Running help!
 

I need help from all the runners. I'm back into the running thing and I need some hints. I just get miserable after running a couple of blocks. My side kills and my throat gets all dry and weird. It's strange. I make myself keep pluggin along but it's just so hard. I thought it was cause I was running after I ate but I went after work today and I still got the feeling. Help! I need to run and love being out there doing something good for myself but it's so miserable.

Oh, and I do not ever try to run the whole time. I walk a good 2 or 3 blocks before I run. Then I try to go 2 or 3 or more if my body will let me but then recovering so I'm able to run again after that takes many more blocks. It's a vicious cycle.

I'm just starting on this running thing. The only thing so far that I have found that helps is chewing gum. I also try to concentrate on breathing through my nose and not my mouth. I hope someone else comes to help you.

I just got back from my daily run :)

My thing is finding a rhythm - I breathe in through the nose for six steps and then out through the mouth for six steps to regulate my breathing.

For me as soon as I lose my regular breathing pattern I will start to get a cramp. The worst ones are in the side just under the ribs! But I also get them under my collar bones which while uncomfortable I can keep running through.

Also it seems to help if I keep my arms pumping regularly and keep a good posture. I have noticed that your legs will always keep pace with how fast you swing your arms. It might seem strange at first but concentrate on your arms and how fast you move them for awhile - its psychologically easier to move your arms than your legs sometimes lol!

Maybe try slowing down a little? I think if you jogged at a slower pace it may help.. are you able to carry on a conversation?

A few years back when I was running, I read lots of tips about side-stitches in runners magazines and such. When I first started I would get them, too, but in time I only got a ghost of that pain on occasion.

What I remember reading about it is that the pain is caused by a spasm in your diaphram, and/or weak abdominal muscles. So to help fix the problem you should work on strengthening your core muscles.

While you are running, there are a few things you can do to eliminate or lessen the pain:

* "Belly Breathing" is where you purposely stick your gut out as far as you can and hold it there as long as you can. Think of sticking it out like you are pregnant, or have a beer belly. Then repeat. When I've tried this, it feels like it's stretching the muscles out and the muscles seem to unclench.

* Stick a fist into your side where it hurts and hold it there for a little bit. (Don't punch yourself--just hold your fist against the side)

* Exhale hard when your foot hits the ground, on the same side as the pain. So, if the pain is on the right side, exhale all your breath hard when your right foot hits the ground. (If that doesn't work, try doing it on the other footfall). You don't need to exhale like that every time your foot hits the ground, or you will hyperventilate! Just do it as often as you comfortably can.

I have used all of the above techniques in the past, and they have all worked. I also found that as my core muscles got stronger, and as I built up my running stamina, the side-stitches went away after a while. I would still get them once in a while, but they weren't as bad.

Also, I agree with the rhythm thing: I find when I get into my groove, when my breathing and footfalls have a continuous rhythm, then side-stitches are less of a problem.

Thanks so much! This all should help!

There's a whole sub-section of the running community that advocates following planned run/walk intervals. I did that for years, even ran half and full marathons that way. A great resource is http://www.jeffgalloway.com/

The most important thing is to find a pace that you can sustain over some period of time. Maybe that's walk briskly for 5 minutes and jog for one minute, then repeat. Or walk 2 min / jog 2 min. Whatever is sustainable and reasonably comfortable. It doesn't feel like a "failure" if you go out with a specific training plan. ;) You should feel like you are working, but not puffing so hard that you can't carry on a conversation or you get a side stitch. Over time, as you build endurance and continue lose a little weight, you will find that you can increase your jogging intervals and maybe eventually eliminate walking altogether. Or maybe not -- Galloway claims that the walking intervals extend the time that you are able to continue, and also helps prevent injuries because they give your legs and joints a break.

If weight loss is your primary goal right now, then it is better to walk briskly for 30 minutes (with an occasional minute or two of jogging) than to kill yourself trying to run and dying after 10 minutes. When I started my most recent weight loss journey at 150 pounds, I couldn't run at all anymore, I just died in 5 minutes. (and 3 years previously I had completed a full marathon!!) I simply did the "brisk walking" thing for several months until I lost part of the weight, then started the run/walk intervals. As I built my endurance up again, I found that I didn't need to walk as much. Then one day it all clicked, and I found I didn't need the walk intervals at all. But that took months to get there.

So, don't give up, but maybe slow down a bit! It takes time to build running endurance, but you can definitely get there with persistance.

Hi Lindsay, have you tried the Couch to 5k program? It recommends warming up for 5 minutes, then running 1 minute and walking 1 minute for the first weeks or so and then increasing the running time a bit at a time.... Google Couch to 5k....I agree with the poster who suggests not to run all out at first, find a pace that suits you and just go along with that...

I am a mouth breather, for some reason, when I run too :shrug: .... I never realized this until running a race with a friend and she commented that many runners had underarm smell :lol: ... I never noticed because I breath through my mouth ... I never run more than 5 or 6k so I drink water when I get home...