Running...share your story please!

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Givemewings
Givemewings Posts: 864 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Those of you who got fit ( or are getting fit!) and have lost weight running/jogging, would love to hear your stories! Need some inspiration!

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  • xAdrianax
    xAdrianax Posts: 269 Member
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    Before MFP and beginning running I couldnt run to the end of my road without stopping!

    Now i can comfortably run 7 miles without stopping and im doing a half marathon next month

    Running helped massively with weight loss and my legs have never been so shapely and toned! my friends always comment on them now when we go out and i feel comfortable getting them out!
  • crazycranberry
    crazycranberry Posts: 117 Member
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    I really want to start incorporating running into my workout schedule but as I am a single parent I cannot go out of the house without my son having to come with me.
    He can ride his bike while I crack on with the running (gonna try Couch to 5k) but since I decided to do that, the weather has been rainy! Cannot exactly drag him out with me in the rain. :huh:
    Not sure how else I can kick start this process - its all weather dependant for me :grumble:

    I too would appreciate any ideas to get me motivated/started.
  • IamEric
    IamEric Posts: 67
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    When I started, I was at 270 pounds and knew that running would just put a lot of pressure on my knees and legs, so I took it slowly.

    I did a tweaked version of the C25K.com jogging plan.

    I started counting every time my right foot hit the pavement and I would do 60 counts walking, then 30 jogging. Trust me, at my weight, those 30 steps jogging were pure hell!

    The following week I did 50 w/40 j. Then 40 w/50 j. I am now at 30 w/60 j. It's still tough, but it's working. I still have a long way to go, but I hope to be 5K ready by February.
  • AlwaysSarah87
    AlwaysSarah87 Posts: 62
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    Couch to five K is a GREAT program!
  • wysmom2000
    wysmom2000 Posts: 101 Member
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    I started with the Couch to 5K program and now I'm running almost daily. I do long runs, intervals, fartleks, whatever I can get in. Running has been the key to my weight loss I think. My legs are more lean and toned and I've lost that flabby tummy. Before running, I struggled to find an exercise that would give me the results I was looking for.
  • mike20603
    mike20603 Posts: 32 Member
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    Hated it forever, especially at 100 pounds overweight.
    Used the elliptical to lose some, and build up awesome cardio.
    Started running, now I can't stop. I ran a bunch of 5K races, and now am running half marathons for my Saturday long run workout.

    This clearly falls in the category of, "If you would have told me 1 year ago...I would have called you crazy".

    For weight loss/cardio/leg toning...I've found no exercise that compares to its efficiency.

    My favorite running bumper sticker..."Your sport's punishment is my sport"
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
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    I've maintained a 50# loss for 3 years now.

    3 years ago I started running a couple of minutes at a time, and taking a minute or 2 walk break, then running again until I had covered 15 minutes. Over time I began to string that all together until I was running for 15 minutes. Then I just kept going.

    I don't even know where I am with my race tally right now. I ran my first 5k, came home afterwards, printed up a half marathon training program and started looking for a race to run. 5 months later, I did.

    I'm taking it a step further in a week....and I'm doing my first sprint triathlon.

