My mind tells me no but my body tells me yes!
DARKPEST32
Posts: 3 Member
Hello!
I am noob, obese, unfit "runner" and I have just managed to finish week4.
My biggest problem is not my body (although I gasp for air sometimes or my feet getting sore the next day) but my mind. Thinking that there is no way to complete that 5mins jog or that I am too tired or that this is too boring etc.
Despite being able to overcome it so far I am afraid that the next weeks will be even harder given that I will have to run for a longer period. So what are your tips and tricks to trick your brain and keep running?
I am noob, obese, unfit "runner" and I have just managed to finish week4.
My biggest problem is not my body (although I gasp for air sometimes or my feet getting sore the next day) but my mind. Thinking that there is no way to complete that 5mins jog or that I am too tired or that this is too boring etc.
Despite being able to overcome it so far I am afraid that the next weeks will be even harder given that I will have to run for a longer period. So what are your tips and tricks to trick your brain and keep running?
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Replies
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Yep, i have discovered that running is 90% mental.
look at how far you've come already - you didn't think you'd be able to do that, and yet you have! don't look at next week thinking it'll be harder, look at next week with positivity that you'll be able to do it!
as the saying goes, whether you think you can, or you think you cant, you're right!4 -
Everytime the "i can't do it" pops in my head, i just say "i can do it.i've done it before, i can do it again". Even now that i've been running for more than 6 months, i get these thoughts in my head during my harder runs. Like today was my fast run, trying to make a new personal best. About 1 km before finishing, my brain kept telling me i need to stop, it's raining, it's too tiring, my shoe lace had come untied, my breath was wheezy, my chest hurt and my legs were tired. And i just kept thinking that i'm not gonna give up now, after all the hard work i've put in, i can finish. I can run another km, 700m, 400m, 200m, and then my watch beeped and i was done.And there i was, panting, bending over to tie my shoe lace, and i look at my watch and my new personal best. I had shaved my 5k time by 1 whole minute.
And then you think, "hell yeah it was worth it". Until next friday when i'll try to beat my time again and i'll be having the exact same conversation with myself.5 -
Thank you for the replies. These are things that I am trying to do/tell to myself.
A friend of mine suggested that his way of "tricking" his mind was by adding or subtracting numbers. For instance he would do sth like that 3+4 +4 +4 +4 +... = xxx and then he would subtract from that number xxx- 7 -7 -7 -7... till he reached a number smaller than the one he was subtracting. Every time he would do a mistake he would have to start from the scratch.0 -
I'm still a new runner and I've just recently met my goal of running 3miles on the treadmill without stopping. I'm working with a PT to strengthen my hips and he says once I can run 3 miles on the treadmill consistently I should be strong enough to start transitioning outside (I've got really weak hip joints). Treadmill running is tedious so I cover up the clock and give my self a "song goal". I start by saying I'm going to run for 6 songs (usually 2 miles) then keep telling myself 'run for two more songs and see how you feel'...then another song, and another. I tailor my playlists so I have different ones for my different running moods. Most days it works like a charm. Yesterday I actually had to tell myself 'you only get one more song then you HAVE to stop'. On really bad days I just run 2min intervals but I run them as fast. It keeps my brain busy and helps me run longer on good days.2
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