We’ve all been there: you’re in the mood for a simple run around the block, but as soon as you get through that first kilometre, things start to go downhill. Your legs feel heavy, your feet feel tired and your mind won’t stop telling you to quit.

Despite how it might feel, it’s unlikely these struggles are solely down to your fitness levels; in fact, they might not have anything to do with them. Running is just as much about mindset as physical ability, so your headspace could be to blame if you find running particularly challenging. 

The good news is that there are ways to use this fact to your advantage. While a negative or misdirected mindset can make running feel more difficult, getting into a positive headspace can make running feel easier and boost your performance.

To give you the tools you need to put this to the test, we asked Dr Josephine Perry, a sports psychologist and author of The Ten Pillars Of Success, to share five ways you can use mindset to make your runs feel easier. 

1. Learn to brace yourself 

No one enjoys feeling tired and in pain, but learning to accept these feelings as part and parcel of the benefits of exercise will make things feel more enjoyable.

“Studies have shown that when we learn to accept unpleasant feelings as something that must be endured rather than something we must ignore, we can cope better and, as a result, our perception of effort decreases,” Dr Perry explains.

In one study published in 2015, this approach was found to reduce the perceived effort of women who rarely exercised by 55%, while increasing their time to exhaustion by 15%. It was also found to boost post-exercise enjoyment, suggesting that thinking in this way could make it easier to stay motivated.  

2. Just keep smiling 

The old adage ‘fake it till you make it’ really does work, and smiling more really can make exercise feel easier and more enjoyable.

“Smiling is a free and effective exercise improvement tool,” Dr Perry says. “Research has found that smiling in competition can reduce your perception of effort and increase positive thoughts. You can build this into a mantra to help you remember: ‘Smile every mile.’”

Seeing others smile can also help us to perform better, Dr Perry adds. “One study saw cyclists on lab bikes doing time-to-exhaustion tests and found that those who were subliminally primed with happy faces were able to cycle 12% longer than those who saw grumpy faces and their perception of effort level was lower.” 

3. Focus on the things you can control

Running is all about energy management, so you don’t want to use up extra energy worrying about things that are out of your control.

Dr Perry recommends creating a physical list to help channel your focus: “Write down a physical list of all the things in a run you can control so you don’t waste your energy on anything not on the list. Focus on those so you can do the tasks brilliantly and don’t get anxious thinking about the possible outcomes.”

Some examples of things you can control include your breathing, cadence and posture. But you can’t control things like the weather, any aches and pains that pop up and how tired or energised you feel.  

4. Have distractions at hand

If you often find yourself getting stuck in your head during a run, distraction is a legitimate and helpful way to keep your mind from wandering into a negative place.

“You can tune out by listening to music, podcasts or books or chatting to others,” Dr Perry suggests. “You can also fill your brain by doing maths, counting, writing a run blog in your head or planning your post-run treat.” 

5. Break up the distance in your mind

Sometimes your brain needs a little bit of convincing that you’re capable of running a distance – and breaking up the distance in your mind is a great place to start.

For example, if you’re tackling 10k for the first time, try breaking it down into two 5ks and counting up to five before you reach halfway and start counting back down to zero.

“Not only does this stop the distance from feeling so daunting, but completing each one gives you a dopamine buzz and having a goal for each section keeps you task-focused,” Dr Perry explains. 

Images: Getty