As a zero point, I would like to note one thing that is zero because it would be out of the list of things below. It is not a thing, it is an approach.
The psychology of running, very succinctly, is that you constantly set goals for yourself that you will achieve in one way or another. We achieve them by our own efforts, by our own will, by ourselves. And it’s a damn good feeling, and it’s also very addictive. So as soon as we set a goal, we set the next goal. Such a goal is to start running and to persevere and become a progressive runner.
However, as runners, we know very well that the moment of reaching a goal is a brief, momentary pleasure, and that’s not the point. It’s the journey to the finish. It’s easier for us runners to understand this because we can experience it not just metaphorically, but in reality, when we start races. We run for hours and cross the finish line in a flash. And there at the finish line we feel a huge sense of joy and satisfaction, but after 1-2 days, 1-2 weeks, we become proud of the journey to the finish. We remember moments of how we felt, who we high-fived and laughed with during the run. Slowly we realise that the journey to the finish line was more important.
So, when I say that I wish I had known this or that as a beginner runner, I’m actually contradicting myself, but it’s good to fall into that contradiction. Because even though I made mistakes, the journey that led me to realize those mistakes and/or correct those mistakes was a good one. It was full of memorable things. So in fact, the purpose of this writing is not only for anyone just starting out in running to not make those mistakes, but also so that if you are already a runner and you’ve made those mistakes (or whatever), realize that it was a mistake and enjoy the journey until you get to the point of correcting it. It will be a memorable, joyful journey.
1, Warm up, stretch
Comes out on the elbow. That’s where it came out for me. Then after the first six months I got so injured I couldn’t run for a year. When I could start running again, the length of the warm up and stretching was more than the run itself. Now I stretch every day, even when I’m not running.
2, Regeneration
Continuing on from the previous point, I also incorporate other regeneration things besides stretching. Regeneration is very important, it’s during regeneration that your muscles develop (not during exercise). I replenish the glycogen stores in my muscles immediately after exercise. For this, I think 1 dl of 100% orange juice is best. I swim between runs. I wear comfortable shoes (running shoes) even when I’m not running. I stretch out more during the day, try to avoid sitting. I drink a lot. I hang out regularly and see a sports masseur every two weeks. I don’t have time for it, but I would like to do yoga, because yoga is very helpful for a runner to avoid injuries.
3, Gradualness
Unfortunately, I was impatient with this one too. I was immediately running 5 times a week with no time for recovery. The ideal is to start 3 times. Any less and you will not improve, any more and you will get injured more easily.
I also increased the distances too fast. On my first run I ran 3 km with great difficulty and after 4 months I was at 13 km. That’s not a lot for everyone, it was for me, I wasn’t paying attention to the signs.
4, Pace
Maybe incorrect pacing was one of my biggest blunders as a beginner runner. I was like, if I wasn’t panting, if I wasn’t spitting my lungs out during a workout, then there was no point in training. It was fuel for the fire that I was running really fast because of it, of course, which impressed my running friends and it felt good to have their appreciation. It was only later, after 1-2 years, that the resulting problems started to arise, because I didn’t have the basic endurance I needed because I was always running too fast. My progress stalled and I had to start building a foundation. This meant that even though I had been running for 1-2 years, I went through a foundation period where 90% of my runs were slow, low intensity for half a year. It was also very difficult mentally. But once I built up my endurance and learned to run slowly, the results started to come: I started to be able to run even faster, I was able to improve again, I was running incredible times for me too.
5, Pace
It was cool that it measured my watch, but I had no idea what to do with it. Then I did some reading and found out that one of my running mistakes could be fixed by increasing my stride rate. I was jumping too high (vertical oscillation), which was taking my energy away from running faster (more efficient forward jumping), but as I increased my cadence my vertical oscillation was back in the normal zone. I wrote more about the importance of cadence here.
6, Running shoes
I had a pair of shoes that I ran to the gym in and thought they would be perfect for running. It wasn’t. The other cause of my injury, which I write about in #1, was the wrong shoe. From that point of view, I’m glad I experienced it, because it made me want to know a lot about running shoes. This site is exactly about helping you choose good running shoes. The reviews, the comparison tool, the group reviews all help you to choose the right shoes.
An important piece of advice that will help you mentally. Buy expensive shoes the first time! Don’t fall into the mistake of “ok, I’ll buy a beginner, entry level running shoe and then we’ll see”. Buy an expensive running shoe for your first run, because it will make it much harder to give up running. Once you’ve invested in an expensive pair of running shoes, it will motivate you to keep running
7, This is not a PE class, and insta/strava is not for communicating your results
Apparently the two are unrelated though. The point is I run for myself, not for the coach or popular posts. You can walk in, you can stop sooner than you planned. Don’t run a distance just so you can post it on instagram. I understand that it helps to get likes so that you don’t give up the running lifestyle, but after a certain level it becomes burdensome. Don’t be paralyzed by what your Strava friends will say about a shorter, weaker run.
Measure your results against yourself, not against others. You have to beat yourself, you have to be better than your own results. Don’t force yourself into unnecessary comparisons, because you will get bored or even injured. Recognise if you have set yourself too strong a goal, because you will feel like a failure and you will let go not of the goal, but of the run.
It was very difficult the first time I gave up on a workout. Then I became proud of myself because it also meant I could let go of the performance compulsion. The world didn’t fall apart, I learned from the incident and did it next time. Everyone can have a shit day, everyone can have a hard time sometimes, but it takes maturity to dare to face up to it, to dare to stop, to give up on a 1-1 run.
In the beginning I didn’t stop even when I was in pain. I said I wasn’t cut out for it. This is bullshit. Of course it’s important and necessary to have the stamina to run, but you shouldn’t do it mindlessly. If it hurts, if it’s really bad, you have to stop, find out the cause and correct it.
8, Don’t wait for favourable conditions
Not just in running, but in many areas of life, people use the excuse that they are not ready, that they are in a bad mood now, that they will be in a bad mood another time, that the conditions are not right now. It’s the other way round! Don’t wait for favourable conditions for running, running will make the conditions favourable. Most beginner runners (almost myself) give up for this reason. It’s hard to get up and go running again after 2-3 workouts, but it’s so easy to make excuses. The wind is blowing, the weather will be better tomorrow, it’s getting dark, etc. Then if you do start running, after 5 minutes it’s great (if not, point 7 applies) and you end up saying how good it is that I didn’t miss that workout. If I’m feeling down, stressed I go for a run and I’m fine.
