Couch to 5k!

Also, a girl I know is doing this app, she's not necessarily moving the days along as the app does. She will do the same day over and over until she's comfortable with that particular piece of the program.

i just started getting in some running for the first time in 70 lbs & 25 years & for what its worth, each step I took felt like a piano landing on me.

Maybe you shouldn't have stopped at all those "free bird seed" signs

I am starting the couch to 5k tomorrow, and was wondering if anyone had any good advice to give me? I'm 300 lbs, and not in great shape (obviously!) but not in terrible shape either. I can run for about 2 minutes right now before I need a walking break. Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

I'm starting tonight after work. I'm really excited to try this. That's kind of weird cause I'm historically a couch spud.

Keep up the good work! You've got this!

I'd suggest watching other runners to mimic their form. I tried C25K 2 years ago and quit because of shin splints and having to repeat weeks because of pain/laziness. BUT, when I started again a couple months ago I made sure to run the way the skinny people did: land on the ball of your foot, not the heel, keep your head up and shoulders back. I would always land heel first and that ended up being why my knees and shins hurt. And I used to look about a foot in front of me, which would make my back and sides ache. Now I look about 10-20 feet ahead. I also try to breath thru the nose and out the mouth, that stops the lungs from getting fatigued. I can run a mile easy now and don't use the program because I prefer listening to podcasts.

I used to have bad shin pain during walking/running. Here are two things that gave me complete relief: First, make sure to stretch and warm up your ankles, shins, and calves before exercise. You can do this sitting in a recliner with your legs horizontal to floor. As best you can, rotate your feet in a circular motion, pulling your toes toward your knee for half the circle and pushing your toes as far away from your body for the other half of the circle. Do this for about 30 seconds clockwise and 30 seconds counterclockwise and you should be good to go. Second, to help minimize cramps, make sure to stay well hydrated and replenish electrolytes you lose from sweating. On another note, since you can run 2 minutes already, you are going to do great with the couch to 5K. Don't try to figure out the logic behind the varying mixes of walk/run times in each week's program, just trust and follow the instructions for each session. Don't go too fast and don't be aftraid to repeat a week if necessary. As long as you stick to your MFP target calorie intake and stay consistent with walking/running program, you will absolutely lose as much weight as you want to lose.

Thanks so much for this! I am terrible about stretching, and this seems easy enough!

Ok my advice...

Keep going... There will be a point where you THINK you are tired, but your not really, your just not used to pushing hard.

It is those times you push that you'll improve the most.

Of course, please make sure your healthy if your 300 pounds to run/walk for a good distance before pushing too hard...

And please also try your best, 5km is not long and you will soon realise this. Do not give up!

Walk as long as can initially until can walk for 30-40m without a problem, then add some running for a minute, then 2m, then 3m all while walking in between for a 1-2m rest.

Finally remember this. If you give up, you will have set the seed for failure, if you truly cannot go anymore, then fine, but don't slack off because of feeling tired etc, pain is temporary, but pride is forever.

Even on the days you really really dont want to do it, GO make yourself go run. Afterwards you will be so glad you did. Its such a feeling of accomplishment. Hats off to you!

The most important think I learned was to land on the midfoot and not the heel. Here is a good video that explains the basics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8Fl9t3FVis

Someone else mentioned good shoes. I agree. Consider the minimalist styles too as you look at the options. I started with VFFs and now run on Merrell Trail Gloves. These types of shoes changed running from misery to enjoyable for me.

I disagree. I don't think transitioning to minimalist-style shoes is good advice for someone over 300 lbs.

I suggested watching the video and learning a midfoot strike. This is good advice for any runner, regardless of weight. Landing on the heel is bad for all of the joints - from ankle to knee to hip, and also tough on the lower back and shins. I don't think you meant to disagree with this advice.

On the shoes, I'm not sure. My starting weight (when i began to run) was under 200lbs. I think it would be smart to look at minimalist shoes and see how they feel, but also listen to the advice of knowledgable people at a good running store. Conventional shoes overly cushion the heel and enable you to run with poor form, whereas the minimalist shoes more or less force you into a midfoot running strike. There are lots of in between styles which also may be the answer.

Running properly is extremely important especially for beginning heavy weight runners to avoid injury to knees and shins which can sideline a new runner in a hurry!

Great job on the half marathon! I just did an 8k and now begining training for a half in the spring.

Hey thanks! You're right, I did agree with the midfoot strike, but even with correct stride I don't think it would have been a good idea for me to go minimalist early on. After losing my first 40-50 lbs I randomly got another gait analysis & it turned out my pronation had changed. Now I can get away with a neutral or light stability shoe if I want, & currently run in Brooks PureCadence - incidentally, this is a popular shoe for those transitioning into barefoot running because it has a thinner sole.

So I'm not totally opposed to minimalist, but looking back at my own progression I'm not convinced going that direction would have been a good idea for an inexperienced runner like myself. Now that I've been doing it for a couple of years & learned so much more about how to do it correctly, I think I could pretty easily transition into it now if I wanted to.

Back to the topic at hand (lol), running is very much mental! Whenever you feel like stopping, check in with yourself to evaluate if your body really cannot physically run longer, or if your brain is just telling you to quit. There's a huge difference. You are capable of much more than you realize. Keep at it!