How I built a running habit

I was running in the rain the other day. Someone taking their trash out yelled out, ‘you’re really dedicated.’ I just laughed a bit and kept moving. After another half mile, I started to think maybe they were right.

We tend to think of dedication as something you have to white knuckle. To an outsider, I look extremely disciplined for running in the rain. Didn’t I see it was pouring out? It should’ve been a chance to take a day off. In reality, what I was doing took no discipline or dedication at all. I just started to love running and it’s become something I do.

I used to hate running. Everyone in our generation remembers the gym class mile. With no practice, you were forced to sprint a mile and naturally felt like you were going to throw up. Playing baseball, we only ran as punishment. If someone on the team got detention or talked back to our coach, we started doing laps. Not the ideal recipe for wanting to run on my own time.

In a few months, I’m casually running 3-4 miles multiple times per week and enjoying every second of it. It took some time, but not as much as you’d think. Here’s how I built a running habit.

The Catalyst

A few months back I become aware of the Go One More Ultra. Competitors had 1 hour to run a 4.167 mile loop. They had the remaining time to rest, eat, and get back to the start line on the top of the hour. The race would end when everyone else quit and there was one competitor left. It started on a Saturday and when I woke up on Sunday morning, the race was still going on. They would live stream the last few minutes each hour as runners were getting closer to the hour time cap.

As Sunday passed, I thought there was no way that people could keep going. When I woke up on Monday morning, two guys were left. The miles just kept adding up. 200. 210. 220. My brain couldn’t comprehend that people could still be running. After 56 hours, they had to stop the race because of severe thunderstorms. Who knows how much longer they would have kept going.

That Monday, I went for a run. I hadn’t run in probably over a year. I didn’t have a watch or route, I just knew I needed to run. I made it about 2.8 miles in Vans before my lunch break was over. The whole time, I thought about how insane it was that there’s people who can run seemingly forever.

Embrace Easy

Easy run? That didn’t exist in my brain. I didn’t know that you could run without gasping for air or having your heart feel like it was beating out of your chest. Top runners actually encourage the idea of easy runs. You go at a pace you can comfortably maintain and even have a full conversation. They’ll actually give you a pace that’s too fast. You have to at least be slower than that.

For a beginner, this could mean a combination of walking and running. Maybe you run for 10-20 seconds, then walk for a bit. Easy runs are going to look completely different for everyone. And they should be easy. There’s no sprint at the end or feeling like you need to do more. You should end with more energy than you started. For your next run, you’ll feel fresh and start to get a little faster. The base is built with easy runs.

I’ve stopped looking at my pace entirely. Right now, I’m just focusing on my heart rate. If it’s 150+, I’m going to fast. I’ll slow down my breathing and get back to something manageable. Everyone wants to share their Strava data and show how fast they are. I get it. Right now though, I’m going slow so I can eventually go fast.

Shoes

Running is cheap, but it’s not free. Investing in a good pair of running shoes has been a game changer for me. My Vans made me feel like I was running barefoot. I couldn’t wait to get off my feet. When I tried on Diadora’s, it felt like stepping on clouds. If you see yourself committing to running, get a nice pair of shoes and thank me later.

Training Partners

The first run I did after watching the ultra was by myself, no music, and no distractions. It was easy because I was super motivated. After that fades, it’s a lot harder to get out the door. Running with others makes it so much easier. You start logging miles without even realizing it because you’re talking and laughing.

If you’re running by yourself, it’s a lot easier to cancel. The to-do list just keeps getting longer. But if you have concrete plans to meet at a certain place and time, you’re much more likely to commit. Even if you feel like trash and want to do anything else besides run, just lace up your shoes and take the first step. After you’re done, you’ll feel so much better than when you started.

Closing Thoughts

Not everyone needs to run. But, everyone needs to exercise. Weightlifters accept that cardio is not part of the deal. You might have even started weightlifting to stop doing cardio. If you’re going months or years without getting your heart rate up on a regular basis, that’s not healthy. It doesn’t have to be running. Find the thing you’d do in the rain when no one was watching.