‘Dear Running Man, You know…I am NOT a runner!! But I need to get in better shape, and your recent post has me thinking maybe it would help me. Do you have any pointers on how to begin running (starting from a bad place).’
Great Question. I’ll answer it twice. Once with my head, once with my heart.
Head first.
I sprained my ankle so badly I needed crutches to get around. The healing process was slow; I kept re-spraining it (missing a stair or rolling it on uneven ground was all it took). It didn’t improve for months; there was constant pain and swelling.
This was my bad place
I felt helpless. Before the sprain when I felt down I could run to feel better. Now that only made the ankle feel worse.
At my lowest point I thought of quitting. Thankfully things took a turn. A cortisone shot stopped me from continually re-spraining my ankle. Slowly I became strong enough to run.
I realized that overtraining had gotten me hurt in the first place; I was cautious on my return.
The first entry was January 3rd, 1999. I know the exact date because I kept a journal.
Tip 1: Start a journal.
The Computer I used in College was fried by a water balloon and no one can read the embarrassing stuff I wrote down: Goals, victories, Break ups, Crushes, Call outs. Every day I logged my running; moreover I set and reset goals, celebrated every victory, and deconstructed every defeat.
I was unaware at the time but what I was really doing was writing my story. It was right there in that first entry. ‘I am starting at nothing and ending a champion’. That’s the first sentence of first entry.
I wrote with the end in mind.
Somedays it will be a workout summary, other days it will turn into a confessional. It is your story; it will take twists and turns but
You write the ending.
I did in fact become a multiple time conference champion btw. Why did I stop at Champion? I should have aimed a little higher: Olympian. Legend.
I began small: a 5 minute run on the treadmill. I’m not a huge fan of the treadmill, but this way if my ankle hurt I didn’t have to walk home in the cold.
Tip 2: Start small.
5 minutes will get you in shape to run 10 minutes but won’t get you in shape to change your life. It’s a start, but that’s what we’re talking about, right? Eventually 5 to 10 minutes of daily running won’t be enough. Now it’s time to build fitness intelligently, i.e. slowly.
Increase mileage by 10% every other week. I somehow missed the word other in that sentence and increased too rapidly. I was 20 and my running age was high enough that I got away with a lot, but by April problems arose.
Tip 3: Build slowly
Increase mileage by 10% every OTHER week.
Another lesson I missed led me to some painful deep tissue massages and nagging pains. That lesson is that you need adequate rest and recovery; Low mileage/rest weeks that will keep you mentally fresh and allow for some much needed physical recovery.
You can’t improve without recovery.
Tip 4: Take a low mileage week once a month.
If you want to transform yourself through running nothing is more important than the long run. Runners should run long once a week. Don’t skip this run.
It must be remembered that Long is a term that is relative to your weekly mileage.
Tip 5: Your long run should be equal to 1/4 of your weekly mileage.
That is how ANY ONE can become a runner. Start small, build slowly, do a long run, recover adequately, and write your story. That is my clinical/scientific Head answer.
Here’s my Heart‘s
Four years ago I was about to sign up for yoga teacher training. Did my research, filled out my application, entered my Credit card information and everything. I slid the mouse down towards the purchase button and stopped. I let it hover a moment.
Self doubt stopped me cold.
I’m barely good enough to finish a class, let alone good enough to teach yoga. I’m not even that flexible. How the hell can I finish a course filled with 12 hour days when a single class is tough for me? And who the hell will take a class from me should I finish?
The mouse arrow fled to the top left corner of the screen to X out. Then a thought popped into my head:
‘Someone with less talent has done it.’
There are few people with less talent for yoga than me… but if they can do it then I’m not going to live in fear.
Champions can be inspiring.
But people with no natural ability who are courageous enough to try; They show us what’s truly possible.
I clicked on the pay link. My life has become immeasurably better for it.
I know you have 5 minutes. Show me what’s possible.
