Saturday, February 16, 2013

A Reminder for the Newbies

If you're new to running, I want you to know this: it sucks in the beginning.

As you know, it's been awhile since I've done any running at all. But having trained for three marathons in the past four years, I'm very familiar with my own fitness peaks and troughs.


Me = in a trough.
Ladies and gentlemen: we are in a trough.

I was out on a 6 km run yesterday and - let me tell you - it's like starting all over again. My muscles were creaky, my heart rate was high, my pace was all over the place ... but I'm certainly not surprised! I wasn't expecting to have the greatest run of my life after being dormant for five months. 

But it's a good lesson, and a good reminder, for new runners and old (or recently inactive) runners alike: we all have to start somewhere.

Sure, I felt better for having gone out there. And certainly, any activity is better than no activity at all. But I wouldn't describe yesterday's run as fun, by any stretch. And in some ways, it's a little torturous because I know what I'm capable of and, after yesterday's run, I am fully aware of how much work I need to do to get there.

The challenge for newbies is different, albeit similar. Anyone new to running may not be sure of how much work they need to be doing, but they know how hard it is in the beginning - and how easy it can be to let those goals go. 

I say, keep going! The only way to get better at running is to run more. So go for another run! Even if today's sucked and even if it doesn't feel so good right now. It will, soon. I promise.

And that's a promise I make to both you, new runner, and me.

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