Menu
Expat.com

Running or jogging

Last activity 01 September 2018 by egalex

Post new topic

cam3ronB18

Hi! For those who run and jog for leisure or sport, how? I'd really like to know how you motivate yourself on running.

Priscilla

Hi cam3ronB18,

Your topic has been moved to the Expat Cafe - open discussions forum.

Thanks,

Priscilla
Expat.com team  :cheers:

SimCityAT

Walking... Running and jogging is to much hard work for me ;)

Sunnylandsg

Well, go MacRitchie Reservoir to have a stroll or jog!
Let the green lungs freshen you up!
@SunnyLandSG

Ribosom

I started running about two years ago with a sole purpose to get rid of the extra weight I gained due to sedentary lifestyle.

People have been telling me that running is like a drug, invited me to organised events and such, but even after a year I still did not buy it. :)) I was able to run a half-marathon at that point.

Anyway, it worked. What is motivating me is the fact that I do feel better when I run and I consider it a "me" time with my headphones on and that helps mentally as well. My old clothes fits again too.

As an added bonus I got to know a lot of people in the neighbourhood and most of them know me as "that weird guy who runs while no one is chasing him".

Kayincasa

I just started jogging and I am loving it so far... Unfortunately because I live in Casablanca, I haven't found a good place to go for a run. If anyone from Casablanca sees, please suggest any good places to go for a jog.

cam3ronB18

I was thinking of the same thing lol too lazy

cam3ronB18

This is truly inspiring! I figured that it is the healthiest thing I can do without investing so much (like going to the gym having a trainer). I'm really putting this into consideration, thank you so much and have a nice day today!

cam3ronB18

Yes! I hope everything goes well for you, looking to do the same and actually buy a running shoe to get really motivated!

cam3ronB18

Priscilla wrote:

Hi cam3ronB18,

Your topic has been moved to the Expat Cafe - open discussions forum.

Thanks,

Priscilla
Expat.com team  :cheers:


Thanks! Sorry for being troublesome.

Ribosom

cam3ronB18 wrote:

Yes! I hope everything goes well for you, looking to do the same and actually buy a running shoe to get really motivated!


Yes, good thing about running is that you don't need much to start. Make sure you get a good pair of running shoes. Also an important advice: if you are starting from "couch potato" level as most of us do, don't make a common mistake and overdo it, as you will quickly lose interest and injure yourself. I used one of the running apps with the appropriate beginner training plan. First session is literally running for one minute, walking for two minute intervals. Start gently. In 6-8 weeks you will be able to run 10k easily. Actually one of the big motivators is that you can see the progress day after day and that keeps you moving forward.

Good luck! :)

cam3ronB18

Wow! Thanks for the awesome tip, I really have to agree on not spending much to get started with running. I'll surely take it slowly and will try to leverage it higher everyday. I'll also look for some effective stretching or if you have a staple routine for it I'd love to hear from you. Thank you so much again, and I really appreciate it!

Ribosom

I didn't do much of a preparation, which is probably not ideal, but I had no problems either. It is more important to stretch after the run. This year I was planning to introduce a bit of body weight exercise combined with running as there is a plateau that I reach with running only (as most other people eventually will). Anyway, experiment and see what works for you best, and remember - if I could run in a desert country, so can you wherever you are. :)

backhomeagain

Great topic.
I began running about 8 years ago to get in shape for softball season when i was in North Carolina. I take my sports seriously.
What started out as just a jog after a short period of time turned into a steady run.  Heart pumping, and running where you are not able to have a conversation because you first need to breath. That's what i call running.
Jogging you can talk and have a conversation with someone at the same time.

I stand 5' 8" tall and when i began I was a whopping 220 lbs. It wasn't pretty believe you me....lol Over the next 14 months I lost  30 lbs and dropped to 190.  Much better....lol  I went from a 40" waist to a 36" again.  Toady i keep at 185 by continuing to run.

