Losing weight for half marathon

nurserunnermom
nurserunnermom Posts: 15 Member
I am going to be running my first half marathon in October and am hoping to lose 20 lbs before then. I ran my first 10 K race yesterday and have officially fallen in love with running! I love that training for my 10 k totally took my focus off of obsessive calorie/carb counting and gave me a new focus of training. I quickly learned that I had to fuel properly for those long training runs or I would not do well. (keep in mind anything over 3 miles was a long run for me!) I would love to hear from people who have lost weight while training for a half or in preparation for training. I plan to keep my running right now to two 3 mile runs during the week with a 6 mile long run on the weekend. My serious half training doesn't start until August so I have some time to focus on weight loss now. I have heard it's hard to lose weight when training since you are so much hungrier. Would love to hear from some people on this topic! My current weight is about 155 lbs and I'm 5'6". I would like to get down to 135 or 140 lbs.

Replies

  • jennalink807
    jennalink807 Posts: 226 Member
    Congrats on your 10k!!! I had a similar experience to you. I was trying to lose 15ish lbs for a couple of years and just yo-yo'd. I started taking running seriously last year and completely fell in love with it, then losing weight and tracking food became about fueling training. It's way more fun this way! I gained some weight back after my marathon last fall when I had to take some time off running because I ran the marathon with the flu and it took me forever to get well afterwards.

    I started logging again this January and trained for a half that I just ran this Saturday over the first part of this year, while losing weight. I started in January at about 141, and am now down to 132. I set my calories to losing .25 lbs/week and have been religiously wearing a fitbit to track calories burned. It's worked really well for me. I eat back all of my exercise calories that fitbit gives me (on average- sometimes more, sometimes less). I tried to NET at least 1700 calories everyday and I had plenty of energy for training. I also always make sure to hit my carb macros.

    With 20 lbs to lose you could probably do .5 lbs/week and be good to go, just make sure that when you are hungry, you eat! Food is fuel :)

    Have a blast training for your first half!!
  • nurserunnermom
    nurserunnermom Posts: 15 Member
    Congrats on your half and also your weight loss! I love that you did it slowly over time. What's up next for you? A full?
  • RunFarLiveHappy
    RunFarLiveHappy Posts: 805 Member
    I don't mean to sound discouraging because I've heard people having success with it but for me since I've started running half Mary's or longer I have maintained or (God forbid) gained. I lost 100 pounds between June 2012 and August 2013 prior to increasing my run volume. My longer training runs and races were suffering at a deficit. I was also not diligent. I've started again trying to train and eat at a deficit as of last Monday. Good luck to you during your training in regards to health & nutrition!!
  • DavidMartinez2
    DavidMartinez2 Posts: 840 Member
    When training for longer races you are going to be hungry and you need to fuel your body to train properly. The trick is to try and eat foods that are not caloricly dense, ie food that takes up a lot of space but doesn't have a ton of calories. I found that fresh fruit and vegetables doe a good job of keeping me full without wiping out all the work I did on my run.
  • jennalink807
    jennalink807 Posts: 226 Member
    Congrats on your half and also your weight loss! I love that you did it slowly over time. What's up next for you? A full?

