6 Reasons Why Running is So Hard

If you’ve ever felt that running is difficult, you are not alone. Almost all runners, whether novices or seasoned athletes, have difficulties occasionally.

And while though the science of running is quite simple (you lift your entire body weight and move ahead with each stride), there are many things that might occasionally make your experience unpleasant.

Why does running eventually get challenging?

Strengthening your muscles, cardiovascular system, and mind are all aspects of running’s physics. Even though some runners believe that running is easy when they first start out, there are times when it actually gets fairly difficult.

And not knowing why you’re having trouble jogging at the moment can be frustrating. Let’s clarify this for you, and if you discover something that resonates, that’s great.

What are a few of the challenges of running?

At some time during a three-mile run, we have all slowed down to jogging. Here are some of the causes why you’re training became challenging at some point.

1. Physical fatigue

Running works out the entire body, and the cumulative effects of the wear and tear on various joints are significant. Therefore, it’s crucial to set aside a day or two each week to relax and let your body heal. This is after all where the magic happens.

Everybody needs varying amounts of rest; for elite runners, one day per week is sufficient for your body to recover. Beginner runners frequently run every day, which increases their run time quickly, but after a while, weariness sets in and causes slumps and injuries.

The best strategy to prevent fatigue is to plan adequate rest days into your weekly training schedule (be sure to account for your daily stress and activity as well). Monitoring your heart rate and keeping track of your exertion levels is a wonderful method to achieve this. Most running watches and activity trackers now offer this for you, so if you struggle with weariness and burnout, it might be worth the investment.

2. Insufficient Sleep

You are not receiving enough time to relax and recover, which is one of the reasons for running. A simple route that gets harder and harder is frequently a sign that you have not fully recovered from a workout.

When in reality we should be soaking up the rest and recovery portion of our training schedules, we frequently use rest days to make up for lost or wasted time.

Sleeping patterns are one area that is both simple to miss and challenging to improve. For runners, getting adequate sleep is essential.

3. Reduce your competitiveness

If we are running a familiar track that we have timed in the past, we find ourselves racing against ourselves. Even worse is when we compete against whoever we are running with.

When RUNNING with friends, sometimes our egos get tied up in a chest puffing contest, which causes the pace to pick up as the run goes on.

The tenacious runner in you emerges before you know it, and you continue to stand your ground until you are both sprinting. Ironically, it tends to be the more courageous of the two of you who eventually backs off or says anything.

Naturally, this is invariably followed by a “you started it” finger-pointing exchange.

Try to be the bigger person the next time you see this happening and take a step back; they’ll probably be glad you did!

4. Consist of cross-training

Running might be challenging at times because we lack the strength or stamina to keep up the action for as long as we would like. Focusing on including strength- or cross-training activities into your weekly training can increase not only your physical strength, but also the efficiency of your heart and lungs.

Any training program should include cross-training because it will help you avoid injuries as your mileage rises. If you suddenly find that running is difficult, you may want to increase your cross-training while keeping your mileage down until it becomes less difficult.

5. Don’t forget to take breaks.

You may not be receiving enough rest or recuperation time, which could be another factor contributing to how challenging running feels right now. Running seems difficult when we haven’t fully recovered from the previous run or session, which is frequently the case.

It’s simple to get carried away with the novelty of a new training schedule or to exploit those downtimes to make up for lost mileage in the beginning. For your body to recuperate, it’s important to keep at least one rest day per week if jogging is difficult for you.

6. Get ready by warming up

Many novice runners neglect to warm up, which is an essential part of jogging. Before jogging, warming up your muscles will assist them become more flexible and prepared.

Sometimes the first few minutes of a run are so challenging that we give up or become disheartened right away. Usually, though, all we need to do to prevent this is take a short while to get our bodies and minds ready for the run.