<-----Depressed "Runner"

_jayciemarie_
_jayciemarie_ Posts: 574 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
For the last two months I have spent 5 days a week on the treadmill. I walk and run for 60 min. I started out only going about 4.1 miles. Now Im going about 5.2miles. Sure--it is an improvement; however, I feel like I should be further along. I walk the first 5 min at 4.2mph. Then I alternate running at 6mph for a minute and walking at 4.2mph for a minute and a half. I do this for the entire duration up to 60 minutes. It isn't getting easier for me. My legs feel so heavy. I feel like I am just not a runner. Im trying so hard. What can I do? Any tips? Positive only please.

Replies

  • ThickMcRunFast
    ThickMcRunFast Posts: 22,511 Member
    I'd be depressed too if I spent 5 days a week on a treadmill :smile:

    Congrats on the progress you have made - - don't short change yourself.

    It is amazing how mental running can be. If you get it in your head that you can't do it, you just won't be able to.

    my advice would be

    1) if at all possible, ditch the treadmill and get outside. It will be slower at first, but also vastly more enjoyable.

    2)start running for longer and recovering for shorter. Don't do anything drastic. Run for 65 seconds, recover for 85. If you can't do that, slow down your running pace. Slower and longer is better than faster and shorter at this point. Increase your running time and decrease your walking time every week (never by a large amount).

    3) sign up for a race. A 5k. you can already do the mileage. Make your goal something like working up to running the whole thing. Having something to work towards always helps.

    And just a general thing: make sure you have the right shoes (fitted from a running store). The wrong shoes will make you hurt more than anything else.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    I'd be depressed too if I spent 5 days a week on a treadmill

    This.

    I am not a runner and have no desire to be one. There are plenty of other ways to get some cardio in. If you want to run, go for it, but don't feel like it's something you have to do. Make sure you're using proper form at all times. Running is very hard on the joints, especially if you're overweight. It's very easy to injure yourself if you aren't doing it right.
  • _db_
    _db_ Posts: 179 Member
    If it makes you feel any better, I've figured out that my sustainable jogging pace is about 5.2 mph. At least it's faster than the 4.2 mph I can sustain walking. Gotta start somewhere...
  • DancesWithBirds
    DancesWithBirds Posts: 25 Member
    Why do you want to be a runner?

    I have a sister and several friends who are really into it, so I tried it out. I did C25K. I built up my stamina gradually and got to the point where I COULD run long distances if I really wanted to. One day I went to the gym when my kids were really stressing me out and ran 3 miles on a treadmill just to get everything out of my system. I'd never done it before and I've never done it since. So it's really great for those times when I'm just in the mood for it... but honestly that rarely happens. I know now that I CAN do it, but I gradually realized that I just hate running. I do. I feel like my legs are all clunky and I hate feeling like I'm going so slowly.

    I found things I liked better. In the summer I much prefer to put miles on my bike. I like that when I put more effort into my bike I go significantly faster and I find it more enjoyable. I also lift weights. I like that the progress I make is objective and I like the things it does for my body. I also like cross-country skiing in the winter because I like to get out in the woods and skiing gives me a reason to be out even when there is snow on the ground. My husband prefers swimming and does that whenever he can.

    So I guess if you find you're hating running, maybe you should try something else that you enjoy more? If you have specific goals for running that are important to you (like completing a race), then maybe keep going and see how you feel after you reach the goal. Running outside might help, though I've never been brave enough to run outdoors in the winter! If it helps, I've been told that running is something you just keep doing until you eventually find your rhythm and everything clicks and then it's wonderful.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    You need to use a heart rate monitor IMO. Train smarter, not harder.
  • Trechechus
    Trechechus Posts: 2,819 Member
    Treadmills are inherently boring and depressing. Running outside is the best
  • sheathja
    sheathja Posts: 2
    Well done for getting moving. In the past I used to run 10km fun runs until a back issue put a stop to it. I was a lot younger then. Recently when beginning a fitness program I was under a personal trainer. Yes I was able to run a 5km fun run after 3 months lead up but with lots of leg muscle pain; this after training 5 - 6 days a week. It seems when you don't take breaks between using your muscles they can't repair. Also expecting too much too soon which may also play a part. Try dropping your time exercising back to 40-45 mins and take a break in between each run/walk day (more if you are stepping things up a bit) and let you poor ol' muscles repair themselves. Type "why won't my muscles repair?" in Google and see what comes up. You'll be surprised! Rest is the key. Good luck :)
  • hilts1969
    hilts1969 Posts: 465 Member
    For the last two months I have spent 5 days a week on the treadmill. I walk and run for 60 min. I started out only going about 4.1 miles. Now Im going about 5.2miles. Sure--it is an improvement; however, I feel like I should be further along. I walk the first 5 min at 4.2mph. Then I alternate running at 6mph for a minute and walking at 4.2mph for a minute and a half. I do this for the entire duration up to 60 minutes. It isn't getting easier for me. My legs feel so heavy. I feel like I am just not a runner. Im trying so hard. What can I do? Any tips? Positive only please.

