Weightlifing is the only exercise that I've ever managed to make a habit. I do powerlifting 3x/week. I've tried running, swimming, cycling, etc. and hated all of it.
We - as a species - are engineered and built to run. I think there is a lot to be said for it.
If anyone is reading this and considering giving it a go, please do. You don't need any specific fancy equipment (just some generic trainers/sneakers will do - running does not damage your knees, quite the opposite in fact). I love travelling for work and packing my running gear and exploring the city I am visiting while running - beats sitting in a hotel room watching netflix on my own.
My biggest advice is that when you first start running outside you will feel like you are going slow even if you are not. If you have a smartphone get an app that will help you track your running pace (Strava is popular but I use runkeeper as I don't like the gamification & social parts of strava) and don't try to go faster than 6 mins/km for the first few runs. When I first started running outside (after doing a lot of gym-based treadmill running and before smartphones were really a thing) I had no frame of reference for how I was moving through the space apart from driving so it felt so terribly terribly slow when in reality I was pushing very hard. There are no prizes here and you are not racing anyone - run at a pace that feels sustainable and let your mind go.
Good luck.
I think the best piece of advice is START SLOW. way slower than you think. And run for way shorter than you think. Even if your lungs and muscles are fine, if you haven’t ran for a while then your tendons certainly aren’t. You won’t know until it’s too late and then you’ll be out of the game for weeks or months. If you can run on grass or a softer surface your body will thank you, running on concrete is brutal until you’re used to it.
There’s probably programs than you can follow that introduce you to running, I’d follow one of those.
Heh, don't get old or be born with the wrong genes. I have to start at no more than about 2min at a time being middle aged now. Some of us are born weaker and more fragile. Aging only makes this worse.
Strength training can help, though I've accumulated enough stubborn injuries now that I'm just thankful I can do anything.
I mean physically, what am I supposed to do to run at 5-6km/h? Should I exaggerate and slow down my run stance? Like I'm fake running? Is that more demanding than walking and a good intro to running vs just running/jogging?
I hear what you are saying. Running gait is more sort of a lean-forward-and-push-off-with-toes type thing than a smooth easy walk. You can do that with short strides and medium-cadence and you won't go very fast.
Perhaps just transition into a run and then make a conscious effort to slow down, or go the other way where you walk faster and faster until your instinct is to change to a running gait and try to keep that pace.
The important thing is to try not run too fast "by accident".
Good luck
Some people are physiologically suited to running, but many aren't.
I've been running 4-6 times weekly for 28 years and still dread every single run. Every step is a slog and I can't wait until it's over. It never gets easier and in fact I'm getting slower with age, which is even more depressing.
I'm glad it's mediative for you, but please bear in mind that you are exceptional in that regard. I think it's better to be pragmatic and say "try running but maybe it won't click for you, don't feel disheartened if so".
Sorry it doesn't work for you. 4 to 6 times a week is a lot though, max I do is 3 times a week, typically 2.
I should probably add that I am not a natural runner's build. I am pretty chunky, about 1.8m and about 100kg so I am not some waif and carrying probably 15kg more than I should be, and a typical run is often running to work instead of taking public transport in London so it is very much a "functional" thing.
I don't "enjoy" it, but I do get a clear mind and a bit of a kick out of it once the run is over.
After running for a decade without any spectacular performance to speak of and constant weight issues, one year of powerlifting 2x a week - not only is every single health metric better with less running, possibly the best they've ever been, at a point where they should be declining; my running is hitting PBs as well.
The downside, I'm a bore about it.