question for the runners

igoharder92
igoharder92 Posts: 40
in Fitness and Exercise
Even when I thought I was in the best shape of my young life I still didn't consider myself and runner, and now that I'm over weight I want to be a runner! I tried today, I could only run for 5 mins and my heart was burning and my lungs were tight and everytime i took a step i could feel my butt (i'm bottom heavy) throwing it's self everywhere, lol. My question is how did you get started? How do you fight threw the pain and breathing heavy when you just want to stop? I am a easy quitter unfortunatly when things start to get hard...
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Replies

  • ATLMel
    ATLMel Posts: 392 Member
    Couch to 5K sounds like your best bet (google it. It's free and easy to find online). This program will get you from huffing after 5 mins to running 30 mins straight. Its an awesome program and I think the best way to start.

    ETA: As far as motivation...I do well to yell internally at myself "Harden the F&*( Up!". Positive self-talk is always a bonus :).
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    My method was to run as long as I could. And then when I just couldn't, I'd stop and walk. And maybe run a little more after I felt rested.

    My goal would be to run as long as possible without stopping, and the next time, my goal would be to beat that by one minute.

    I started at 8 minutes a little over two months ago. Last night, I ran for 41 minutes without stopping.
  • neverstray
    neverstray Posts: 3,845 Member
    I just Googled "how to start running". There was an awesome little program that gave you a schedule to follow that included walking and running, until by the end of it, you run 5 miles. Easy.
  • IveLanded
    IveLanded Posts: 797 Member
    I totally know what you mean. I was like that when I started. :)

    The "couch to 5k" program is a pretty solid program that a lot of people have success with. My trainer gave me a more simplified version of that and it's basically this:
    Plan on running 3-4 days a week, at least 1 mile each session.
    Week 1 - 1 minute running, 2 minutes recovery (walking)
    Week 2 - 1.5 minutes running, 1.5 minutes recovery
    Week 3- 2 minutes running, 1 minute recovery
    Week 4 - 2.5 minutes running, 30 second recovery

    Past that, push yourself an additional 30 seconds each week with no more than a 30 second recovery. Honestly, I found that by week 3 I was way past this and doing 3 or 4 minutes at a time.

    It really really helped me to have good music and proper clothes and shoes. It's hard to run when you're worried about your pants falling down or your boobs flailing all over. ;) And I cannot stress the importance of going to a running store and getting fitted for some GOOD shoes.

    I started out like you and now I can easily run a 5k. The other day, I did five miles just for the heck of it. I couldn't do that every day (yet!) but it was a huge difference from where I started.
  • jobryan4
    jobryan4 Posts: 138 Member
    couch to 5K! Even when I was in shape and ran a few triathlons it wasn't easy for me to run, this program has made it easy for me to get back to it and running as well as I did then in 5 weeks. The 5K will be easier for me to run when I finish the program that it was for me when I ran the races.
  • DannieElise
    DannieElise Posts: 23 Member
    I've heard great things about Couch to 5 K and I'm considering getting started with the program next week!
  • amayarnell
    amayarnell Posts: 60 Member
    Jeff Galloway! I was a 'non-runner' and i ran my first half marathon last year with his training!
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    I did couch to 5k. And if you can already run 5 minutes straight, you're way ahead of where I started!
  • michaelthorsonjr
    michaelthorsonjr Posts: 80
    Here is how I did it. I started running and when I got worn out I walked a little bit until I felt good enough to run again - I started this with 2 miles (1 mile out from my house then back). Eventually I got to where I could do it without stopping, then I began to increase my mileage to three miles...four miles...etc. This was back in August since that time I have run a 10K, 5K, and two half marathons. I regularly run 8-9 miles four days a week and then a 13 mile long day on Saturday.

    Just keep at it you will get there!!
  • kriztyn723
    kriztyn723 Posts: 57
    I agree, Couch-to-5k! I just started it, am on day 2... yes I am sore... but I actually looked forward to the running part knowing it was only for 1 minute and then I got to walk 1 min, 30 secs for 30 min. It is just week one so it will get progressively hard, but it made it possible!
  • Mehagon
    Mehagon Posts: 83
    I didn't start running until the summer of 2010. . . and it was basically because of the guy I was seeing (who is now my husband). I couldn't run a minute at a time without huffing and puffing, but within the year I ran an entire Half-Marathon! He got me started using the Couch 2 5K program and it worked wonderfully for me!

    The biggest thing is your breathing. . . I sounded like I was hyperventilating when I would breathe, so he told me to think of Bob Ross (the painter with the fro in case you're unfamiliar) and hear his voice in my head talking about the happy little trees and just trying to be calm like him. He made me a "WWBRD?" bracelet (What would Bob Ross do?) to remind me of my breathing while I was running.

