First off I wanted to say that running sucks and is in no way fun. People that run all the time and say its fun are crazy, that being said I wish I was crazy too. Running to me is like work, without work there are many things you can not enjoy. Without running and staying in shape I realize that there are many things I won’t be able to enjoy also especially later on in life. I just wish that it wasn’t so darn boring.
I am a person with very little patience. I run everywhere to get to point A to point B. I cannot stand being bored. If I have to go outside to my car I will not walk I will run. It isn’t the act of running that is boring it’s the lengthy runs that you do nothing but run for no reason other than to get healthy. If my car died a few miles from my house you can bet I would run not walk because walking would just prolong the boring trip.
Starting today I am going to start my training for the 9 mile race I am going to run with my wife in about a month. I am going to track my progress and report if I can hopefully change my mind to feel that running isn’t so terrible. My wife loves to work out and I would love to workout with her. As it stands now when we have a run planned I dread it all day long making my day feel so long and horrible.
I have tried listing to music and that gets old, I have even tried listening to books on tape and that seems to help a lot.
Please let me know your tips and techniques that makes running fun for you.
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Wow, Brian! Thanks for honesty! I think reading that was actually a little refreshing. I'm kinda thinking that biking might be more "your thing." My advice, find someone to run with (like your wife) and then run at a pace where you can talk throughout your workout. It'll fly by, and you might actually start looking forward to that part of your day. If you do decide to take up biking, you are not allowed to talk Caryn into it...she's my running buddy! ;)
ReplyDeleteP.S. The title of your post, alone, makes me want to ban you from ever posting on this blog again! ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm totally with you, Brian. Most of the time, I don't want to run because it is boring. I have trained for a few races, though, and have noticed that there comes a point in the process where running is actually enjoyable. Plus, sometimes I realize I need to do something in order to avoid turning into a short, fat dude. At least I have some control over half of that.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Reading this just makes me laugh. Not only because I love the brutal honesty but also because as I was reading this I happened to look over at the picture Kristin has posted to the right of all of us at Bloomsday. I bet everyone can guess which one is Brian! Thats right, the one doing all he can to not make the race 'boring' (by gearing up in the blue wig and sounders scarf)!
ReplyDeleteI am very interested to hear your opinion on running as you train for this race and I hope that you find some kind of joy in the training. I have a lot of moments when I am bored on a run but its more of a mental game for me and I just start focusing on how strong I feel and how amazing it is to be alive and capable of doing something so simple as running and that usually is enough to get me through the miles.
Oh this was too funny! I have to run listening to music to stay away from the boredom. Another thing I do when I feel like I am getting to that point of "ok I am bored with this run" is I play games. Such as "How fast can I run to that tree?" "How many breathes till I get to that street?" "How many foot steps till here or there" that sort of thing. I got this idea from my long car rides from college to home. I had driven the same straight road for so long and so many times I could play games with myself which sped up the time.
ReplyDeleteI run because I want to be one of THOSE people who you see running in the rain, snow, sun, heat, humidity. I want to be a "runner" I have also seen too many of my friends go off to college to come back 50lbs heavier and I don't want to be one of THOSE. Another reason I run is that I know a lot of 40 something, 50 something and even 60 something people (since I am from Eugene you come across these people often) who run, every day for miles.... I want to be that person. So I run. I like it.
I couldn't agree with you more Ashley. I run for some of those same reason. I want to be that 70 year old you read about in the paper that just completed another race and I want to stay active and healthy and be a good example for the people in my life (now and in the future). Maybe to find passion in running you first have to look inside yourself and find the reason you are lacing up in the first place - the fire in you that will spark that passion no matter the circumstances you face out on the trails.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it's good to find out within yourself why you are running so you can remind yourself when it gets boring and it will get you off your butt and going at least. Some days I will love it and it will be a breeze, I'm practically dancing during my run, but it definitely does get boring sometimes and I will often come across days where I'm just not getting into it and into the groove. I too will play games with myself to distract myself like seeing if I can run up that hill at a faster pace. Then when I'm recovering at the slower pace that's more miles going by that I'm mostly paying attention to just catching my breath again,lol. Or if I see a bench, I'll stop and do 20 steps on the bench or run up a set of stairs and back down again. Once I start that, I start looking around everywhere for random stupid other things I can do. Or run in a new place. That always seems to help with new sights to see. I'll run into random places and try to keep myself from getting lost. But other times I just sort through my brain and find a topic to think about. I wonder if this would actually be good for you? In my busy life, it's really the only time I have to actually think things out, plan, and have no distractions from it. I'll check in with myself and make sure all is feeling balanced and right. If there's something, someone bothering me I'll think about the situation and if I should do something about it. If I have an event coming up I'll think about plans for that. If I don't have anything really coming to my mind right away I'll pick something that I "should" think about more often and don't. Like what are my top 5 values in my marriage or for raising a family and what will I do to keep those in sight. (got that topic from marriage councelor, but there's tons of things like that you can pick to think about). Or I'll analyze things I know bother Randy and see if it's something I should reevaluate about myself. I mean, truly, how often do we get time to think about crap like that? I just try and keep my mind occupied and away from the task and sometimes I literally do need to "pick" a topic because it's not coming to me naturally. You can make your mind think "Ok, time to go plan my life for an hour" instead of having to go run, lol. I don't know , maybe there's computer stuff you can think about :-)That's definitely why I appreciate Running Buddies, though. Sometimes just to talk with someone out loud instead of thinking all the time is so much better! Lastly, I have to say, it took time for me to get my appreciation for running. I started simply to train and I had to force myself. I did not like it, but I had a goal. I still have goals to keep myself motivated, but during the run I like it a lot more now. I'm interested if you will come back to you again while training!
ReplyDeletePs. Another GREAT shirt I saw and want:
ReplyDelete"I love running.
I hate running
I love running
I hate running
I love running"
It made me laugh :-)
WOW
ReplyDeleteI just read the novel that Steffeny11 left and loved every second I was reading it. It was like I was seeing into my own head cause those are the things that go through it while I am running. Like ok if I have a day where I am just not that into running its time for the games for a distraction since I know the miles need to be logged. If that doesnt work well thank god I have my blackberry which works as a camera cause (wait to see my next blog) I started taking pictures of interesting things and using these as energy rejuvinating stops. It allowed me to finish 11 miles today! I also think about the races I am planning, what I will do, like a practice. I add tempos and intervals and play games up and down stairs and hils.Also when I was (and when I return) to the USA I have a german shepard and I run with her, I try to outlast her which usually works!
Hope this all helps!