Head games while running...
amyhoss
Posts: 414 Member
My run today was WEAK! I started running 3 months ago and I just ran my first 5k this past Saturday in 34:32 and I have ran 30 mins before without stopping, but today I had to stop running after only 12 mins. I couldn't get out of my head enough to complete the run that I indended. I kept making excuses for why I should just stop: "My legs are especially sore today." "It's so hot out." "I don't think I have fueled my body properly with the food that I have been eating lately." "I haven't been running as often due to the heat, so maybe I just can't do it anymore." Stupid head games.
Hopefully I can get past that the next time I run. I want to believe that there is nothing that your body can't handle as long as you're properly hydrated, but then I started to think about the poor eating choices that I have made the past couple of days and I convinced myself to stop. I'm pretty dissapointed in myself, but what scares me is that those excuses are still there.
Any advice on pushing through?
Hopefully I can get past that the next time I run. I want to believe that there is nothing that your body can't handle as long as you're properly hydrated, but then I started to think about the poor eating choices that I have made the past couple of days and I convinced myself to stop. I'm pretty dissapointed in myself, but what scares me is that those excuses are still there.
Any advice on pushing through?
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Replies
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Great job on the 5k. Not every run is a good one. I use a gym boss timer on days like that. Just grind out the wo. Best of luck to you.0
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Every run is different. Sometimes I can run 9 miles, sometimes I can run 2. Just make the most of each time you get out there.0
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Some runs are just crappy no matter what you do and yet others are fantastic. My good runs tend to be when I don't even want to do it and am dreading it and bam, i have a great run. Just go with the flow on them.0
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no matter how many miles you run or how long you run, negativity inside your head will kill any run.
Music helps sometimes.
I guess I don't have any real advice, but I will say that pacing yourself a little slow in the start of a run and finishing the last half of a mile to mile really strong is a great way to work positivity back into runs. I had to do that today myself as last week the heat caused me to wither up in almost every run I did and I even had to stop and walk the last mile of a 4.5er on Wednesday. When you slow the pace a bit early and work back into it you realize how strong you are. Then finishing real strong is just, well, awesome. So there ya go.0 -
I set mini goals. "I'll run until that stop sign" but then once I get to the stop sign, I think, "okay, I wanted to quit a quarter of a mile ago and I'm still going, I can go another stretch". Just push through the suck! Your body will always want to quit! Make your mind up not to quit and don't back down. I also tell myself, "I can do anything for 2 minutes". Then, just keep repeating until you're done with your workout. Hope this helps! I struggled with the same issues when I started running, and some days are just harder than others. Keep it up! :-)0
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For me it all depends on the humidity. If it's a little cooler and the air is more bearable, I'll go non-stop. But lately the humidity is quite high and it's making breathing a little harder so I'm taking extended breaks to catch my breath.0
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Running is a total mind game, I have been in your shoes plenty of times.
I just push thru, before I know it my legs aren't sore and I can run forever...... usually that's my problem - my legs feel sore.
Maybe put on a song that really pumps you up, think about that sexy outfit you want to wear, just get lost in your thoughts.
We have all had these moments, don't let it get you down!0 -
Listen to a thriller / mystery audio book when you aren't in the mood to run or have a long run. You won't want to stop because it is interesting and keeps you thinking about something besides how many minutes you have left. I never used to like long runs OR audio books, but this seriously does the trick for me. Plus, it's like multi-tasking!0
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you know what, I think the only thing you can do is exactly what you did. Keep pushing through. I had one of those days yesterday. I got down the street and wanted to turn around so badly. The worse part was the damn excuses running through my head. I just told myself NO MATTER WHAT i am going to finish this run to the best of my ability. Granted I walked a little for a minute but that was better than staying home "feeling sore" right?
You did great, keep it up. Sometimes our mind reverts back to what we've been used to thinking all these years. It'll take time to train it otherwise... best thing to do- KEEP RUNNING! Run fast enough so the excuses can't catch up to you
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every run isn't always about going as far as you can and as fast as you can. do one run a week were you go for distance. try and go 10% further than the last time you ran. one run a week should be a short speed run, 1-2 miles, as fast as you can. one run should be speed and/or drills work, such as 100m sprint repeats, or hill repeats, or these: http://artofmanliness.com/2009/02/10/5-conditioning-drills/ if you want to get in a fourth run, do a mid-range run at a steady pace.0
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I play head games the opposite way... This hill isn't so steep. You don't have to walk it. It's just a little bit further until your cool down zone you can make that easy.
Talk yourself up instead of down....0 -
When I have a run like that - I like to listen to music. Tell yourself that you need to listen to x-number of songs before you can even THINK of taking a walking break. (And, then, I would only allow myself to walk half the time I ran - so if I ran for 10 songs straight, I could walk no more than 5) I also like to use landmarks to push towards - just one more light post, or to the corner, etc.
