Feeling very discouraged

miskrys

I have been walking and doing short runs for 6 weeks now. I haven't been mapping how far I've been going. I weight 260lbs and I walk at a fairly brisk pace for about 40 to 45 minutes. Tonight I only went for 25 minutes. When i got home I mapped how far I went. I only went 1.3 miles in 25 minutes. I feel like I should be going much further in that amount of time. I went back an mapped my days for walking 45 minutes and am roughly doing about 2 miles each time. I feel like I've been picking up my pace and have also been adding in short runs while i'm walking. Just feeling very frustrated because I don't seem to be finishing it quicker or going further in that same amount of time.

angelashay42

You're walking about 2 mph. That's an average leisurely pace. A faster walk should log you 3 miles, but it will be tougher. You'll basically be "power walking", swing your arms to help keep your momentum.

Also, is it up-hill? Because, you'll go slower on an incline.

juicemoogan

Increasing your speed takes time. Don't Feel Bad..I've been running for 7 months now and Im not much faster than when i started..

Are you using www.mapmyrun.com? I love that website.

Just keep at it!!

Set reasonable (aka small) goals to increase slightly each week to challenge yourself..

You will get faster.. but it does take time.. o

Heidi64

Also, stop being so hard on yourself. You are working on changing your lifestyle so you can maintain a healthy weight once you get there. Yes, you want to challenge yourself, but exercise should make you feel good, not stressed or frustrated. You will increase your speed as you lose the weight. Do you have a smart phone? The app runkeeper will tell you every 5 mins how fast you're going so that is a motivator. The app runtastic also keeps track of your pace, but doesn't have that audio cue to help you stay on pace(or didn't when I used it). Good luck to you and keep up the good work!!

SunnyAndrsn

I understand, but my runner friends pounded the following into my head:

GO SLOW. It takes a long time to build speed and distance. Being overweight, it may take even longer.

Hang in there! I use a treadmill and when I started there was no way I could do 40-45 min. I was sucking wind after 15 min at a 2.0

Now I walk for an hour at a 3.0 and have started increasing my speed again. It takes a lot of time.