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A Creative (Male, San Francisco, 46-55, Administrative) answered: Screenname: betterbird
That is a laudable goal, and you can do it. I ran marathons 15 years back. Since it sounds like you are basically a beginning runner, here are a few suggestions.
Get a good quality pair of running shoes and other clothing that you will be comfortable in and feeling good about wearing. Start slow; set small goals. If you are running 15 minutes now, try to work up to 30 minutes. If you are out running and just feel like you're going lame, walk for a while. You are still getting good exercise, keeping your heart rate up, and you are training your body to keep going. In other words, it doesn't matter how slow you go, it's more important that you are out there on the streets or sidewalks for a set period of time, like 30 minutes. Once you've gotten comfortable with being out there walking/running for 30 minutes, up your time to, say, 45 minutes. By then, you are either going to love your running/jogging/walking routine, or else your body may be saying, enough's enough. If that is the case, find another activity. You won't stay with a training program if you just don't like doing the activity. I spent many years running about 45 minutes each night after work; for me that was about 5.5-6 miles. I tried to pick a route through safe, quiet residential streets, and I would stick to one route. That way I could gauge how my running was progressing. Later on, when I was comfortable running that length of time, I would time my runs. On a good night I might knock 1-2 minutes off my time. That's a good way to gauge how you are doing. Personally, I also enjoyed running on a track, say a high school or college 1/4 mile track. That way you can easily gauge how you feel after 20 laps, then 24, and so on. Some people think running around a track is boring; I found it quite meditative. Once you are comfortable running 45 minutes, you might try running a 10K race, or 6 1/4 miles. You'll be surprised how running with a group in a race helps boost your confidence and boosts your "pace". Feeling good at running a 10K is another plateau.
If this has been helpful and you want to read more, write me back and I'll tell you some things about next plateaus, like 10-mile runs. I applaud your efforts and I'll be rooting for you.
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