Struggling to get back into running.

Hi everyone. I think I was a part of this group last year but it’s been a while.

I ran a marathon last year. I wasn’t fast and I walked quite a bit but I finished and I was so proud of myself. Training went fairly well and again, though I was never fast, I had endurance. A 10k used to be easy for me.

I took some time off after the marathon in November. Then there was bad winter weather, I got sick, insert excuse here. Since then it’s been absolutely miserable. My mental health is suffering too. I can’t tell if I’m just THAT out of shape or if there’s something going on. I had a 3.75 mile easy run scheduled today and couldn’t even get 1.5 mile in. My legs felt heavy and I couldn’t catch my breath.

Running used to be freeing for me. It made me feel good physically and mentally and now it just makes me feel worse in every way. Looking for advice, encouragement, similar experiences.