A friend of mine- unfortunately, I canât remember who, forwarded me an Instagram reel recently from the @therunningweek account. A running coach who did not identify himself was delivering advice from the entrance arch in Iten, Kenya’s iconic running town, renowned for producing many Olympic and world champions. This one resonated.
The Kenyan 5-Minute Rule for Runners (Image by ChatGPT)
He said:
âDonât want to run today? Good!
In Kenya, we have a rule for days like this. Put on your shoes. Go outside. Run for five minutes. Only five. Then youâre free to stop, no guilt. But watch what happens after minute three: the legs warm up, the head goes quiet, the excuses get tired, and you keep running. Not because you must, but because now you want to.
I coach runners in Iten. Even champions lose to the bed some mornings. They do not fight for 40 kilometers; they fight for the first five minutes. Because the hardest part of running is not the running; it is the starting. So, forget the 10 kilometers. Win the five minutes.â
There is so much to deconstruct in these 118 powerful words. So much.
Every runner, regardless of their commitment to the craft, has a day when they do not feel like training. Excuses are endless; explanations to justify them are plentiful, and alternative activities to rival todayâs session always seem more appealing. It is human nature.
Like the coach stated in his brief yet powerful declamation: âEven champions lose to the bed some mornings.â If Eliud Kipchoge, Jacob Kiplimo and Sebastian Sawe have days like these, whatâs left for us? We weekend warriors, in addition, must deal with work, deadlines, unpaid bills, cranky bosses, spouses, kids, daily commutes, and whatnot.
This is the coach who recited those 118 powerful words
This is the genius of the Kenyan 5-minute rule. We are thinking about running but looking for a way out. Letâs take advantage of the thinking part and commit just five minutes to it. And if it is not your day, then you stop, go home, and life goes on. No guilt required. We are not machines. We live to run another day.
We must be vigilant, though. This 5-minute rule is not a way out of todayâs run and definitely shouldnât become an excuse for complacency or a mask for laziness. Quite the contrary, we apply it to give today’s run a chance of happening. We give ourselves an honest chance for personal victory.
But we know, because it has happened a million times, that once we start running, we will feel better. We have experienced that post-run euphoria. We know that once we are done, we will be thrilled that we did not skip it. Yet, seldom, when it is time to change into our running clothes, leave the A/C comfort of our car to face the summer heat, or proceed to the starting point, our will to push forward is nowhere to be found.
Donât focus on it as a guilt-free card. If elite Kenyanâs do it?. The spirit of this rule is not permitting yourself to go home guilt-free. It is what happens as you experience those tough first five minutes:
Like the coach said: âWatch what happens after minute three: the legs warm up, the head goes quiet, the excuses get tired, and you keep running. Not because you must, but because now you want to.â
And there it is: You are running because you want to, for the pleasure of it. And it only took the discipline to commit to five minutes to see what happens. And now, if it is not there, then you pack it up and go home, yes, guilt-free. You donât look back, and tomorrow you resume your scheduled program.
Feel free to share your thoughts about this in the comment box below. I want to know what real runners think about the Kenyan 5-minute rule.
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For anyone living in the Northern Hemisphere, the summer has been brutal. It gets sultrier year after year. In some areas, itâs the heat; in others, it is humidity; and in some, it is both. Conditions can get inhospitable and dangerous very quickly.
Always give yourself a way out if it is too hot for a safe run (Image by ChatGPT)
Last week I drove to my Thursday afternoon group run. As soon as I turned off the carâs air conditioning and set foot out in the open, I realized this was not happening. I decided to walk. I did so with one of my athletes and discussed her upcoming racing schedule. We walked for about an hour, got back drenched, and I was at peace with my decision. As I checked the temperature and humidity afterward, I learned the heat index was 98Âș (36.7ÂșC). Inhuman conditions.
Iâve already written about training in the heat this year (click here to read). Still, this experience got me thinking, yet once again, about accepting that I’ll survive the season rather than focusing on the metrics as a measure of success as if the temperature were 30 degrees lower (17ÂșC).
