Why am I so bad at running, but do well in other cardio related activities?

[kmar123]

Hi all!

Recently I've (29F) been trying to "reset" my workouts as I haven't been very motivated due to big life changes (work, moving...). I've always tried to do a mix of strength training at home, cardio (dance and HIIT) and yoga. However I've been kinda bored recently and I've been trying to find something that gets me excited again.

My boyfriend recently proposed running a marathon later this year, and it seemed like an awesome goal to have and a great motivation to get back into working out consistently.

I've never been that much into running (never tried it seriously) but as I've been somewhat fit for the last few years, I figured starting out would not be too hard. Oh, how wrong I was.

I tried it twice this past weekend (half an hour on Saturday, another half an hour Sunday), doing intervals: the first day I did 1min run, 2min walk, 10 times. The second day I did 2min run, 1 min walk, 10 times.

I just about died - was choking halfway through, and my knees hurt a lot in the second half. This hurt my ego as I was also going pretty slow, it just seemed like I was the only one struggling while everyone else ran by me easily.

This has me kinda baffled as I adore cardio, I love doing HIIT and dance workouts at home and I'm used to the high heart rate and being slightly out of breath. I'm also pretty worried about the knee thing - my boyfriend told me it's probably because I never workout outdoors and it was super chilly outside (It was 10ºC and I was wearing thin leggings). But I still don't understand why am I so bad at this when my body should supposedly be used to cardio.

I would love any advice for a newbie like me, and tips on how to keep going as I do want to give it a try. Thank you!!

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Edit: thanks everyone!! I’ve gotten amazing advice and I will use all of it to continue on my journey trying to get into running. I know it will take time and the idea of going to a marathon is mostly a goal, an idea to keep in mind, but I’m not even planning on actually running all of it if I go - my real goal is 5k and I think that will be attainable in a few months thanks to your advice.

It’s clear I knew very little about running and just considered it another cardio activity, which is why I thought being good at HIIT would be a huge advantage as a newbie (which is why I was so surprised when my first 2 runs were so bad lol). It’s good for me to realize how much more it is than just cardio, and it actually motivates me even more to get into it.

Also, I think I exaggerated a bit when I used the word “choking”, I mostly meant I had a hard time controlling my breathing. My throat did feel a little tight, but nothing too serious, so I don’t think I have asthma. Even so, I will be mindful about it because you never know.

Thanks again everyone, I’m very excited to keep getting better and progressing at this.

 

[jonh]

@kmar123 I’m an okay runner. I get in about 5 miles 4-6 times a week. Good shoes are a must. Otherwise my knee and arches suffer. Par for the course at 54. Overall I’d say moderation and consistency are key. And remember we are all good at different things. No one’s great at everything. What I suck at is swimming. I could never get the breathing right. My swim instructor was constantly making jokes about how winded I would get when I was fairly fit doing other things. I wish I could swim well.

 

[missgrundy]

@kmar123 OP I love running. I took me years to get good at it through college. Huge misconception I think is people approach it with, I’m good at cardio so therefore I’d be good here. By no means am I an expert but by having helped several individuals prepare for running tests/5ks here’s what I’ve learned.

Bottom line: The only way to get better at running is to ultimately run more. However there’s a good way and a bad way.

Bad way; just going outside and sending it for a mile at a time. You push through any pain, and think just run harder and I’ll get better… only works if you’re like 12 and made of rubber.

Good way: The Kenyans have a word to describe the perfect pace: “Zumlonga”. It’s a pace where if you can’t communicate a full conversation, You’re too fast. Longer/Slower is better. If the only pace you can hold is super slow then so be it. It’s about time spent not distance.

Here’s how i broke down training programs for my people: take your target distance and your target time. Example 3 miles in 21 minutes.

Day 1: 60 minutes zumlonga pace (walk if you have to)
Day 2. 30 minute Intervals, 5 min zumlonga, 1 minute sprint.
Day 3: Uphill sequence. Key here is you have to run up hill. You should be able to complete 15 reps in 45 minutes. You can stop at top or bottom. The key is to challenge and complete.
Day 4: rest
Day 5: 1.5 mile for COMPLETION.
Day 6: 3 mile zomlonga pace.

Ultimately there are 1000s of guides out there but the key is just moving more. A runners gait engages muscles that are often neglected in other workouts in tandem. Hip flexors/Extensors in tandem with core are especially developed in runners. As for the pain… your body was genetically designed to run. since most of us don’t though, when we start running we’re prone to pain/injury. Never push past pain. Stop/treat it… etc. however…. Often times your best remediation is to continue strengthening those painful spots through the desired motion with more running/dynamic warmup. Shinsplints are example of this where the only solution was controlled/continued impact to strengthen bones/ligature in the shin.

Good luck!

 

[jesusisking77]

@kmar123 Lots of good advice here (slow down!) but one thing I picked up somewhere on here was that knee issues while running could be due to not activating the glutes enough. I started trying to do this consciously and it pretty much fixed the problem (and after a while I didn’t have to think about it anymore). It felt silly to basically try to squeeze my butt while running (I’ve heard the advice “run like you have a penny in your crack that you’re trying to keep up” lol) but it made my knees happy!

 

[cathryne]

@kmar123 Even if you didn’t super struggle, if your chest felt tight it could still be mild asthma. I’d say it may be worth getting some ventolin but I just looked at US prices of ventolin and they are very different from prices here so maybe ask a doc about it

 

[christoph2005]

@kmar123 I'm hilariously bad at running, or at least I was. My bf pointed out that I run like a weirdo, so I got him to record me. I do indeed run like a weirdo, I look like I'm bouncing up and down more than moving forward, and the slower I go the sillier it gets. Simply being aware of that, and watching some videos on proper mechanics helped a ton. I still hate running as a stand-alone activity, but I'm way faster when I'm running playing a sport, and it no longer feels like I'm going to snap my shins in half.