It is more fun, when I can think of something other than running. I get bored easily.
I suppose the game I play with my kids in the car would work too, more so if you run on a busy route. Use the ABC game, where you need to find something with starting with the letters (or the letter itself), in order. If there isn't anything on your route, you could modify it to the Picnic ABC game, where you name what food you will bring to the picnic, starting with A, B, C, and so on.
I also find it is helpful when I know my route before I run, so then I know where the half way point is. That way, in my mind, I'm almost done! (This was extremely helpful when I was training for a half marathon!)0 -
I set mini goals. "I'll run until that stop sign" but then once I get to the stop sign, I think, "okay, I wanted to quit a quarter of a mile ago and I'm still going, I can go another stretch". Just push through the suck! Your body will always want to quit! Make your mind up not to quit and don't back down. I also tell myself, "I can do anything for 2 minutes". Then, just keep repeating until you're done with your workout. Hope this helps! I struggled with the same issues when I started running, and some days are just harder than others. Keep it up! :-)
This is what I do too, because I'm ridiculously negative to myself. I pick out a tree or something and I get there and think that wasn't so bad so I keep going. HOwever, I'm doing the run/walk/run interval traning now so I push through knowing a walk is only 2 minutes away!0 -
I'll try to be candid but not rude: You're running for half an hour. The fueling needs for a 30 minute run are minimal. Yes, what you eat can certainly impact how you feel when you run, but it's not going to be a major inhibitor in such a short energy expenditure. You're not going to kill yourself running for half an hour if you've subsisted on junk for the majority of your calories. The human body is resilient, for the most part.
The best way to push through is to push through. Your words say you believe you can do this, your actions say otherwise. Can you go out later today and run the other 18 minutes? To prove you can?0 -
Don't stress about it. You just ran a 5k on saturday. Congrats on that! I've done more 5k races than I can count, and it's not uncommon for the mind and body to want a couple of days to recover. That is natural and likely all it was - if so you were actually smart to listen to your body.
My gut tells me you'll go run tomorrow or Wednesday and all will be fine. Recovery from hard efforts is important also - as much as the running itself.0 -
It has been my experience the day after a super awesome run, I have a crappy one and like you, after 12 minutes I stop. It is like not feeling like drinking the day after a big drunk. I do not know if I used up all my happy running endorphins the day before or what. All I know is it is okay to stop after 12 minutes when our bodies tell us to.
Running is addictive and we need to remember that it is not necessary to run every day, although we feel like we have cheated something if we do not. As long as this is not your experience every day, you will be fine.0 -
why do you run? no, serious, why do you run? use that as your focus. the heat is tough. try running earlier in the morning or later in the evening to avoid it as much as possible.
just remember why you started and what your goals are. we all have bad running days. sometimes they last for a few weeks. it usually comes back though. good luck.0 -
Bump...to come add my two cents later 0
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Don't stress about it. You just ran a 5k on saturday. Congrats on that! I've done more 5k races than I can count, and it's not uncommon for the mind and body to want a couple of days to recover. That is natural and likely all it was - if so you were actually smart to listen to your body.
My gut tells me you'll go run tomorrow or Wednesday and all will be fine. Recovery from hard efforts is important also - as much as the running itself.
^^THIS! Not every run is going to be stellar either. Some days I can go out and run for 45 minutes straight without stopping, others I can barely get a mile in before my body says no more. It's usually after a really good run that I have a "bad" run. I go out a day or two after the good run and automatically think that it's going to be as good, if not better than the last, and that is rarely the case. Running is extremely hard on the body, so sometimes it just takes a little longer to recoop. Just don't let it discourage you for your next run - get out there and enjoy it.
That being said, if you are in physical pain - do NOT push yourself. Listen to your body.0 -
I have been running for 34 years. I used to be a very competitive runner. You will have good days and bad days. I make it through the bad days trying to achieve the good runs. Stop with the negative thoughts. It's hard. I have defeated myself in races by letting negative thoughts take over. It is the peak performances, those that seem so effortless, that we strive to achieve, but unless I am in the right mental state, I will not achieve that desired place.
I recently completed my Master's Degree. My thesis was about exercise and learning. Among the research I found some interesting things. Paula Radcliffe mentioned that the brain can't distinguish between reality and a well-developed imagined experience. Thinking positive thoughts; seeing success can help one achieve success.
I mentor with a running program. One of the particpants had the hardest time being able to run the entire 5k distance. She could beat out the group doing a walk/run, but she wanted to run the entire 3.1 miles. We ran it slowly and she was able to do the distance. (She's repeating the program starting out as a runner this coming cycle.) She had a mental block and having had a similar one when I was starting to run, I knew I could help.