Alex Beach, a 2:24 marathoner based in South Florida, recently posted the following thought on Instagram: âIâm training year-round in a hot environment (Miami). Understanding the aerobic work youâre getting and not putting too much stress on hitting specific paces every workout in the heat allows you to avoid issues with overtraining.â
Running in the summer requires heavy adjustments. The weather is not just the temperature. It includes atmospheric pressure, visibility, pollen count, and more. When it comes to running, we must expand our perspective beyond temperature and, at the bare minimum, include wind and humidity in the equation.
What Happens to Your Body in the Heat?
Your body goes into overdrive to keep you cool during summer running (Image by Grok)
As a runner, you must understand the physiology of training in severe heat. When you run in hot weather, your body works harder to keep itself cool. As your core temperature rises, your muscles become less efficient, you fatigue sooner, and your overall performance inevitably declines. Accept it.
To prevent overheating, your body redirects blood to your skin, blood that would normally supply oxygen to your working muscles. From the skin, the heat is released. In dry conditions, sweat evaporates, and you cool down. In humid weather, that sweat doesn’t evaporate as easily, making it much harder for your body to regulate its temperature. That’s why running in heat and humidity feels significantly tougher than running in dry heat, even at the same pace.
So, account for that reality and focus on effort rather than metrics. The people you’re trying to impress on Instagram don’t know you, won’t visit you in the hospital if you suffer heat stroke. They certainly won’t help pay your medical bills.
What to do when it is too hot to run outside?
One of the best pieces of advice I’ve heard on summer training comes from Steve Magness, a renowned running coach, author, and performance expert who has guided athletes from high school to the Olympic level. His recommendation is simple: always give yourself a way out.
He explains how in extreme heat and humidity, it’s much easier to dig yourself into a hole that can take days, or even weeks, to recover from. Instead of stubbornly forcing yourself to complete every mile exactly as planned, build flexibility into your workouts. Rather than committing to a continuous hard workout, consider breaking it into shorter intervals with brief recovery periods. If your body is sending warning signs, don’t be afraid to stop early. Adjusting a workout isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a smart decision that allows you to recover, stay consistent, and be ready for your next quality session. Summer training rewards athletes who know when to push and, just as importantly, when to back off.
In conclusion: Donât try to be a hero. No PR is worth a heat injury. No social media post is worth a health breakdown. No Strava kudos are worth an ambulance ride. Be smart, play it safe, and always live to run another day.
Please share your thoughts in the comment box below.
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A few days ago, I was leaving the place where I usually have breakfast and was about to turn left to merge into traffic. So, naturally, I was looking to my right to make sure it was safe to hit the gas pedal. As the car accelerated, a startled runner coming from my left appeared in front of my windshield. Thank God I was alert and was able to hit the brakes in time.
It is your responsibility to be seen by a driver; you don’t want to find out why (Image by ChatGPT)
The runner bitched at me. I lowered the window and yelled, âYou must make sure I see youâ. Then he told me Iâm number one, and we parted ways.
Should I have looked both ways before making sure the road was clear? Sure. But the key message from this story is not whoâs at fault. It is that if I hit you with my car, unless you are from Planet Krypton, you are losing that battle. You must internalize this basic safety concept.
I canât believe I have to write about this, because so many runners out there insist on exercising their right of way based on principle rather than their own well-being.
I worked in the construction industry for quite a while, and there are two things safety experts drill into their workers. Their extrapolation perfectly applies to running on the road.
âș Safety is my responsibility: It doesnât matter how much effort your contractor puts into maintaining a safe jobsite or safety culture environment. If you donât wear your PPE (personal protective equipment), you will get hurt. Stories of workers getting seriously injured, or worse, for not wearing their PPE are not rare occurrences.
âș Who are you going home to? You leave for work, say goodbye to your loved ones, and they expect you to come back home. Never forget that. Do all you can to ensure that you are indeed returning.
Now that these two paramount safety principles have been established, letâs deconstruct the basic steps to cross paths in front of a car merging into traffic.
How to Ensure a Driver Sees You
âș Accept that regardless of who is right, if a car/truck/motorcycle hits you, you will be on the losing end of the accident.
âș Look for the driver and check where they are focusing their attention. Are they playing with a phone? Are they looking at both ways?
