As a teenager track and field athlete back in the day, long distance running was one of those extremely frightening things I would always beg my coach to leave me out of. I remember the first time I was supposed to do a 1500m race, I literally didn’t sleep the two nights before the race. I was terrified at the thought of having to do long distance running. In hindsight, this fear was completely ridiculous, I mean, all I had to do was run, thats all. A few years down the line, I finally overcame my “fear or running” and on any given day, I go for a casual 8 kilometre evening run, just for leisure.

I understand why so many people have a “fear of running”, or the idea that running is “so hard” and the truth is, the first time you decide to go for your fist long distance run, yes it will be hard!. Your lungs will burn and you will be out of air in no time, so you might be wondering; Why bother? Well I have a few very good reasons:

1) You can do it practically anywhere .
2) It will improve your cardiovascular endurance and obviously health.
3) You will become fit quick and stay fit.
4) Its one of the fastest ways to loose weight.
5)It will help you reduce stress (which is one of the biggest reasons why I do it).
6) Its a good way to help you disconnect from the digital world every now and then. (I love running in the forrest and forgetting about my phone for a little while)

1. Start slow and with short distance but START somewhere!. (Don’t go for a long distance the first time you run, it’s not a good idea. Build your endurance over time, so run a distance and speed you and your body are comfortable with.)
2. Build yourself a killer playlist to listen to while you run!. (You would be surprised as to how much difference it makes when you listen to upbeat music while you run. It really helps to push you to keep running!) -I have my own Spotify running playlist which you are more than welcome to follow as well >> RUN!
3. Try to find a running buddy. (I normally run by myself because I am comfortable with my own pace and I like having that time to think, but it does help a lot to find a friend who is equally enthusiastic about starting to run and who makes you feel like you are not alone in this. Try to keep the chit chat to a minimum though, you need to keep your breath! 😉
4. Try to keep your progress on an app on your phone, this way you will be so motivated to see how much you have improved -time and distance-. (I use the Nike+ app where I keep track of all my runs, times, distances and the best part, you also have the maps of the routes you follow).
5. Think of the end goal!. ( While you are running, when you are getting all sweaty, your lungs start to burn and you think to yourself; why the hell am I doing this? Remember how good you will look in that bikini on your next trip to the beach, but not only that, how cool will you feel when you start reaching your distance and speed goals. Theres nothing cooler than overcoming the fear of running and start to become faster and stronger).

Are you convinced already? what are you waiting for? get your playlist and Nike+ app going and lets go running!