Hello to all the readers of 300 Pounds and Running! I am honored to be doing a guest post here for all of you. As a fellow runner, I thought I would share some tips for dealing with running funks.
Every runner I know has at some point, gotten into a funk. These funks can happen for any number of reasons: injury, running lost its excitement, exhaustion, hectic life, post-race blues, this list could go on and on. This past year I have witnessed myself and several others I know go through this. I won’t lie, when mine started, I was in denial that it existed. My excuses were work was busy, school was starting, and I was buying a house. Seriously, there were moments my husband had to talk me off the ledge. Previously, running was my sanity when life got crazy… suddenly, I couldn’t peel my butt off the couch if I tried. I became miserable, emotional, and unhappy with myself. I wasn’t gaining weight, but I felt like I gained a million pounds and started to hate my body and began making less healthy choices. I realized in August that something needed to be done before the funk became permanent and the dust on my run shoes grew any thicker.
In attending a work training, I heard someone talk about making a contract with yourself. Although it had nothing to do with running or healthy living, it was like a siren went off in my head. YES! A contract with myself, this was the answer. Over the next week or so I really evaluated my life. My contract wasn’t just going to be running, it was going to be my life. I set goals for my running, my health, my personal life. I chose to do it this way, because let’s face it, when one area suffers, they all suffer. For some reason, with goals, deadlines and an end in sight, I thrive. I don’t say, I will always take Tuesday spin class, but I schedule it out for a specific time. When I complete that goal, I feel a sense of accomplishment and plan another one.
The same goes with running. I would love to say carte blanche I will run 4-5 days a week, but that doesn’t happen, EVER. Plus, to me, that isn’t specific enough, if I run down the street, does that count? Instead I look over my schedule, I pick a minimum of 3 days, I schedule runs at specific times of various distances. I do this for a month at a time, then, revisit and revise.
Another great way I have dealt with funks is to change things up. I was running and training and doing hill sprints and fartleks, etc. But I was bored. Same old streets, same old workouts. Sound familiar? So, I started hitting trails, in different areas. I signed up for an obstacle course mud run. Something different and challenging. In changing a few things in my routine, I slowly reignited my love of running. I took several months off from local road races. At first hesitant to do this, I know it helped me get back to where I needed to be with running. Soon, I was ready to dive back in to races. I will do 3 in 2 months. I signed up for a challenging course, something I know I won’t PR on, but will complete.
When you get stuck in a running or fitness rut, take a step back, sometimes, you may need to take a few days off to reevaluate. What are your goals, why are you doing this, what is the big picture? Can you make changes anywhere to your routine or goals to bring new excitement into it? But most importantly, realize, these funks happen, to almost every athlete I know. Do not beat yourself up, that will only make it worse. Make it fun again. Stop checking your pace and enjoy the run for what it is, a run. Enjoy the beauty outside.
Angela is a health educator by day, a runner that loves yoga, cooking, and being an awesome dog mom to her two furbabies. Check out her blog: Sole Sister On The Run. You can find her on twitter @SoleSisteronRun
Until Next Time I’m 300 Pounds and Running
P.s. Have you voted for me lately?