    Keep at it! You'll get there someday, but you have to fight through the times when running sucks. . . because the first part of it always does. :)

    Happy running!
  • amsparky
    amsparky Posts: 825 Member
    Couch 25K. Seriously. I thought I was going to DIE when I first tried it. Now I am doing the companion program Bridge 210K and jogging 4 miles at a time!

    It really can happen! I was always a good sprinter, terrible at anything over 1 lap around the track. Now I am slow, but I am still moving. :)

    Good luck and feel free to add me as a friend and ask any questions. :)
  • Maystar80
    Maystar80 Posts: 85 Member
    I'm using the learn to run app. there's a learn to run 1 and 2. 1 builds you up to running one hours and 2 builds you up to running a half marathon. 1 starts with walk/run intervals of 3 minutes and gradually increases your run time while decreasing your walk time. I love and highly recommend it!
  • kbendert
    kbendert Posts: 74 Member
    In high school I hated running (I was the kid in gym class who couldn't even run the full mile), but I thought that running would be a great way to get some cardio in, so I started a couch to 5K program. Like everyone else has said so far, it was awesome! I used it at my own pace, repeated a lot of weeks, but I eventually completed it and now can do a 5K regularly. As far as motivation, I found that having a workout partner really helped- my husband and I did the couch to 5K program together, which was really great. If you don't have a real-life running partner, I'm sure you can find others who want to start running and do a support group here on MFP!

    Good luck! Keep at it, running is awesome!
  • JoniBologna
    JoniBologna Posts: 653 Member
    My method was to run as long as I could. And then when I just couldn't, I'd stop and walk. And maybe run a little more after I felt rested.

    My goal would be to run as long as possible without stopping, and the next time, my goal would be to beat that by one minute.

    This is what I did because when I started I found myself more advanced than the first few weeks of C25K.
  • Chipmaniac
    Chipmaniac Posts: 642 Member
    I used to hate running. However, I wanted to lose weight. I started walking. It wasn't long that I built some base fitness and started to run and then went from there. I think the key is to build your cardio-vascular base first, then think about adding the extra biomechanical stress of running once you get your cardio system in decent shape. Every workout, even when I was just walking, I strove to increase the intensity of the walk/run some way, whether that's more distance, faster pace, or more varied inline/terrain.

    Also, buy a heart rate monitor. This allows you to know what you safely can and cannot do. It motivates you to do more on the days where you are demotivated and to do less on days when your heart tells you that you are over-training etc.
  • sblack91
    sblack91 Posts: 27
    The best advice I ever got when starting to run was - start off much slower than you think you should be going!

    I tried the couch to 5k programme and found it really tough, then I tried again without it and just jogged at a slower pace. I have only been doing it for a couple of weeks and am already jogging for 5k (albeit slowly!!)
    And as you get fitter, you can pick up your pace!


    Good luck, I'm sure you'll find something that works for you :)
  • lizard053
    lizard053 Posts: 2,344 Member
    Couch 2 5k. Best running program for beginners. Go at your (snail-like for me) pace, repeat weeks where you need to, and before you know it, you'll be a runner. At least, that's what I've been told! LOL! I'm about 8 or 9 weeks in, but not yet managing a week 4 run schedule. Eh, I'll get there eventually!
  • amuhlou
    amuhlou Posts: 693 Member
    Couch to 5k really worked for me. I never focused on the distance, but rather just the time, until I was running 38 minutes (a 5k for me).

    When I started, jogging (or should I say 'trotting barely above walking pace') for just 60 seconds exhausted me. Now, 3 miles is the minimum I usually run on a given day.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I'm a huge believer in the C25K program! I just got back from a 3 mile run - I started c25k 9 weeks ago as a complete non-runner! Find the program online, download any of the various apps to your phone and get started! It works, it's awesome, and if I can do it, you can do it! :bigsmile:
  • Colofit
    Colofit Posts: 177 Member
    I have ran 5 half marathons and one full marathon as well as many "fun" runs....but I am a very slow runner and have never considered myself a "runner"!! When I started running I could hardly get around my block!!! Honestly!! What I would do was set a goal like to just get around the block and would start out and say "jog to that mail box up ahead" and then I would walk a few houses and then set the next target to jog to! A few weeks later I could make it around the block and then I slowly added on that way! I also would go run with a friend once and a while who was better than me and so would push me to go further than I thought I ever could. gradually people started asking me advise which blew me away! I never worry about times but rather what I can complete! Stick to it, you will be amazed what you can achieve!!!!!
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    If you ran 5 minutes you are ahead of where I was 14 months ago. The thing is that starting a running program is hard. It will keep being hard until your body begins to adapt. Fortunately that doesn't take long. C25K or some other program like it will get you there.

