What goes through your mind when you're running?

[bunsnroses1]

I'm on week 4 of couch to 5K and my internal monologue is very much 'oh god, this is awful, how much longer/further' etc. Does this change? Will I reach a point when I'm not thinking about the physical discomfort?

Do you listen to anything while you're running OP? It's really good to distract yourself with music, a podcast, an audiobook or something. I've been a regular runner for six years and I still have solo runs where I hate every minute, but they are the exception. Running with someone who you can talk to is one way to distract yourself, but if you don't have a running buddy then I recommend the above.

Yes, it will happen but it takes time for the bloody hell this hurts, I hate running and it’s never going to get any better. Then after you’ve got over the runners high bit, you’ll settle down to the more mundane what shall I cook for tea and I must remember to call so and so 😄 however, you’ll hopefully also start taking in your surroundings a bit more and start to enjoy some of the more lovely bits and find it a great stress reliever - that’s what happened for me anyway.

Well done and stick with it because it’s so worth it!

When I feel little niggles, I practice shifting the pain around my body and then flick it off my hands or kick it off my feet.
This sounds crazy now I type it out!!
It feels kinda like meditation for me.
I have lots of crazy thoughts which tend to quiet down and I can gain focus by the end of the run.
Music helps a lot for me!

Thank you- I'll try music and like the idea of mentally flicking the pain off my feet @newandconfused5 😂
I'm looking forward to that stage @Influencerofcrap . Would like to be able to do some multitasking like mentally writing my shopping list/planning the week out.

I used to think about everything going on in my life and come back from my run feeling really stressed out.

Then someone suggested meditating before a run, which I thought sounded wanky, but actually really works for me. It clears my mind of all the ‘stuff’ so that I can just think about my pace, route and take in the scenery and I find running easier in general since doing it.

I love running with no distractions - it's about the only time I don't have children, colleagues, spouses, pets or the to-do list clamouring for my attention. Just fresh air and vague musings of garden projects, house decoration, side hustles or mad flings I'm not going to embark on.

I tried running with a podcast but a) it means I miss the fresh air and free thinking, and b) by the time I'd decided what, downloaded it, found the earphones, charged the earphones, stopped a million times to adjust the volume so it wasn't screaming at me but passing cars didn't drown it out, and discovered that it also caused me to miss the beeps on C25K, I gave up on the whole thing as way too much hassle.

I think we all have days when runs feel really hard but I think on the whole I end up thinking about practical issues or just day dreaming . I don’t use music when running - I like to be able to hear what’s going on around me .. if you are going to try music perhaps just in one ear ?

I have bone conductor head phones, they are expensive but worth every penny for running and hiking. It means you can have the music or the audio book and still hear everything else around you.

Thoughts in the winter are mostly about how I'm an idiot and its to cold/wet/early for this shit. Then I settle into a rhythm and start day dreaming about memories from the music or just listen to the story.

I listen to music trying to sing along and occasionally I ponder over whatever conundrum is churning through my mind at the time - eg shopping list, stuff to do with work etc.

Why are you in physical discomfort? I don't know what stage Week 4 is but it can't be more than walk run still? Make sure you're doing dynamic stretching and you should be okay.

Because I'm really unfit!

I use music.

I think what changed for me is at some point, I learned that I was trying to sabotage myself. The internal voice was trying to stop me. So I installed another internal voice, "I see what you're trying to do, shut up". "No one dies of a tiny hill." Makes me sound a little... odd but it works.

There are 4 things that have to work to run; legs, lungs, head, heart. Legs and lungs can be trained. Easily. You're doing that now. Head game is always a challenge. Positive self talk is important. If you train yourself, eventually your head is helped by running. And you become a runner, not some poor bastard doing C25K. Heart is what gets you up the last km of a 10km in the rain. And can't be trained.

BTW I am a completely shit, old, overweight, crap, very very slow, short distance runner. I sound like a proper runner because I show up 3 times a week, every single week. And that really all you have to do. Show up.

Why are you in physical discomfort? I don't know what stage Week 4 is but it can't be more than walk run still?

See this doesn't help. I ran 5km on Saturday, pretty easily, no intervals. I was doing it next to people doing C25K because my group starts again every year. It was MUCH MUCH easier to run my 5km than my first week 4. If we tell people week 4 is a piece of piss, they will stop and never get to a place where it's easy.

OP it's a joy when you can just run. But you have to work hard to get there.

I don't know why anyone would even consider running without music. Get some music gong and it takes your mind off how hard it is. In my experience running does get easier but you still have difficult days, and moments during running that you need to power through. I find it helps to think more positive things such as "I just need to get to x", " one minute to go" and take one step at a time. And also of course focus on the music and the repetitive beats - it can be quite meditative. Try to distract yourself from the negative thoughts. If you are thinking "oh my god this is so hard" it will feel harder.

