Any runners who were not good runners before?

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Replies

  • shakarock
    shakarock Posts: 23 Member
    I used to die trying to run for even 3 minutes. And I used to hate running. I sucked it up and slowly built up to 6 minutes, then a mile, then two... now I run 2-3 miles almost every day and I love it :)
  • thelovelyLIZ
    thelovelyLIZ Posts: 1,227 Member
    It takes time. I remember doing a scavenger hunt the summer before I started running and just dying. The trick is really learning to pace yourself. Too many people try to start too fast. No shame in running slow while you build endurance, that's what I did. I went from running a 15:00 to 9:30 in a year.
  • stubbysticks
    stubbysticks Posts: 1,275 Member
    I am seriously in awe of all the amazing running stories I'm reading here. OP, I really hope it's clear to you how running has affected the CONFIDENCE of everyone who shared their story. I can share mine...

    2 1/2 years ago I weighed over 300 lbs & hated myself. I started running when the pain of staying the same outweighed the shame of exercising in front of other people. I started with Couch to 5k as others have & was religiously consistent. I did modify the program to progress a lot slower due to my lack of fitness to begin with, but I did my walk/jog 3x a week Every Single Week. I stretched it out over 8 months instead of 2, which was fantastic because by progressing slowly, my body got used to the increased intensity pretty comfortably. Most of the time, it didn't suck. My confidence skyrocketed as I discovered what my 300 lb body was capable of.

    8 months later & nearly 70 lbs lighter, I ran my first 5k straight through, no walking...& I was hooked. I never stopped. I've lost a bit more since then, but I still have at least another 50 lbs to lose. I don't "look" like a runner, & I always finish my races at the back of the pack. Do I care? Hell no. Because I'm awesome. And because being a Runner (as opposed to a runner) takes so much dedication that the average person doesn't do it.

    The great thing about running is that dedication is the only requirement! You can be any age, shape, or size & you can still be a Runner. Even at 50 lbs overweight, I trained for & ROCKED OUT a duathlon, 10-mile race, & half-marathon within a month of each other not long ago. I'm not fast & I'm not skinny, but I am a Runner.
  • DS04
    DS04 Posts: 48
    I hated to run. I started out and found myself a 5 mile course. My goal was to run it. I would run/walk and tried to do a little more each day. Eventually, I started running the entire 5 miles. Now I am up to 6.5 miles at 60 minutes. It could be a little faster but 6.5 is good for me right now. I feel terrible when I don't run now.
  • freya33
    freya33 Posts: 149 Member
    Run outside, no dials to look at and you can just concentrate on how you feel. I still do a run walk regime but it gets me outside in fresh air and at the end I feel better. Some runs are good some not so good but that is life. I have a variety of places I can run, mainly flat as I hate hills ( I know they are good for me perhaps one day) I set myself a target run to that tree etc. If you can get outsidfe it is so much more interesting and the tme and distance flies by.
  • SarahtheJillianfanatic
    SarahtheJillianfanatic Posts: 117
    Inspiring thread. :smile:
  • chaosqueen01
    chaosqueen01 Posts: 20 Member
    As a teenager I hated running.
    Running at school always meant running at a high pace and gasping for air. My toothflesh was aching that much I barely could stand it. I decided that running and me never would be friends.

    Than I moved and went to University. My landlord was a passionate runner, he did (and still does!) marathons and always told me that running is great. Ha!

    And then, I must have been about 24 or 25, I found myself buying running shoes. And I ran. I got me a book with a similar training like C25k and it worked for me. For the first time in my life I understood that the secret to successful running is slowliness. Start as slow as possible, walk in between and go on.

    For a long time I stopped running for several times. I moved, started working and had a new boyfriend who hates sports (and is the thinnest man ever!). In late August this year we've spent our holidays in Sweden and I took my running gear with me. I made an awful job, running to fast and felt like in school. After being home again I've bought a new pulse monitor and grabbed for my running book.

