Tips for starting running

[meredithgrey1]

Beyond "just go and get started" does anyone have any tips for starting running/jogging and sticking at it. Every once in a while I start, but give up after a week or two.

I'm very unfit, haven't really done any significant exercise since PE (I'm 27 now) although I do walk quite a bit, so was thinking couch to 5k, is that a good place to start? I'm not interested in weight loss, I actually don't want to lose any weight as I'm currently somewhere between 90-100lbs, I'd just like to be able to run for a bus without feeling like I might actually die. Other than being underweight I don't have any health issues.

I would like to do parkrun but don't want to start that until I can reliably run a good chunk of it. If relevant I have a 6 month old DD and am breastfeeding.

I am on week 5 of couch to 5k (it has taken me more than 5 weeks due to a combination of laziness, Christmas and also I repeated some of them). I definitely recommend it and am planning to start again this week once the kids are back at school. I'm 43, not overweight but not very toned and not very sporty. Christmas has set me back a bit but I was definitely losing weight from my tummy and starting to tone up a bit. Day 1 of week 5 involves 3 x5 min runs - if you'd told me when I started that I'd be running for 15 mins I would not have believed you!

So I say go for it 😊

C25K is a brilliant way to start - there are a count le of threads at the moment where new beginners are supporting each other. You might want to join one of them.

Every single article I have ever seen about experienced runners telling novices what advice they wished they'd had at the outset includes "start parkrun early on, earlier than you think you can' Fair enough, you want to wait until you can run some of it, but I would urge you to try as soon as you think you can run a bit.

I wouidn't have been keen in finding someone to run with in the early days (preferred my suffering in solitude) but others swear by it - commitment to a running buddy helps get you out of the door.

I saw it as a necessary chore - I needed to spend this time doing something that was good for me (and to be fair, I could see early on it was, even though I hated it). It took months before I actually enjoyed it. So remember you don't always have to like it to benefit from it (and you can still get a massive sense of achievement whether you've enjoyed that run or not)

On a practical note, get a very good bra from the outset, and good enough trainers to start with. Think about upgrading to good running trainers after a few weeks

Get comfortable trainers and socks (not cotton).
Get a good sports bra.
Download Couch to 5K if it appeals to you.
Alternate walking and running to start with, so say 30 secs of each.
Run at an easy effort level - if it feels stupidly slow, it will be about right.
As you get fitter make the runs slightly longer and the walk breaks shorter.
Join a group if you don't want to go alone.
Find a local running coach to help if you get stuck or feel you're not progressing.

Get a high impact running bra.
Entry level running shoes should be ok for getting started. You can get your gait analysed and more expensive shoes when you know you want to keep running.
You may want a rainproof jacket - I used a jacket style pac-a-mac for a while. Not ideal but it kept off the rain.
Wear running tights/shorts made from polyester or nylon, not cotton, because cotton ones will be unpleasant if they get wet.

When you start, run very slowly, about walking pace, and keep running, as it is easier to go at a steady slow pace, than it is to run walk run.

Don't listen to music, and stick to well lit routes. Loops where you know the distance helps.

When I first started, I used to listen to the same songs when I warmed up, and one of them still makes me want to run.

The hardest bit is putting your shoes on and getting out the door. If you don't manage to get very far the first few times keep trying.

You might want to keep a running log/diary.

I'm doing C25K for the second time at the moment as I had a couple of months of illness before Christmas, I really recommend it and also Jo Whiley as the coach. It's great having someone to encourage you and talk you through it.

Parkrun is great and it's pretty much worldwide now so you can do it on holiday :) We did one in Stockholm recently.

Couch to 5k is great. I had to repeat week 3 but after that it was fine.

I can't listen to music when running because I know that a half an hour run is around 6-7 songs and I find it too discouraging when I am already knackered and only on song 3. I download podcasts instead so I have no sense of time and can concentrate on the interview /story rather than the fact my legs are tired. Good luck OP!

Couch to 5k is brilliant although it’s title is slightly misleading. At the end of it you will be able to run for 30 minutes. Most people will not have hit 5k at this point and that’s absolutely fine. You can build speed or distance up from that point if you want.
I did it about 18 months ago and then built up to 10k last May. Illness then meant I have done almost nothing for the past six months but I’m back on it this week and will build up slowly again.

Remember to stretch a lot, especially at the end of your run. Stretch more than you think you need to.

Just do it! I started Park run by walking absolutely all of it, but as fast as I could. I tried couch to 5k, but the intervals didn't work for me, I wanted to time my uphill bits for when I was walking! I do intervals of jog then walk, but trying to increase the jog bits. I could run for 16 minutes straight in the autumn, before a chest infection knocked me back, but im building it back up again.

Yes to a decent bra, yes to proper running leggings, I'm.not bothered about a rain mac as I get hot any way, and jump straight into the shower.

I tried couch to 5k and tbh haven’t got on with it - being told when to run and when to stop make me feel anxious and I felt a bit out of control of the process. I joined a Facebook group called Too Fat to Run (which obviously doesn’t apply to you) and am following the founders 5k programme which is much more about your mindset, listening to your body and is focused on a 5k distance rather than running for a time period. I’ve found that works better for me and feels very positive. I got up early this morning and really enjoyed my run/walk.

It’s worth a look as an alternative to the traditional couch to 5k.

Yes definitely to doing lots of stretches. I sometimes forget and get very achey hips.

I agree with the doing parkrun sooner rather than later. It's a good discipline mechanism and if you do your first one really slowly, you will be able to see how much you are improving by seeing your times go down. There is such a mixture of abilities at parkrun so don't worry about being the slowest (even if you are it really doesn't matter).