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Original poster

Anyone else a useless runner?

36 replies

PollyCreo · 05/02/2025 22:56

I run but hate it, every step kills me. I don't enjoy it, don't get a 'runners high'

You know when you're driving and you see a woman lumbering along and you feel sorry for her because she looks awkward, that's me!

I've been fit all my life (gym goer and martial arts) but have never mastered running, I read that some people (5%) lack a gene that sends enough oxygen to their muscles, I believe I'm one of them.

OP posts:
WyrdyGrob · 05/02/2025 23:24

PollyCreo · 05/02/2025 23:12

I run really slowly! I'm not overweight and really fit, just can't run. Never have been able to, my body's just not built for it.

Show quote history

Humans are persistence predators. We are designed to keep going at a fast walk /very very slow trot for hours.

biomechanically speaking (if that’s the right word) you are doing it correctly,!

i say this as a slow plodder who has come near last in a few 10ks,and has also done ultramarathon distances within strict cutoff times when actually objectively less fit.

ThatsNotMyTeen · 05/02/2025 23:21

Last time I tried I got a stress fracture and it then triggered a gout attack 😭

AnnaAkhmatova · 05/02/2025 23:19

You need running shoes that fit well and give proper support. A decent sports bra. And somewhere nice to run. The surface you run on can make a lot of difference. To state the obvious going downhill is easier.

Original poster
PollyCreo · 05/02/2025 23:17

Gliblet · 05/02/2025 23:08

Yep, useless at it. I managed 5k once and would have done a smug little happy dance if my legs still worked.

That said, I can do 90 minutes of kickboxing when people half my age are folded over wheezing after 45, and last year I did a sponsored 50k walk with no difficulty at all. Bodies are weird.

I'm the same. I'm a brown belt in kick boxing and really strong, great at short bursts of energy but running...... 😭

OP posts:
Yellowsubmarineunderthesea · 05/02/2025 23:14

@PollyCreo why are you running if u hate it so much? There are plenty of other forms of exercise you might prefer. Life doesn't have to have this kind of torture in it

NotbloodyGivingupYet · 05/02/2025 23:13

Yellowsubmarineunderthesea · 05/02/2025 23:07

Most common reason why people can't run is they try to run too fast too soon. I tried so many times to run and kept giving up until I learned to slow it down the whole time until I found a pace I could handle. Have u tried going at a much slower pace?
Edit to add : I'm not a sleek runner by any means. Short legs, bit dumpy and a low centre of gravity. I see all the sleek girls with their pony tails bopping at parkruns but hey, we're both covering the same distance.

Edited

This.
If it's too hard, slow down. You're supposed to be able to have a conversation at the pace you are running. (I mean, I say running, but gentle plodding might be more accurate)

Original poster
PollyCreo · 05/02/2025 23:12

Yellowsubmarineunderthesea · 05/02/2025 23:07

Most common reason why people can't run is they try to run too fast too soon. I tried so many times to run and kept giving up until I learned to slow it down the whole time until I found a pace I could handle. Have u tried going at a much slower pace?
Edit to add : I'm not a sleek runner by any means. Short legs, bit dumpy and a low centre of gravity. I see all the sleek girls with their pony tails bopping at parkruns but hey, we're both covering the same distance.

Edited

I run really slowly! I'm not overweight and really fit, just can't run. Never have been able to, my body's just not built for it.

OP posts:
Gliblet · 05/02/2025 23:08

Yep, useless at it. I managed 5k once and would have done a smug little happy dance if my legs still worked.

That said, I can do 90 minutes of kickboxing when people half my age are folded over wheezing after 45, and last year I did a sponsored 50k walk with no difficulty at all. Bodies are weird.

Yellowsubmarineunderthesea · 05/02/2025 23:07

Most common reason why people can't run is they try to run too fast too soon. I tried so many times to run and kept giving up until I learned to slow it down the whole time until I found a pace I could handle. Have u tried going at a much slower pace?
Edit to add : I'm not a sleek runner by any means. Short legs, bit dumpy and a low centre of gravity. I see all the sleek girls with their pony tails bopping at parkruns but hey, we're both covering the same distance.

Original poster
PollyCreo · 05/02/2025 23:06

😅 Some of us aren't streamlined! I saw a girl running the other day and she was so graceful and bouncy. I'm like a bloody walrus 😞

I know I'm getting better as my times are improving but every step kills me 🙄

OP posts:
WellsAndThistles · 05/02/2025 22:59

Me, no matter how fit I was (pre-covid 🙄), I hated running. 6K was my max and I hated every step. I suspect partly it was due to me having short dumpy legs and I had to run twice as many 'steps' to cover the same distance as long legged folks!