    And yeah, I did it! Was out for 38min today, 33min running without a break. And my pulse was never over 135bpm. I feel so great and yes, I love running! It makes me stop thinking and worrying and gives me a much more positive feeling about everything.
  • Beethoven1827
    Beethoven1827 Posts: 102 Member
    I'm another C25K advocate :smile: I started it back in September, having spent at least 6 months thinking about whether I could & should actually try this thing, given that I Don't Do Sport. It took me two weeks longer than the theoretical 9 to finish it, and it took me nine weeks of going out three times a week to actually start enjoying running! Now, I look forward to running, and know that it'll be fun. I use the treadmill once a week most weeks at the moment, as one of my usual days I can normally only get out in the evening when it's too dark to go up the lane or round the fields. I don't like the treadmill, as I end up watching the time far too much, and get bored. And last time I went I tried taking a programme to watch, but that didn't help. OK, so it turned out the reason it was so horribly difficult was that the treadmill was left on an incline which I didn't notice, but that's a whole other story...! :wink:

    So yes, go for it. You'll be in good company with the rest of us who've worked our way from gasping for breath and praying for the end of that 60-second spell to enjoying the whole thing. (Well, except the first ten minutes cos they suck every time. Boy was I glad when I found out it's not just me who thinks that!)
  • funkycamper
    funkycamper Posts: 998 Member
    I recently started running again. First, I had to do a year of other exercises including cycling, bootcamp, weight training, etc., to get to the point where I could run without wanting to puke after 30 seconds (even when running s...l....o....w...) or having too much discomfort in my ankle/knee/hip joints. Now, with more cardiovascular fitness and more strength, I am running again. Still slow but I'm doing it. Ran in my first 5k race the beginning of this month.

    I think C25k is a great program and, obviously, many people have success with it. However, it really didn't work for me. Even though I had a smartphone app to cue me for the changes, it felt too restrictive to me.

    I found I do better with a more free-form fartlek style of training. Run to the tree, walk to the driveway, run to the corner, yada yada. I'm now running the whole time (unless I'm doing hills and then I sometimes need to walk on the steepest inclines) but I run as fast as I can to the tree, run slow to the green house, etc. Sometimes I find I can run faster for longer than the target and will keep going for awhile before I slow down. Although my fast is still pretty darn slow, it's nice to be slowly building speed. When I first started, I drove to the flats and ran there but, now, I train exclusively on hills (since I live on one). I'm enjoying that and believe it will help my running. It's fun running down, that's for sure! And a fun challenge to try to sprint while running uphill.

    I'm chuckling at some of you saying that your 11, 12, 13 minute mile paces are slow. When I started, Endomondo said I was doing a 19-minute pace per mile. I'm now down to about 16:30 per mile. There are people who can walk faster than I run, LOL. But that's OK, I may not be fast but I'm doing it and that's what counts to me. I usually just run twice a week doing my bootcamp, kickboxing, weight training, and cycling on other days because I would get bored just running. But the two times I do it, I kinda enjoy it but I don't love it and I wouldn't like it if I did it more often. So, no, I don't love it but I love the way it makes me feel and I know that running will help me achieve other fitness goals and activities I want to do
  • Jstash88
    Jstash88 Posts: 89 Member
    I used to hate running until I starting tracking food and burn. The calorie burn for running is seriously second to none. And since I like to eat, I learned to like to running.

    I am now up to about 20 miles a week, usually 2 or 3 every other day during the week and five miles a day each weekend day.

    Went from a chunky 245 to a lean 175.

    Seriously this^^^^^ running means I get to eat more and that makes it worth it.
  • Starlage
    Starlage Posts: 1,709 Member
    I want people to keep going on this one so I'm bumping it. I love reading everyone's stories! Very inspiring. Also it's reminding me that my slow running is AWESOME. At least I'm doing it. I get runner's envy sometimes when I see people flying by or posting about running in so and so time or pace- but at least I'm doing it and i CAN!
  • Sister_Someone
    Sister_Someone Posts: 567 Member
    I used to hate running with a passion. I still hate it, probably with even more passion than ever before. Just like I hate every other form of physical exercise under the sun, but I still do it because I like the results. So I decided, a bit over six months ago, to just suck it up and run and hate it for free instead of spending a bunch of money on hating the gym.

