Me: After my run this morning…
New friend: Oh, you run?
Me: Well, if you use a liberal definition of the word “run”

I love running. I run four days during most weeks, mostly because it gives me a chance to leave my house consistently and because it dramatically improves my mental health. However, by almost any measure, I am slow. My average pace for a mile is about 15 minutes. For comparison, many people walk a mile in less than 15 minutes. When I have very long or very hot runs, it will be slower than that, and when I am doing shorter runs or speed runs, it is faster. But the fastest pace I have run during sprints is 7:30/mile, and many people can run an entire mile in less than 7:30.

For some, the logical conclusion to that might be that I am a bad runner. But I focus on improving my form, easing up when I need to, and pushing hard when I am supposed to. I love the training plans in the Nike Run Club app because I have learned to run intervals, tempo runs, recovery runs, and long runs. I have finished multiple races of a variety distances, including a marathon. I don’t think I’m an inherently bad runner; I’m just a slow one. 

For a long time, this was a source of insecurity until I started following some running accounts on Instagram. Scrolling through the comments, I saw one to the effect of “I don’t sign up for a half marathon with a 3 hour time limit because I can’t always finish in less than that.” That is a race pace of 14 minutes per mile, which is manageable even on the hills of San Francisco. For the first time I felt like I could include myself in a community of runners without the burden of insecurity around how slowly I ran. 

For those who are not runners but want to try, there’s no reason to carry that burden for any amount of time. Coach Bennett, who coaches many of the runs on the NRC app, says “The numbers on your watch don’t tell the story. They only tell how long and how far the story lasted.” Running is so much more than trying to go harder and faster every time you run. It’s about the joy and benefits that come from the run itself. The only thing you need to do in order to be a runner is to start running.

One of my favorite aspects of running is that the barriers to entry are relatively low. The most important piece of equipment you need is a pair of shoes. For a long time, I ran in a t-shirt and sweatpants I already owned. I set distance goals for myself and rewarded myself with new running clothes. At 100 miles, I got new shoes and then proper running leggings at 200 miles. By that time, it was an investment because I had demonstrated to myself that I was committed. But I didn’t need to start out with all the fancy things: I only needed to start running. (It didn’t matter how long it took me to run each of those miles. As long as I ran 3-5 times each week, I was eventually going to get to 100 more miles.)

In my experience, getting started is better than nothing at all. One of the biggest benefits I have seen when I run is how much it reduces my anxiety. When I start my day with a run, I am able to expend all the anxious energy that usually bounces around my head for the whole day. I can think through all worries that weigh me down, and I am ready to face the day by the time I return. I can sit and have an effective quiet time because my mind is able to calm after releasing the anxieties I wake with. 

If you are not a runner, one of the best things about starting is that it is easy to see improvement. I get faster as I learn the best routes to run around my house based on what type of run is scheduled for the day. I also get faster as I learn how to run, another place the NRC app is so helpful. I learned how to warm up properly, how to recover properly, and what it meant to run a progression run. The final one is most important for those of us who run slowly. It gives us permission to start even slower than we might naturally do at first. As you progress through the run, if you start slowly enough, you will continue to get faster, ending the run at your fastest pace – instead of having to quit early because you started too fast. Progression runs can be the most encouraging.

Another reason it can be so fun to start running is that everything is new. I thought the only way to run was just to run until you were too tired to run anymore. But there is a whole world of fun and exciting types of runs. Speed runs are great because they are not a huge time investment, and the rest day after one is precious. Tempo runs continue to be a mystery to me; I’m not sure I’ve ever done one correctly. Hill workouts are incredible, and athlete stories are like listening to inspiring podcasts while I run. When I first started out, I had no idea there was such a variety of options. It keeps each week exciting, and it’s easier to stay consistent when the task is exciting.

If you have considered running but talk yourself out of it because you’ll be slow when you start, start anyway. There’s nothing wrong with running slowly, and there are so many things right about it!