 

[folashade]

@kmar123 When you say "slow" how slow do you mean? Its likely your benchmark is way off. Think 5mph (12 minute mile) or slower for your running sections if you can manage it, and that will help you work up to longer intervals faster. Another way to gauge whether pace is too fast is to check your heartrate if you have a capable fitness watch.

 

[mdwhite]

@folashade I'm doing the couch to 5k as a total total beginner and am jogging at 3.5 setting on the treadmill and it's going great! Maybe one day I'll work up to 5 mph haha

 

[minnie19]

@kmar123 I had similar issues and watched enough YouTube videos to find out I had poor running form. I was pretty much flicking my ankles instead of picking my legs up. When I started focusing on picking up my legs it became so much easier to run.

 

[trinitywarrior]

@kmar123 I'm right there with you! Biking, swimming, and rollerskating, I can go for hours. Running? Eff no.

I've settled on run/walk intervals, and have even done a couple of half-marathons this way!

The "None to Run" method is a fantastic way to start with interval training, I highly recommend it.

https://d368g9lw5ileu7.cloudfront.n...mSectionAttachment5a74bccede4959.19982659.pdf

Coach Jeff Galloway also promotes the "run walk run" method, which has you doing even long distances with lots of walk intervals. When I do a long run, I run for 1:30, then walk for :30, and it works great! I go much faster this way than if I just jogged-- I can easily do an 11-minute mile with walk intervals, but if I was to jog only, I can only hold a 14-minute mile for longer than 15 minutes.

 

[not_a_unicorn]

@kmar123 You're bad at running, because as you've said yourself, you've never done it! Just like any form of exercise your body needs to adapt and learn. Come join us at /r/xxrunning

 

[matthew45taylor]

@kmar123 Running is high impact and you have to condition your body to it - when I first started, it took me months of working through shin splints before I could run consistently for longer periods of time. I did couch to 5K and it took me an extra month to finish because of the splints. Going from zero to a marathon is probably a bad idea.

Sign up for a 5k, then a 10k 3-6 months later. Then work up to a half and then a whole marathon.

The cold is definitely a factor for breathing.

 

[wrongclub_lucius]

@kmar123 I detest running. I can do any other type of cardio though like you. But, I do literally 30 minutes of cardio a week as I'm thin and loose weight really easily. In order for me to maintain the muscle I have gained, I stray away. Anyhow, I feel and look like a spastic when running lol..

 

[msavage]

@kmar123 I avoid running myself due to knee and ankle issues so I do all my cardio in cross trainers which have very low impact and stair climbers.

 

[oldfield]

@kmar123 Why don’t you guys sign up to a 5 or 10k instead and then maybe build up to a marathon next year? It seems like a massive undertaking for a new runner. I would definitely download a couch to 5k app. I did the bbc one a few years ago and really surprised myself how easily I managed to build up over the weeks. I wasn’t expecting to be able to run for more than a minute or two at a time but I managed it. You can play your own music and the voice just speaks over the top of it when it comes on. I really enjoyed it but I definitely slowed my runs to a jog so I could complete them. Slow and steady wins the race and all that

If you’d rather have some peer support then I’m sure there would be a beginners running club in your area. Here in Glasgow, most council parks have 5k “park runs” every week that anyone is welcome to join and you don’t have to commit to a certain number or weeks etc. is there something like that where you are?

Good luck, don’t push yourself too hard and enjoy the process

 

[kmar123]

@oldfield Oh the marathon actually has the option to do 10k which was the original idea. But even that I see difficult right now, so if I sign up, I will probably be walking half of it haha. My “real” goal is 5k and I’m aware that will take me a few months!

I will look up various programs and couch to 5k apps because it’s much more comfortable that way (I don’t want to keep paying attention to the chronometer as that distracts me from keeping a correct form)

And ohhh a beginners running club sounds amazing!! I will look it up, maybe there is! Thank you for the tips!

 

[oldfield]

@kmar123 I wouldn’t worry about walking, I think most people end up doing a mixture of walking and running. Just tell your other half to go at their pace and you go at yours, even if that means they end up ahead.

There are always fun 5/10k’s too with obstacles or inflatables if you’d rather do something a bit more laid back for your first one. Best of luck!

 

[kunsgnos]

@kmar123 Train to run, don’t run to train.

It’s very important to do sport-specific strength and mobility training for running, and to run with proper form. You will still improve your running and cardio over time without this, but the more you practice with improper technique the more you set yourself up for injury and imbalances and all sorts of stuff that you really don’t want.

I was a long distance runner a long time ago (competed in x-country and 800m track, and pavement/road running for fun). When I ran for fun I’d hold my iPod in one hand and didn’t pay much attention to how I was running. It was great! However, it fucked me up big time and I’m still dealing with issues almost 10 years later.

Learn how to run with proper form from the start even if it makes your progress slower.

 

[guilty1]

@kmar123 Because being good at both running and cardio on God levels is for us

 

[dawn16]

@kmar123 What are your feet like could be important to factor in! I have super flat feet and used to dance until 17, now I do high intensity high speed stationary biking because my feet are flat and running hurts my: back, hips, knees and every joint in my foot. Due to my feet my steps also lack a lot of power which makes it even harder and mote discouraging to run. Might be worth thinking about so you can learn to run better in a way that feels good!