Sunday, August 13, 2006

Get a Move On

I need some exercise. I've needed some for a while, but my problem with exercise is that I hate it. Moving for the sake of moving isn't fun and makes me feel terrible afterward.

This is not to say that I want to remain stationary on my couch until the end of days. If somebody wanted to go on a hike, I'd go with them. If somebody wanted to play frisbee, I'd play with them. If somebody wanted to go running, I'd remain stationary on my couch. I hate running. Running is awful.

And yet ...

Today I went running. Turns out that running is the only exercise I can get without driving someplace and/or meeting a bunch of new people. I can open my door and run down the block until my lungs threaten to fall out, then I can walk back. Doing anything else takes too long. Running takes 13 minutes of running and 17 minutes of walking back.

If I had a membership to Baly's Total Fitness, I might go there and use their various workout equipment. It's walkable. Unfortunately health club memberships cost roughly a trillion dollars a month.

So alas, the only thing I can think of that will get my out from under my genetic gut of Damocles is running. If anybody has any special techniques that avoid the burning in my chest, the faint taste of blood, shoulder cramps, and the resulting woosey feeling that I suppose is my bad-trip version of a runner's high, then please let me know. I'd love my love handles to go away, but I don't want my cardiovascular system to leave with them.
Posted by at

5 comments:

sightofstars said...

what about walking really fast? up some hills?

8:54 AM
Sonja said...

Your health insurance might offer a discounted membership to Bally's. Meanwhile, I theorize that if you keep running, the bad runner's high will get less and less each time you run.

9:38 AM
Anonymous said...

careful of shin splints...stretching is a must.

The key to running is good shoes, so I hear. I hate running, but have thought about it lately, like prep for a marathon, but my knees say "oh no you don't."

Bikram yoga is supposed to kick butt, too. Good luck.

7:58 PM
Michael said...

That's interesting about the health insurance. I'll have to check into that.

And I was actually impressed with my old running shoes. I think they're circa 1996, but they remain comfy.

9:12 PM
Brandon said...

Nice job! I applaud your efforts. Here's what I can recommend:

Even if your circa-1996 running shoes are comfy, it's pretty doubtful that they're actually providing any support. So new shoes will certainly help, especially if you have joint soreness. But they won't fix the problem of the burning chest, etc.

The feelings you describe all come back to one thing: your body trying to work harder, much harder, than it is accustomed to. The solution? Slow down. Breathe more. Don't hesitate to time yourself - run for 4 min, walk for 2 min, repeat, etc.

Try to breathe more consistently....try picking a foot to inhale and exhale on. e.g., if you take 4 full strides (landing on L,R,L,R,L,R,L,R), inhale on L1, hold, and exhale on L3. Or if that doesn't work, develop some other system. But make sure you're breathing consistently. Don't wait for your chest to start burning before you start breathing more heavily.

As for the taste of blood, I can assure you it's not blood, but i know the taste you're describing. Again, slow down. Make sure you clear your throat; don't be afraid to spit out phlegm/saliva if you feel like it's interfering with your breathing.

That's just a start. But keep it up. I promise that running can actually feel good.

2:14 PM

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)