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How To Enjoy Running For Beginners Even If You Hate It?

However, these are some universal ways to enjoy running for beginners, even if you hate it:

• Walk Before You Run
• Set A Goal
• Run Slow
• Play A Game
• Treat Yourself
• Dress The Part
• Go ‘Naked’
• Happy Endings
• Run early
• Get Rockíng
• Enroll In A Race
• TAB

Walk before you Run

If you have never run in life, it will be very difficult for you to start running. Instead, start walking. Do this for a couple of weeks.

To build a habit, do it every day and at the same time of the day. It will re-program your mind and body.

Gradually you will look forward to this new ritual.

Once you have set up a habit of walking, you start including running into your routine. Start with 1 min or 30 secs of running.

You can choose your own interval. Start it as small as you need to. This way you can progress in seconds…

Set a Goal

For me setting a goal and trying to achieve it works.

It has been scientifically proven that if you have set your goal and have written it down, you have 33% more chance of achieving it.

So set a goal but have a realistic expectation. Don’t go overboard like trying to run 10K in 1 week with no prior running experience.

That will be a fool’s errand. Instead, be SMART.

I know, I know… You have read and heard it a million times.

But that is how it is, if you have an actionable goal, then it will be easier for you to succeed.

Just to refresh your mind, SMART stands for:

Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant, Time-bound

Well, there are some variations of the acronyms, but basically, they mean the same.

Have a clear, actionable goal with a set time frame.

Eg: Run 3 Miles by the end of [current_year]

Which is not a smart goal? Run 3 miles.

Run Slow

Initially, if you try to run fast, you will be killing the future desire to run.

You will burn out and the entire experience will be nothing less than a trauma.

Starting slow ensures that you don’t end up in such a situation. Also, it is the essential first step, to build running stamina.

Another side effect of running slow is, your body will learn to run more efficiently.

This will eventually make you a better runner and you will successfully avoid injuries.

Play a game

Ok, this is a thing that I regularly do and know that it works. Remember those silly games you used to play on those long road trips.

Well, this is something similar. As some of might know that, I’ve started my running a couple of months back.

It was very difficult for me to keep running for more than a couple of secs.

So, I started keeping small targets. I used the light poles for this or tree trunks if I’m in a park.

I used to start running and run until the 3rd light pole. Then I gradually went to the 4th light pole,  then 5th and then so on…

This helped me to gradually rack up my mileage. But for that, you have to have light poles in your area 😉

Treat Yourself

How do you feel when your boss gives you a compliment? Or your hubby says that you look nice…

Incredible, right?

You probably want to do more now. This is the same with everything.

If you want to keep yourself motivated, give yourself a treat, every time you reach a target.

This will make you want to run more. Another way can be to have a cheat day in a week.

Where you can eat or drink anything you want, provided you have run at least 4 times a week.

Make a game out of it and you will be surprised how fast you can progress.

Dress The Part

A.K.A dressing for success. This is a cliche but hey! it works. The thing about dressing up is that it puts you in the right mindset.

If you dress like a runner, you will feel less out the place and will feel motivated to workout once you get out of the door.

If you are finding a trouble to get started, get some new running gear for you and don’t use it for a couple of days.

Every day take it out and see it.  The only rule here is that you can use it only if you go for a run.

I bet that after a couple of days you will be so irritated with this whole exercise, that you will go for a run.

Mission accomplished! 😉

Go Minimal

Now don’t get any crazy ideas. Minimal means without any sort of gears. Most of the time, it will be like ditching your cell phone or your any of your running gear. Give it a try. It’s fun to see how long you can run if you don’t keep a tab. You can actually enjoy the nature much more. It’s a different kind of experience.

Happy Endings

Not of that kinds 😉 You know what I mean. What is that you crave to see at the end of the run. What will make you happy? For some, it is the freshly brewed coffee at the local joint or those cuddly puppies in the dog park. Think about your happy ending. It will double your joy when you see that at the end of your tiresome run

Run early

The city has her own beauty in the early morning. The roads are empty, there are no screaming from the vendors or the honk from the vehicles.

The smoke, dust are less, the air feels clean. The gradual brightening of the sky as the sun is about to rise is a sight for sore eyes.

This is a different feeling and you will never get it any time of the day.

Also, the best part is, you would have already finished your run by the time everyone is up.

Meaning, your evenings are free for you to enjoy 🙂 No canceling of meeting your friends, no giving up on your beer parties, oh! the possibilities are endless 😉

Get Rock’ing

Music plays a very important role in any kind of exercise. Try to play some classical music when you run.

I bet, that you will return home early with minimal workout and a heavy heart filled with a sense of guilt.

Now repeat the experiment with a thumping music and watch your body sway with the beats.

This is the power of music. The more beats it has, the better will be your workout.

Enroll in a Race

How do you feel when a deadline is fast approaching? You will buckle up and give your all to meet the deadline. This is how enrolling in a race feels like. If you want to get serious about running, enroll yourself in a race. Even better, announce it to your friends and social media. Then the high of showing off your medal will make you go for a run effortlessly. But do yourself a favor, if you are just starting out, enroll for a 5K. Don’t go beyond that. Otherwise, you will end up hurting yourself.

TAB

TAB or Take A Break. This is essential. With running your body goes through a lot of wear and tear.

If you don’t allow it to recover, you will eventually end up getting a bad injury.

You don’t want to do that. Take rest in between your runs.

Also, try some other form of exercise also.

This will break the monotony of your run.

Taking a break and trying something new will help you retain that freshness of a run.

Conclusion

If you don’t like exercises, then probably running will never be a fun for you. But these tips can make it bearable. Also, if you are running for some time and feeling demotivated, these tips can get you right on tracks. So how do you enjoy running? Share your favorite tips and tricks in the comment section below.

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