I may be chubby BUT I run Half Marathons

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Replies

  • elemkc
    elemkc Posts: 43 Member
    Do your thing girl! One of my best friends and I do half marathons too and believe me we are FAAAAAAR from first. One Disney race we actually started in the very, very back....I'm not kidding you like the back of the back, farthest back as back can get. haha. I figure if i'm out there doing it, it's better than me sitting around doing nothing. I love Disney races by the way, they are expensive but the night ones are just about the only way I can make the half distance.
  • ShrinkingShona
    ShrinkingShona Posts: 218 Member
    I'm a chubby runner who also runs half marathons (incredibly slowly :) When I first started running I did it at 11pm around my neighbourhood because I was so concerned about people seeing me and hanging **** on me. Of course I was embarrassed about myself too. It was months before I would run in daylight and when I did a barista at our local Starbucks said to me " I wondered when you would start running int he day time. We have been watching you go around the block for months and think your dedication is amazing".

    Good on you fro keeping at it despite your initial worries. Maybe just cut others some slack int he same way you would like them to cut you some :)
  • bgelliott
    bgelliott Posts: 610 Member
    Hello fellow MFP members and fellow runners. Have you ever gone out for a run and had people look at you and you can tell that they are thinking "Why is that person running they are over weight?" I was out training for a race a few weeks back and I got the dirtiest look from some lady walking along the path. So me the smartie pants that I am said very loud so the miserable cow could hear me "Hey I might be chubby but I can run half marathons" Yep pretty sure that made her think again before judging people!! Why is it that non runners think you have to be thin and be an elite runner just to run. I am by no means a Kenyan but I get out there. It doesnt matter if you can complete with an amazing time or if it takes you alot longer then the "AVERAGE JOE" you are getting out there and having fun (well most times having fun) And Dead Last Finish is greater then did not finish, which trumps did ntot start!!

    Wanna know what I think when I see a heavier person running? I think "WOW, I'm jealous!" I may be smaller but can't run for distance to save my life. I hope you understand that not all thinner people think "Why is that person running they are over weight?" Some if not most of us are thinking how amazing it is that you are running instead of walking like me! :-)
  • Onaughmae
    Onaughmae Posts: 873 Member
    From one big girl that is starting to run...thanks! :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:
  • PomegranatePriestess
    PomegranatePriestess Posts: 2,455 Member
    Anyyyyways...

    tumblr_mc9lkvPlLo1qb3axzo1_250_zps377415bd.gif
  • kss1231
    kss1231 Posts: 167 Member
    You go girl! I am thinking about doing the couch to 5k program and am dreading "the looks". KEEP ON RUNNING!
  • melissagordon87
    melissagordon87 Posts: 4
    Good for you, cause I would have said the same thing to the lady. You go girl, running is a great exercise, and it doesn't matter what size you are, the point is that your doing it. Congrats to you.
  • TylerJ76
    TylerJ76 Posts: 4,375 Member
    Good for you, cause I would have said the same thing to the lady. You go girl, running is a great exercise, and it doesn't matter what size you are, the point is that your doing it. Congrats to you.

    The LADY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG?!?!

    I don't get it.
  • VorJoshigan
    VorJoshigan Posts: 1,106 Member
    I think this calls for a

    HEY FAT GIRL!
    Yes, you. The one feigning to not see me when we cross paths on the running track. The one not even wearing sports gear, breathing heavy. You’re slow, you breathe hard and your efforts at moving forward make you cringe.

    You cling shyly to the furthest corridor, sometimes making larger loops on the gravel ring by the track just so you’re not on it. You sweat so much that your hair is all wet. You rarely stay for more than 20 minutes at a time, and you look exhausted when you leave to go back home. You never talk to anyone. I’ve got something I’d like to say to you.

    You are awesome.

    If you’d look me in the eye only for an instant, you would notice the reverence and respect I have for you. The adventure you have started is tremendous; it leads to a better health, to renewed confidence and to a brand new kind of freedom. The gifts you will receive from running will far exceed the gigantic effort it takes you to show up here, to face your fears and to bravely set yourself in motion, in front of others.

