The unexpected joy of running.

I need to let you in on a secret. I hate running. Hard to believe really as I’ve done so much of it recently but it’s true. Or at least it was. I’ve wanted to be a runner for about 10 years. I’m not sure why, I just loved the idea of it. To me it looked like freedom. Maybe it was my anxiety that could see something in it, I don’t know, but every time I tried I hated it. It was hard, uncomfortable, I was struggling to breathe. What’s to like? I kept trying. I did a couple of 5k runs, I tried couch to 5k ( didn’t finish it), and went on sporadic runs. I have lists in note books and on my phone that say “remember to run” but it’s hard to make yourself do something that you don’t enjoy.

This week has been the most tiring I can remember. As well as starting work on our new premises I also completed a personal challenge of running at least one mile a day for 40 days. It might sound a little dramatic but this challenge has changed my life. If someone had told me I’d run for 3 days in a row I would have dramatically announced that I couldn’t think of anything worse. Because it was true. Running a mile every single day for who knows when it might end. Sounds horrendous doesn’t it? But what I’ve actually found has been so much more than running. I’ve found connection, empowerment, friendship, willpower, and strength.

After trying everything to enjoy running and getting nowhere I saw a post by an new Instagram friend, Java. She had been for a run that morning and said she’d ran a mile. It was a quiet Sunday morning, I had no plan to run but this encouraged me. I suddenly realised that I’d been running with no direction, no real goals and therefore no real focus. A mile seemed achievable, I could do a mile couldn’t I? I got my trainers on and headed out around the block. It turned out that if I ran from my front door around the block and back it was pretty much a mile. Cool! I messaged Java and told her she’d inspired me to run and she then told me she was part of a virtual running group that ran a mile every day and asked if I’d like to join. I was pumped and excited so said yes. As soon as Paola, the organiser, got in touch and signed me up I instantly regretted it.

I’m a natural quitter, it’s my default setting. Knowing I can quit if I want to stops my anxiety from tipping over the edge. I’m very non committal because (as I learned through therapy) I have a massive fear of failure. So if I don’t quite commit to things I can drop out and I’ve not lost anything or actually failed because I wasn’t committed in the first place. Makes sense, right? So, I started to panic because now I was signed up with a group of people. I couldn’t just back out. These people were going to hold me accountable. As it turns out the only person holding me accountable was me.

This challenge was set up by a lovely woman, Paola, who is over in Atlanta, Georgia. Her plan is to run every day for 365 days but she broke it down into 40 day chunks to make it more achievable. As she started out on her own journey, friends decided to join her. Then friends of friends saw and they wanted to try too. It’s gone from Paola to 55 of us from all over the world and the premise is simple. We have to run at least one mile a day for 40 days. That’s it. We post a record of our run and a selfie to the group on WhatsApp and we then get ticked off. Omg. The tick ✅ We live for this tick because if you don’t make your run you get a ❌ It makes me shudder just thinking about it. The selfie is super important too as it holds you accountable and it’s so nice to see everyone else’s faces and to find out about their running journeys. I mistakenly thought the group would be the least important part of this challenge but it’s turned out to be the most important. I wouldn’t get up and go each day without them. The connection I feel from them carries me through each run and I look forward to seeing not only their faces but their surroundings and reading the day to day stories of their lives. They’re slowly starting to feel like my little running family.

So here I am on day 43. I made it to day 40 and I’ve decided to carry on running daily for now. It’s not easy and I don’t always want to go but I make myself go and I’m always happy I did. There’s a saying and it’s a cliche but cliches are cliches because they’re based on truth. “You may regret not going for a run, but you’ll never regret going for one” or something along those lines and it’s true. I’ve never regretted going.

Just in case anyone is thinking about taking their first tentative steps into running I thought I’d share a few tips and things that I’ve found helpful over the past 43 days.

Don’t rush

It’s taken me until last week to realise I was running too fast. I was burning out before I’d even begun and couldn’t work out why. I’ve spent the last week or so working on slowing my pace which I found surprisingly difficult. Since then I’ve managed to run the entire mile twice without stopping for a power walk and I feel great for it. My breathing is better and I can run further. It doesn’t matter about your pace or time for now.

Go easy on yourself.

You’re learning, if you do burn out or need to walk don’t worry about it. Since the beginning I’ve ralked (a combination of running and walking), I couldn’t even make it half way down the street without needing to stop at first and that’s ok. The most important thing is that you’re out there and trying. It’s not a competition. You’re ultimately doing this for yourself. Give yourself the permission to make mistakes, it’s how we improve.