    The first week I felt like I was going to die. I was breathless, miserably slow and stopping every five seconds, and my legs felt like they were on fire. Going into the second week I noticed that I'm stopping less than I used to, and that it's generally easier to breathe (I have asthma). Eventually I built up some stamina and I think I'm doing a decent job now. I still hate it, but at least I can breathe and my thighs are slimmer.
  • FlamingJune67
    FlamingJune67 Posts: 96 Member
    There is absolutely nothing runners like more than to talk about their running (lol!)
    I'm like everyone else, and couldn't run for even 5 minutes when I started running 6 months ago. Last Saturday I ran 13 miles in a little more than 2 hours. And, I am 45 years old. I sooo wish I had started running 20 years ago!
  • Lalouse
    Lalouse Posts: 221 Member
    I was gasping after a minute of running when I started.. and with Couch to 5k (C25k), I'm now running 15 minutes and will soon be able to run a 5k in a few more weeks.

    The Couch to 5k program definitely helps you build it up slowly and could be perfect for you. It only requires a 3 times per week, commitment, but if you can do more, that's better.. or you can mix it up with other workouts/strength training/etc..

    You can do this girl!
  • Tiabean86
    Tiabean86 Posts: 38 Member
    I think this is the best post I have seen on here! I am also training to become a runner. I did my first C25K on Tuesday (12/11/12). That very same day I sat down and found app for every stretch of the was, 0-5k, 5k-10k, 10k-half amrathon, and half-full. I need the apps because I need to just do what I got to do without looking at a watch every second lol. But after I mapped it out I realized that using these apps and not pushing my body crazy hard I would be done with the full marathon training app by Demember 9th 2013. So in just one short year I can go from now more than a block of running to a full marathon. Fricking crazy awesome! Just know that we may suck now but everyday we get out there we will suck just a little but less. :)
  • ARHx0
    ARHx0 Posts: 32
    Thanks everyone :)

    I'm going to start C25K in a few days. Wondering if it's possible to do it on the treadmill? I'd much rather be in the gym than run outside where I live. Unless I run in a 1/4 mile circle around my neighborhood, I really don't trust being on the other roads.

    I read that people have done it on the treadmill, so wondering if I could do it at a slight incline to make up for not doing it outside?
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
    You can easily do it on a treadmill. Just be careful, go slowly, and make sure you have GOOD shoes fitted at a running store.
  • miracole
    miracole Posts: 492 Member
    you can definitely do C25k on the treadmill, though yes do it on an incline so the transition to road running is easier. I'm with everyone else here, hated running to begin with, still sometimes dread taking that first step out the door, but in the end LOVE LOVE LOVE it.

    Went from swearing off running entirely as a teen to finishing my second marathon in October and finishing a 1500km in a year goal as of November 30 this year. If you want to do it, you'll do it!

    Now if you'll excuse me...I hear a lunchtime run calling my name...
  • mortyfit
    mortyfit Posts: 354 Member
    I've always wanted to get into running, but I suck at it. Even being in sports all my life, running a mile I thought I was going to die.

    Now even running 1/2 a mile on a treadmil I feel like I'm going to die. lol. They say slowly work yourself up, but does that really happen?

    Anyone like me that turned out to be a long distance runner??

