When you don't get your running in

Make it a priority. You can slack off later, not now. The toughest part of getting into the habit of running is now, so don't give up.
Running is not really hard. The hardest part about running is getting out the door.

It's good to have a vision of your goal. And while it's common for women to keep such goals in terms of pounds or kilos, I'd suggest your vision to be something like "Come December I've kept running for 4 months". If you stick to running, your body will thank you by toning up.

Obsessing about weight is torture. Running is pleasure. It might not feel like it now, but you'll get there. If you keep it up.

first challenge over

Congrats nutmegfiz and everyone else!

walking vs Running

Walking is fine, but running builds your stamina and strength and helps your body get on a natural high faster.
It's not an either or thing. You should do both. But keep up the running, cause it's so effective.

New challenge

This time it's a team based challenge. Pick your team and run for it for your team! To see your individual standing, go to challenge, then click View leaderboard under "My options"

Also,make your Nike+ profile PUBLIC so I can see that you are indeed a rookie. Otherwise, there's no way for me to tell if you're a beginner or someone who's running like a pro. I need you to do this for me. It's important.

The guru

This is my love, Anders. He's a dedicated runner. He gives me useful advice, which I'll share with you. He tells me fight pain and running hardship by relaxing. When your straining to run, make sure you're as relaxed as you can. Drop shoulders, shake hands, tip toe, listen to the music. Your body likes to move. It might just not be all that used to it yet.

Ps. This is Anders at the finishing line of Lidingöloppet. He was fast, all I got was a glimpse of his back.

I know you won't believe me

But there will come a time, pretty soon, when running outside will be so much easier than running on the treadmill. Hang in there.

This week, keep running your 500 meters. If that's easy to you now, then try squeezing in at least 4 times 500 meters in your 30 minute workout.

Week after next, we'll go for 750 meters.

It will be easy if you get down with your 500 meters this week.

Cheering for you from Sweden

-e

How are you doing this week?

Did you get your workouts in? Did you manage the 500 meters? Are you ready for this upcoming week's mission?

Featured Rookie - GIllian

Gillian says:

My name is Gillian and I am twenty years old. I don't have a photo of where I'm going to run yet, because I don't really know where I'm going to run yet. I plan on waking up early and running in the direction where I see the most people. Why, may you ask? Because I sweat a lot and I find it embarrassing, so I may as well get it over with now so I can stop caring. When I finally pick some sort of route, you'll get a photo.

Featured Rookie - Bebe

Bebe Boulais says:

While in the past, fitness has been a pretty big part of my daily life, the last few years have dealt a few blows that derailed me completely, and after several years of sloth, I am finally ready to re-commit to a life of feeling great. Challenges are something I relish, and I'm very excited to be part of this group of people in pursuit of health and well-being. With my insatiable desire to learn new things and improve myself, I can tell that this will be a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me! Wooooo Hooooo!

I'm not sure who's more excited - me or Sesame!

about warming up and stretching

I hear it's good to warm up before a workout and great to stretch aftwerwards. But since it seems implausibe for any person to have grown up in the western world without hearing about this, I haven't brought it up.

personally I just put on my shoes and go, jogging very slowly for the first few hundred meters. That's my warmup. I think real athletes would not approve. Then post-workout I do some stretching, if I remember.

should you stretch or not stretch? you decide!

(http://running.about.com/od/running101/a/stretching101.htm)

about the challenges 2

Also, there is no THE Run with E rookie. We'll have plenty of challenges. But first goal: to get you running an entire kilometer. And remember! The first kilometer is the hardest.

Challenges accomplishments rewards

The human psyche and body understands and treasures rewards. You might eventually get to a point where the run is its own reward. It's very rare to have achieved that kind of humbleness this early on.

That's why I want to talk to you about rewards. Rewards to keep in mind when it's hard to run, when you feel like stopping or switching to walking.

Our next challenge will be running one km without stopping.

Think of how you will reward yourself once you manage to do that. Is there an item of clothing you're dreaming of? A certain ice cream? A movie?

Tell me your rewards!

A word on music

There's no right or wrong music to run to. At this stage you might feel you need hard disco to carry you forward, I know I did. Kylie Minogue worked wonders for me with her Spinning Around, as did Daft Punk's Around the world.