If that's not a motivating factor I don't know what is. It's become a routine in my mornings.  I'm not interested in running marathons nor 5ks but run a mile or 2 every day depending on how i feel. yes, that's 7 days a week.
My health has been great., and even my golf game which I've not played since moving to the DR improved drastically. I miss my golf buddies back in the states. This is not a country where most every one plays golf. as a matter of fact? This is not a country where most everyone runs. most do that slow casual walk. whatever works is fine I guess. As for me? move out the way I'm coming through.......lol

Ribosom

I am eagerly awaiting for the temperatures outside to go down a bit as I decided not to run if the heat out there is above 35 degrees Celsius as it is now, even in the evening. Some people are still out there running, bit it can't be healthy. Or am I wrong?

Glad to hear it works for you too. Science says that 20 minutes of physical activity per day is enough to keep everyone in healthy shape, but nowadays there are many of us that don't even manage to do that much. Tragic. :)

backhomeagain

Recently I was reading an article that said that 15 minutes per day of some kind of exercise will increase your life expectancy by 3 years.
The more time you spend doing some kind of strenuous exercise including walking the number goes up slightly. I can't see it being wrong, as your body and how you feel tells you so.

GuestPoster86934

where exactly  do you live in casablanca ? if you are near barnoussi there a place called caplam , where people can run and do diffrent sport , if you are in other place just tell me and i will tell you where you can go

carpedianne

Personally? I just have bad body image issues and my years of lifting weights (1.5 to 2 hours a day for 5 - 7 days a week) were not helping me lose weight fast enough so I actually first pursued spin cycling to add an hour of cardio. It worked for a while until I started to plateau again so I moved to ellipticals before accepting that I needed to include running/jogging in my daily exercise.

At first, 5 minutes was torture, but I hated myself enough to push to 10; then I got to 15 so I kept going because I knew I needed to go further. A part of me wanted to see how far I could push my body, but another part honestly thought I just had to b/c I must not be doing enough to lose weight. That was my motivation (it helps to have a dog you need to exercise too) so I kept going longer until recently I was able to run for a full hour.

Now, I actually feel unaccomplished or lazy when I can't get a good sweat, which is making the move here to Munich so much harder.

I wouldn't recommend my process, but it's what worked for me.

backhomeagain

On a good note, you did find what works for you. far too many quit and give up on finding that which makes them achieve in whatever manner, their goal. be it weight lose, healthier more energetic lifestyle, or simply to get into those cloths that we just never seem to throw away. They are our  HOPE that one day, maybe one day, we'finally will get serious enough to wear them once again.  It's always that pair of jeans. I think for women it's that little black dress................lol

cam3ronB18

Thank you so much! I really think that I'll have to start sooner despite the ample stretching. I will have to wing it, but at least I could start already and that's already a big step to take on my part :)

cam3ronB18

backhomeagain wrote:

Great topic.
I began running about 8 years ago to get in shape for softball season when i was in North Carolina. I take my sports seriously.
What started out as just a jog after a short period of time turned into a steady run.  Heart pumping, and running where you are not able to have a conversation because you first need to breath. That's what i call running.
Jogging you can talk and have a conversation with someone at the same time.

I stand 5' 8" tall and when i began I was a whopping 220 lbs. It wasn't pretty believe you me....lol Over the next 14 months I lost  30 lbs and dropped to 190.  Much better....lol  I went from a 40" waist to a 36" again.  Toady i keep at 185 by continuing to run.

If that's not a motivating factor I don't know what is. It's become a routine in my mornings.  I'm not interested in running marathons nor 5ks but run a mile or 2 every day depending on how i feel. yes, that's 7 days a week.
My health has been great., and even my golf game which I've not played since moving to the DR improved drastically. I miss my golf buddies back in the states. This is not a country where most every one plays golf. as a matter of fact? This is not a country where most everyone runs. most do that slow casual walk. whatever works is fine I guess. As for me? move out the way I'm coming through.......lol


Wow, this is really one of those posts that makes me more eager to run and start immediately! I admire your love and passion for the sport and I wish to have the same vigor when I try and start my own journey. I also love the fact that you wonderfully distinguished a jog and a run.

