Mind Your P's and Q's

By Cedric Jaggers/Running Journal/September 2007

The old saying 'Mind Your P's and Q's' has been in use since the 17th century according to at least one dictionary and several citations you can find if you Google the phrase. Basically it can be summarized as meaning that you should be careful, do things right etc. How does this apply to running? Let's look at some of the ways.

Flashback time. When I was at Fort Polk, LA, enjoying (ha, ha) advanced infantry training we had a drill Sergeant who screamed reminders at us. His favorite was full of P's: "Prior planning prevents poor performance." He was talking about the army, but it applies to running just as well.

We are going to mind our P's in this article and forget about the Q's. Fall and spring are probably the best running times of the year. The odds of having cool crisp weather are higher during those two seasons and if you think weather doesn't affect your running, you haven't been running very long.

With the arrival of fall, we get a lot of races to choose from. Prior planning comes into play. Runners need to look at every race they might want to run and make a plan. Make the choices that are best for you. Plan them out. Check on the race. Is it is new or established race? If it is new, who is putting it on and why? How much is the entry fee, and what do you get for it? Does it include a T-shirt, or other amenities? Is the race run on a certified course? If not you need to be aware that unless a race is USATF Certified and run on the certified course that it is not eligible for record consideration since uncertified courses usually turn out to be short when measured for certification.

Does running the right distance matter to you? It should. If you run an uncertified course and run a 'Personal Record' (PR), you cannot in good conscience call it a PR since it was probably not the full distance. Lots of runners do it anyway. Do you? Prior planning prevents this problem. Choose races that have taken the time and trouble to get their courses certified. Or choose to run the race anyway (and I have done it myself ) -- but I don't call the 31:05 '10K' that I ran on an uncertified course that was advertised as being 10K, my PR, since my best times on certified 10K courses were all in the 36-minute range. Prior planning lets you know and accept that every uncertified race course is short and can only be used for comparison with the runners who ran that race, that day.

Getting the most out of our running always depends on how well we are prepared. If you try to run a marathon when you have only done the training and preparation for a 5K, you are going to be in trouble. Doing the right training for any distance doesn't happen by accident. It takes -- get ready for it -- prior planning. There are good training programs available for every distance from 5K to the ultramarathon. If you want to do well at any distance, you need to plan and train for it. Look at the programs and use them. If you take advantage of them you can achieve your best performances.

Planning helps ease the tension of running races as well. If you pack your race bag in advance, it can prevent panic on race morning. If you have ever gotten to a race site, taken off your street shoes and then discovered that you forgot to put any running socks in your bag, then you understand the importance of planning -- since it is hard to run without socks if you usually do so. Pack everything you might need ahead of time. Make sure you have shoes, socks, running shorts, and tops -- everything from singlet to long sleeved shirt in case the weather changes. Gloves, hat, sunscreen, and anything else you might want -- put them in the bag, then you don't have to worry about it when you get to the race.

Planning makes sure you get to the race site on time. In fact, the pundits say it takes an hour for carbon monoxide from a car ride to clear your lungs, so you should always get to a race site an hour before the race begins. This gives you time to park, use the restroom, get your race packet, do your warm up, and talk to the other runners.

What if you don't run races, or don't run them very often, how do all these P's apply? Planning your running routes is important. You should know where you are going to run and think about it ahead of time. Do you want to run fast, slow, or just take it as I comes?

Letting someone know about how long you will be out running and where you will be is important. If you had an accident, it might be good to have someone come looking for you if you didn't come back from a run. It is also important to have some identification on you. There are several companies that make metal dog tags that you can wear or carry in a key pocket, but if you don't have these, do have something with your name and address on them with you when you run.

Prior planning helps you dress properly for your run. If you've ever had too much or too little clothing or needed gloves on a cold day, you know how uncomfortable you can get a few miles into the run.

It pays to have some money with you on the run. Why? You might need to buy a cold drink on a hot day, or use it for a pay phone if you don't have a cell phone. Prior planning does prevent poor performance. Be it at a race, on a regular run, and in many other life situations. Remember to mind your P's.