Couch to 5K for Obese?!

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Graciefab
Graciefab Posts: 30 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey, have any of you ever been obese and done a couch to 5k program to get into running? If so, what was your experience and did you lose weight?
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  • Graciefab
    Graciefab Posts: 30 Member
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    mallymoo86 wrote: »
    I'm doing this right now. When I started I was 280lbs and couldn't finish week 1. I am now completing week 6 at 228lbs. I have had to repeat weeks multiple times, but I am making progress and feeling very accomplished. The calorie defecit was why I lost weight but the extra calories from C25K sure did help.
    Hey! What number of calories were you eating and how long did it take you to lose that fifty plus pounds?
  • mallymoo86
    mallymoo86 Posts: 24 Member
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    It has taken me 5 months to loose 50 lbs. Right now I usually net 1300. I couldn't just eat 1300 though. That's where C25K has come in. I eat back the calories I earn running. My loss is slowing down to a more normal rate now though. If I eat less, I feel too tired.
  • afatpersonwholikesfood
    afatpersonwholikesfood Posts: 577 Member
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    I just started using the Galloway method. I'm on the first week of training for a half-marathon that is at the end of the year. My goal is simply to complete it. Kind of a weird place to start for a beginner, but I have 6+ months, and it's a walking-friendly race, so I will have that as a backup plan.

    Not really answering your questions, I know - I didn't do this to lose from my starting weight. I've been walking as my main form of exercise for some time now, and I'm just now making the transition to running. I'm 5'10" and 219 pounds. I expected running to be easier by now since intervals/aerobics have also been part of my routine.

    Nope, this first week of "jalking" or "wogging" still SUCKS. : ) But it earns me calories. I got 400 for today's session according to Fitbit.
  • hawksfan881972
    hawksfan881972 Posts: 16 Member
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    I'm also doing the C25K program. I'm considered obese by all standards. You can do it. Do it at a pace that is good for you.

    This is my second time doing a couch to 5k program, since I took a few years off to be lazy. The last time I did it, I lost about 40lbs over the course of 6 months. I was also working with a calorie allowance of 2000 per day (I never ate back my calories burned while running).

    I'm willing to give support. We can do it. Add me.
  • thunder1982
    thunder1982 Posts: 280 Member
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    I have done the program, I am still obese though I am less obese than I used to be.

    I skipped quickly through the first few weeks as I wasnt really a beginner, the middle weeks I struggled to make much progress. It was a great way to get started and keep being pushed to do that bit better.

    I had moved on to the 10k program but now I pretty much just use my fitness watch to push me as it gives me my time every 1km and I am training for a 12km race in the beginning of June.

    I am 5'4 and about 180pds, on Monday I ran for 1hr & burnt an almost 800cals, but I only do a long run like that once a week. The other 2 running session are much shorter 15-25 min sessions.
  • ElizabethOakes2
    ElizabethOakes2 Posts: 1,038 Member
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    Tried at 175 pounds, but my knee gave out after the first week. Doctor said no more attempts at running until I'm in normal weight range, and I get to go to physical therapy. :(
  • Lannie79
    Lannie79 Posts: 28 Member
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    I am morbidly obese and I run. The C25K program was a good place to start. Just remember the time estimates assume a 10 - 12 min mile pace. That may be too fast to start. Go the pace you need to. When starting out to build your base endurance you should be able to speak in complete sentences...if not you're going too fast and slow down. As you get stronger you will get faster.
  • chimaerandi
    chimaerandi Posts: 153 Member
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    I was 200 pounds at 5'3'' when I started C25K. I'm now an avid runner and 130 pounds. You can absolutely do it, and I turned out to love running
  • enterdanger
    enterdanger Posts: 2,447 Member
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    I was 223 and 5'3 when I started c25k. I can run a 5k now and I'm down to 190lbs
  • FatMomRun
    FatMomRun Posts: 28 Member
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    I started with C25k program then moved to a personalized plan. When I started I was classified as obese at 178 lbs, I've lost 45 pounds in 5 months with watching my food intake and running.
  • mrsloganlife
    mrsloganlife Posts: 158 Member
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    I started with C25k and it was rough at first. I had to repeat weeks, sometimes multiple times. I also psychologically hated running. Now I love it--if I go a few days without a run I get itchy.

