Back at running and exhausted

I'm always amazed at how hard running is. I'm a relatively new runner myself. It gets better!

If you ran in the heat: get some electrolites. (You can buy tablets or powder to add to water.)

In any case, a little sugar at the end of the run is helpful. I mean a piece of fruit or the equivalent (60kcals).

Finally, add intervals to your run to push pace. In fact, the Zen labs C25K app is pretty good for that. You can jog or walk the slow intervals.

Best of luck!

tiasommer wrote: »

Thanks! I will definitely try that. A couple years ago I trained and completed 3 half marathons. Thing was, I never controlled what I ate. I lost some post baby weight, but didn't get below 165 lbs. I'm at 180 now and want to get to 150 so diet and exercise must be combined. Trying to get it right is hard. I'm just sooo hungry!

@tiasommer -

If weight loss is your primary goal, be prepared to lose the weight slowly and accept that you won't train for optimum running performance. You can still see some amazing gains from where you start, but the calorie deficit will keep you from being really good at the longer distances. 3 to 5 miles, 3 to 4 days a week shouldn't be a problem; but even at that volume, you don't want a huge calorie deficit. Maybe just enough to lose a half pound to a pound a week, with error on the slower side.

As long as you're consistent, the weight will come off. It may be easier to be consistent, and it will certainly be less exhausting, to lose the weight slower rather than faster.

Learn to say "yes" to electrolytes. The major electrolytes are sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. The big deal for runners is, we need to ignore the mass media messages to consume less sodium. We sweat that sodium right out, and we need to replace it.

Nice! I am in a similar boat. I used to run a lot and race triathlons, but - life. I am trying to get back into it as well. 3 mi is a lot if its your first run back! in the beginning go for time spent, not just miles. Also don't forget your protein. If I am continually doing 40 minute workouts I make sure to get some protein and sugar within 30 minutes of finishing, and my body is happy! (as far as curbing appetite i have found eating every three hours - and only enough to be hungry in 3 hours works for me. This happens to be about 300 calories.)

DebLaBounty wrote: »

I drink Gatorade's G2 to get those electrolytes. I think it's 45 calories for 20 ounces. It's a nice refreshing drink after a run, especially if the weather's warm.

I like Nuun tablets for electrolytes. If you're watching calorie intake, IIRC one tab is something like 10 calories. FWIW, I used to run triathlons but I'm just a cyclist now, and on my longer rides I'll carry a tube in my jersey pocket in case I refill my water bottles somewhere.

A nutritionist friend recommends keeping your workouts less than an hour for weight loss. This is controversial, so you need to try it yourself, but his point is that working out for hour-plus periods makes it very hard to cut intake. He recommended shorter more intense workouts closer to 30-40 minutes. That's what I mostly did in the winter while I was cutting.

As for hunger: you need to tough out the first week or two when you first lower your calorie intake. Your physiology has evolved to resist changes of that sort. Just remember that hunger lies!