listersgirl | (no subject)

Having "run" all of twice recently, I am now determined to do it a few more times. Other people seem to be able to eventually run more than 4 minutes in a row without feeling like their lungs are attempting to secede from their body (by way of revolution, not referendum), so surely I can too, one day. Perhaps the third time of trying a learn-to-run program is the charm.

Thus were the thoughts in my head when I decided to get up at 5:45 this morning and run before work. Just this once, I thought. It's hothothothothot here, so there's no way I'm running after work, but next week it'll be fine, I don't have to make this a habit.

Did you know it's still dark at 5:45 in the morning? Somehow I wasn't expecting that. My brain was still thinking it was July with the super early sunrises. In fact, it was still dark when I left the house.

Also surprising when I left the house was just how HOT it already was. In the dark. I thought it was going to be slightly early morning chilly and refreshing! HAHAHAHAHA. Plus it was garbage day (although, the smell while I was running was nothing compared to the smell as I left the house for work, just after the garbage was picked up and the truck was leaving, and there was this miasma in the air that was this close to deadly). So not exactly a lovely experience.

On the plus side, I got to see the sunrise. It was very purple and watercolour-like, as it attempted to break through the early morning haze of heat.

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There's nothing wrong w/ mixing running and walking while you build up- I used to do cross-country competitively, but now that I'm picking back up again 20 years later, I'm also often only running for a few minutes at a time. The trick, I think, it to not stop completely when the running starts to hurt- just slow to as brisk a walk as is comfortable, so you can rest a bit while still keeping your heart-level up a bit longer and not immediately stiffening up.

Getting your wind is the hardest part of getting used to running, and will take a while- but once you get to where you can run a mile without burning lungs, you'll suddenly discover that you can keep up a moderate pace almost till your legs fall off. It really does get vastly easier past a certain point.

That said, it's usually harder to breathe well in dry indoor air (like a gym). If your lungs are hurting that quickly in outdoor humidity, you may be pushing yourself a bit too hard.

Of course, you may know all this and be doing it already, in which case, sorry for the PSA.

Hee, no, it's fine. I'm following one of those programs that start with run 1 minutes, walk 1, which is what I did today, and it was fine. The problem has always been that I can't ever get past run 4 walk 1. But maybe this time will be different! I have faith.

The story of my running:

When I started, I ambled about a quarter mile before my lungs felt like they hurt. I ambled that quarter mile for about a month. Then I was able to amble a half mile before my lungs hurt. Then I was able to amble that half mile a bit faster.

Six- NO! SEVEN years later, I run an 8 minute mile, and I do a 5k before work four days a week. Keep ambling. Aim for achievable goals, like "This month I will run my same distance but a little faster" and "This month, I will run at the same speed but a little farther." The lungs thing is what happens when you start pushing yourself. Or it's the lung plague. But probably pushing yourself. :)

I was hoping for the lung plague - that seems a little more easily solvable. :)

I will keep trying!

I just can't even express how impressed I am that you even attempted the before-work run! Wowza.

I'm a little afraid of how hot it's planning on getting today, though. It may all be my fault for letting myself think that the heatwaves might be over. I'm sorry about that.

Garbage day is not the day to do ANYTHING outdoors while it's hot. Blech.

I think it would even be doable on a regular basis if it weren't for the fact that I am so slow to get moving in the morning - it took me nearly half an hour to get out the door, and technically all I needed to do was get up, put some clothes on, and drink some water. If I could get up and out the door in 10 minutes like some people, the "getting up" part could be at a more reasonable time. :P

Urg, I can barely leave the house on garbage day, the smell is so nasty!

Good for you!

And that sunrise sounds wonderful!

It's so hard to tell what you "should" be able to do. I can run for quite a few minutes straight, but even at my fitest I can barely do push ups and *cannot* do tricep push ups at all. At ALL. It's sad. Maybe you're running too fast for those four minutes? I have no idea. I am impressed that you got up and did it, though.

Right now I've started again, so I'm only running for a minute, and it's fine. I just always hit a barrier at some point as I try to increase the running time. We'll see!