Invest in good trainers.

Spend as much as you can on decent running shoes. A good pair of trainers makes runs much more tolerable and enjoyable and makes injury less likely. You can get decent trainers in the sales and most running/sports shops will do a gait analysis to work out which shoes will suit you best. If they’re even a little tight or painful don’t get them. Mine are Brooks and so far I love them.https://www.brooksrunning.com/en_gb/womens-running-shoes/

Stay hydrated.

I’ve always been a nightmare for not drinking enough (and no, wine doesn’t count) so I downloaded a water tracking app. It goes by weight and the amount you exercise to tell you how much you should be drinking and now I’m drinking enough other things are happening to my body too. My skins better, I have more energy, I eat less crap and my ibs is much better! After suffering with ibs and constipation since childhood things are, how can I put this, running much more regularly 🤣 It’s win win. https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/water-tracker-drink-reminder/id1404193468

Plan ahead.

Have all of your running kit already set out so you don’t have to think about it when you’re ready to run. Mine is basically leggings, T-shirt, bra, socks, trainers, phone and earphones. Don’t overthink it or you’ll talk yourself out of it. Just get your stuff on and go. I’ve heard the hardest part of a run is putting on your trainers and leaving the house. It’s 100% true. This goes for your route too. Now I’ve ran a few times I know my routes. I have markers to tell me how far I’ve gone and how far I have to go. The bush with the yellow flowers, the red post box, the house with the bowl of water outside for dogs. It makes my runs so much easier and I don’t have to think about them at all. I just go out and before I know it I’m back.

Warm up, cool down.

I can always tell when I’ve rushed out without doing either of these things. The run is much harder and I ache like hell when I get out of bed the next day. I use a 7 minute yoga warm up and cool down which stretches you out and feels like a lovely warm hug for the body. The post run one is my favourite. I feel like my body is crying out for it. It also means I get to do a little yoga each day too. Two birds, one stone. Yoga with Adriene on YouTube is my go to yoga platform. I love her. https://youtu.be/MKuZOwYukhohttps://youtu.be/MKuZOwYukho

Look after your boobs!

Buy a decent sports bra. You have ligaments in your breasts called Coopers ligaments that once stretched can’t go back. At first I was running in a crappy crop top and my boobs were killing me. Then I wore the crop top with a regular bra over the top which was a slight improvement. Now I wear a good Freya bra and the girls are going nowhere. It was about £30 and worth every penny. https://www.freyalingerie.com/uk/en/active/sports-bras/underwire-sports-bras/c/3007/

Music or podcast?

Listen to something educational or empowering. I don’t always like listening to music, I find it distracting, but a good podcast can be really inspiring. I recently listened to a whole book on audible and it made me look forward to going out just so I could listen to it. It’s also nice not listening to anything, just being present and listening to what’s happening around you. Either way here are some of my favourites things to listen to on a run.

Rangan Chatterjee- Feel better Live more https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/feel-better-live-more-with-dr-rangan-chatterjee/id1333552422?i=1000453721120

Running like a girl- Alexandra Heminsley https://a.co/6F8BTs0

How to fail- Elizabeth Day https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/how-to-fail-with-elizabeth-day/id1407451189?i=1000487164685

My Dad wrote a porno https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/my-dad-wrote-a-porno/id1044196249

Connect

Join a virtual running group. As I’ve said above I absolutely would not go out everyday if it wasn’t for the group and being held accountable. We’re different ages, sexes, backgrounds and even on different time zones but we all make the time just once a day to do something relatively small that improves our lives in a big way.https://instagram.com/roderroadrunners?igshid=1u2yussmdfl4r

Stay in your own lane

Remember, no one gives a shit about you. They’re all too busy worrying about themselves and even if they do look at you you’ve passed them within seconds and it doesn’t matter anyway! Just try not to run into someone like I did a few days ago!

Be your own cheerleader

Be honest with yourself. I wasn’t going to carry on with this challenge as I’d decided I wouldn’t have the time but really it’s because I thought I’d be too tired. Don’t tell yourself you don’t have the time, if you have time to scroll on Facebook for half an hour you have time to take 12 minutes out of your day for a run. If you just don’t want to then say that, it feels much better than making excuses.

And there we have it, my running journey so far. 12 minutes per day that have improved my health, mind, stress and confidence. So tell me, what are the small things that make a big difference in your life? I’d love to know.