    Yep :) I have my second full coming up in October!
  • nurserunnermom
    nurserunnermom Posts: 15 Member
    Wow second full?!! that is awesome!
  • hskriver
    hskriver Posts: 33 Member
    I recently read the book "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald and it has really impacted the way I think about food and how to go about losing weight. The book is targeted for endurance athletes and stresses the importance of making sure you are making the best choices to help your running performance. He focuses on improving your diet quality instead of worrying about calories (emphasis on fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, nuts/seeds, and dairy). I'm still tracking calories, but I've stopped worrying about the number for now. I've only been following his guidelines for about a week and a half so far, so I can't really speak to how much it helps with weight loss in the long run. I have lost 2 pounds so far and my weight has been steady vs being all over the place for a good month prior to reading the book (I'm trying to lose about 10 pounds between now and my second full in October). However, I have felt better eating according to his guidelines (and less hungry) and my runs have felt more energized. I may need to start focusing more on staying within a calorie goal if I find that I'm not losing weight just using his guidelines. But part of my problem has been not really knowing what my calorie goal should be. For now, I'm just trying to experiment and see where it takes me after a month or so.
  • PinkNinjaLaura
    PinkNinjaLaura Posts: 3,202 Member
    When I was running the schedule you are now I was losing pretty steadily just tracking my calories. I did do other workouts in addition to my running (strength train 3x a week, cardio cross train 3x a week, and Pilates once a week). I just bumped up my runs & incorporating some speed work the past couple of weeks to get ready for my upcoming half (which will be my first) and the past few days my appetite has increased a lot. I'm also seriously craving starches, which I've never particularly cared about in the past. Might have to look into the book Racing Weight because the way I'm going I'm afraid I'm going to put 10 pounds back on before I get to my race.
  • mjpTennis
    mjpTennis Posts: 6,165 Member
    When training for longer races you are going to be hungry and you need to fuel your body to train properly. The trick is to try and eat foods that are not caloricly dense, ie food that takes up a lot of space but doesn't have a ton of calories. I found that fresh fruit and vegetables doe a good job of keeping me full without wiping out all the work I did on my run.
    ^----This. The Fitzgerald book is a good read also and has improved my approach. I have steadily lost a pound a month for over 18 months now. Losing it too fast never worked for me. The healthy eating (reducing unneeded sugars) has made the biggest difference for me. I have also grown fond of unsalted butter in my coffee, mixed with a blender. I start my mornings off with that and then head out for my morning run. Good luck. Congrats on becoming a runner.
  • nurserunnermom
    nurserunnermom Posts: 15 Member
    Thanks for all the tips guys! I have ordered the book racing weight and am anxious to read it!
  • pobalita
    pobalita Posts: 741 Member
    I recently read the book "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald and it has really impacted the way I think about food and how to go about losing weight. The book is targeted for endurance athletes and stresses the importance of making sure you are making the best choices to help your running performance. He focuses on improving your diet quality instead of worrying about calories (emphasis on fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, nuts/seeds, and dairy). I'm still tracking calories, but I've stopped worrying about the number for now. I've only been following his guidelines for about a week and a half so far, so I can't really speak to how much it helps with weight loss in the long run. I have lost 2 pounds so far and my weight has been steady vs being all over the place for a good month prior to reading the book (I'm trying to lose about 10 pounds between now and my second full in October). However, I have felt better eating according to his guidelines (and less hungry) and my runs have felt more energized. I may need to start focusing more on staying within a calorie goal if I find that I'm not losing weight just using his guidelines. But part of my problem has been not really knowing what my calorie goal should be. For now, I'm just trying to experiment and see where it takes me after a month or so.

    I'm using this book too and I love it. It's showed me how to fuel before my runs to perform well and how to eat at a deficit for weight loss the rest of the time. I think that this program works great with the mileage involved in training for half marathon.
  • HermioneDanger118
    HermioneDanger118 Posts: 345 Member
    I recently read the book "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald and it has really impacted the way I think about food and how to go about losing weight. The book is targeted for endurance athletes and stresses the importance of making sure you are making the best choices to help your running performance. He focuses on improving your diet quality instead of worrying about calories (emphasis on fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, nuts/seeds, and dairy). I'm still tracking calories, but I've stopped worrying about the number for now. I've only been following his guidelines for about a week and a half so far, so I can't really speak to how much it helps with weight loss in the long run. I have lost 2 pounds so far and my weight has been steady vs being all over the place for a good month prior to reading the book (I'm trying to lose about 10 pounds between now and my second full in October). However, I have felt better eating according to his guidelines (and less hungry) and my runs have felt more energized. I may need to start focusing more on staying within a calorie goal if I find that I'm not losing weight just using his guidelines. But part of my problem has been not really knowing what my calorie goal should be. For now, I'm just trying to experiment and see where it takes me after a month or so.

    Ooh, thanks for the recommendation! Just got it for the Kindle!
  • nicruns
    nicruns Posts: 201 Member
    This is a goal of mine.... I've been running for fun for the past few years, but without looking like a runner!