A follow up question, why won't you run on marathons? Because for my part, I'm thinking of doing marathon as a form of motivation as well! Treating my daily morning run as training may help me deal with the massive sluggishness and laziness I have. Furthermore, I think, well for most of the time, the marathon will kinda give  me a new refreshing feeling. Like I am in a competition and I am truly part of something bigger than myself. That's my goal this year I guess, at least run a 5km marathon and prove myself hehe

cam3ronB18

Another follow up question on my original question, would you run on a marathon? Why or why not?

cam3ronB18

Thank you so much for sharing your process! I really appreciate it and thanks for opening up about your body image. I think you still look great despite that and good luck on your personal journey! I also peeked on your profile and I too love anime so much and harry potter too! Cheers, potterhead!

Genahoney

Jogging:)

backhomeagain

cam3ronB18 Today 02:34:02 Report #21
Wow, this is really one of those posts that makes me more eager to run and start immediately! I admire your love and passion for the sport and I wish to have the same vigor when I try and start my own journey. I also love the fact that you wonderfully distinguished a jog and a run.

A follow up question, why won't you run on marathons? Because for my part, I'm thinking of doing marathon as a form of motivation as well! Treating my daily morning run as training may help me deal with the massive sluggishness and laziness I have. Furthermore, I think, well for most of the time, the marathon will kinda give  me a new refreshing feeling. Like I am in a competition and I am truly part of something bigger than myself. That's my goal this year I guess, at least run a 5km marathon and prove myself hehe

Cam, I'm glad you agree with my description between a  run and jog.  They   are definitely different. I run for my health. nothing more, nothing less. The fact truly is that after all these years of running, and yes there are times when i do jog as well but mostly i run. After all these years I have come to enjoy my time alone every morning. I like to hear my heart pumping as I push myself to go that other mile when my calves are burning, and my brain is saying, " OK! quit now!

There was a time when I had met someone who was a tri-athlete, and for a brief moment in time i thought I'd join her in this adventure. She ran what they call Sprint triathlons, and at the time I thought " Geez I can do this"
Sprint triathlons are a short version of a triathlon. It's becoming quite popular in the States. YOU start out with a quarter mile swim, after which you come out of the water and jump into riding shoes and grab your bike while still in a semi jog, per say, and ride your bike for 12.5 miles. Upon completion of this leg of the race you then jump off your bike and take off your bike riding shoes and now into running shoes. You then run a 5k which is 3.2 miles to the finish line
Now stay with me. There is a catch. The catch is you must do all three sections of the race and complete the entire course within 2 hours or you are disqualified.
I swore, and convince myself that I could do this and on top of that "BEAT HER BEST TIME." yeah right! her best time was 1 hour 42 minutes.
I began training, and even picked out a sprint triathlon to run in October of 2017 in a neighboring town. I started training in April 2017. In July of that same year I gave up my quest to even dare beat her time or even run such a race. I've watched her run many but as for me? I could never get my training under the 2 hour time limit.
Here is the lesson I learned. You have to know your limitations. I stick to my running because I can, and I enjoy it. I have no doubt that I would have, after I don't know how long, been able to get my time under the 2 hour limit. What I was not interested in doing, was devoting my time to train to get there.
I run without head phones or music to get my mind off the burning of my calves. I run because I love my alone time and more times than  not. I pray while doing so.

I commend you for wanting to begin running. Start as a jog and before long your body will demand more out of you. Jogging will become boring as it did for me, and then the pushing started.  Good luck. keep us all posted on your journey.

Shajanas Abdul

Running

stumpy

My old bones do not like either, but do go walking each day depending on the weather.

SimCityAT

stumpy wrote:

My old bones do not like either, but do go walking each day depending on the weather.


I tend to walk everywhere and find I'm more healthy than doing a run or a jog. Plus I get to see lovely scenery. I would miss that if I ran.

Ribosom

cam3ronB18 wrote:

Another follow up question on my original question, would you run on a marathon? Why or why not?


Would I run 42 kilometers? Yes.
Would I participate in an organized marathon event? No.

I guess I don't see any benefits in not running alone. I am competing against myself only.

stumpy

I do find that speeding up my walking pace increases my heart rate which is good. Then keep it raised for at least 20 minutes.

