Over the last few decades, the main health organizations have made huge efforts to raise awareness of the benefits of exercise, both physical and psychological. And today those efforts are paying off, as shown by data from several health plans revealing that the population is becoming less and less sedentary. In fact, without needing any statistical study, most of us have probably noticed it in our daily lives. More and more of us are choosing an active lifestyle, and in this shift, we women, who have traditionally shown (and unfortunately still show) higher levels of inactivity, are starting to turn things around, because we've learned to adopt an exercise pattern of our own, adapted and tailored to our interests, motivations and possibilities. What's more, this pattern doesn't necessarily follow the male exercise pattern, whose interests, motivations and goals can differ greatly from women's.
It's important to bear in mind that, from a gender perspective, achieving “equality” isn't so much the point as not being discriminated against and/or labeled for our differences. And on this long road that women are traveling in sport, running is becoming a practice that lets us identify as athletes without trying to adopt male patterns of training (usually more focused on competition and constantly pushing our limits). Running has become an activity we feel is our own, one that lets us reconnect with ourselves, make time for ourselves and feel that we're looking after ourselves inside and out, while always keeping our female role.
But… how many times have we gone out for a run feeling guilty that we should be taking care of some responsibility X (like helping our kids with their homework instead of leaving them with our parents)? Our traditionally accepted role as caregivers is still very much on our minds. But on top of it, we've taken on many other obligations and roles in our daily lives: being competent and professional at work, enjoying a good social life, still being a great homemaker, and on top of all that, being a “good runner”. Since it's impossible to meet all these demands, we have to choose which ones to respond to, and sometimes, not wanting to give up any of them, we end up only half-meeting each one. With the resulting risk that an activity that is, a priori, rewarding, like going for a run, ends up being associated with a source of tension, which may eventually lead us to give it up.
While it's true that the scientifically proven benefits of exercise depend on a specific frequency, duration and intensity, it's also true that life won't always make it easy for us to meet them. But that doesn't mean we should go to the other extreme and give up running. We now know that, to encourage adherence and consistency in sport, it's important for exercise to have the following characteristics:
Combine scientific evidence with your personal preferences.
It's important to run in a healthy way, following the advice of a team of specialists if possible. However, if we want to keep it up, it's important that this plan fits a kind of training we enjoy and actually feel like doing.
Emphasize freedom of choice: the type of exercise, its duration, intensity and frequency.
If you're going through a period when you can't stick to your training plan to the letter, accept it and train with whatever time you have, even if that means cutting down the number and/or length of your sessions. Our fitness will probably take a hit, but it will also suffer if you quit altogether or train while stressed or anxious.
Listen to your body when planning your workout.
It's vitally important to learn to pay attention to the signals our body sends us. After a hard day at work, adding a tough run will probably just increase our exhaustion and discomfort. Try to do a session that lets you switch off and feel good, or even take a rest day if you need one. You can always make up the session on a day when you feel more rested or motivated.
Focus on the process of exercising rather than on the results.
Enjoy the movement itself, the run, your breathing, the scenery… beyond whatever performance results you may get.
“Be water my friend” and adapt your training to the stage of life you're going through.
It's important to understand that we go through dynamic, ever-changing life cycles, so our circumstances will inevitably shape our training program. That's why flexibility and the ability to accept things will help you keep enjoying running, whatever life throws at you.