    Don't spend an hour doing this, you need to build up the running, if you can do an hour of cardio and half of this is running you need to run more and walk less over a shorter period of time

    set the treadmill at 2% incline and ALWAYS DO THIS walk at 5kmh for 5 minutes as a warm up then run at 8kmh for as long as possible and return to 5kmh up to 20mins

    each time try increase the length of time you run at, you will get to 20 minutes running then increase pace later on, convert kmh to mph if the treadmill doesn't have this option
  • JustJennie13
    JustJennie13 Posts: 218
    I understand how you feel. I am not a "natural" runner. I CAN do it. I have to for my job. I do it often and have for 3 years consistently. I can tell you it gets more tolerable. As someone else mentioned running is hugely a state of mind. When I started to build endurance I used the elliptical machines. Not so stressful on newly training joints. I've heard great things about the C25K program. I have never used it though. I run because I have to. I have found for a more lean look lifting is the way to go. Also I recently used a heart rate monitor while lifting and was pleasantly surprised to find that I burned a comparable amount of calories to running as long as I kept my heart rate up on my rest between sets. To do this I jogged in place or sometimes danced to my music. Did I look crazy? Probably but I am in the gym for me and I have learned that I LOVE lifting. Losing inches that cardio didn't touch was just an added bonus! If you want to run don't give up. But I would recommend changing it up a couple of days a week. Best of luck to you!:flowerforyou:
  • supergirl6
    supergirl6 Posts: 224 Member
    Running outside is impossible in the midwest in winter, so treadmills are it for us Nebraska girls until spring. Most days our temperatures hover around 0 degrees with unforgivable wind chill.

    I used C25K religiously to build up my ability to go for over 3 miles. This year I'm working on speed. I'm short legged 5'3 though, so 4.5 is running for me. I walk at about 3.1 or 3.2, and run at 4.5. I also run at an incline of 1 because it feels more like running outside.

    It was very hard for me to run for very long at first. When I started running it took about 4 weeks for me to work up to running for 1 minute, but I was 320 lbs so that was very limiting. Once I got past the 1 minute mark, improving how long I could go happened pretty quickly. I just needed to get past that initial hurdle. For what it's worth, I only run for 30 minutes (habit from doing C25K). I agree with above posters that picking a 5K to train for is very motivating.

    Don't give up! It's hard at first and it does get easier, but slowly for some of us. You can do it I know you can :-)
  • tatiianag13
    tatiianag13 Posts: 76 Member
    I'm going to address what I read: that you seem to be saying: not only is it not getting any easier, you actually feel more tired, with heavy legs, etc. A physical response--not an emotional one.

    When I have had exercise make me feel worse rather than better, a number of things helped:

    1. Iron. I was anemic. Especially if you have dramatically increased your exercise level, you may have pushed yourself from borderline anemia into anemia. This problem can only be fixed with iron! Not ditching running and trying zumba.

    2. I wasn't eating enough or not eating the right things. A lot of women on MFP don't eat back their exercise calories. Not eating enough=tired. I had the experience of never "getting better" at exercise when I tried to be a vegan. Now--no one throw stones at me, I'm not saying being a vegan doesn't' work for some people. But I didn't feel right until I went back to eating meat. I needed animal protein for energy. I'm not saying its meat--but I humbly suggest that maybe your diet is missing something important that it needs.