Another interesting fact that I came across, for every minute spent exercising, you are adding two minutes onto your life. So if you had a bad day, you still got out and exercised and added to your life.0 -
I set mini goals too:
- run to that car, tree, stop sign, stop light, end of street, etc, etc
- run outdoors (I never run as far when I run on a treadmill)
- sounds crazy, but sometimes I count my footsteps to 10 over and over. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 - repeat - repeat.
- definitely run to music - don't stop until you get to the end of a song
- set some little goal - I won't stop until I reach the end of this song, or until I burn x # of calories, or until x seconds/minutes pass, etc.
Or if I'm having a particularly crappy day, I'll run/walk in intervals. And that's okay sometimes!
Whatever you do - don't quit! You'll build up your speed and endurance over time!! :flowerforyou:0 -
I'll try to be candid but not rude: You're running for half an hour. The fueling needs for a 30 minute run are minimal. Yes, what you eat can certainly impact how you feel when you run, but it's not going to be a major inhibitor in such a short energy expenditure. You're not going to kill yourself running for half an hour if you've subsisted on junk for the majority of your calories. The human body is resilient, for the most part.
The best way to push through is to push through. Your words say you believe you can do this, your actions say otherwise. Can you go out later today and run the other 18 minutes? To prove you can?
Love the honesty. Thank you. I think I will finish the run tonight. I hate feeling defeated.0 -
Such great advice. Thanks so much to everyone! I know I'll use it on my next run. I never really considered that there are good days and bad days in running.0
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I also do mini goals,
I also find that listening to an audio book in place of music on those days is helpful.
When all else fails, I think, "I have to keep going or I can't possibly brag about this to my co-workers later." Haha. Just kidding, but seriously, some days just suck. I just got terrible distance (3.99km) on my 30 minute run (I usually get to around 5km).
It was hot, my water got warm (yuck) and I couldn't stop myself from repeatedly checking my time because I just wanted it to be done.
I came home, logged it on my runkeeper and checked my Fitbit data and decided that it just means that these stats will just be easier to beat next run.
And Dad_Runs is super right.
Ultimately, I get out there because I love it. No matter how hot it is, at least it's not snow. I hate running in the snow...0 -
I love reading all the responses to this.
I totally agree with those that say you will have good run days and you will have bad run days. It's happens.
When I'm having a bad run day I just tell myself that regardless if walk or run I am going to go x amount of miles as planned. And usually what happens is I will slow to walk, calculate how long it would take me to walk the distance vs run it... then I end up running just to get it over with faster. For me it's not always about running, sometimes it's just about getting out there and keeping myself moving.0 -
Oh, and I totally forgot...There's this app game (for iPod, but there are similar ones available on android) where it uses your GPS location and basically, you pick where you need to go, but you have to stay out of the way of imaginary zombies you can only see on the map.
When I've had two or more 'bad' runs in a row, I set aside some time to play it. It's something ridiculous and better if you involve other people, but ultimately, it's awesome. Especially if you love all things Zombie (like me).
It's called "Zombies, Run!" or some such.0 -
Listen to a thriller / mystery audio book when you aren't in the mood to run or have a long run. You won't want to stop because it is interesting and keeps you thinking about something besides how many minutes you have left. I never used to like long runs OR audio books, but this seriously does the trick for me. Plus, it's like multi-tasking!
Exactly what I do! It's really distracting and it pushes you to go just a little bit further. love it!0 -
Listen to a thriller / mystery audio book when you aren't in the mood to run or have a long run. You won't want to stop because it is interesting and keeps you thinking about something besides how many minutes you have left. I never used to like long runs OR audio books, but this seriously does the trick for me. Plus, it's like multi-tasking!
Exactly what I do! It's really distracting and it pushes you to go just a little bit further. love it!
This is a fantastic idea! I have something new to try out.0 -
Please don't get down on yourself. Think about how far you've come, and remember that the quality of runs, from elite marathoners to beginners, fluctuates from day to day. That's especially true if you live where it's been so hot. (You should definitely, intentionally make yourself run at a slower pace when it's hot or humid.)0
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Listen to a thriller / mystery audio book when you aren't in the mood to run or have a long run. You won't want to stop because it is interesting and keeps you thinking about something besides how many minutes you have left. I never used to like long runs OR audio books, but this seriously does the trick for me. Plus, it's like multi-tasking!
Exactly what I do! It's really distracting and it pushes you to go just a little bit further. love it!
Hmmmm, I listened to audiobooks when I first started to walk (waaay back in November ;-) ), but when I started to run, I switched to listening to music. I've taken my music mixes to the extreme; I've discovered that I run best at 156 beats/min. I've created run mixes that segue perfectly (so that my pace doesn't change), and with the tempo changed to 156 BPM. (Audacity RULES!)
I still have trouble sometimes getting thru my run, however.
I think I'm going to try "cracking-open" an audiobook on my next run... and see what happens!0
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