    My advice? Put expectations aside. Just focus on one foot in front of the other. Don't focus on your speed (my run is the speed of a grandpa on a walker sometimes), don't focus on what others around you might be thinking (although seriously nobody is thinking about you--they have their one mind games haha), just focus on you and getting to the end. I struggled with all of that a lot and now I just clear my mind and run. You can do it!
  • mrsloganlife
    mrsloganlife Posts: 158 Member
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    Also...stretch! And invest in a foam roller. When I first started my feet and calves would cramp horribly and a foam roller was my saving grace.
  • rosetigger
    rosetigger Posts: 1,147 Member
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    I am doing the C25K right now. I just finished week 4. I have never run in my life. I am 50 and just started to see what I could do as I am keep switching up my exercises so I don't get bored. I think I will repeat week 4 because I found it hard to run for 5 min straight the second time. It is only 3 days a week. In the beginning I wanted to do more but now I find I am avoiding it and only doing it 2 times a week. I also am probably not running as fast as I should be. Good luck. Don't feel bad about repeating a week. One lady told me it took her a year to move from week 1 - week 2.
    I wish I could lose weight like some of the other people on here. It took me a year to lose 20 pounds. I do watch what I eat and I exercise every day at least 50 min. I don't know why I can't lose the weight. My calories are 1200 - 1800 daily depending on my exercise for the day. I almost never go over.
  • andrewbadera
    andrewbadera Posts: 14 Member
    edited May 2016
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    I'm still considered "obese" today. I did my first 5K of the season this past weekend, knocking 38 seconds off my average mile pace since last November.

    I ran four 5Ks last year, around 265lb at 5'10". Ibuprofen is your friend. Fish oil too maybe. Also, to an extent, you need to learn to suck up a certain amount of pain - it will go away.

    Get enough water. Get enough sleep. Get enough protein.

    I didn't use a program, I just started out walking my dog, and as I felt comfortable, jogging for spans of time along our walk.

    I still haven't finished a 5K without walking, but my 11:07 pace this past weekend put me under 35 minutes, which I'm pretty psyched about.

    I wasn't counting calories last year, so between food, and laziness between a couple surgeries, I gained weight. It wasn't until December when I started counting calories again, and lifting weights again, that led me to lose 20 pounds in 2 months. (Probably where my pace gains came from.)
  • pinktara2013
    pinktara2013 Posts: 19 Member
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    I'm way over weight and, while not doing a specific C25K program, I am working into running again. I have a 5K coming up in two weeks. I did one last year but this year I'm not stopping at one. I walked the whole thing last year but this year I am going to do a run/walk combo at least for this first one. I'm gradually increasing my distance and how much I run. I had to take almost two weeks off after having surgery but i got out today and did 3.7 miles with a three minute walk/one minute run combo. My goal was to do a (slow) marathon for my birthday in October this year, but I put off my training for so long that now I don't know if I'll be able to. But I'm hoping to do at least a half marathon with a run/walk combo. I found one around my birthday that actually has an earlier start time for people like me, so that's my goal!
  • brb_2013
    brb_2013 Posts: 1,197 Member
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    I have many times! Stay on weeks if you're struggling, it doesn't HAVE TO be done in 9wks. When starting from no fitness experience it took me 3 weeks to get through week 1 and feel confident that I could do week 2. I think I stalled where the jog parts get up to 8 minutes. It helped me to move outside at that point, I was just getting to the point that I felt bored if I didn't have scenery changing around me.

    I'm currently using an M5 elliptical style machine but now that it's nice out and bright in the mornings I will be picking up jogging outside again :)

    Just listen to your body! Soreness is okay but avoid actual pain. Slow down and let your body get used to the movement before trying for speed.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I didn't do C25K, since I'd been into running in the past and felt comfortable just starting to run again, but I started when I was 5'3 and about 200.
  • Aine8046
    Aine8046 Posts: 2,122 Member
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    ElizabethOakes2 wrote: »
    Tried at 175 pounds, but my knee gave out after the first week. Doctor said no more attempts at running until I'm in normal weight range, and I get to go to physical therapy. :(

    This. Be careful about your knees. I started it at 175 as well and got down to 140. Love running and had no serious problems, but saw people who were too heavy to run. Maybe you start fast walking?

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