How many times have you heard someone say, "yeah I would love to be able to run regularly, but I've tried to run a couple times and it's just so hard!" Variations of this excuse are probably the number one reason that people don't continue running once they start. Have you had this problem before? If so, there's a very simple solution:
Run slower.
A significant portion of the time, the reason that running is "so hard" is because the person is running too fast. If half a mile, one mile, two miles into your run you are already gasping for breath, then you are working too hard. If you go out for a normal run, you should be running at a pace slow enough that you would be able to talk to someone without gasping for air. If you can't, you need to go a little easier.
People seem to think that just because they are out of shape, running should be difficult. No matter what your fitness is, however, you can always find a pace that isn't too taxing. I told my mother this when she first started running, and her response was, "but I would be running so slowly! I'm already not that fast as it is!" Hey, your pace is your pace. Pushing yourself too hard every run may make you feel faster, but it won't change the speed you can (or should) actually be running at.
It is very easy to run once, get a certain pace, and then try and stick with that pace or beat it no matter how hard that goal is. After all, no one wants to have run slower on a run than they did before. Sometimes I would ask my mom how her run went, and she would say, "Good! I ran that loop a minute faster than I usually do!" This mentality means you are pushing yourself too much. At the proper pace, shaving a minute off of you normal loop time should feel like an absolute piece of cake. Here's a tip instead: leave the watch at home and run by feel; the only thing your time can do is make you run faster than you should. Just slow down the pace, and you will be pleasantly surprised with just how long you will be able to run for.
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