Every Saturday morning, hundreds of thousands of people across the UK get out of bed to walk or run a 5k parkrun, before heading home feeling fresh for the day (if you’ve never heard of parkrun, click here for all you need to know). But parkrun motivation doesn’t come easy to everyone. Perhaps you’ve been wanting to start for months, but haven’t had the confidence. Perhaps you manage to get there, but find the run so difficult it doesn’t motivate you to go back.
Read on to discover a method that could change your parkrun motivation forever.
Run-walk-run your way to parkrun motivation
If you’ve parkrunned at Princes Park lately, you may have noticed me running past you, then dropping back and walking, running past you again, then walking again. You may have wondered “What is this crazy person doing?” “Why is she so poor at pacing?” “If only she ran a bit slower she wouldn’t need to stop and walk!”
Well here’s my secret.
Over the past year I’ve discovered the Jeff Galloway Run-Walk-Run method (known as “Jeffing” for short). On Saturday I Jeffed Princes parkrun with a 30/30 run-walk ratio (run 30 seconds, walk 30 seconds) from start to finish. And I have to admit, I enjoyed it far more than when I steam through trying to beat my personal best.
What is “Jeffing”?
Jeffing is a method of run-walk-run created by ex-Olympian Jeff Galloway in 1972.
The beauty of Jeffing is that you haven’t got to stop and walk, but you choose to stop and walk.
The idea is to alternate between running and walking to give yourself frequent recovery breaks. It works like interval training. The recommended ratio of running to walking will depend on your preferred pace and what feels good to you. The key is to keep the walking break to no longer than 30 seconds to ensure you don’t slow down too much. For example, ratios could be 10/30 (i.e., run 10 seconds, walk 30 seconds), 15/30, 30/30 (a popular ratio), 60/30, 80/20 etc., or even 4 minutes/30 seconds for faster runners. Jeff Galloway’s website provides a guide for choosing a starting ratio.
Many people fear if they stop and walk they won’t be able to get going again. By keeping both the run and the walk break short, this is rarely a problem.
And contrary to popular belief, Jeffing isn’t only for new or slower runners (I’ve ran a parkrun in 26:04 Jeffing with an 80/20 ratio, i.e., 80 seconds run, 20 seconds walk). Whatever your pace, introducing some Jeffing into your training is likely to be beneficial.
How will Jeffing help my parkrun motivation?
Jeffing can help us run further, feel less fatigued, and recover better the next day.
And in some kind of magical paradox, Jeffing doesn’t necessarily mean slower times – on the contrary, many people find their times improve with Jeffing.
But as an exercise psychologist, I can’t help but feel the largest benefits of Jeffing are for the mind.
1. Jeffing helps you “chunk” longer runs into achievable segments
It’s far less daunting to think about running e.g., 15 seconds, than it is running 30 minutes. And with Jeffing, that’s all you ever have to do. Just focus on the next 15 seconds, then you can recover with a short walk break and feel ready to run again. Repeat the process, and before you know it you’ll have ran for 30 minutes.
2. Jeffing makes you a more flexible thinker
As humans, we have a tendency towards “all or nothing” thinking. Yet if we put things off until we can do it perfectly, we risk them never happening.
For example, if you want to start parkrun but you’re waiting until you can run 5k comfortably, you might find you never feel fully “ready”. Or if you have a chronic injury that flares up running long distances, you might feel there’s no point if you can’t run the full 5k. Jeffing provides a middle-ground. By run-walk-running on a low ratio to start with (e.g., 15 seconds run, 30 seconds walk), you’ll get all the benefits of being involved in parkrun, whilst gradually building up your confidence and fitness.
If you’re new to parkrun or coming back from injury, see 5 mistakes to avoid when returning to (or starting) parkrun.
3. Jeffing makes running accessible and enjoyable
You may be someone who has no desire to run 5k continuously and your parkrun motivation comes from a place of “should” rather than “want to” (click here to learn about types of exercise motivation). You find jogging boring, painful and anything past week 5 of the Couch to 5K becomes miserable. Or perhaps you’re an older runner, have a health condition or past injuries that mean running continuously isn’t an option for you. By starting with low ratios (e.g.,10/30), Jeffing allows people to run who never thought they could. And by mixing up faster more satisfying runs with walking, Jeffing keeps running interesting and enjoyable for those who need more stimulation than a continuous slow jog.
4. Jeffing is aligned with our natural movement preferences
Think about how children run – do they ever choose to jog continuously or would they rather sprint a bit, stop a bit, sprint a bit more? Think about any other activities you do – is it ever continuous and repetitive or are there always breaks to get your breath back? If you’re struggling to get away from the idea that only continuous running “counts”, check out my tips to stop beating yourself up for walking.
5. Jeffing gives you a new challenge
When I started Jeffing, my running motivation soared. I couldn’t wait to get out for my next run to try out a new ratio, or to see how it felt when I Jeffed a long run compared with running continuously. Jeffing will help you experience success, and success fuels motivation. You may find Jeffing allows you to run further than you have before, or run faster than you have before, or just to run at all when you would never have been able to. Either way, I can guarantee that Jeffing will boost your confidence and enhance your parkrun motivation.
What do those who’ve tried Jeffing think?
In case you’re still not convinced, here’s some quotes from those who’ve discovered Jeffing recently:
“Jeffing changed my parkrun experience dramatically. Not only did it decrease my high heart rate but it improved my time and my enjoyment of parkrun. Now I look forward to it every week!” Nicky, 46 years
“I did my first parkrun at the age of 67, that was six years ago. I discovered Jeffing a few months ago. Although I’m not faster it has helped me to stay focused and concentrate on fast and slow intervals. I’m not as tired by the end of parkrun. I used to get carried away sometimes!” Anonymous, 73 years
“I’m 74 and been parkrunning for a few years, having taken up running via Couch to 5K in the Covid lockdown. Having shed an unwanted 20kg (thank you parkrun!), I was devastated to sustain an Achilles injury last year which prevented me from running for several weeks. My fitness levels plummeted and half the weight piled back on, hard as I tried I really struggled to regain the fitness I wanted. However! Since I was introduced to Jeffing, I’m gradually improving, as building in an effective recovery time has enabled me to run for a little longer each week. I feel that training this way, with built-in recovery times makes me less likely to be prone to injury. And the weight is slowly dropping again!” Anonymous, 74 years
If you’re local to Princes parkrun and would like to try out Jeffing, please come and chat with me or drop me an e-mail at paula@madeuptomove.co.uk
For further information about Jeffing, check out the Jeff Galloway website, as well as Facebook groups Just Jeffing It and Girls That Jeff.
Comments
Please comment below to share your experiences or ask any questions you have about Jeffing or parkrun.
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Dr Paula Watson is a HCPC-registered Sport and Exercise Psychologist and Director of Made Up to Move Ltd.
Paula offers psychological therapy (1-to-1 or couples) to help people with weight loss, disordered eating and exercise problems. If you’d like support in changing your relationship with movement or eating, please find details of 1-to-1 support here.
