Thursday, July 10, 2008

Running: The Bane of my Existence

I didn't get to bed until late last night, so I decided to give myself an extra hour of sleep this morning and work out on my own.

I'm not so good at pushing myself without a coach and workout buddies, so I ran 2 miles (17:45), and then I went outside and worked the L-sit hold and negative (since I can't do an L-sit pull-up yet). I figure the L-sit is the best exercise for preparing for both of my goals - since it combines core strength (Deadlift) with arm/shoulder/grip strength (pull-up). I plan to do them on my own 2-3xs a week as I move towards my 12-week goals.

Now, back to the title of my post. When I stepped onto the treadmill, it was with the full intention of running 5K (3.1miles). When I pressed "cool-down" at 2 miles, I was not out of breath, or in pain, or in any other way incapable of continuing for another mile or so. I simply wanted to stop and move on. I was bored, impatient, and antsy to just get on with it. I fight against these feelings anytime I run more than about 400meters. Sometimes they lead to feelings of anxiety, when I'm outside instead of on a treadmill (and cannot just stop). Even though running, physically, has gotten much easier for me, these feelings have not lessened. Does anyone else experience this? How do you find your groove?

6 comments:

VADRMGRL said...

Cara,
I know exactly what you mean. That 800m run is a mental monster. I'm not necessarily overtaxed when I run it. It just seems sooooo long, and I want to be done with it. I don't know how to 'fix' this issue.

Cara said...

You took the words right out of my mouth! I just want to finish, I have no patience for it. I much rather be throwing a barbell around...

Darcy 'D2' said...

I use to hate running but I took it easy and slowly built up my mileage and now I love. Although, there are days I hate it still ;). I think everyone has a dreaded exercise some its running but with me it's squats. Just got to keep doing them and convince your brain that you like them.

Cara said...

Sometimes I try to take it easy and look at it as "active rest" - but that only works for me with the 400m runs. I will try to trick my brain though!!!

Adam said...

I had a lot of problems with distance running until I started listening to music while running. The 3 min songs break up the time, and I tend to alternate an "intense" song with an "active rest" song. That really helped me increase my distances.

Cara said...

Adam - Thanks, I'll have to try that!