    You gotta love it though!! You won't stick with it if you don't. But you also have to give it time. Most people hit 2-3 miles and stop there...the "runners high" that you hear about and pleasure that so many people talk about from running starts to come long after that.
  • tishaloses
    tishaloses Posts: 234 Member
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    I started couch to 5k at the end of July. I weighed 210 when I started. I'm in week 7 and I weigh 203 pounds and my legs are so much thinner!! When I started I didn't think I could run at all and now I love it!!! Gonna keep it up even when the program is over!!
  • teeley
    teeley Posts: 477 Member
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    6 months ago I was 51lbs heavier...I love to run. I started C25K in March...ish....and I love it, at the start I thought there is no way I will be able to run more than 1 min, it just hurts too much....but guess what, I try to run 5k or more 3-4 times a week. It hurts, and for me there is a mind game...but when I get home from a good painful run I feel great!!!! I am not even half way to my goal, and can't wait to see how I fly when I am another 50+ lbs down!!! Good Luck and happy running.
  • casey_when_u_go
    casey_when_u_go Posts: 84 Member
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    I have a friend who works for an events company. She had organised a run through the forest a few miles from my home and she asked me if I wanted to do it. I didn't enter, but I did go and watch. The buzz of the event made me determined to enter the following year.
    I needed help to start as I suffered back pain, so I asked one of the personal trainers at my gym for help. He got me started on a stretching programme for the back pain (which is now gone ..... woohoo!!), and he ran with me for a couple of weeks until he was confident I could run 2 miles by myself without stopping.
    I have never looked back:smile: I completed that forest run last year and enjoyed it so much I did another one 2 months later. The bug has totally taken over, I have completed a half marathon, a triathlon, 2 x 10km, and lots of 5kms.
    I only started on mfp properly last October but have lost 26lbs since then, and dropped 2 dress sizes.
  • shydaisi
    shydaisi Posts: 833 Member
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    I am in the middle of my fourth week in the C25K program. I have lost about 10 pounds since I started. In addition to the interval running, I also do Zumba and am starting a BodyPump class today. I have lost 36 pounds since my lifestyle change on 6/17/2011.
  • eatrunstretch
    eatrunstretch Posts: 233 Member
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    For me, running is what is taking the weight off. My body is like a camel but with food instead of water! I would have made a great cavewoman!

    I was never able to run previously. Would go out and basically talk myself out of it. This time, I used tools to help me; my iPod and the Nike+. I worked my way up to 30 mins continuous running using the treadmill at my gym and then I started going outside for a 5k+ run. I joined Nike+ running where I can log my runs and compete with my friends/family and that is hugely motivating! Sometimes, the only reason I would go for a run was to beat my sister in a running challenge. I say do whatever gets you out the door as in the long term, you're winning!

    If you want to use Nike+ running and want a friend - please feel free to add me for support/motivation - screen name is Katooks.

    ps. oh and your butt and thighs will look amazing!
  • baileylm
    baileylm Posts: 23 Member
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    Can't say enough good things about running! I've been at it for 8 years now. When I started I could barely get around the corner without stopping. With perseverance I have extended my distances and improved my times. But, I'm not into going farther and farther or faster and faster -- that takes the fun out of it for me. I'm happy running a good-paced 3 miles 4-5 times a week. The weight most definitely comes off faster and easier when running is part of your routine. I've done all sorts of other cardio workouts and nothing ever worked as well as running. Not only that, but I attribute my running as the reason I had an early diagnosis of breast cancer (long story but w/o the jostling from running I wouldn't have known), and I have gained bone density because of my running. I know my lung capacity has improved too. And I just feel HEALTHY. That's the ultimate goal, right?
  • eidalac
    eidalac Posts: 11 Member
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    'Bout to do my morning run once it warms up a bit. Week 4 and I'm up to 2.5 miles... scheduled says I should be up to 3, but that seems too much of a jump for me ATM (called for 2 for a week, then 2.5 one day and 3 the next...).

    I don't -like- it, partially because I still can't run more than a few moments without having to slow down to a walk over and over, which I find bothersome. But it burns the calories like nothing else does, and I have been improving, bit by bit. I'll like it alot more when I get the the stage where I can run the whole distance, but that'll be a while yet.
  • KMSForLife
    KMSForLife Posts: 605
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    I also am doing the C25K. I started the C25K at the same time I started MFP (8/4/11) - I have lost 12 lbs. For me the inspiration was a man named Ben Davis. There is a video on www.c25k.com that takes you through Ben's journey of a year. It may be one of the most inspirational videos I have ever seen. Check it out - I have actually gone back and watched it a couple of times when I feel sad or feel down - it gets me through.

    Good luck!
  • cathcakey
    cathcakey Posts: 288 Member
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    www.bendoeslife.tumblr.com

    Check it out, his is a very cool story.

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