âș Put yourself in the driverâs seat. Identify the situation so you may visualize the outcomes, react accordingly, and enhance your chances of being seen and continuing uneventfully.
âș Make eye contact with the driver and donât assume you have been seen. Wait for an acknowledgment.
âș If the driver hasnât seen you, wave your arms or yell if the window is open, and then wait for acknowledgment.
âș Once you know 100% that you have been seen, then you may cross in front of the vehicle. Make sure you point at the driver if additional runners are coming behind you.
âș Thank the driver for allowing you to pass through safely.
If any of these conditions are not met, you stop and wait for the car to do its thing. Or, if it is safe to do so, go behind the car and continue your merry way. Tragedy avoided.
Even if you have the right of way, you must ensure the drivers have seen you (Image by ChatGPT).
One more thing:
Since we are on the subject, when crossing a street on a red light, even if you have the right of way, ensure the drivers in the first row see you. The last thing you want is the light suddenly turning green and a distracted driver discovering you are on their path when it is too late to brake.
I understand this blog post is uncomfortable, but Iâve seen so many close calls lately and just had one. So, Iâd rather write about an unpleasant subject and force you to think about the issue than learn that you were involved in a sad incident.
Share your tips or experiences on running safety in the comment box below. I read all your comments.
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I joke (partially) with my running buddies that the day I ran against Eliud Kipchoge in Berlin (2017), he needed a world record to beat me. Sure, I started in wave 4 and was 15 miles behind when he crossed the finish line, and while I certainly had no chance of beating him, the statement is still 100% true.
All you need is the will to go for a run. Everything else is additional (Image by Grok)
Consider this: what are your chances of standing in the huddle in a Super Bowl, strategizing the next play? When will you face Shohei Ohtani on an MLB field? How about your odds of standing with or against Lio Messi during the World Cup? Driving in an F1 Grand Prix? US Open. Golf or tennis?… Anyone?
But running is different. When the marathonâs 2-hour mark was broken, a runner I trained was there. When Kipchoge broke his last world record (Berlin 2022), another runner I trained was there. During the epic battle between Alberto Salazar and Rodolfo Gomez at the 1982 NYC Marathon, my dad was there. A close friend crossed the finish line in Boston, 10 minutes before the bombing. The last time the immortal Bill Rodgers won a marathon (Orange Bowl 1983), he had to beat me, too.
So, you get the point. Running is the most democratic of sports. The one with the most open access, equal opportunity to participate, low barriers of entry, and outcomes driven mostly by effort rather than status.
Remember dreaming of running, or lacing your shoes for the first time? Or how you felt after a long hiatus? Remember the struggle to finish that first long run? Have you checked the back of the packers at a race? Have you taken the time to watch the videos of the last finishers at a big-city marathon? Is there any other sport where regular people, even with a variety of disabilities, can beat the odds by finishing the biggest and most iconic races in the world?
Sure, only a selected few will run in the Olympics or the world championships, but even you, dear reader, can run the mythic Boston Marathon, even if you donât qualify. We know you have a better chance of hitting the Powerball than the London Marathon Lottery, but the chance is there, and you still have charity entries. And if you are not into multitudinous mega races, there are local 5Ks everywhere, every week.
In his book âWhen Running Made Historyâ, literature professor and former elite runner Roger Robinson said: “Being a runner (this sounds naive but isn’t) gives you direct and unfiltered access to all other runners. That’s one thing that makes running so remarkable; it is an intensely competitive sport that is also an egalitarian community. Just put your shorts and shoes on and if you’re fast enough, you can run with, befriend, and, if so inclined, interview the greatest celebrities on earth.”
In running, you will only get out what you put into it (Image by Grok)
Think about it: when it comes to running, you donât need an opposing team or a field. Let alone a golf course. You donât need a court, like tennis, basketball, or pickleball. You donât even need a group of friends or a rival. All you need is the will to run. Everything else, everything, is extra.
You can run in the crappiest of shoes, or even barefoot. You can run in jeans and cotton socks if that is all you have. You donât need a watch, you donât need company, and you donât need a dedicated surface or place. The comfort of a good pair of running shoes, a tech shirt/shorts, moisture-wicking socks, and a running path with good friends will surely make it more enjoyable, but as for requirements, none beyond your willingness to go out for a run.
