Running with company can be game changer: Athletics coach Ayesha

In her new book, Run! The Ultimate Mind-Body Fitness Guide, athletics coach and three-time national champion Ayesha Billimoria, unravels the seemingly-hard activity of running, and reveals how running is more than just putting on sneakers and hittingthe pavement.

At one level, it is easy to relate to Ayesha, who, just like all of us, loves the comfort of a warm blanket. But what makes her super-fit and one of the fastest women of India, is the motivation to toss out of the comfort zone, get going and never miss out on the right technique.

According to Ayesha, here are some ways of staying motivated till running becomes part of your every lifestyle:

Make a discipline chart: Start off by simply checking off the dates that month you have gone running. As you start running with more frequency, start recording your distance and duration. You can also write about how you felt about that day in another column; do it as soon as you’re back from your run.

Set a fixed time to run: Consistency is crucial in developing your discipline. Run when you feel like it, but do it on a sustained basis. Even if you’re running, do it for at least 20 minutes a day. That’s just 1/72 of your day. You have 71 other parts to your day to do everything else.

Set a goal: Set yourself a goal to achieve, and be realistic about it. For example, don’t set yourself up for failure by signing up for a 10K run (10 kilometres) a month down the line when you are nowhere near that fitness level.

Prepare for your run the night before: The night before, lay out your clothes, keep your water bottle filled and plan what you will wear before you go running.

Bring along a date: If youfind running solo a lonely experience, you may want to run with a ‘solemate’ and this can be a game changer. Find company by joining a running communityin your city.