While I enjoy those relaxing runs that feel fantastic from the first step, I’ve come to realize that if not for hard workouts, I probably would not love running so much.
Don’t mistake me: running at any effort is a gift, a joy. But there’s something fulfilling about those runs that make you feel the scorching sensation of hard effort your lungs and your legs. Part of what brings me joy in running are the workouts and races the produce discomfort.
The temptation always exists to avoid suffering. In many ways, avoiding suffering is vital to our survival. But in many areas of life, avoiding mental and physical discomfort stunts growth. Suffering itself may not be good, but it certainly produces goods of character, fitness, achievement, livelihood, and more in our lives.
This truth is particularly salient in the world of running, training, and racing. You will not see many improvements if you remain within the tight circle of your comfort zone.
Hard workouts – long runs, speed intervals, hill repeats, tempo runs – force the mind and body out of the comfort zone. There’s nothing pleasant about the labored breathing, burning muscles, and mental focus that these workouts demand.
Yet for all the suffering, for all the discomfort and ache, hard workouts offer great rewards.
These workouts teach you to embrace that burning, unsettling discomfort that sets into your muscles. They teach you how to overcome the part of your mind that begs you to slow down or stop.
I can tell you all about the physiological benefits of doing speed work, even in marathon training. But those benefits only scratch the surface of what you will gain in terms of character and mental strength when you embrace hard runs in all their sweaty and uncomfortable fullness.
Over one year had passed since I last ran 5K-paced mile repeats. I had done 10K paced mile repeats in half marathon training, but there’s quite a difference between 5 x 1 mile at 10K pace and 3 x 1 mile at 5K pace. As a distance runner, 5K pace is naturally a bit terrifying. That’s really unpleasantly fast for someone who prefers to run long and steady.
Not only is it fast, but we can all attest that a mile can be quite a far distance when pushing the pace.
The last time I did a 3 x 1 mile workout was during Hansons marathon training. I did that workout on the treadmill because I was worried about hitting the paces. In fact, during that training cycle I did all of my VO2max workouts/5K pace workouts on the treadmill. I was worried about not hitting paces and wanted an easy way to quit if the workout went poorly.
As of recently, I’ve been focusing more on tuning into my effort and doing hard workouts on the roads for an accurate reflection on my fitness.
Since you set the pace on the treadmill, you can either set it too hard and force your way through the intervals, or set it too low because you doubt your ability. And, honestly, it often is biomechanically more difficult to run fast on the treadmill. The belt length alters your stride rate and length and the hamster wheel effect takes a mental toll.
That doesn’t mean that speed intervals are any easier on the road. But they’re not supposed to be easy – they are supposed to burn your lungs and your legs and make you force yourself to keep pushing hard when the alternative of slowing down sounds much more appealing.
Mile repeats are even more arduous when the wind pushes you back, adding resistance to each step. Speed work outdoors means speed work in the elements. In the places I’ve lived and run (northwest Indiana, Saint Louis, and now the Seattle area), these elements include humidity, wind, and rain. Humidity, wind, and rain all slow you down, all make the challenge of a speed workout even more physically demanding and mentally taxing.
These mile repeats were not easy; if they had been, I would have been running them wrong. The wind fought against me and I fought to sustain that hard effort for just less than 7 minutes, only to run hard again and again once my breathing calmed.
But at the end of the run, as always, I was grateful that I had done the challenging workout, that I had endured and embraced the discomfort of mile repeats.
And if you’re been avoiding hard runs, I encourage you to embrace their discomfort.
It’s an often repeated cliche, but it’s appropriate: running serves as a teacher of life’s lessons for many of us.
Physical discomfort can be a good in our lives: it teaches us grit, patience, perseverance, resilience, and even compassion. We learn to get mentally comfortable with being physically uncomfortable. We learn that hard work bears rewards. And we learn how to better relate to others, because those hard workouts are a common runner experience, whether you have been running for one month or fifty years.
