I apologize for how negative that sounds! It’s been 3 months. I unfortunately can’t be as consistent as I’d like because of chronic utis. I currently go about 8-10 km/h for 20 mins at a time, 2-3 times a week when I’m healthy. I keep at it because I’ve noticed a boost in my general energy and mood, but I hate pretty much every second of actually running. I read that that’s normal as you start out, especially if you start from zero like I did. But I’ve also read you eventually start to tolerate and then later enjoy it. How long did it take for you to get to that point?
Edit: 5 month update on case someone stumbles across this. My progress is slow, due to frequent breaks due to my frequent colds and UTIs. I’m at 30min 5k. Running still sucks, in part, but it also feels…powerful? I’ve learned to pace myself and run slower, so I’m not all spent after 10 mins. It’s difficult, but I think running too fast really was the biggest problem. Now what I feel during a run is a mix of ‘ughgh I hate cardio’ and ‘this is amazing, I’m powerful, I can do anything I want’. That’s enough to keep motivated. The reason I keep it up is that the former feeling ends soon after the end of the run, but the latter one persists. I try to run twice a week. If I have the time, I go on a hike instead (I live in the mountains). I enjoy those a lot more, but they take up several hours as opposed to 30mins for a run. It’s helped me tremendously with my depression, so it’s so worth it.
Tldr: I still don’t enjoy every second of running, but pacing myself made it more enjoyable than before. And it’s SO worth the mood boost and extra energy (even on rest days). I have depression and I’ve never felt this good in my entire 10 years of being an adult.
I think this thread is suggesting that it’s entirely subjective. Some people are saying it’s only when you reach X amount of fitness, others are saying it never becomes enjoyable…meanwhile I have loved running since I was a young child. It is always difficult if you’re pushing yourself, but that is part of the enjoyment for me. I love the physical suffering and the mental challenge that comes with learning to re-focus and endure it.
I definitely think this is the case, I have the same opinion as you and I hate the fact I’m currently having to have time off running, I’m replacing it with other things I enjoy but have always loved running the most.
For some people they just hate running and others they hate exercise in general but keep at it for the multitude of benefits.
So for OP it may never “stop sucking”
Many of my soccer teammates over the years have despised the running in pre-season despite running being a major part of the sport. It works the other way too, like some loved weightlifting/gym, whereas I always hated doing that as part of fitness work and tried to hog the treadmill as much as possible.