I didn't always like running...

“Ah, that distance is nothing to you.” I can’t hear that without thinking back to this throwback to first half marathon back in September, 2017.

With a few marathons under my belt at this stage, when the talk of doing shorter races come up, I’ll usually here how they be handy compared to the longer distances I’ve done.

But lost in how we see people’s Strava’s and miles clocked up is that we all started somewhere. And not that I’m great now, but I sucked at running

This run back in September 2017 still seems like it took a lifetime to complete. By mile 10, I was done. The last 3 felt like they would never end. And I absolutely hated running.

I touched on this on the podcast this week, but back then I felt like all easy miles were junk miles. You either run hard or not at all. Influenced by Tim Ferriss’ 4 Hour Body, my training involved “CrossFit Endurance” approach to running. My runs would all be hard, a struggle to complete as if every day was race day.

I painfully learned from these mistakes. Constantly getting injured before the body fell completely apart after the first marathon to the point where I genuinely felt I would never run again.

The changes were simple. Over time, I’ve learned to embrace running and the struggles it brings. I’ve slowed down A LOT in my training which has lead to me getting faster on race days.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time to go faster, to vary up your running intensities. But I believe roughly 70% of your mileage should be a slow pace (if not more)

While I enjoy my long runs, there are those Sunday mornings where I procrastinate for a good hour or so before finally getting out on the roads. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Some runs feel great, some can still be a struggle.

The near two hours to do this run in 2017 was one of those days where I felt each minute tick by every bit as agonizing as my muscles felt after it!

If you’re building towards your first half or full marathon this year, know that it takes time both mentally and physically to adjust to the increasing miles on the road. Stay patient, slowly increase your mileage week by week and stay positive! You’ll get there! 👍