    You also have to remember that even when you are done with C25K you are still at the beginning. Your ability to run can improve for years if you keep doing it consistently.
  • igoharder92
    igoharder92 Posts: 40
    thank you for all the responces! It sounds like couch to 5k is the majority and I just signed up lol! Your success stories are amazing, to even picture my self running a mile straight is crazy to believe but I one day I hope to have a success story like yalls!
  • MelissaGraham7
    MelissaGraham7 Posts: 406 Member
    Lots of excellent advice here! Couch to 5K is great. Here's the biggest thing - if you get drastically out of breath, SLOW DOWN. You are simply running too fast. You have to remember you aren't use to it. Work on walking faster as you go and try running just from one telephone pole to the next -it doesn't have to be a lot faster than your walk. Control your breathing. If you can't control your breathing - slow down some more. Maybe you will think you are not running. It isn't about how fast you go. You run slow enough you can breathe and control your heart rate. Your speed will come up as you practice but it is all about teaching your brain and your body and your lungs to go slow enough that you can control them. I made that mistake so much when I was starting out - and gasping for breath. SLOW DOWN!! ;) and the Couch to 5K is a great way to do it but if you are just starting out - you could do walking first - walking until you can do a mile in 15 minutes.... then start sprinkling in little spurts of SLOW running.
  • Masterchef2000
    Masterchef2000 Posts: 127 Member
    I didn't read anyone's replies so far so forgive me if I repeat. I took my walk to outside. Each time I kept track of my time and tried to beat it. It took me 6 weeks to work up to running and a further two weeks to run a straight mile. I'm now up to 6 miles in an hour. Speed walking worked pretty great for me to build up some muscle so that I could run. I never thought I would be a runner either! YAY for us! :-)
  • kyunda
    kyunda Posts: 340 Member
    i agree with everyone about C25K, its great. Also find a group to run with that is what is helping me. And as far as you back side( mine use to slap me around too,lol) old navy as these dri workout clothes that keep you dry and holds everything in one place so you can run without thinking about if everyone is looking at your butt,lol.
  • elizamc
    elizamc Posts: 285 Member
    I totally know what you mean. I was like that when I started. :)

    The "couch to 5k" program is a pretty solid program that a lot of people have success with. My trainer gave me a more simplified version of that and it's basically this:
    Plan on running 3-4 days a week, at least 1 mile each session.
    Week 1 - 1 minute running, 2 minutes recovery (walking)
    Week 2 - 1.5 minutes running, 1.5 minutes recovery
    Week 3- 2 minutes running, 1 minute recovery
    Week 4 - 2.5 minutes running, 30 second recovery

    Past that, push yourself an additional 30 seconds each week with no more than a 30 second recovery. Honestly, I found that by week 3 I was way past this and doing 3 or 4 minutes at a time.

    It really really helped me to have good music and proper clothes and shoes. It's hard to run when you're worried about your pants falling down or your boobs flailing all over. ;) And I cannot stress the importance of going to a running store and getting fitted for some GOOD shoes.

    I started out like you and now I can easily run a 5k. The other day, I did five miles just for the heck of it. I couldn't do that every day (yet!) but it was a huge difference from where I started.

    Everything IveLanded has said! I started to run a year ago and couldn't do the C25K because it's targets were set much too high for me. So when I began I could just about run and walk from lamppost to lamppost and I very gradually increased this - when I was ready - to running for 45seconds, walking for 45 seconds and slowly slowly built up. I didn't try to run fast, I aimed to finish in one piece!

    I never believed that I could run but last year, at 56, I decided to give it a go and was thrilled to run three 5k's; I encourage you to aim for a fun run at some realistic time later this year, they're great fun and a huge motivator. And oh what an amazing feeling when you get round the course!

    Believe in yourself, don't measure yourself against others, you can do this!

    Please friend me if you wish - I'll certainly encourage you!
  • sscott79
    sscott79 Posts: 13 Member
    Get a good pair of compression pants/shorts. Will help with the booty swinging!! I like podrunner.com for the ease in to 5k program and interval training as well.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    I'm doing the Couch to 5k, like almost everyone has already mentioned. I'm on week 2 right now (so I can't give you any awesome stories about how I'm this super awesome runner now) but today I decided to just go out there and run and see how far I got and.... it was pretty pathetic. Not even half a mile lol.
  • igoharder92
    igoharder92 Posts: 40
    Lol i am deff going to invest in some good pants to keep everything in place! As far as the shoes go, I just have a pair of Nike Air's and right now i can't really afford to buy a new pair. I can't wait to say I am running a 5k!! that is so awesome!

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