'Gotta keep the old pump in good working order'  :top:

cam3ronB18

Thank you for all the wonderful responses! I managed to start today, I bought some running shoes over the weekend. I managed to jog, then run for almost an hour today. I can say that it was no less than 5km and I feel really alive. The perspiration and the throbbing heart makes me feel truly alive. It was a quick session this morning and now my feed are kinda sore, especially the legs. But since this is the first day, I am expecting it. Cheers to everyone! Have a great week's start.

cam3ronB18

Skipped one day yesterday, tried running again today but haven't have the same pace as my first day! I need some consistencies. Have a great day everyone

Ribosom

You should not run every single day. Rest periods are very important.

kojidae

I have found running in different countries/cities vastly different. In the US, I never got a second glance, whether I was on a street, trail, anytime of day or night.

In Bulgaria I trained for my first two marathons. There, people thought I was crazy, but that might just be because I was in a village. Old women would stop me to chat, and usually load me up with vegetables from their garden on my way home.

Then I moved to Istanbul and my running tanked. I just couldn't find a good place to run where I felt both safe and wasn't super crowded. I ended up having to run on a track at the university I was going to. Have you ever ran around a track for two hours? No fun.

Ribosom

In Kuwait a taxi driver stopped to ask me if I need a lift while I was running.

cam3ronB18

kojidae wrote:

I have found running in different countries/cities vastly different. In the US, I never got a second glance, whether I was on a street, trail, anytime of day or night.

In Bulgaria I trained for my first two marathons. There, people thought I was crazy, but that might just be because I was in a village. Old women would stop me to chat, and usually load me up with vegetables from their garden on my way home.

Then I moved to Istanbul and my running tanked. I just couldn't find a good place to run where I felt both safe and wasn't super crowded. I ended up having to run on a track at the university I was going to. Have you ever ran around a track for two hours? No fun.


Man, thank you for the insight! This has been an eye opener and it is true that running will definitely vary on the place you live in. I am also trying to run and overcome the social awkwardness and anxiety that I feel every time I run. I should also try running on an oval at the nearby university. Thanks again good Sir! Have a nice day!

cam3ronB18

Been running for 4 days straight today and I feel relatively light. I don't know how to explain it, but I feel light of a sudden lol It has been a great experience and I'll probably take a break tomorrow. Thank you guys so much!

Oludee

Would really like to start running as well. I am in Bucharest. Also trying to get over the mindset of 'where am i running to' and 'who is chasing me'?

Thanks all!

carpedianne

I know that feeling well, especially when running on a treadmill. I always had to run to a specific location for a long while until I found the joy of multi-tasking, watching Netflix while running on a treadmill.

Fes00

Hi

I dont know is it far or not but you may have your training at the cost of bagdat street

Articles to help you in your expat project

  • Leisure in Italy
    Leisure in Italy

    Living in Italy also means benefiting from a multitude of leisure activities. Between museums, art cities, ...

  • Leisure activities in Taiwan
    Leisure activities in Taiwan

    Taiwan has a lot to offer to travelers as well as expats when it comes to leisure. There are activities throughout ...

  • Leisure activities in Greece
    Leisure activities in Greece

    Greece has a rich culture and gastronomy scene, along with drinking, as well as plenty of things to see and learn, ...

  • Leisure activities in Mauritius
    Leisure activities in Mauritius

    Mauritius is a lot of things, but it is not dull! You'll always find something interesting to do, whether by the ...

  • The Omani lifestyle
    The Omani lifestyle

    Before moving to Oman, people should be aware of the local lifestyle. The Omani way of life is a unique blend of ...

  • American cuisine
    American cuisine

    The United States is a culinary melting pot, with cuisine as diverse as its people. While America does have a ...

  • Things to do in Türkiye
    Things to do in Türkiye

    You are in for a treat if you are in Türkiye as an expat. There are lots of different leisure opportunities ...

  • Leisure in Japan
    Leisure in Japan

    What can you do during your free time in Japan? Let's not talk about tourist attractions here but about ...

All guide articles