Biologist and 2:22 marathoner Bernd Heinrich wrote in Why We Run: A Natural History: “Running is perhaps the most fundamental of all sports… it is the most democratic and most competitive of all sports because individual merit can prevail despite economic equality. It is a sport for everyone, the whole world over.”
Meritocracy in action. What a beautiful concept!
The great running author and philosopher George Sheehan said, “Life is a positive-sum game. Everyone from the gold medalist to the last finisher can rejoice in a personal victory.”
Fred Lebow, the father of the NYC Marathon, said, “In running, it doesn’t matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, ‘I have finished.'”
Beyond the health and social benefits, running is a sport where you can only get out as much as you put in. The one sport where we have the chance to participate in the biggest local, national, and international competitions. The one we can practice at a moment’s notice, just when we need it. Yes, need it. The one where the winner and the last one across the finish line get the same medal. The one where we can make friendships to last a lifetime.
Letâs go for a run, then. What are you waiting for?
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Last weekend gave us runners a preview of brutal summer weather in South Florida. It wasnât as bad as mid-July, but in mid-May, it signaled what’s ahead. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, expect this soon.
Hydrate, sure, but don’t overhydrate (Image by Grok)
The line between toughness and doing something stupid is very thin, and if you cross it, you can get seriously hurt. So, my yearly blog post urging runners to stay on top of their training during the summer has been forced to be published earlier than expected.
Adjust your training and expectations for survival, not just performance. Heat injuries can permanently impact your health and your running future.
Here are five adjustments for safe training during the summer.
1 – Know whatâs happening – You canât fight the weather; you can only adjust for safe running. Two basic things occur:
1A â When air turns humid, it feels thicker, making each run more effortful. Running at the same speed takes more work.
1B – The second one is basic biology: The human body cools off by sweating, and the blood is about 92% water. The more you sweat without replenishing fluids, the more water gets sucked out of your bloodstream, and the thicker the blood becomes, the more difficult it is to circulate. This spells deep trouble.
2 – Adjust your running time – If the brutal summer is an unavoidable part of your home zip code, your options for outdoor running are reduced to: A- adjusting to run in the heat/humidity, or B- not running at all. If you choose A, you must do so at the coolest time possible, when it is gentler to the body. The basic choices are before sunrise or after sunset. Wake up earlier or wait until later. If you canât, there is always a frightening Option C: The dreaded treadmill.
A good hack is to keep a running shirt and hat in the freezer and put them on right before you hit the road. This will cool your core and provide you with a few comfortable initial miles before the inevitable sets in.
3 – Slow your pace â Do you know why mainstream races take place in the fall or the spring? Who wants their goal race in the thick of a scorching summer? This is the time to get ready for the upcoming season; the time to tackle strength training and base building. The latter is achieved by running at a lower effort level, regardless of speed. Your fall and spring PRs are built during the summer. Donât worry about what âthe fastâ people may think. Stop posting on Instagram if your followers’ opinions matter.
4 â Overhydration is a real danger – Your body is designed to lose fluids as you run, without replenishing every single drop of sweat. So, donât fall into the temptation of overindulging in water or sports drinks. Hyponatremia is a serious condition that happens when too much fluid is ingested, diluting your sodium levels to the point that it may cause seizures, coma, and even death.
Hydration is not just about what you consume while running. Hydration is a 24/7 habit that has you ready to go by the time you press start in your GPS watch.
5 – Beware of the signs â The challenges of summer running go beyond training earlier, later, or slower. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are among the most serious dangers in inhospitable climates. Itâs each runner’s responsibility to recognize the symptoms and adjust before it becomes a 911 call. With luck, a mishap may keep you out for a few weeks; without it, it could kill you. In a previous post, I wrote about heat exhaustion and heat stroke. I invite you to revisit it by clicking here.
In Conclusion
There are no medals or podiums during training. Be smart and remember you are only getting ready for next season.
Running in heat and humidity is doable if you prepare properly. Never lose sight of the fact that you need to live to run another day. As stated earlier, the line between toughness and doing something stupid is very thin, and if you cross it, you may get seriously hurt.
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