    Felt like that the summer of 2010 when I decided to try running regularly....took a couple of months to get a routine going and build up, but now I average 25-30 miles a week, running my second Marathon this Sunday, and I'm actually bordering on competitive times for my age group now (OLD GUYS!). Be patient, make sure you are in the right shoes (only a running specialty store can do this for you the right way!), and keep at it!
  • katiecoffee
    katiecoffee Posts: 8 Member
    Was just laying on the couch reading this thread, and you guys inspired me to get off my *kitten* and go on a run! It wasn't pretty, but it was something!
  • RobynLB
    RobynLB Posts: 617 Member
    Every runner starts off barely able to run a mile. You just keep at it. I'll go run 10 miles like it's a stroll in the park now... but I'm still a "bad" runner... nobody cares... it's something you learn to love and do for yourself regardless of performance... or it's just not your sport.
  • SeasonedVett
    SeasonedVett Posts: 3 Member
    For me, most definitely that's the way it worked...gradually:smile: 3 years ago when I was over 250lbs and just starting my weight loss journey it was horrible for me to even get out and walk, it'd take me like 25mins to walk a mile and I hated every step lol I found Zumba fitness, (I'm now an instructor), and really gained a passion for all fitness in general so I kept up the walking also and made small goals. I started speed walking small stretches, then I'd challenge myself to jog to an upcoming tree, then maybe to the length of song. Once I got jogging a mile down, I got my speed up 12min/mi, then 10min/mi, 9min/mi...at my best I could run a 5k(3.1mi) at an avg of 8.5 min/mi. I didquite a few 5ks and even placed 1st in my age division in one lol Running is so therapeutic and if you love music, even better! I've been slacking, I still get in about 4 miles a week, but one of my fitness goals is to be getting in at least 15 running miles/wk by 2013!
  • KirstenTheFamilyCoach
    KirstenTheFamilyCoach Posts: 327 Member
    take it slow and easy. there's nothing wrong with intervals (run/walk/jog). you aren't in a race (yet) and it doesn't really matter how you look. find good music to listen to that help you keep a steady pace (regardless of how fast or slow) and for goodness sake it should feel more good-er than bad-er! sore is okay but pain isn't.
  • katrinas626
    katrinas626 Posts: 46
    Couch to 5k made me a runner
  • acm130
    acm130 Posts: 100 Member
    I love, love, love this thread! There's just something that fills you with pride when you can say "I'm a runner." I've been a runner since junior high (I'm in my 30s) was a sprinter/mile relay/hurdles so my runs were like 3-4 miles for many years. I always come back to it because there's just something about the commitment & mental fortitude of running and TRAINING. Half Marathons are do-able for me now, never done a full (yet:smile: ) but setting a goal and training is so rewarding for me. I've used PodRunner (on i-tunes) for the last few years, it's so helpful for increasing stamina & endurance. My joke is running is like being in a codependent relationship sometimes, you HATE it at times (that first 2-3 miles before you find your stride, the injuries strains/sprains) but you LOVE it so much, the endorphins, the meditative experience. I don't care if I'm the best, or the fastest, I only care about being part of the "I'm a runner" club:smile:
  • P05T5CRIPT
    P05T5CRIPT Posts: 285 Member
    Started off not being able to run for 60 seconds in June, I completed C25K which I credit with making me into a runner (use that term loosely as I still wouldn't call myself a 'real' runner). I ran my first race, a 5K in September in 35minutes, and now my 5K PB is 29minutes. I'm still slow but I'm getting there, now working on running a 10K in the New Year.

    When I started it was taking me over 45 minutes to do a mile, now I can run 4 in that time. Stick with it, take it slowly and keep working at it, you will get better, your breathing will improve and it will become a little easier. Just don't give up! :flowerforyou:
  • nexangelus
    nexangelus Posts: 2,080 Member
    Running was and is a real challenge for me. I have changed the way I run and I enjoy it now and look forward to it. But I am not a runner by nature. My 5 km time has decreased from 29 mins to 20 mins...so I have improved a lot, but I won't call myself a good runner. Faster, fitter, stronger as a person, but not great at running...
  • RVurguncu
    RVurguncu Posts: 1
    I have started running last April 2012 ..I could not run a mile and always felt like I was going to die..I set up a really big goal and entered for the Istanbul Marathon in November 2012. Download a Hal Higon Novelty Training Programme and completed my first marathon a month ago in 5 hours 16 minutes.

    I am here because while I was training for the marathon I have gain 6kg ( a stone). I am hoping to loose weight on my next marathon which is Edinburgh in May 2013 and Venice Marathon in Oct 2013
  • ladytinkerbell99
    ladytinkerbell99 Posts: 970 Member
    EVERYONE, and I mean EVERYONE hates it at first. The only people that have always loved it played sports as a kid and never quit, or are liars. And even the sport-as-kids people (myself included) generally have an injury or life circumstance that puts them out of the game for a while, and hates it at first when they get back to it.

    There's no reason to sugarcoat the facts- it's hard as *kitten* when you start. You have to push yourself through it, and every fiber of your body will scream "QUIT!", but you WILL get past that with determination. And then you'll feel an unbelievable sense of accomplishment, worth every miserable mile. Even once you get past the hurdle, you'll have occasional bad days....but they end up making the good ones feel THAT much more awesome. Just keep at it, and you will get past the hurdle. I promise, cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye.

    I would try C25k. I've never tried it, but I have heard wonderful things from people like yourself. Now lace up and get going! :drinker:

    ^ I love this! :flowerforyou:
  • UsernameStillLoading
    UsernameStillLoading Posts: 299 Member
    I want to get into running but first I'm trying to build up my endurance and cardio; that way, I can last a little longer and not get discouraged. Before I start though, I want to learn the proper form to run. I know there's a good way and a bad way. If we don't run properly, we won't last as long.

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