[blacksoil]

I'm so happy to read this post. I also wanna testify on how amazing running is. For me personally, it changed my mood drastically. I was in the moment when things felt very gloomy and depressed: I didn't feel like doing anything, activities that were supposedly fun didn't seem like one, I didn't feel like going out to socialize, etc. Then I started running and it was amazing how it changed my life. After a run, I always felt very energetic and much happier. I liked it so much that initially I couldn't even do 3K without stopping, slowly and surely I kept practicing until I could do an 18K marathon. Perhaps this wasn't a huge accomplishment for many people, but considering how unfit and inconsistent of a person I had been, this was a feat for me.

Not only the endorphin produced during a run helped out with moods and balancing out hormones in the body, it also taught me a very important lesson about consistency and how life in general is never about competing with anybody but ourselves.

For those who are interested to start running, follow your own comfortable pace. Although it might seem very slow at first, don't push yourself too much cos if you do so, it wouldn't be enjoyable and you wouldn't feel like running again. Just keep doing it consistently it at the pace you're comfortable with. Before you realize it, you'll be much fitter than you started with :)

[frereubu]

I'd like to reiterate the advice to go slowly at first, both from first- and second-hand experience. I know an ex-addict friend who was trying to improve his fitness after years of neglecting it and tried running. He always came back five / ten minutes later completely destroyed, feeling humiliated about his lack of ability. Took a while to figure out that he was trying to sprint for as long as he could as soon as he left the door, which of course meant that his body gave up almost immediately.

I used the free NHS / BBC Couch To 5K app - https://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/couch-to-5k.aspx - which gives you a good framework to pace yourself (you start with alternating periods of walking and running) and has voiceovers from Michael Johnson, as well as a few others. There are other C25K apps out there, but they tend to be paid - this one is simple and works well. It was amusing how motivating I found him saying "you're doing really well" despite knowing this was probably recorded a few years ago in breaks between Olympic commentary for the BBC.