[louprado]

Then forget exercise for now, just take a contemplative walk around the block. Perhaps do it right before breakfast and/or after dinner. It's easy and takes less than 10 minutes. Don't think of it as exercise and do it in any clothes and with any shoes. No excuses, anyone can walk around 1 block and everyone needs 10 private minutes to collect their thoughts.

Before you know it you'll find yourself walking around several blocks, then swinging your arms, then walking faster, then you may even start jogging. You'll feel motivated, you'll keep making progress, and most importantly, you'll actually look forward to your walks.

I followed the advice above and now run almost daily before sunrise. It has really boosted my self-esteem since I had always disliked running yet admired those people who run before sunrise. But if someone had told me to start by purchasing running clothes, finding the right running shoes, choosing a good running route, stretching for 10 minutes... forget it! However, I will make one recommendation. This mask is helpful on mornings when it is below 40F. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0796R1DPG . Please, start tomorrow morning and report back. :)

[seanp2k2]

I got into running, thinking that I wanted to try for a half-marathon. I actually worked up to the distance surprisingly quickly. I was under 30 at the time and it took like 2 months, and before that I wasn't running at all or doing any other exercise regularly. I started having some knee pain (flat feet don't help) and stopped after it became painful to run even a mile or two. About a year later, I fell on a skateboard on the same knee and injured my bursae. I fear that my running days are over, but it was kind of fun in a weird way after you get past ~mile 4. I still go mountain biking occasionally and enjoy long walks (on vacation I'll walk 15+ miles in a day).

[toasterlovin]

Something like 50% of runners get injured in a given year. It’s insane. Do something that’s easier on your body. If you want cardio, hike or bike. I like weight lifting, personally. If you want to try weight lifting, check out Starting Strength.

[sorenjan]

> Something like 50% of runners get injured in a given year.

That's because most people use bad technique and would probably benefit from strength training as well. Sitting all day and then expecting your body to run for 30-60 minutes and then sitting again will lead to high risk of injury. I see a lot of people run like they're walking with longer strides, or hunched over, or any number of bad habits. The feet should land under your center of mass, not in front of it, and the turnover should be pretty fast. Short and fast steps instead of long and slow. Don't run too fast, use your core for stability, and keep an upright posture, slightly leaned forward at the ankles.

Look up proper running form, do some drills, and add body weight strength training a couple of times each week if you're thinking of starting running.

[scns]

that is because most runners use padded shoes, which enable you to run in a totally unnatural way.

>this kind of collision leads to a rapid, high impact transient about 1.5 to as much as 3 times your body weight (depending on your speed) within 50 milliseconds of striking the ground (see graph a below).

>This is equivalent to someone hitting you on the heel with a hammer using 1.5 to as much as 3 times your body weight. These impacts add up, since you strike the ground almost 1000 times per mile!

taken from:

http://barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu/4BiomechanicsofFootSt...

It is impossible to run this way with undamped shoes or barefoot.

I recommend this book (not affiliated):

https://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hidden-Superathletes-Greates...

is really fun to read, it is about a indigenous tribe in mexico which run in sandals cut from old tires, for 24 or 48 hours straight. In there is a reference to another study where they found a correlation between cost of the shoe and the rate of injuries: more expensive shoes with better damping had higher rates of injuries, they weren't expecting this.

Our legs evolved to store the energy in our tendons and release it to propel us forward. A QUARTER of the bones in our body is in our feet! Humans evolved to be the best endurance runners on the planet, being "naked" (without fur) is actually an advantage for running, enabling us to cool down our bodies by sweating. There are still tribes hunting their prey by running after it for prolonged periods till it collapses from overheating. There are races for horses, humans started to compete in. Initially the runners where ridiculed but someday a human won the race.

[edejong]

And most importantly, don’t bereft your brain from useful feedback from your foot! Use thin (unpadded) rubber soles on your shoes. If your feet are getting painful, probably they are saying something useful about your knees as well.

[_volo]

No way. That's not true. I've been running for 10 years now. Never have I been injured. Also my friends did not suffer injuries neither. If you like lifting, that's fine. But that does not mean running is worse that lifting or that you could even compare them. It just means that you are used to lifting and you are rationalising your choice.

[toasterlovin]

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1439399/

37-56%. Literally the top result when I googled for “running injury rates”.

[EForEndeavour]

The 50% may or may not be true, but your personal experience says very little about that overall statistic.

[_volo]

Right, so it does.

[barry-cotter]

For anyone worried about knee injuries from running, or shin splints I can highly recommend weightlifting, in particular squats, as an auxiliary exercise. I kept on running, getting pains in my knees and resting for two weeks and then just doing it again. After six months (way longer than probably necessary) of progressively lifting higher weights I went back to running and I’m doing my first 50K next week, having done a 35K up and down mountains previously. My first run after the long period weightlifting I just decided to run a half marathon distance to see if I could. The muscle pain the next day was less than I often get from lifting.

[StavrosK]

I do tennis a few hours a week and my knees have started hurting after a period of summer inactivity. I'm thinking of taking up gym squats again, my knees never felt better than when I was squatting. I could effortlessly climb up stairs like it was nothing with just a few weeks of weightlifting, I need to get back on that (and recommend it to anyone).

[Waterluvian]

Thanks. I love how practical your advice is. Going to do this tomorrow. Maybe it'll even help align my sleep schedule. My wife is up at 6 and I always sleep in to 8.

[thirdsun]

Additional advice: Bring some headphones and listen to great music or continue your favorite podcasts. Time will fly if you add a soundtrack to your walk.