I dream of running.....

getfitx40
getfitx40 Posts: 1
in Fitness and Exercise
I was once an athlete....a basketball player....running up and down a basketball court for hours on end and in junior high I ran track....hurdles and the 1/2 mile. I loved the hurdles and hated beyond words the 1/2 mile. As I've gotten older and started losing weight, I've had the opportunity to come in contact with many people who have made running their hobby. Frankly I'm a bit jealous. As much as I hated running, or even the thought of running, as a child/teenager, now all I do is dream of running.

Now herein lies the problem.....or rather......the challenge.

I may be overweight, but I think myself in pretty decent shape for someone that still has between 80-100 pounds to lose, I can walk forever; HOWEVER....when I've tried to jog/run, my knees feel like they are going to explode every time my foot makes contact with the ground. I can not tell you the pain I feel and although I try to fight through it, I end up just walking in disgust and disappointment.

For those avid runners out there and maybe even those that have taken up running after weight-loss, what advice can you offer someone who WANTS to run and has difficulty doing so? I realize that the less a person weighs, the less impact on their knees/backs occur while running, but should I really have to wait until I drop another 25# to start?

Your thoughts/advice/suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

Replies

  • PatrickCoyle
    PatrickCoyle Posts: 16 Member
    Get a pair of patella knee straps, take glucosamine twice a day and get insoles designed to reduce impact on your knees and keep walking but every week run for one minute, then each week move it up by one minute.

    When I started I couldn't run for fear my knees would pop off and even looked up knee replacements they were that sore but now I run for 30 minutes at 70% of my max effort followed by 30 minutes of HIIT. I do this 5 times a week

    You will get there!!
  • NikkiSmo
    NikkiSmo Posts: 180 Member
    I'm not sure of your starting weight but mine was 210 and I'm 5'3". I started with the Couch 2 5K app on my phone. I also would only run at night because I didn't want anyone to see me. Once I completed the program I was still not able to run a 5K becasue the program I used works more on time than distance. However I continued to run every other day and I now run 4.6 miles at least 4 times a week. In the beginning I had different issues like my knees hurting, shin splints, hips hurting etc. but I kept going and the aches went away. I LOVE the C25K app and recommend it to anyone who is looking to try running. I will say I still hate the action of running but I LOVE the feeling after I have completed my run and thats enough to keep me going. Good luck!
  • runnerdad
    runnerdad Posts: 2,081 Member
    The biggest cause of knee pain in runners is the wrong shoe, specifically how much arch support / pronation control you need. Your preference, but at least until you lose some weight and feel more comfortbale running, you may want something with more cushioning as well. best bet is to go to a specialty running store and have them do a fitting. The will checkyour arches and watch you run on a treadmill to assess your gait and make a specific recommnedation based on what you need. if you don't have a store that can do that in your area, check out a shoe-buyers guide on a website, such as Runner's World.

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