At the beginning of the COVID pandemic, when most outdoor activities began to close. I had decided to take up running. For those who know me, I have always disliked running and was never ‘good’ at it. Like any goal, I knew I had to start small. What was most important to me was setting a time and date to start. I would prepare my running gear the night prior and set the distance the night prior. I had started at 1KM. The net week 2KM, the next 3KM until I reach 5KM. From there I started running 5KM more consistently, until I started to try to beat my time from the previous run. After that, I started adding another kilometer each run, until one day I hit 11KM!
My goal for 2021 was to run a 5KM and a 10KM each month, yes starting in January.
Here’s how I do it:
- Prepare all gear and music the night before, beside my bed and at the front door. This helps me have no other choice but to run as soon as I get up.
- Dress with technical clothing. I have both overdressed and underdressed in the middle of a -20 morning and it’s not comfortable.
- Set alarm 5 minutes before you want to get up. (I was up at 4:55 and am out the door by 5:15 latest)
- Drink a glass of water as soon as you wake up and one more before you go outside.
- Commit and track your progress. (I use Apple Watch and Strava to track my runs)
