Why "Running On Empty"?

Just a quick post: I've been meaning to explain why I chose this name for the blog, though it's pretty straightforward. Ever since I started my third attempt at Couch to 5K back in March(?) 2022, running has never felt comfortable. It's a damned good thing that Laura, the voice of Couch to 5K, taught me that it was a mental game as much as a physical one.

Even after completing the programme and having been running at least weekly for months now, I still feel on the brink of giving up, lungs bursting, after just a few hundred metres. At parkruns, I'm the guy noisily heaving for breath the whole way round. (Apologies if I'm hanging off your shoulder while doing that.) I get in sight of the finish line and watch in disbelief as those around me put on a burst of speed while I have literally nothing left in the tank. (Always with the car analogies! 🙄)

Anyway, that's all it is. Throughout pretty much all of my runs, I feel I'm giving absolutely everything I've got just to keep going. Maybe one day it'll become easier — comfortable, even — but until then, I'll be running on empty.

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