    You have already begun your transformation. You no longer accept this physical state of numbness and passivity. You have taken a difficult decision, but one that holds so much promise. Every hard breath you take is actually a tad easier than the one before, and every step is ever so slightly lighter. Each push forward leaves the former person you were in your wake, creating room for an improved version, one that is stronger, healthier and forward-looking, one who knows that anything is possible.

    You’re a hero to me. And, if you’d take off the blaring headphones and put your head up for more than a second or two, you would notice that the other runners you cross, the ones that probably make you feel so inadequate, stare in awe at your determination. They, of all people, know best where you are coming from. They heard the resolutions of so many others, who vowed to pick up running and improve their health, “starting next week”. Yet, it is YOU who runs alongside, who digs from deep inside to find the strength to come here, and to come back again.

    You are a runner, and no one can take that away from you. You are relentlessly moving forward. You are stronger than even you think, and you are about to be amazed by what you can do. One day, very soon, maybe tomorrow, you’ll step outside and marvel at your capabilities. You will not believe your own body, you will realize that you can do this. And a new horizon will open up for you. You are a true inspiration.

    I bow to you.


    http://flintland.blogspot.com/2012/05/hey-fat-girl.html
  • IamD1
    IamD1 Posts: 26 Member
    Well said....shame on all those judgementals!
    You rock!
  • avababy05
    avababy05 Posts: 930 Member
    Do your thing girl! One of my best friends and I do half marathons too and believe me we are FAAAAAAR from first. One Disney race we actually started in the very, very back....I'm not kidding you like the back of the back, farthest back as back can get. haha. I figure if i'm out there doing it, it's better than me sitting around doing nothing. I love Disney races by the way, they are expensive but the night ones are just about the only way I can make the half distance.

    A Disney race is my dream!

    I did my first 5k last year but think of myself more as a walker than a runner.I do intervals,most of the time it's all I can handle.

    When I first started walking,about three years ago,I felt the runners were judging me.Now I don't care.I know what the results have been ( 45 pounds lost) and do what's right for me.
  • IamD1
    IamD1 Posts: 26 Member
    Well said....shame on all those judgementals!
    You rock!
  • dlmaylor
    dlmaylor Posts: 25
    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: i am thinking of running a 5k in November and you just gave me added inspiration thanks girl keep it up !!!!!!!!
  • IamD1
    IamD1 Posts: 26 Member
    Very well said. And congratulations to your own lifestyle makeover. With great effort comes great success!
  • AnotherJenn
    AnotherJenn Posts: 62 Member
    Just ran my first 1/2 and its no joke! Way to go!
  • qn4bx9pzg8aifd
    qn4bx9pzg8aifd Posts: 258 Member
    http://flintland.blogspot.com/2012/05/hey-fat-girl.html

    Thank you for posting this link, and the remarkable text associated with it.


    FANTASTIC!
  • zippo32
    zippo32 Posts: 1,407 Member
    I plod
    You rock!
    Keep it up!!
  • afalls11
    afalls11 Posts: 133 Member
    I'm getting ready to run my first 10K. This is the perfect motivation I needed to go on the outside and see what happens.
  • sarscott
    sarscott Posts: 189 Member
    I am obese and I run 5is...hope to get to a half marathon someday!! :) thanks for the inspiration!
  • DopeyDudleyDursley
    DopeyDudleyDursley Posts: 155
    Good for you, cause I would have said the same thing to the lady. You go girl, running is a great exercise, and it doesn't matter what size you are, the point is that your doing it. Congrats to you.

    The LADY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG?!?!

    I don't get it.