    3. Starting to quickly--stressing your body out. Exercise isn't a sprint--its a marathon. You're in it for life--not just to lose weight. So slow it down--cut back. Try some strength training and go easy on all that cardio. Paradoxically, rest and cross-training will make you a better runner, not a worse one.
  • hilts1969
    hilts1969 Posts: 465 Member
    I understand how you feel. I am not a "natural" runner. I CAN do it. I have to for my job. I do it often and have for 3 years consistently. I can tell you it gets more tolerable. As someone else mentioned running is hugely a state of mind. When I started to build endurance I used the elliptical machines. Not so stressful on newly training joints. I've heard great things about the C25K program. I have never used it though. I run because I have to. I have found for a more lean look lifting is the way to go. Also I recently used a heart rate monitor while lifting and was pleasantly surprised to find that I burned a comparable amount of calories to running as long as I kept my heart rate up on my rest between sets. To do this I jogged in place or sometimes danced to my music. Did I look crazy? Probably but I am in the gym for me and I have learned that I LOVE lifting. Losing inches that cardio didn't touch was just an added bonus! If you want to run don't give up. But I would recommend changing it up a couple of days a week. Best of luck to you!:flowerforyou:

    You will lose more weight and burn more calories from running than lifting weights
  • TexasOFT76
    TexasOFT76 Posts: 475 Member
    Like a previous poster said longer and slower is better than shorter and faster. There's a place for that but probably not what you're looking for. You're used to the standard of run/walk. Try jogging at a slower pace, like 5.2 and try not to walk until you need to. The 10 minute mile spurts you're doing aren't allowing you to maintain a pace. Slow it down to a pace you can keep with and slowly increase that time. Also, try not slowing to a total walk even if it's barely a jog. It will keep rhythm. Slow and steady!
    You're doing great and it'll take some adjusting along the way but you'll get there :)
  • _jayciemarie_
    _jayciemarie_ Posts: 574 Member
    I appreciate all the responses. I do wear a Polar HRM. I have been wearing Nike Flex shoes, but purchased a pair of Brooks running shoes. I was walking/running outside until the arctic cold hit Nebraska--thus why I signed up for the YMCA. I was a military police officer in the Army SEVERAL years ago. I was able to run 6-7 miles at a time (albeit not fast). Some days I love running, other days I don't. Even in the Army in my prime fitness shape it was hard. I was always told to build the muscles above the knees. Is this true? Could this be my problem?
  • hilts1969
    hilts1969 Posts: 465 Member
    I appreciate all the responses. I do wear a Polar HRM. I have been wearing Nike Flex shoes, but purchased a pair of Brooks running shoes. I was walking/running outside until the arctic cold hit Nebraska--thus why I signed up for the YMCA. I was a military police officer in the Army SEVERAL years ago. I was able to run 6-7 miles at a time (albeit not fast). Some days I love running, other days I don't. Even in the Army in my prime fitness shape it was hard. I was always told to build the muscles above the knees. Is this true? Could this be my problem?

    It has nothing to do with muscles above your knees, run a bit slower but longer and stick with it, from your posts i would say it is mental, you have trained yourself to only run for 60 seconds, every time you get on the treadmill run a minute longer

    looking at your photo's and the amount of cardio you do the only problem is between your ears
  • sjp_511
    sjp_511 Posts: 476 Member
    Going from 4.1 miles to 5.2 miles in 2 months is terrific progress! Don't be so down on yourself.

    Adding more variety to your cardio workouts can help you get out of the rut that you feel like you are in. Try lowering the speed and seeing how long you can go without walking. Vary the incline (on a treadmill keep the incline at 1% or higher at all times). As others suggested, go for a run outside. Cross train - I really enjoy spinning class and it will help your running.
  • JustJennie13
    JustJennie13 Posts: 218
    I understand how you feel. I am not a "natural" runner. I CAN do it. I have to for my job. I do it often and have for 3 years consistently. I can tell you it gets more tolerable. As someone else mentioned running is hugely a state of mind. When I started to build endurance I used the elliptical machines. Not so stressful on newly training joints. I've heard great things about the C25K program. I have never used it though. I run because I have to. I have found for a more lean look lifting is the way to go. Also I recently used a heart rate monitor while lifting and was pleasantly surprised to find that I burned a comparable amount of calories to running as long as I kept my heart rate up on my rest between sets. To do this I jogged in place or sometimes danced to my music. Did I look crazy? Probably but I am in the gym for me and I have learned that I LOVE lifting. Losing inches that cardio didn't touch was just an added bonus! If you want to run don't give up. But I would recommend changing it up a couple of days a week. Best of luck to you!:flowerforyou:

    You will lose more weight and burn more calories from running than lifting weights

    Opinion and matter of perspective. I didn't say running didn't make me lose weight. I stated I lost INCHES that cardio never touched.

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