friends and teammates, and go to our typical training locations has been affected. With these changes, we’ve had to become creative by trying new at-home exercises and workout styles to test ourselves. We’ve explored new trails and found new sources of motivation. This ability to adjust has also created a new running boom. More people are discovering the freeing feeling of getting outside and putting in the miles.

This year, Global Running Day is on June 3, and we want to celebrate running and encourage everyone to get moving—experienced runners and beginners, sprinters and distance runners, those who run to get faster and those who run to go farther. We celebrate you all. As runners, we feel the best way to come together as a broader running community is to meet in the middle (or in this case, middle distances) and race a mile.

With NYRR Volvo Virtual Racing Powered by Strava, you can lace up and run together–virtually–with an amazing community of runners around the world. Register for free for our next race, the NYRR Virtual Global Running Day 1M, and complete the 1-mile distance anywhere, anytime from May 28 through June 7. You’ll be part of a global community, all on the same leaderboard! 

Whether this is your first time participating in virtual racing or you’re a seasoned pro, here are some tips to help you run fast, have fun, and feel connected, while staying safe. 

 Race Prep

• Register for the race here!  Confirm your registration for the race on the  Strava challenges page. 
• Register by May 31, 2020 to be entered for the chance to win a one-on-one virtual coaching session with Meb Keflezighi. On Global Running Day, Meb will discuss race strategy, offer tips, and answer any questions with the winner for their virtual 1M race during a pre-race or post-race call. The winner will also receive a free annual Strava subscription to help achieve their running goals. View the official sweepstakes rules.
• Map out your route in advance. The mile is the shortest long-distance race, so be creative. Find a route that will allow you to practice social distancing and #runsafe. It’s also important to consider what sort of terrain will help you feel motivated to run hard.
• It’s important to note that although a mile is a little over four laps around a 400m track, GPS tracking works best when you don’t take too many sharp turns. So be prepared if you race on the track that the distance the GPS tracker records is likely to be a little inaccurate.
• Plan to run a little over 1 mile to ensure the race activity is counted. 
• Share your route with friends and family beforehand so they can come out and cheer you on from six feet away! Sharing the race with others will help keep it fun, fast, and special.  
• If you choose to race in a mask (which you should do if other people may be around), remember to listen to your body. Dr. Stu Weiss, NYRR’s medical director, explains that “It may not feel like much when starting a run but the sometimes subtle increased work of breathing may sneak up on a runner. People need to listen to their body and take a rest if they feel more tired than usual even if they are not completing their usual distance.” 
• Check the weather forecast and select your gear accordingly.
• One mile is relatively short, so no need to fuel or hydrate while racing.  That said, you should consume some food and hydrate before you head out, especially if you’re running later in the day. Pre-race, hydrate with Poland Spring® Brand 100% Natural Spring Water and grab a Honey Stinger Waffle.

Warm-Up

A 1-mile race is shorter than most other NYRR virtual races. For those used to longer distances, it’s important to prep your body extra well to help your legs feel loose and able to run fast from the start. Below is a four steps warm-up routine that will help you race your best. Each step picks up in intensity so you can slowly prep your body into moving smooth and fast.

1. Take some time to warm up your legs by doing a light jog. Between 5 and 20 minutes of slow jogging should get your heart pumping and start to prep your legs.

2. Continue preparing your body by doing a full-body stretching routine. Pre-run, it’s best to engage in dynamic vs static stretching. Unlike static stretching, or when you hold a stretch, dynamic stretching keeps the blood pumping by focusing on loosening your body through movement. For a sample full body warm-up, check out Jenny Simpson’s six-minute routine that she shared with Rising New York Road Runners.

3. Now that your body is stretched and loose, it’s important to maximize your running economy. Going through a five- to 10-minute skip and drill routine will help you do just that. Check out these videos of six sample drills. The videos demonstrate A-skips, B-skips, high knees, butt kicks, side shuffles with an arm swing, and hip openers with a leg kick. Try doing two sets of these movements down a 20- to 30-meter stretch. If any of these movements are new and you’d rather replace them with a tried-and-true drill, go for it!

4. Lastly, get in 2-4 faster strideouts of 20-80 meters in length. The point of these are to get comfortable running a bit faster, so your race start doesn’t feel jarring to your legs. Ramp the pace up each one, until you’re matching or going slightly faster than race pace come the last one. With your final stride done, your body should be ready to roll and race fast!

Race

• Make sure your GPS device has enough memory and is fully charged.  
• Before you start, turn on your tracking device, acquire a GPS signal, and make sure you’re recording your activity.  
• As you run, check periodically that your device is recording your distance.  

 Post-Race Celebrating

• Make sure you save your activity as a “race” on Strava and set your privacy settings to “Everyone.” In doing this, your race will be counted in the leaderboard. 
• You prepared your body before the race to handle the load of fast running, so treat it kindly post-run. Check out Hospital for Special Surgery’s website for post-race recovery tips, such as these foam rolling tips.
• After any hard effort, it’s good to have snack within 20 minutes to maximize recovery. A Gatorade®️ Thirst Quencher will help replenish electrolytes, and you can grab a New York State McIntosh apple, and some Snyder's of Hanover® pretzels for a quick snack.
• Share your accomplishment with friends and family on social media. This Global Running Day, NYRR is calling on people to participate in the #Run1Tag1 challenge. People across the world can celebrate together by running 1 mile for someone that inspires them (or completing an at-home exercise) and tagging a friend to do the same. Tag #Run1Tag1 and #GlobalRunningDay to celebrate and run across globe together in a worldwide game of virtual tag.

Good luck!