Should I go run slowly or not at all
I am a 19 year old male and recently restarted doing running after around one year. I am very thin and would like to become bigger and fatter.
Ocassionally (actually quite often), I feel tired and unmotivated to go running. But in order to keep the habit and the schedule going, I just go and run at a speed slower than I normally would run at. This way I follow the schedule but am not really doing the 100% training everyday.
Recently, I wondered whether it would be more beneficial for me to not go running at all the days I feel tired and unmotivated because when running slowly, my speed is much slower than my normal running speed. Maybe my body develops the habit of running at slow speed and so in long run my speed gradually decreases. Moreover, maybe resting the body will make me more faster for the future running sessions.
So my question is, should I stop running slowly and instead either go and do 100% training or not go at all.
(I run around 5-6 km 6 times a week)
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This comes from a girl, so please take with a grain of salt. You have said you want to become bigger and "fatter" - running won't help. I'm assuming you want muscle and not fat - you should put on lean muscle mass as opposed to just body fat. Drinking protein shakes can help you do that. To develop the muscle, you’ll need to strength train on a regular basis. Since strength training doesn’t burn many calories, it’s not likely to prevent you from gaining the weight you want, but it will help prevent your body from putting it all on as fat.
If you have several days in a row where you are tired and unmotivated, by all means take a day or two off. This is your body telling you that it needs a break.
If all it is, is that you feel tired because it was a long day at work, get out and go running.
Basically you just need to learn to listen to your body, and not your head. Your body will tell you when it needs a break, your head will almost always try to talk you out of getting out the door.
Running is a cumulative activity, where it's not so much going out and beating yourself into a pulp twice a week, but the day in, day out steady mileage that produces the best results. 6 days a week of slower running is better than 2 or 3 days of hammering it and then sitting around for a couple. (Depending on your goals, this is for endurance and general fitness. If you are sprint training, or other warrior run type stuff, different rules will apply).
Your concerns are absolutely spot on. Your not doing this right. Running 6 times a week is sapping your ambition and body.
Cut the sessions down to 3-4 times per week with days between them and vary the intensity. For example:
Mon - normal pace
Tue - rest
Wed - normal pace
Thu - lighter pace
Fri - rest
Sat - fastest pace (beat your time/distance/whatever)
Sun - rest
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