What did it take to get you running?

dsjohndrow
dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am always interested in what motivates people to run; especially those of us that used to be big enough to have our own zip code.

My 9-y-o ran a 2-miler this weekend because they had medals and cupcakes. (She never even got a cupcake.)

Me, I just like running better than everything else except playing hockey and riding motocross.
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Replies

  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    My story is in my profile. But here's the cliff notes version.

    Twenty years ago, I was held captive, tortured, raped and nearly killed. Running was one of the multitude of things I blamed my attacker for "taking" from me. One random day 16 months ago, I realized he hadn't taken running from me, I let him have it. So I started running again (well, lumbering jog since I was morbidly obese at the time). That one random moment completely transformed my life, physically and emotionally. Running was the first thing I took back just because I wanted to, and that was enough to push me over the recovery hump to a place where the assault is but a blip in my life.
  • Flixie00
    Flixie00 Posts: 1,195 Member
    Out on the road on business, bad food options and home too late to hit the gym :-)
  • tsanders6504
    tsanders6504 Posts: 2 Member
    I was hoping for some ideas on this! I do NOT like running, but wish I did. I have several friends that are hooked on it and in great shape- personally, I despise it- but I am really trying. My latest attempt has been incorporating it with some high interval training- I try to run/jog/walk a mile as quickly as I can (on the treadmill) then I "take a break" to do 3 excercises (lunges, push-ups, crunches- or any form of legs/arms/abs) and repeat the whole sequence 3-4 times. I wouldn't say I love it, but it helps break up the boredom of running!
  • Altruista75
    Altruista75 Posts: 409 Member
    Seeing people bigger than myself out there doing it! If they can, then so can I is what I figured.
  • Juliet_622
    Juliet_622 Posts: 165 Member
    My friend bugging me for 4 months about running, and then she found the "perfect race for us" - The Chocolate Race. She was right though! It was perfect. Chocolate stations along with water stations!
  • rumplesnat
    rumplesnat Posts: 372
    I was motivated by the voice in my head telling me I couldn't do it.
  • cygnetpro
    cygnetpro Posts: 419 Member
    To be honest, I hate running. I doubt that I'll ever be one of those people who enjoys it. But it is, for me, the fastest way to burn calories and drop weight. I'm always glad I did it when I'm done, but never excited to do it beforehand.

    I did C25K a few years ago, and ran a bunch of races before getting pregnant, etc. Then I got ill, and wasn't allowed to do much exercise at all for a long time.

    Now I've been cleared to try C25K again, and it's going pretty well (I'm pretty early in the program, and taking it slow). My motivation is simply to lose pounds and tone up again.

    And I also like to get the t-shirts at the races. :laugh:
  • GoldspursX3
    GoldspursX3 Posts: 516 Member
    A drill sergeant....:wink:

    Joined the Army over 12 years ago. They'll motivate you plenty.
  • MissBellatrix116
    MissBellatrix116 Posts: 50 Member
    A zombie run that I heard about. No lie. :-)

    I also use the Zombies, run! 5k app. :-)
  • camrunner
    camrunner Posts: 363
    I had been an occasional runner for several years, but really my only goal was to do well on a fitness test. It wasn't until I got hurt and couldn't run for a year that I realized how much I'd been taking for granted.

    Once I was recovered, I wanted to get back in shape and get healthier, hoping to avoid having something like that happen again. I started running almost every day and I've been hooked ever since.
  • Grumpy2208
    Grumpy2208 Posts: 63
    Out of boredom.
    I had nothing else left to do so I decided to run to pass my time plus I love my own company so it works well for me.
  • doctorwhome
    doctorwhome Posts: 59
    I hate walking. I was in the middle of walking a 5k race when I decided to run parts of it. I fell in love with running. I have a ways to go, but it's still my favorite form of exercise.
  • deeannhill
    deeannhill Posts: 85 Member
    In 2011, my family & I went to Haiti on a mission trip. One of the other women going asked me to run with her to help us get physically ready for the work we would be doing. We did our first 5K Easter 2011. I've done two other 5K's since & ran a leg of the Beach-to-Bay Relay Marathon, which I'll run again in May.

    Now I'm planning a mission trip back to Haiti in October & hope to head to Thailand in January. God's work motivates me!
  • juliacougarrrr
    juliacougarrrr Posts: 48 Member
    I like that I can burn a fair # of calories in a relatively short period of time. I liked how easy it was to get started (I did the C25K as well), and how easy it is to do anywhere. It really feels good to do a race too and just be in the company of other people at all different levels who like running. I also like those free tshirts! LOL
  • BOOMaggedon
    BOOMaggedon Posts: 244 Member
    I hated cardio and loved lifting. Then I tore both rotator cuffs. So after seeing a friend of mine sign up for a 5k I figured I should at least give it a try. I will be running my first 5k on the 20th of this month. Once I got into it the motivation is being able to run a full 5k (I have not done it yet) but it is also me against me.
  • horsewhisper91
    horsewhisper91 Posts: 456 Member
    I started going to the gym back in Feb. And I was getting tired of the other work outs and always ran a few minutes on the tread. And I hate tread mills because I feel like I'm going to fall off. But as the days and weeks went on, I started running for any where from 30 min to an hour on them. And not between a few other workouts, I will run a mile or more on it. I usually go up to 4 mile in a half hour. But because I need to burn faster for the short time I have to work out, I work on other machines.

