Ways to take the agony out of running

Let’s be honest, sometimes running is pure agony. Sometimes, you just have to do it even when you can think of more fun ways to spend your efforts. The good news is that you can always do something to make the tough days go smoother. Here are some tips. 

Don’t do hard workouts/ long runs back-to-back

The first one might feel great. Day two of hard effort? Not so much. Runners often forget the importance of recovery or the damage of doing too much all at once. If you’re tempted to go hard all at once, scale back. Letting the body rest and allowing for muscles to repair is as essential to training as hard laps of the track.

Check the weather and plan accordingly 

Don’t want an agonizing run? Plan to run during the best part of the day. Check the weather early in the morning or the night before. Expecting a torrential downpour or hot weather? By knowing what’s up, you can plan to run around that.

Mind your skin, invest in glide and sunscreen

Blisters, chaffing and sunburns are a runner’s reality. Sometimes the miserable parts of the run stick around after the Garmin is off. Buy the necessary skin products to ease this post-run pain.

Eat right

This applies to your recovery meal right after the run as well as how you fuel before. You don’t want to head out there to get the most out of your training session only to have a rumbling tummy mid-way through.

Hydrate!

It’s summer and dehydration can happen easily. Pay attention to the heat and make sure to be sipping on water.

Find the time of day that best suits you

Some are permanently morning runners while others, doing anything first thing is never going to be as easy as the middle of the day. Pay attention to when you’re feeling your best. Make it easier on yourself by running then.

Do the tough stuff with others

Running 30K alone is appealing to almost no one. And when the friends are inviting you to join them at the new trendy restaurant and you’ve got an interval workout planned, it’s too easy to get swayed. If you do the tough stuff with others, it will be less painful.

Invest in the good gear

Sick of the sports bra that does noting to eliminate painful bounce? Our guess is that the shorts that ride up and allow for some serious chafing to occur is equally as irritating. Do yourself a favour and get the good gear that doesn’t let this happen.

Schedule your strength work

The strength work slides by pretty easily. Next thing you know, you’re bogged down with an injury thinking to yourself “If only I had stronger _____!” Pick a time to tone up the weak spots and slot it in just like you would for an appointment or weekly meeting.

Don’t be unrealistic

If 80K weeks aren’t going to happen with your schedule and fitness level, don’t aim for that. If you can’t run much longer than 10K, don’t tell yourself you’re going for a 20K long run this Sunday. Recognize when it’s not going to happen and edit your goals so that they are challenging yet still doable.

Learn the magic of the podcast

If you suffer on your runs because your route is simply boring or you start to lose interest after the first few kilometres, it’s time to learn the magic of the podcast. Podcasts can be just as addicting as your favourite TV show. Find one you like and listen to it mostly just when you’re running. It will keep things interesting.