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Linking up with Thinking Out Loud!
What types of runs intimidate you the most?
How do you cope with discomfort during a run?
24 Responses
Hills. Hill runs totally intimidate. To stop psyching myself out just looking at a hill I’m about to run I started using mantras aka talking myself through every step of the way.
Great post!
Thank you! Hills are intimidating to see looming in the distance on a run!
I think the more often I run a hard/fast run, the better I get at dealing with it! I have sort of learned that I can get through them which makes it slightly easier mentally when in am in the middle of one of those runs
I agree! It’s a habit that gets easier with time – both mentally and physically!
My goal this winter, since I won’t be able to run as long as I would like (aka marathon training) is to work a little bit on my speed again. I probably won’t be able to really work on it (for the same reasons that i won’t be marathon training), but I would love to get back at least a little bit of what I have lost! And that means hard runs, baby.
Easier said than done, as we all know!
Easier said than done, but they get easier the more you get them done as we know as well! I think that sounds like a good plan for you for this fall and winter!
For me the most intimidating workouts are goal pace tempo runs. Ironically this is probably the most important run of training and sometimes the ones we dread are the workouts we really need the most. I do a lot of mine on the treadmill mainly because it’s so hot here that I just can’t hit the paces in 90 degree weather… but each time I do it and it increases in distance, I get a confidence boost that I might be able to run that pace or at least close to it when my goal race comes. Sure it’s hard but I feel very accomplished a fter and it makes me really appreciate easier days.
Oh I agree! The workouts that we dread are working on areas of weakness and making us stronger! It’s beneficial to get out of that comfort zone.
I dislike temp runs. Intervals and hills are fun because the suffering happening then you get a break before it starts again!
That is true! Funny enough, I find those breaks hard – once I slow down it’s tempting to stay slow!
“That’s really unpleasantly fast” re 5k pace runs. HA HA! I love how you sound so sweet about it. The 5k is stomach churning fast that is all about keeping down the puke spray! But yeah, I mean we need to incorporate all types of running in our program if we want to see improvement, for sure! Pain is a sign of growth.
Lol that’s probably because we’ve been on Dr. Who kick again and British forms of speech are sneaking into my mind as I write. Stomach churning is another way to put it. Whenever I see 5K races in the afternoon I wonder how people can run that fast with so much of a day’s worth of food on their stomach.
I am definitely coming at this from a different perspective, because lately pretty much all of my runs have felt hard. Yesterday was the first time I went out and ran 3 miles and it felt sort of easy, like I could have kept going. I miss being able to differentiate between those nice, relaxing easy runs and the challenging workouts!
I think that’s one of the hardest parts about coming back from injury – things feel so hard all over. But there’s still something good about working hard through even those easy runs – and it will pay off!
The really long (10+ miles) intimidate me every time, but I always tell myself to mentally break it up in smaller chunks and focus on that distance.
I also always look forward to intervals, because it seems like there is more ‘happening’ on your run… until I realize how “tough” the tempo parts can be. But yeah, nothing is ever gained from your comfort zone.
Just the push I needed to suck it up and go do my mile repeats tonight.
Good! From your blog post it sounds like the mile repeats went well!
Love your message here, and changing our mindset. I think we all dread those hard runs and workouts, but instead, appreciating them for what they are, and for making us better and more prepared!
Thank you! Mindset accounts for so much in running.
I actually love speedwork, while tempo runs are the most mentally challenging. I’d rather push hard for a short amount of time than moderately hard for a longer time. I bet there is a quiz out there somewhere that explains a runner’s personality based on which kind of hard they prefer…
A quiz like that would be awesome! There definitely are personality types that gravitate towards marathon, trail races, 5Ks, etc.
After reading your post, I make a plan to run now. That sounds wonderful. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you very for your useful post. I am going to make a new running plan. I have not had a good plan for work out so I feel my training is not really effective until now.
Thank you!