Born to run? How running can help with mental health issues and anxiety

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Exercise has always been a great help in managing my long term depression and anxiety issues. 

I love my weekly pilates class, leisurely swimming in the sea in the summer, walking in nature and occasional horse riding lessons. I have also tried yoga, tai-chi and going to the gym over the years to vary my exercise routine and keep it interesting and challenging. 


One activity that always remained a mystery to me was running. 


I must admit that I never understood the appeal and that I looked upon all the lycra wearing runners in parks, on the seafront or on treadmills with a bit of puzzlement. 


Where they really enjoying running around like hamsters in a wheel? Being all sweaty and often visibly out of breath on sunny days for everyone to see? none of that looked comfortable or enjoyable to me and I often found myself muttering ‘show off’ as they passed me by…


To my surprise I made the decision in January this year to finally try that running thing. 


I got myself a pair of decent trainers and I downloaded the Couch to 5K NHS app because as a middle aged woman and as a novice I did not want to risk injury and because I hoped the app would give me some much needed motivation and advice. 


The app aim is to get you to run 5k in 30 minutes through following a 9 week programme with 3 weekly runs. Starting slowly with short runs and periods of walking to rest and building up to running for 30 minutes straight. 


Running for 30 minutes seemed impossible to me as I even struggled in the beginning with running for a couple of minutes without feeling my chest was going to explode and my legs were made of stone, unwilling to move…


But then something happened and I started looking forward to the runs because it gave me a way to clear my head and I could feel work stresses for example ebb away if I did my runs during my lunch break. 


I quickly learned the importance of stretching before and after a run to avoid injury and of walking for 5 minutes before and after the run to cool off. 


To motivate myself further I decided that one of my goal would be able to do a 30 minute run on the seafront looking at the waves and listening to the seagulls as I ran. 


I followed the programme carefully and to my surprise my stamina improved over the weeks and I made it to the end of the programme completing all the runs and doing my final 30 minute run on the seafront on a sunny day as I had dreamed of. 


I also found that running increased my confidence. Over the 9 weeks, strangers would often give me a warm smile when I passed them on the pavement or the grass and some gave me words of encouragement. I was really self-conscious at the beginning about running in public and about my body. I started my runs wearing a wooly hat, bulky, dark clothing and feeling nervous when the park I ran in was busy. I finished the programme wearing a shocking pink tee shirt, with my head high and a smile on my face! 


I am now planning to continue running 3 times a week. 


So maybe, I was indeed born to run after all…

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