What Your Body Is Telling You on a Long Run

What your body is telling you on a long run (and the things we pretend not to hear). Heavy legs, a stride turning into the moonwalk, a stomach growling louder than the crowd at Stade de France… On a long run, your body sends out SOS signals in Morse code, strobe lights and smoke signals. But because we’re rebels, we keep running while singing, “La la la, I can’t hear you!” Bad idea? A little, yes. Here’s a quick guide to the signals we tend to ignore, and why that’s silly (but funny).

Barbecue mode: when your body starts slow-roasting

Chills in 30°C heat, a sudden hot flush in an icy breeze… No, you haven’t mutated into a portable air conditioner. Your body has simply switched on “barbecue mode”. But you tell yourself: “It’s normal, it’s heating up! I’m going to become Kilian Jornet, gratin dauphinois edition.” Spoiler: if you don’t slow down, you’ll end up golden brown on the outside and mushy on the inside.

➜ Fix: Ease off, have a drink and pour some water over your head. It works better than praying for a cloud.

An unsettled stomach: digestion walking a tightrope

Your stomach is an independent trade union. Give it the wrong thing (or nothing at all) and it walks out immediately: gurgling, cramps, emergency behind a bush. But you, hero of intestinal bravery, tell yourself: “I’ll clench and ride it out.”. Bad news: it rarely passes.

➜ Fix: Eat at the right time, drink before you’re thirsty and always know where the nearest tree is. It’s a survival skill.

The zombie shuffle

You set off light on your feet, gazelle-like. You finish like a limping penguin. Your arms windmill pointlessly, your footstrikes belong in a Laurel and Hardy sketch, and your hips are saying goodbye to civilisation. But you, warrior, tell yourself: “This is normal fatigue. It builds character.” Spoiler: it mostly builds a tendinopathy.

➜ Fix: Check your posture, breathe and stop for two minutes. Yes, stopping is legal.

Cardio out of control: what your heart is trying to tell you

Your pace is steady, but your heart rate is in orbit. You’re running at 9 km/h while your heart is off running a half marathon of its own. Normal? No. You’re watching your pace, not the red-alert radar flashing in your chest. “It’ll be fine.” Yes, it will… right up until you feel faint.

➜ Fix: Check your heart rate too, Sherlock. If it shoots up, slow down, drink and top up your carbs. Or learn to run with a defibrillator in your hydration vest.

When your head says stop (and for good reason)

A sudden dip? Your head giving up? Even your playlist isn’t enough anymore? Losing motivation, mentally checking out, feeling the urge disappear: it’s not always “all in your head”. It’s often the result of low energy, an electrolyte imbalance or an effort that exceeds what you can handle that day. We often reduce a drop in morale to a psychological explanation, calling it a “lack of mental strength” or “laziness”.

But sometimes we need to remember that the brain is an organ like any other. It needs fuel too. And when it runs out, it simply stops telling the machine to move. Novak Djokovic once summed it up in his own way: “When I’m not right in my head on court, it’s rarely mental. It’s often because my body can no longer keep up.“

➜ Fix: Feed it (your brain). Water, carbs and electrolytes. Yes, your brain is like an old Nokia: no battery, no signal.

Why we pretend not to hear (when we should be listening)

Because we glorify breathless finishers, runners who grit their teeth all the way to the line, people who “don’t listen to their bodies”. Because heroic stories get more likes than smart decisions to stop. Because we confuse tenacity with stubbornness.

But listening to your body isn’t giving up. It’s an investment. In lasting longer. In improving without breaking down. In stacking up long runs without merely enduring them. Because if you keep ignoring the early warning signs, you eventually run into a much louder one: injury.

Listening isn’t giving up

There’s a phrase you hear all the time: “You shouldn’t listen to your body.” What if we should do the opposite? Listening to your body isn’t giving up. It isn’t quitting. It’s adjusting. Out of respect for your body. With clear eyes. And strategically, too. Because we train to last, not to shine on a Sunday and limp for three weeks afterwards.

Your body’s signals are your best allies. They’re not trying to sabotage your long run; they want you to finish it in good shape. So at the next rumble, the next hot flush or the next dip in morale: pause. Breathe. Drink. Adjust. And above all, remember this: The real mark of ability isn’t going the fastest. It’s knowing when to slow down.