    (time to get lean and LOOK the part!)

    I'm pretty happy with my times for shorter distances (I'm consistently able to hold a sub 6 min/km pace for five and ten km races)

    But all of this extra weight is holding me back!

    I skimmed the racing weight book earlier this spring, but it's time to get serious!
    (I'm aiming to set a new 5k pb in late June... and I'm competing in my first half ironman this year as well, so the motivation is THERE!)
  • Carrieendar
    Carrieendar Posts: 493 Member
    I want to throw out another recommendation for Racing Weight...but also check out his other book The New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition. The two books compliment each other really well, and the later one has a lot of great week before/night before/day of tips that revolutionized my taper period and race day regime. It really works!
  • ccmccoy09
    ccmccoy09 Posts: 284 Member
    Another vote here for Racing Weight! As a runner you have to fuel properly. 100 calorie cookie packs and Diet Coke aren't going to cut it.

    I also lost a lot of weight when I started running and maintained/lost a bit more while half marathon training, and it was very helpful for me to "cycle" my calories day to day. I was still eating an average of 1400 goal calories per day (total 9800 per week), but modified daily goals based on my training schedule. E.g. 1400 Mon, 1293 Tues, 1444 Wed, 1400 Thurs, 1400 Fri, 1570 Sat (long run day), 1293 Sun. It worked for me for my 16-22 mile weeks and made it easy to get enough fuel on long run days.

    Good luck and happy running!

    ETA: Also if you're still enjoying alcohol, it might be time to cut it out of your diet. :/
  • pobalita
    pobalita Posts: 741 Member
    I want to throw out another recommendation for Racing Weight...but also check out his other book The New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition. The two books compliment each other really well, and the later one has a lot of great week before/night before/day of tips that revolutionized my taper period and race day regime. It really works!

    I also recommend this one - not for weight loss - but for the nutrition tips. I used the plan for a half marathon trail run about a week and a half ago and it's the first time I'ever finished without feeling dead. I'm starting the level 2 marathon training program in the book today for Chicago in October.
  • Carrieendar
    Carrieendar Posts: 493 Member
    I do like that Matt Fitzgerald lets you have a glass of wine without scoring it ;) so you wont have to cut out all alcohol.
  • SarahxApple
    SarahxApple Posts: 166 Member
    I'm doing my first half in 10 days and I have lost 12lbs since middle of Jan, my calorie goals have steadily gone up as I increased my exercise from 1200 - 1540 and I eat back my exercise calories - sometimes I am even over. I haven't cut anything out but I have cut back alcohol (I think that's mostly because the holiday season ended though).

    I didn't start properly training for my half until about 4-6 weeks ago, I already do CrossFit and run 5km once a week so I haven't found the mileage increase that hard. What I have found harder is too make sure that I am properly fuelled for the longer runs, I did 12miles last Sunday and I was really conscious about getting a good breakfast and making sure I had a fairly healthy snack for straight after. This is definitely a bigger food thing for me rather than regular diet.
  • snshine1028
    snshine1028 Posts: 44 Member
    I recently read the book "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald and it has really impacted the way I think about food and how to go about losing weight. The book is targeted for endurance athletes and stresses the importance of making sure you are making the best choices to help your running performance. He focuses on improving your diet quality instead of worrying about calories (emphasis on fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean proteins, nuts/seeds, and dairy). I'm still tracking calories, but I've stopped worrying about the number for now. I've only been following his guidelines for about a week and a half so far, so I can't really speak to how much it helps with weight loss in the long run. I have lost 2 pounds so far and my weight has been steady vs being all over the place for a good month prior to reading the book (I'm trying to lose about 10 pounds between now and my second full in October). However, I have felt better eating according to his guidelines (and less hungry) and my runs have felt more energized. I may need to start focusing more on staying within a calorie goal if I find that I'm not losing weight just using his guidelines. But part of my problem has been not really knowing what my calorie goal should be. For now, I'm just trying to experiment and see where it takes me after a month or so.

    I just bought the book the other day and I'm half way into it. It gives you a good perspective. Let me know how your progress is going. Add me =)