    I love the confidence this post is all about; however, don't always think people are judging you. I personally people watch all the time and unless she made a negative comment towards you she quite possibly could have just been rolling her eyes for any reason. All I am trying to say is run for yourself, not to please others and/or be paranoid that some "jerk" may be judging you whatsoever. Getting healthy is all about doing it for yourself not necessarily to "stick it others" Just my $.02.
    :)
  • bregalad5
    bregalad5 Posts: 3,965 Member
    I started walking toward the end because my of shin splints and the guy next to me commented that he can't understand why people couldn't run "2 miles, Come on!". there were survivors and people like myself out there running for loved ones, not because we were athletes. that was very tacky to me. I was too hurt to say anything. Fortunately, there was a woman near the end who cheered us on and made me feel better. It was my first and ONLY race, I'm not a runner.

    When I walk/run past people near the end of a 5k I yell out encouragement to them, and appreciate it when they yell things out to me. The people holding signs, giving time, and yelling "you're half way there! Don't give up now!" push me along and give me a burst of energy. That person you were talking about could have been me trying to ENCOURAGE you not discourage you! I'll say things like, "Only a mile left! Come on!" or "Don't give up now! You're almost there!"

    I'm overweight and wear giant knee braces when I run (there's a pic in my profile pre-race that shows what I look like when I run, hah). I get mixed looks, but they're usually smiles or nods - sometimes the up-and-down wtf look. I live in a college town that was voted one of the best running towns in the South (#3: http://www.running.net/read_feature/top-running-towns-south), and also the second least obese city in the US (http://www.gallup.com/poll/161717/boulder-remains-least-obese-metro-area.aspx). Imagine how I felt before I got my running confidence up?! It is not uncommon for me to see 10-15+ runners within the span of a 1 mile walk, especially on beautiful sunny days.

    At races, I have a lot of people come up to me and strike up conversations to ask what's wrong with my knees, and it always comes around to me losing weight and getting into shape after I tell them about how I couldn't even walk around the block two years ago. They always leave me with a smile and tell me how much I inspire them.
  • allisonlane61
    allisonlane61 Posts: 187 Member
    For everyone defending the gawkers, when people give them dirty looks or stare, one can't help but to assume that someone is talking about them. if you are having a bad day, keep that to yourself, don't make nasty faces at people and stare at them and ruin THEIR day. I was taught from birth that staring is rude. I wouldn't have commented back like the OP because I don't say anything to people unless they say something to me first.

    I wish I would have commented to the jerk at the breast cancer 5k I entered a few years ago. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer that year and I entered the run portion as a personal challenge to myself and to support the cause. I started walking toward the end because my of shin splints and the guy next to me commented that he can't understand why people couldn't run "2 miles, Come on!". there were survivors and people like myself out there running for loved ones, not because we were athletes. that was very tacky to me. I was too hurt to say anything. Fortunately, there was a woman near the end who cheered us on and made me feel better. It was my first and ONLY race, I'm not a runner.

    You may only be thinking someone is giving you a dirty look or stare. Last Saturday, at the end of my eighth mile, the wind was about 25 mph, it was freezing, my eyes were not only tearing from the wind, but from the moisturizer I had put on my face, including forehead (which I generally don't do for this very reason) was dripping into my eyes, and it began drizzling. I was not a happy runner and just wanted to get it over with.

    I know my face was not looking happy--and may have even been looking downright miserable--so if you or I was unfortunate enough to catch each other's eyes, someone could've assumed my scowl and misery was in response to their run (which is actually laughable at that point because you only care about your own). And I wouldn't feel it necessary to make an attempt to splash on a grin because someone is overly sensitive.

    One should always assume the best about people, and really should never lower themselves to the level they think others are operating on.

    I also need to take my own advice on occasion. ;)
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
    Do your thing girl! One of my best friends and I do half marathons too and believe me we are FAAAAAAR from first. One Disney race we actually started in the very, very back....I'm not kidding you like the back of the back, farthest back as back can get. haha. I figure if i'm out there doing it, it's better than me sitting around doing nothing. I love Disney races by the way, they are expensive but the night ones are just about the only way I can make the half distance.

    I'm just starting to try to run. Seriously, I can barely run more than a minute before I need a break to walk right now. But I have a goal to do the Disney Princess Half Marathon with my sister before I turn 30 (I'm 25). I'm going to do it! :happy:

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