Running for overweight people: yay or nay?

ask your DOCTOR...best answer

Nay !
My perspective is to work on weight reduction first, and be very very gradual regarding ramping up exersize. I started at 130lbs overweight (305lbs) with a goal of 175lbs.

My doctor suggested to focus on the calories first and foremost to get the weight under control, then gradually blend in exersize as I feel my body can deal with it. Personally for me, I am targetting to begin my official exersize regime once I hit 275lbs (leaving me 100lbs to go). And i plan on being very gradual about it as i have damaged my joints / muscles before in pusing it too hard and too fast and it completely demotivated me.

One step at a time for me.

I can't remember how much I weighed when I started c25k. I At least 40 pounds heavier than I am now. So probably around 210. But anyways, I have a friend who is doing the program, and she's heavier than you are. Are you stretching beforehand? If so, maybe you need to stretch more. However, that being said, you don't want to hurt yourself. Only you can be the judge of what you can handle.

Yes! I started running at my all time highest 176! I haven't stopped. I weigh about 153-156 with water factored. I never had issues, but as I'm getting faster, I notice my form is changing and my ankles and knees will bother me at times DURING the run, never after. I suggest pacing yourself and be mindful of your stride/pace. I've only had muscle soreness after my runs, the next day, nothing a good stretch won't fix. Enjoy yourself. I run about 5x a week for at least 45 mins. :]

I started running when I was 265lbs (at 5'4") and completed my first half marathon at 220. I started off slow and I was incredibly sore for days after I would do my runs. Once my body started getting used to my training though, I wasn't nearly as sore. Icy Hot, ice showers, stretching, and vitamins were my best friends. Seriously.

That all being said, only YOU know what you can handle. If it's just twinges here and there during the start of your runs that go away, or if it's just soreness after a hard run, then I say power through it because that's usually just your muscles getting used to what you are doing. If it's pain that makes you need to stop running (whether mid-run or not) or that lasts for 3+ days and icing/heating/resting doesn't help, then you could be looking at a potential serious injury down the road.

All in all, listen to what your body is saying because you know it best and talk with your doctor.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!! :bigsmile:

Have you considered deep water running? You get the cardio but its much less taxing on your joints. Good luck!

i started running when i was overweight and after about two weeks started experiencing knee pain. my wife did some research and it was my shoes it seems that allot of the times overweight people have flat feet and a certain running gait that cause knee problems. after my wifes research i bought the right pair of shoes and run 30 plus miles a week at 235 pounds and have no pain i think if you go to a shoe store that specializes in this sort of thing i think it could help with your ankle pain to and dont forget to stretch like crazy.

Muscle conditioning is an important way to help prevent exercise injuries. Muscle will help stabilize the joints, which will give you less pain. You don't need to build bulky muscles though. Look into strength and resistence training workouts that you can do at home or in a gym.

Good luck!

I started running at 270 pounds, and I am 5'6". It hurt..I won't lie. When we weight what we weight, it is not easy. But it is addicting!!! Every time you hit a goal, or run a little bit farther, you get more and more in to it. I have been running for 3 years now. I still weight 192 pounds, so my knees still hurt, but advil and ice do the trick!!!

I totally agree, it is addicting!!!! I'm currently at 290 and I started the C25K and I jog at 4.6 and walk at 3.5, and honestly I feel great when i'm doing it.. Now i'm only on week 1 and have been on week 1 for about 3 weeks now, but when i'm ready to move over then I will-NO RUSH... I purchased some good Reebok sneakers and I just let it flow, and i'm excited cause back in the day I couldn't even walk on the treadmill at 3.5, so I'm hitting and setting more goals.. If you can do it then do it, but if you're having pain then you may need slow it down and take your time.

I started run/walk intervals with 135lbs to lose. Granted, my run intervals were tiny - like 30 seconds - but they're gradually increased. I walked (and ran a little) a half-marathon in May when I was only down 10lbs. I'd built a lot of muscle, though. :-)

You're doing strength training, which is great. My trainer told me that new runners often end up with strong quads and weak hamstrings because they don't crosstrain properly/ enough. The stronger and more balanced your leg muscles are, the safer your knees will be.

My other recommendation is to watch some videos about proper form. This can make a big difference in how much stress you are putting on your joints.

I'm down 20lbs now, doing C25K 3 days a week and running still never hurts my knees.

Listen to your body. take the Dr's advice with a grain of salt, and do what feels right.

I was about 100lbs overweight when I started. But I don't have any bum joints and I've been sidelined only recently due to 2 muscle strains (not from running) and a current illness (also not from running). But, if I had any joint weirdness or pain-I would be at the doc ASAP-you're good to be aware that the added weight is added stress on your joints. But that doesn't mean you'll automatically have issues-lots of people don't. But I have been a whole lot more "atuned" to aches and pains as I was going to have the doc on speeddial should anything not feel "right" (even if it was achy & painy). The good news is that I was morbidly obese, now I'm just overweight and well on my way to "normal". So carry on! Just keep minding the aches and pains and call the doctor if something doesn't feel "right" (which would be the same advice for people of any weight really-but extra weight could worsen a joint issue more than less weight - if you ignore it).

Everyone's different. My knees are bad probably because I've been overweight for so long- however I finished c25k just last week and *knock on wood* my knees have been holding up pretty well. Like the others suggested, talk to your doctor- definitely make sure you're warming up and cooling down appropriately and doing recommended stretches. And good shoes are obviously a must.

Are you running on a track, trails, or pavement...a good track will be easiest on your joints with pavement being the toughest. Make sure you are stretching, maybe incorporate a yoga for runners class in your cross training. Try to run so that you can hear your feet land, that takes that high impact and stress off of your joints.
BTW, I run with a beginners/intermediate training group and there are people of all sizes and shapes running, many need to lose 100+lbs.
Good Luck on your journey

Don't do C25k. That's my advice.

Can you run being 100 lbs overweight? Sure you can. I just recommend you follow something like Jeff Galloway's Run/Walk program. Pick an interval to start, even if it is like 1 minute run, 1 minute walk, and repeat that for the distance you are trying to cover. C25k is a great program, but for us overweight folks it can push too fast, too quickly.

I'm still 100 lbs overweight, but have done 5k's, 10k's, and half marathons. Still doing run/walk intervals. Just take it easy and have fun. You will get fast once the weight keeps falling off, but for now the focus is to remain injury free.

You are allowed to repeat weeks though. And repeat them as often as you wish. There is no rule that you HAVE to finish the program in 9 weeks. I think I repeated 2 of the weeks. So it doesn't push too fast, too quickly.

I started off with C25k. I was able to complete the program in the 9 weeks without repeating weeks. That was at 265ish lbs. That being said, I'd still recommend the run/walk like Galloway for longterm success. That is my opinion. I think running is fantastic and a slow and easy approach is best if you want to make it an ongoing hobby. C25k is great for lighter weight people who are just out of shape though.

I went from a very sedentary lifestyle to pushing myself full-fledge. I was jogging, walking, doing squats and that sort of thing and ended up hurting both of my knees. My doctor told me to lay off the exercise untill I lose at least another 30 pounds and then reevalute because my knees just can't take me beating them up at the weight I am at. I can do lots of walking but thats about it.

I would say talk to your doctor and have a bone density test done to be on the safe side.