Christine, Wondering

Random Musings of a Human Becoming

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Running

SK is keen on a number of sports. He runs long distance, he cycles long distance, he fences. When I moved in with him, he suggested that I take up running too. Then he cajoled, encouraged, sponsored and arse-kicked until I did start running :D

When I started, about 6 weeks ago, I could just about run for a minute, if I then walked for a minute. And I could keep that up for about half an hour.

Today, I ran 5.5km over 55 minutes without once dropping to a walk.

SERIOUSLY WOW.

I'm astonished and elated. I didn't think I was capable of running at all, let alone learning to maintain a running pace over 5km. And to have got here in only a couple of months ... it's beyond my imagining. I'm proud and amazed and inspired.

In two weeks' time I'm doing my first fun-run. It's a 5km run - and whoa, I know I can already do it! - raising money for Trees for Cities, a group who work towards getting greenery into highly urbanised areas. I'll take support in the form of encouraging words, of course, but if anyone feels like adding a bit of financial support, it'd be greatly appreciated.

If I can run 5km, as chubby and unfit as I am, I can do ANYTHING. Seriously.

3 comments:

so what do you think my chances are of learning to run then?

i can currently walk at a good clip. lol. maybe i should try? even if i just do 2km to start with (around the block).

and i just bought some sneakers today! i haven't worn anything but crocs for like, erm 2 years haha.
 
Beth, you can definitely learn to run. One thing I've learned is that there is nothing physical stopping anyone from exercising. It's all in the mind. You have to accept that running is going to be not very much fun at first. There's going to be pain and stiffness and rain and days when you just don't feel like it, and they have to not matter. You just have to grit your teeth and do it anyway. If you win the mental battle, your body will just do what it's told.

Start really slow. A short distance, and with intervals - run one minute, walk one minute, repeat. Don't try to run fast - only just slightly more than walking pace, as long as your feet are both off the ground at the same time during the stride. Slowly build up by adding minutes to your run and cutting down on walk breaks. You will get there.

I can really recommend getting a heart rate monitor - it makes tracking your progress much more fun because you can see how you're doing. You can also make sure that your heart rate is in the fat burning zone so you know you're getting the best out of the workout.

If you want motivation, I don't mind prodding you :) There is a lot to be said for having someone who's willing to be on your case about it hehe.

Let me know how you get on!
 
will do. i do go walking with my friend a few times a week, although we've been slack this week. she has a golden retriever who NEEDS walking - so that's good. i like walking. hate running, but i'm sure i can do a bit of a jog here and there to get started.
 

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