When will I love running?
jessiruthica
Posts: 412 Member
I'm one day away from finishing the C25K! Yay! But every run I take still feels like a trudge. I'm only doing it to get through the specified time. I'm SOOO focused on the time that I don't really enjoy the actual running.
So when did you start liking/loving running? When does it become easier/more fun? I've really enjoyed the challenge of getting to this point but don't want to keep doing it if it never becomes more interesting.
Thoughts?
So when did you start liking/loving running? When does it become easier/more fun? I've really enjoyed the challenge of getting to this point but don't want to keep doing it if it never becomes more interesting.
Thoughts?
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I am really enjoying my runs, and I am just starting out. I use an app that plays music from playlist while keeping track of the time for me. It allows me to just do it without worrying about the time.0
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Took me about a year.0
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Hard to say when you'll start liking/loving it. You'll know you're there when you get cranky if something gets in the way of your run day.0
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jessiruthica wrote: »I'm SOOO focused on the time...
So chill out a bit...
A lot depends on what you're doing, and where you run. For me, I keep giving myself challenges, I rarely go out to just run as the majority of my sessions are related to a training plan of some kind; distance, pace etc.
The other element is where I'm running. I far prefer getting out in the forests and trails, but the road stuff has to happen to support that.
I can't recall whether you're dreadmilling it or not? If that's the case then I'm not surprised, that's boring as hel.
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I cannot, cannot, cannot enjoy running while I'm focusing on time. One of the millions of reasons that I HATE running on a treadmill. I run outside, I keep my playlist "fresh," I mute the notifications so that I'm not constantly being told that I have work emails that need attention, and I just...zone out. Focus on my breath, on the music, on anything but how much time I have left.0
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I'm doing a combo of treadmill and road running. Treadmill for pace consistency and road running for race training. My plan for my next run (tomorrow morning) is to set the treadmill for a specific time then cover the timer and just listen to music rather than the 5k101 podcast (which has time marks in it). I'm hoping the music will help me zone out. I found jog.fm and bought some music with similar bpm to help with pace. Wish me luck!0
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How did it go?
I do think that you're overthinking it, although dreadmilling it really cannot help. Personally I'm bored in 5 minutes or so, I find a dreadmill really hard work whereas I'm quite comfortable going out and doing half marathon distances on a Sunday morning out in the woods.
Just go out and run. If you really find yourself getting hung up on the time then do it naked, no electronics at all, and just run until you feel like slowing down.0 -
I have to run on the treadmill because I need the gym child care for my daughter while I run. Music is fine for me, but what I love is listening to audiobooks. I find myself getting so lost in the story that I don't even think about time/distance until I hear my cue and change my pace on the machine.
But to answer your question, I have been starting and restarting C25K for about a year. This last time was the first time where I really looked forward to it. I don't know if it was that I was at a lower weight and so it didn't hurt as much. It could also be that I got more committed to a strength training program at the same time and the combination has helped me to feel stronger than I have before when I started. Or it could be after a year of trying and retrying I have found that ability to like it (not sure I would call it love yet). Maybe it is a combination of all three.
Good luck in finding that thing you need to love it too.
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MeanderingMammal wrote: »...I do think that you're overthinking it...
So much of this. My trainer says the same thing. I have a really hard time NOT thinking about what's going on because I like to know all the details. And then I talk myself into to stopping much earlier than my body would allow.
I like the idea of audio books if I can find something to really get lost in. That'll be my next option.
On dreadmilling: basically I KNOW I can do 30 minutes (and can grow that time) on a treadmill and so I need to get that in my head so I can tell myself that when I'm running outside.
So much of this whole thing (weight loss, exercise, lifestyle change) is mental and it's a struggle I'll have to keep working on!0 -
Helps to have a nice place to run outdoors. I live in a large city but I'm fortunate enough to live just a few blocks from a path that runs along a river. Lots of wildlife there (always ducks on the river and I frequently see deer, rabbits, even an occasional skunk or fox).
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jessiruthica wrote: »On dreadmilling: basically I KNOW I can do 30 minutes (and can grow that time) on a treadmill and so I need to get that in my head so I can tell myself that when I'm running outside.
I've currently got a mild knee injury so rather than pumping out my usual mileage I'm on short runs and other training. I made the mistake of trying an elliptical on Monday night. I found having the numbers in front of me really disheartening. I don't run with music or anything when I'm out, and even watching something on a machine feels artificiial to me.
A lot of that is down to where I run, on trails so there's a lot of mental stimulation.0 -
So for those of us who have to dreadmill, due to cold weather, snow & ice and having small kiddos at home-what works best for you? I've tried to set up a mini dvd player to watch a movie to pass the time or watch a TV series. I don't have any kind of mp3 player, smartphone etc. so any "low tech" ideas would be great.0
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tonyabaumann3 wrote: »So for those of us who have to dreadmill, due to cold weather, snow & ice and having small kiddos at home-what works best for you? I've tried to set up a mini dvd player to watch a movie to pass the time or watch a TV series. I don't have any kind of mp3 player, smartphone etc. so any "low tech" ideas would be great.
DVD players play CDs...so I'd put in something that revs me up and makes me go. One thing about starting this is the on and off right now for walk/jog that it makes the time fly for me (Ok I just finished W1D1...lol but any interval trainings go fast for me.)
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