    Personally, music is what motivates me to run and seeing how far I can go (push myself). My personal best mile by far is 7 mins and 3 sec. And I have yet to get to the chance to try and beat it. I love to see how fast I can go before I start to feel too tired to keep up. I pushed myself to 8.5 mph and to 9 mph (only for like a minute on that speed). But now when I run at 7.5 mph, it feels too slow for me. Which makes me feel awesome that I need to run at faster speeds. :D
  • Lesa_Sass
    Lesa_Sass Posts: 2,213 Member
    When I was in my early 20s I moved several states away from where I grew up.

    When I finally got on facebook (my 10 year old niece actually made me a page) I reconnected with all those people from highschool that I lost touch with. I found that many of them heroically have battled breast cancer and some not so lucky lost their battle.

    I started running to pay tribute to those women in a 5k Race for the Cure. All I wanted to do was run a 5k. I did not know how addictive it would be. When I pushed through the hate one day and obtained that runners high, well, thats all it took. Now I wake up in the morning and the second thought (behind omg I have to pee) is getting my run in for the day. Running is my lover, I even have pretty running clothes and get dressed up for dates with it.
  • drchimpanzee
    drchimpanzee Posts: 892 Member
    I used to do the elliptical because running was just too tough on my knees when I was really heavy (tried it and hit a wall). I hated being on a machine for 30+ minutes though since you're pretty much just staring at a wall or whoever is in front of you the whole time. Now that I'm much lighter (if you can call 225 light LOL) I run because it feels like I'm going somewhere even if it is just in a big circle.
  • framingsammie
    framingsammie Posts: 144 Member
    I wasn't a big fan of running but I've always wanted to be able to. I saw a lady next to me on the treadmill 3/4 weeks ago going for it and I thought 'if she can, I can' then I went for it! I've found myself craving running since. I also blame my boyfriend telling me he runs everyday for x amount of minutes and I thought I'm gonna attempt to out-do you one day aha. (':
  • zillah73
    zillah73 Posts: 505 Member
    Running had always seemed to me like something "runners" do – "runners" being people who have always run. Run track in high school, had "26.2" decals on their cars, been born to run. It was one of those things I had convinced myself very early on that I couldn't do, so just made self-effacing jokes (I only run after the ice cream man) and filed running under the category of things I can't do because of my size/shape/physiology – just like I felt I couldn't lose weight. When I started losing weight the floodgates opened and I realized all the things I "couldn't" do were only true because I believed them. I became intensely motivated to start running because it was so symbolic to me of the ways I had convinced myself I was somehow less capable than other people. It is one of the most challenging and rewarding things I have undertaken (along with yoga) and I absolutely love it.
  • johnwhitent
    johnwhitent Posts: 648 Member
    I am a cyclist at heart but cycling has more limitations with weather, travel, time, etc. Running offers power packed workout that can be done in just about any weather, in any location, and can work well with limited time. Both cycling and running use the legs, but use them in different ways and focus on some different muscle groups so they make perfect cross training compliments to one another. All in all, it's a great activity.
  • ASaxe23
    ASaxe23 Posts: 158 Member
    I have no idea....I started 2 weeks ago...I guess there are several factors that got me running.
    1. My husband ran a marathon I was in awe and inspired he's always been fit, but seeing him and then so many others of many shapes and sizes got me thinking maybe I could too.
    2. I started Insanity and heard the stories of how it increases your cardiovascular endurance for running.
    3. It burns a lot of calories in a short amount of time
    4. I hate it., but I was tied of giving myself so many excuses not to do it, so I thought what the heck let's try one of these apps and see if it can get me running. I put it on my bucket list and thought I'd give it a whirl. so far I'm impressed with myself !
  • determinedbutlazy
    determinedbutlazy Posts: 1,941 Member
    Because it was something I couldn't do.
  • nexangelus
    nexangelus Posts: 2,080 Member
    Raising money for a charitable org that looked after my mum during her illness and before she died of cancer...(St. Peter's Hospice in Bristol UK) I did a 5 km, a 10 km and a half marathon all in the same year.

    p.s. I am not a natural runner and it is a REAL challenge, but that is half the fun ; )
  • montana_girl
    montana_girl Posts: 1,403 Member
    I started running so I could participate in one of the Run Disney events. The guidelines are that you have to be able to do a 16 min/mile, and I knew with my short little legs that would require me to do at least a little running. A little running led to more running, which led to a lot of running.

    I have completed 4 Run Disney half marathons and will be completing my 10th half marathon on the 20th. :drinker:
  • newcs
    newcs Posts: 717 Member
    I've found that I can burn more calories in less time with running than anything else (biking, rowing, lifting, etc) so I do it so I can eat more :)

    I still lift most days because I want the strength gains but when I'm looking for maximum calories burned, I go for running.
  • shivaslives
    shivaslives Posts: 279 Member
    I wanted to do cardio outside and I don't like to bike. It also took learning a mid-foot strike so I could run with a bad back.
  • stefa711
    stefa711 Posts: 196 Member
    A drill sergeant....:wink:

    Joined the Army over 12 years ago. They'll motivate you plenty.

    Can you please tell my Soldiers that?? They seem to have missed the "motivation" part of basic!!
  • ASaxe23
    ASaxe23 Posts: 158 Member
    my 1st 5k is on the 20th this month. It's not an official timed one, but it still counts. It's The Glo Run!
  • tessaeve
    tessaeve Posts: 75 Member
    Laziness, I was walking and increasing my miles but it took too much time. I started running to get my workout in quicker so I could go home and veg out and found that I enjoyed it.

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