So you’ve decided to start running; the next step is to figure out how to enjoy it. Running is something that many individuals learn to enjoy. To create this essay, I sought advice from ultramarathon runner Megan Wotherspoon. Megan enjoys running now, but it wasn’t always the case.
Let’s get started and learn how to make running enjoyable.
How To Enjoy Running
One approach to enjoy running more is to work on your cardio and strength through activities other than running.
I used to hate running, but then I spent a month hiking in the mountains. Speed-walking up hills improved my running ability. One day, I decided to put my improved aerobic fitness to the test, and I ran 10 kilometres without stopping. Before this, I don’t think I had ever run more than a mile.
Not only was I less out of breath, but my negative ideas gave way to more optimistic ones, such as: “I am actually enjoying running and feel like I could keep running for a long time!”
Next Step
Make cardiovascular fitness a top priority. For example, you could walk on an inclined treadmill, stepper, or stair master at a speed that makes it difficult to carry on a conversation while exercising.
Raising the tempo to the point where you’re too breathless to carry on a continuous conversation is a good way to measure your progress towards fitness goals. Without the jolting sensations that accompany running, your cardiovascular fitness will increase. Additionally, your running will benefit from the increased muscle endurance you achieve.
Try out your new running skills after a month of three 30-minute sessions per week. Because your cardiovascular fitness has improved, you may find that your first run is enjoyable.
For elite-level running, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a great option after you’ve built a solid cardiac foundation.
Before her next big run, Megan Wotherspoon says she trains for her cardio and strength with non-running activities like cycling, yoga, and high-intensity interval training.
Wotherspoon explains that he stays motivated to reach his running and fitness objectives by alternating between different types of training.
Also Read: 10 Essential Healthcare Tips for Optimal Wellness
Techniques for Making Running Fun Even When You Despise It
The majority of us despise activities in which we feel uninformed or inadequate. Running is simply the same. Running becomes less enjoyable when that critical voice in your head keeps saying things like:
“I doubt those folks can’t tell I’m no runner.”
“Why am I always making a fool of myself when I run?”
“What is causing my heavy breathing?”
“Hurry up, I need to go faster!”
“My fitness level is sorely lacking!”
Negative mental imagery, such as others laughing at you or passing judgement on you as you run, may accompany these thoughts if you become aware of them.
Next Step
Before your next run, be mindful of the sights and thoughts that cross your mind and how they affect your emotions.
The first step in replacing negative thoughts with positive, rational ones is to become aware of them. Document the thoughts, images, and other elements in a notebook.
According to ultramarathon runner Megan Wotherspoon, she has been able to stay competitive by experimenting with different mental strategies during her runs. While she runs, she finds it helpful to repeat encouraging mantras to herself, count her breaths, and concentrate on her strides.
Ways to Enhance Your Running Experience
Pause for a second and consider something other people would love to be better at, but isn’t as difficult for you.
Maybe you have a knack for playing an instrument or solving complex problems at work, and you also have a habit of keeping your living area neat and tidy.
The inner critic is probably being more nicer while you’re doing what makes you happy.
Apply Byron Katie’s inquiry technique to the negative thoughts and pictures that emerged in the previous stage when you’re ready to run.
Could this be correct?
Is there any way to demonstrate the veracity of this opinion or thought?
How am I emotionally affected by this idea or picture?
I wonder how I would feel if this notion didn’t cross my mind.
How can I transform this thought into something more empowering?
Make Running a Pleasure for You
If you can work on your cardiovascular fitness and overcome some of your negative attitudes about running, you will soon find that you enjoy the sport. The feel-good hormone endorphins can make running a pleasure once it’s a regular part of your regimen.
Tony Robbins, a life coach and top performer, and Cloe Madanes, a therapist, have outlined the Six Human Needs Psychology, and for runners, it often meets several of these criteria:
Importance — experiencing a sense of oneness, uniqueness, and necessity
With certainty comes the knowledge that you may enjoy pleasure while avoiding pain.
To be able to encounter a wide range of novel circumstances, changes, and stimuli
A desire for intimacy, oneness, or belonging; sometimes known as “connection” or “love.”
“Growth” means enhancing one’s competence, expertise, or understanding.
Contribution: assisting another human being, group, or cause rather than one’s own self-interest
What is the purpose of your run?
Creating a visual reminder, like a poster or journal entry, outlining your reasons for wanting to run more will help strengthen your commitment to a future love of running.
Here are a few science-backed advantages of running that have been studied and found in peer-reviewed research:
Running is a great way to lower blood pressure.
A person’s resting heart rate, body fat percentage, and total body mass can all be reduced by endurance jogging.
Would you like to extend your life? Runners outlive non-runners by about three years and have a 25% to 40% lower risk of premature mortality.
Trying to cut calories? To improve one’s health and lower one’s body mass index, running is an excellent choice.
A lower risk of heart failure may result from increased cardiovascular fitness through activities such as running.
Fifteen years later, a follow-up research indicated that long-term runners cut their risk of death by 50% from cardiovascular disease and 29% from all causes.
Jogging, regardless of speed or distance, is the most effective way to lower the risk of premature death, according to researchers. The optimal frequency is two to three times per week for one to two and a half hours at a moderate pace.
Running, according to Megan Wotherspoon, is a great opportunity to “meet new people, it helps me get alone time, and also gives me a chance to be around friends,” so it’s not just for research. And the feel-good endorphins—the runner’s high—are a genuine thing! The stress of the day is also burned off when I run.
