Don't think you're a runner? Convinced that people are either born runners or born fast walkers? You are wrong. You CAN be a runner, but it will take some practice and hard work. Start out slow. Run only as long as you can the first time even if it is for 5 minutes. Do that three times that week. The next week add two minutes to your time and repeat for 2 more days. Keep doing this and in a couple months or so you will be able to call yourself a runner.
How do I know this stuff? Well, I thought I was destined to be a fast walker for life. I was doing 60 minutes a day 4 times per week and getting B-O-R-E-D. I knew running was where it was at to get serious fit. So I hopped on my treadmill on a Monday and pushed myself to run for as long as I could. I made it 20 minutes! I was stoked. I ran 20 minutes again on Wednesday and Friday and set a goal of 22 minutes for the next Monday. I took days off in between to give my aching calves and lungs a break. It took me 5 whole tough months but I reached my goals of running for an hour without stopping and to call myself a "runner".
I didn't always reach my goal time for that week but I tried. Sometimes you will have an off day and feel like you can only run for 5 minutes. Do what you can and resolve to do better the next running day. I felt proud because I worked hard and reached a goal. And running does some serious mood boosting. I felt a serotonin high every time I reached my goal time.
Tough? Sure. Worth it? Absolutely! Do I believe in you? Of course I do!
2 comments:
Did I ever tell you how much I used to hate running? I thought runners were crazy. And I definitely thought people were either naturally runners or not. But when a friend of mine started and loved it, I gave it a shot. The trick is definitely, like you said, to start slowly. If you try to do too much too fast, it sucks and then you give up. The adrenaline rush during a good run is amazing. And there are so many races, 5k's to marathons, that make it easy to set goals. I miss it so much! Damn knee...
I've never made it to a marathon, but I have been running my whole life. I ran track in high school, and enjoyed the competition. Something about standing on the starting line by yourself getting ready to race others, really gets my blood flowing!
Post a Comment