Runners shouldn’t overcommit themselves and it is not necessary to run every day. Even the world’s most successful marathon runners take a break occasionally. Giving our body a time to recover and rest is an important way to main productivity and performance. Running 7 days or even 5 days a week is a monumental goal. However, many beginners tend to overcommit themselves, although they are just getting started. It is better to start slowly, if we can maintain our schedule and motivation. Even if we are committed to exercise each day, we will inevitably miss a day, followed by the second day, the third and so on.
If we have high expectation, guilt will start to set in and God forbid we miss another day for daily running. However, this is commonly the time when we begin to spiral downright and we will land on the couch for the whole month once again. We shouldn’t do this to ourselves. We shouldn’t be overly rigid, by thinking that we will always be able to run. In reality, small failures and a bit of guilt should be expected. We will fail and make mistakes. However, by being honest to ourselves, we will be able to start again and we will eventually succeed. A big success is built by small daily accomplishments.
Beginners should try to run 2 or 3 times each week for a couple of months. This is already a big improvement, if they hardly run before. This will allow us to preserve our initial motivation. Many beginners are also busy people and by having flexible running schedules, they will be able to balance work, rest and sports.
We should expect to do a little less and a little more during our daily running sessions. The most important thing is that we still have a healthy level commitment to meet the reasonable running goals that we have set. We shouldn’t beat ourselves up if we miss a mile or even an entire day. We could still run the next day and the most important thing is to never stop what we have started. By expecting small failures and mishaps, we are already mentally prepared to run.
We won’t sugar coat our running experience. We will hurt and we won’t deny it. For beginners, starting to run is mentally and physically difficult. Running is a physically intense activity and our body will feel the effect. However, it is actually a good sign if our body experience discomfort after mild or moderate physical activity. It means that our body is adjusting for the upcoming physical activities and it means that we are getting stronger. In fact, if we don’t feel any kind of discomfort after a week of running sessions, it means that our body could cope for heightened physical activities, such as walking less, running a little farther and running a little faster. Many beginners think that they won’t get hurt and this is something that may diminish their motivation.