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Running Motivation: Psyching Yourself Up to Run – My Running Diary

By Mandi Mellen

Posted on February 20, 2017

It’s been a long time since I’ve had to psych myself up to run. Its something I mastered over six years ago, but on my pregnancy journey I’m definitely in need of running motivation!

Diary of a Running Chick: February 20th, 2017

Since becoming pregnant I’ve gone through many different stages of running. In the beginning I barely noticed anything new, except I was getting nauseous on my runs. There were moments of dry heaving that I’d run through and let pass. Moments of pain that didn’t last long and other subtle things that I overcame by my second trimester. I was pushing myself and running longer distances. I felt great! But ultimately I hit a wall and needed some running motivation.

As I got farther along into my second trimester my pace dramatically slowed. I decided to accept this fate and be glad that I was still out there running! Being happy with your present day abilities is the biggest self motivation there is. Even through the beginning of my third trimester I was thrilled to just be running along. Sure, there was that increasing need to pee that forced me to run straight to the bathroom some days. Or the immediate and unexpected rush of a good old number two after my run. But I was happy to be outside and chugging along!

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My body eventually hit a point of where the baby weight took a toll on my lower back, sciatica, and my thighs. I needed running motivation more than ever! At first I had to bring my runs inside to regroup and relax my strained muscles. But I’ve been back outside running for a few weeks now, after finding new motivation to move. It definitely takes psyching myself up to get out there and run!

Due to the increased size of my belly, I am running even slower, but I’m okay with that. I also feel a lot of pressure while running. Usually the pressure subsides halfway through my run and I’ve been consistently running about 4.5 miles a day. I’m glad that I can do this, but it takes a lot of motivation and inner strength to get out there. What is driving you to start your run each day? For me its the need for fresh air and sunshine as I wake my body up.

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Some people have asked me why I don’t just stop running. Why I don’t walk or just do the elliptical instead? There have been days that I do, especially with all the rain in SoCal this winter. But I enjoy getting outside and running. I enjoy how great I feel and that’s motivation enough. Even though it’s challenging and not the most comfortable, I’m happy that I can still do it! I’ve also noticed that the pressure on my body is dramatically less than it was when it first started. I find that if I can get out there to run, why not go and do it!?

Running is my favorite part of the day and I know that after my pregnancy I’ll be so grateful to get back to my regularly scheduled runs. For now, if I need a little psyching up to get outside, then there’s no shame in that! Honestly, it’s how I got myself to run daily in the first place. Now I can’t see myself starting my day any other way.

For the next six weeks of this pregnancy, as long as I’m feeling good, I will be psyching myself up to run outside! Running motivation begins with you and the good feelings you get along the way. Barring any further extreme rain storms in Los Angeles, you’ll find me outside running!

Mandi Mellen is Lead Editor, Staff Writer, and Featured Vlogger at BuzzChomp. She’s an actress, writer, and producer. Get lost in her youtube comedy channel PillowTalk TV. Follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Instagram

Photo Credits: Yours Truly

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