But there's something zen about running to the lightest of music. Music that goes da di da and still pushes you forward. Try running to bossa nova, and let the happiness of the soft soft swishing on the drums propel you into the distance. Try anything Jorge Ben, Astrud Gilberto or João Gilberto.

Don't worry about the kms and the challenge

The challenge is just up there for you to see progress. It's not a competition yet. Don't let it worry you. If you want to track your entire walk/run workout then by all means do it. If you want to track only the running parts -then go for it.

We're not getting competitive yet. We're building strength.

Take it easy!

Don't run too far just yet. Keep doing 500 meter runs this week, unless you feel you have it in you to run farther. If you haven't been running before, your body, heart and muscles may need some time to adjust. So if you're not used to working out all that much, don't dorry about distances or how far other people are running. So far, your only competition is your old self. Take it little by little. The goal here is to get you running 5k effortlessly within 6 months. There's no rush, though I'm sure many of you will reach that goal way before that, perhaps even by Christmas.

OK, here we go

Join by clicking the box.

Where is the challenge you wonder.

I need to get a new Nike+ kit to start the challenges. Nike+ won't let me decide which challenges I drop my kms in and since I can't start a challenge unless I participate myself, that would mean I would outrun you pretty soon. Not fair!

My plan is to be a beginner like you, learning to run in Vibram five fingers. I'm getting both a new Nike+ kit and Vibrams today. So stay tuned.

Paging Elaine and Mademoiselle Oulla

Are you there? Mail me! emi@lovegun.net

The one mistake many of us make

The surprising mistake running beginners make is going too fast. We break into a run and leap off as if we're trying to catch the last camel out of Sodom or Gomorra. No wonder we run out of breath and think to ourselves "I'll never do this again".

This week, work with the 500 meter thing. Keep your workout 30 mins long though. Walk for 5 mins and use your nike+ if you want, to know how far 0,5 km is. Slow down the pace but keep running. If you're a beginner, running 500 meters might take you up to 5 mins. It's a good thing to pick a song of about that length so you can tell yourself : I'll run til this song is over.

Deeper and deeper with Madonna worked for me. It's 5 mins and 33 seconds.

Things people may tell you too, soon

Friend (who's in the yoga field): Emi, you look like you're doing well.

Me: Yes, I feel great. I've taken up running.

Friend: Ah! That's why! You look like you're fully oxygenated.

This week to come

You will try to run for 500 meters without stopping. If you're not a runner, you will hate this.

These thoughts will likely go off on a loud speaker in your head:

• Why am I doing this?
• This is pointless.
• I hate this.
• I'm not a runner, I'm a walker.
• Not everyone can be a runner.
• I must look ridiculous.
• There's no dignity in running.
• I'm too old to start running.
• This is hard.

Think of these thoughts as disturbances. That's all they are. Work through them. It's just 500 meters. You can do it. You will do it. This week.

Use these thoughts if you need counter action:

• I'm doing this because I know it will feel good, eventually.
• Though I think this is pointless now, it's not pointless to use a body if I have one.
• I hate this now, but this now is not forever.
• I can be a runner and a walker.
• Everyone with working legs and feet can be a runner. And some other people.
• I may look ridiculous. Who cares?
• There's no dignity in running. Dignity is overrated.
• I'm too old to start running. It's never too late to get healthy.
• This is hard. And I get stronger by the minute.

Sunday!

A great day for a brisk 30 min walk.

About the challenges

I need to get myself an extra Nike+ kit to train with you. I'll get the Nike+ widget up sometime next week. Park your cars. Get moving.

Before and after

My evening 5k.

It was so good. I wanted to take pictures with my phone but they came out terrible.

You get this instead. A reverse before and after compared to fashion mags.

Before: Calm with clean hair. Showing the "I come in peace" sign.

After: Red, sweaty, blotchy, happy.

Also!

I've decided to follow five of you more closely and feature you here. Are you up for it? Gillian? Elaine? Bebe? Lindsay? Mademoiselle Oulla?

ps. The rest of you will be featured on "Meet the runners". Unless you object.