You can also focus on feelings around you, such as nice smells, and nice surroundings (if that applies) or things like the feeling of the wind on your hair.

Whatever works but try not to have a negative monologue going! It will just make it ten times as hard!!

Thank you for that post @MrsTerryPratchett , I think that's what it is- self sabotage. I've done week 4 twice now because I'm scared of week 5!

I've been running for 20+ yrs;

Mostly how much I hate exercise.
Why do my lungs struggle seconds into a run when my legs are fine.
Why don't I ever like the songs that come on my own playlist.
What shall I eat when I get in.
Dogs, squirrels, cats, birds
Idiot drivers.
Why am I too hot / chilly.
This must be better than a heart attack or stroke.
Why can't I live somewhere nice.

Experienced runners still get bad runs... but they have more good runs in the mix, and they're better at understanding why (sleep, fuel, time of day, weather, time of month, recovery, shoes getting worn out, a butterfly fluttering on the other side of the world )
When I did a 20 mile long run and every step of the way was sore and miserable I knew exactly why... I was poorly recovered from a race and it was 3⁰C grim mizzle (I'd brought it forwards to avoid snow and ice) so mentally it was just one (long) hard run but not a reflection of me as a runner.

This point of C25k is mentally tough. The physical tiredness is kicking in. You don't fully feel/ appreciate the progress you've already made yet. You can see another 5 weeks of the plan stretching ahead...
But it is a plan. The plan works. Hundreds of thousands of people have followed it and become runners by following it (even me!!!). Physically it's tiring because your body is adjusting to the changes and improvements in your body (CV system tends to improve quicker than muscles) Mentally it's hard because you're doing something new and not taking an easy option.
A lot of people find a couple of miles hard because it takes that long for their body to warm up and relax into it and running gets easier beyond that distance. Another thing that's hard about being a new runner is pacing. Your PE teacher was wrong, slow is the way to go. Take it easy. Slow leads to stamina. Speed comes later when your body knows what it's doing. It's not needed for C25k.

Over a decade after my first C25k and numerous HMs and a marathon later, I still use C25k and Nike Run podcasts to talk me through runs when my brain isn't playing ball. I also go to parkrun to push myself into harder runs; so much easier to run with a flow of people than push yourself to do it! (Parkrun is a good beginner friendly option, lots of walkers & run/ walkers at 35, 40, 45, 50+ minutes)

Hang on in there. You have made progress already. The plan is working.

This is a lovely post

I completely go to lala land. Practise my Oscars speech or the TED talk I'll one day give after founding a company that's somehow made billions whilst curing cancer, or my speech for DS's wedding (he's 5!) ~ it's the only thing that takes my mind off of the physical running 😂

Amusing and non demanding podcast in one ear. Running round the perimeter of the park where there is nature to see - I like feeling I’ve got my feet on the ground as the seasons change. Running round posh areas where I can nosy at other people’s nice houses 😁

I run between 5 and 10k. I have an earphone in one ear and my running buddy beside me. We chat for a little while then settle into silence. My brain is brilliant at self sabotage and the way I get round it is to get as far as I can in silence and then when I am down to my final one or two k I tap my music on. Then in my head I count down the number of songs I need to run through.

I don't run anymore sadly but I used to make playlists and at Xmas I'd run to upbeat Xmas music!

Or stories on Audible. JK Rowling got me through a lot of runs in lockdown.

Add in core strenght exercises and you'll be fine. Cross train with swimming and / or cycling too.

I need music! Or at least a podcast. Something to distract me.

I go through stages. The first ten minutes is always the hardest mentally and physically so my inner monologue is complaining about how cold and muddy it is, and how my legs feel heavy or whatever.

Then I usually get into the zone and feel like I could run for ages. This is where I usually make the mistake of taking a longer route.

Then I have the bit where I find it bloody hard and just have to push through. If I'm having a good day my mind will wander to my to do list or something. If I'm not I will just be grumbling internally.

Then I'm on the home stretch. Woo hoo. And feeling virtuous.

This is pretty normal when you're doing Couch to 5K. You're still at the early stages when you're desperate for the 'OK, slow down now for your next walk' message. I've done the programme twice and I can strongly relate!

I always listen to a podcast or an audiobook when I run. In fact, I don't think I'd actually run at all without one. I know others who listen to music but music doesn't really work for me; I need something to really focus on.

If you're using headphones to listen to the C to 5K app, it will just interrupt what you're listening to when it tells you to stop/start running, but I don't find that to be a big deal.