About treadmills

There's nothing wrong in starting to run on a treadmill. When I started out, the treadmill was my best friend with its friendly little lights and stats. The week still has not passed. HAve you managed to get your 3 x 30 min workouts in?

love

-e

Winter worriers

Quit being a winter worrier, think of yourself as a winter warrior instead. Plus, don't let worries about winter cloud one of the year's most fantastic seasons - my personal favorite -fall.

We ran through all of winter. It kept us sane and in good spirits. Wherever you live, I doubt it's as gloomy as winter in Sweden.

November

December

January

February

A word on joining this group

You don't have to apply anywhere. You're already in. I'll keep posting stuff here, all you have to do is read (and move your body).

Come next week, I'll start our first challenge.

I'll tell you how to join then. Don't worry about this just yet. Just get out there and get moving.

I can't stress this enough: finding the time and getting used to getting out on the trail or on your treadmill is the biggest obstacle. Everything else has a way of sorting itself out.

So, how are you doing?

And who are you? I'd love pictures of you or the place where you run (mail emi@lovegun.net, mark subject:rookie) Are you there? Are you getting your three half hours?

ps. I still think I might cover one rookie up close. Just haven't decided who yet. You're all very interesting.

Love

-e

What you'll need

• The Nike+ kit and a Nano, iPhone or iPod touch
• A good sports bra.
• Running tights. I hear your protests - you look big in them, you're not comfortable wearing them. Bla bla bla. You know what I say? Get them. I believe one of the most effective ways to stop women from reaching their running potential is our own tendancy to wear sweatpants on workouts. Don't do it. There's enough to fight when getting your running going without adding excess textile material to the list.
• Good shoes.
• Running socks. They are expensive, but work in a ritual way. You should wear them only when running. They signal that you take this as seriously as you should.
• Personally, I also wear (and swear by my) orthotics. If you have bunions or any kind of knee/foot/back problems it could be a good idea to see an orthopedist before you start running for real.
• If you're a man, chances are great that you think you'll need a Garmin 405 as well. But so far, only women have signed up for this thing.

Yes this is a lot. But it's an investment in yourself.

A more personal welcome

Welcome Rhea, Bebe, Allison, Christine, Claire, Elaine, Grace, Jacqueline, Jen, Gillian, Kelley, Laura, Lindsay, Mademoiselle Oulla, Marian, Mary Ellen, Megan, Molly, Pinar, Rachael, Shannon, Split Cookie, Sue, Tina, Tove and Zoe!

Please let me know if I missed out on anyone.

Love

-e

On posting comments

Blogger has this weird thing that tells you it doesn't work when you try to post a comment. Insist. Persist. You will get through.

Getting to know you

Hi people, welcome, so glad to have you here!

I used to be you, a little more than a year ago. I know what it's like not to run and to not even fathom how other people can run so far and so fast and so often. It took me 37 years and a lot of willpower to run my first 1 kilometer without stopping. (That's a little more than half a mile for you who aren't yet down with the kilometers. You will be, or use an on-line conversion tool.)

I still think and say that the first kilometer is the hardest. It's the hardest unit to master running and it's the hardest unit for every subsequent run. Don't let that stop you. Beat that kilometer.

First week, this is what you'll need:

The Nike+ equipment. The little pod and the thing that you put on your nano.

YOU DON'T NEED NIKE SHOES. Just put the little bean in one of those things you can buy online or in a sports store.

Make sure you have ok shoes.

Register your profile at Nike+.

This first week, I don't want you to run. I want you to get out and just walk for half an hour. Three times this week. Make room for it. I find it's easiest to get time in the morning, before work. I sometimes get up before the kids. The important thing is to find the time and get your self and others used to the fact that you now take a measly 30 minutes here and there to take care of yourself and enjoy the world and your body.

Your challenge will start next week, on Monday September 21.

Disclaimer:

I'm not a doctor or professional athlete. I'm a cheerleader, here to boast your motivation. To prevent injuries, it might be a great idea to see an orthopedist or at least go to a runner's store and have your pronation and stride checked before you get started.

Ps. I just completed my 1000th km. No joke. It might be you too in a year or two.