What made you start running?

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  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    Because I'm cheap! I live in So Cal and the weather is almost always good enough for a run. All I need to burn some calories is a decent pair of running shoes. I've been running for most of my life now. :)

    Sooooo Jelly of the SoCal weather! We have freezing snow bound winters, rainy spring and hot humid summer. We get like 8 or 9 nice days in the fall though usually!
  • cakesmooth
    cakesmooth Posts: 122 Member
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    Because I'm cheap! I live in So Cal and the weather is almost always good enough for a run. All I need to burn some calories is a decent pair of running shoes. I've been running for most of my life now. :)

    Woops, I didn't answer the question. I was cafeteria monitor in 6th grade and was sneaking a few extra chocolate milk cartons and lunches every day. My mom gave me, her fat 10 year old, a sports bra and biker shorts for Christmas. I'm not a very sensitive person and not only was I not hurt but like most women I was excited to work out in my new excercise outfit. The family brought me along to a large park and instead of observing animals like I usually did I took off walking. Walking quickly became easy so I started to run and haven't stopped.
  • antonette15
    antonette15 Posts: 19 Member
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    I started running as a way to challenge myself. I lost weight by walking, but was getting a little bored with it. Plus, it burns a lot more calories! I was never a runner, so when I started doing it, I had to start from square one. I would run for a minute and walk for a minute, I did this repeatedly for an hour. Now, I am able to run for 80 minutes straight! :D
  • utes09
    utes09 Posts: 561 Member
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    Wanting to prove that my crappy lungs couldn't stop me.

    I was born three months premature and my lungs weren't fully developed so I had oxygen for the first few months. Once I got married and graduated college I knew I needed to be more active so I worked myself up to being able to run around my apartment complex and kept pushing myself.

    I finished my first half marathon April 21, 2012 about four years after I seriously started running.
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
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    Peer pressure. I had friends/co-workers that ran and looked great and I wanted to be like them and not just watch them! Plus I was 290# and knew I needed to make a positive change!
  • dvisser1
    dvisser1 Posts: 788 Member
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    I've run at times in the past when I had friends to run with, but more for the social aspect than the exercise. Friends stopped going and I dropped running entirely.

    This time, I'm running because I want to. Beginning of the year I could not run. My knee would buckle at the impact of my foot strike on the ground. Tell me I physically can't do something and I will want it so bad I will find a way. This time I had to prove to myself that I could get back in shape and proving that I could get my legs strong enough to run has been a big part of that. To make sure I stuck with it I signed up for a 5k on July 7th. I got strong enough to run and run good distance a lot faster than I figured, so I ran my first 5k on June 23rd. It was a trail run on relatively flat ground that I finished in 27:16.

    Still signed up for the July 7th 5k and want to finish faster than before. I'm also looking to sign up for a 10k or two later this summer and Fall to keep myself motivated.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    Peer pressure. I had friends/co-workers that ran and looked great and I wanted to be like them and not just watch them! Plus I was 290# and knew I needed to make a positive change!

    Awesome! You should keep an eye out for the "am I too heavy to run?" threads and tell them what's what!
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    I've run at times in the past when I had friends to run with, but more for the social aspect than the exercise. Friends stopped going and I dropped running entirely.

    This time, I'm running because I want to. Beginning of the year I could not run. My knee would buckle at the impact of my foot strike on the ground. Tell me I physically can't do something and I will want it so bad I will find a way. This time I had to prove to myself that I could get back in shape and proving that I could get my legs strong enough to run has been a big part of that. To make sure I stuck with it I signed up for a 5k on July 7th. I got strong enough to run and run good distance a lot faster than I figured, so I ran my first 5k on June 23rd. It was a trail run on relatively flat ground that I finished in 27:16.

    Still signed up for the July 7th 5k and want to finish faster than before. I'm also looking to sign up for a 10k or two later this summer and Fall to keep myself motivated.

    That is an AWESOME 5K time, regardless of your injury! Keep on truckin!
  • kenmunson333
    kenmunson333 Posts: 51 Member
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    I started running one day when I realized that walking on the treadmill at the gym, even at 4 mph with an incline of 15% just no longer felt like it was burning enough calories in the time I had to spend there. So I started running and now run 5-6 miles a day, sometimes more.
  • giggles7706
    giggles7706 Posts: 1,491 Member
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    I have always wanted to run. I was always worried that I wouldn't be able to do it. The first time I attempted running, I couldn't run for more than 10 seconds. It was a horrible experience but an eye opener. And kinda discouraging. I was so disappointed in myself but then I knew I was gonna get myself in shape so that I could run. It was a challenge to myself. I wouldn't call myself a runner - no matter how bad I want to. I can now run for 5 minutes at a time. Slowly building myself to run a 5k. And it's a wonderful stress reliever. I never thought I would consider running my me time.
  • mamacita721
    mamacita721 Posts: 194 Member
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    After being told all my life that I look ridiculous when I run, (thanks Mom!), I decided that I did not care. I have exercise ADD and need a tangible goal in order to finish something. So I signed up for a 5K so I could get me a cool race bib and started C25K.

    I am slow, but I finish without walking. Ten 5ks and two 10ks so far. Next up are two half marathins in the fall and the PF Changs Rock n Roll marathon in January.

    I even have my new tattoos picked out for when I accomplish these goals.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    I have always wanted to run. I was always worried that I wouldn't be able to do it. The first time I attempted running, I couldn't run for more than 10 seconds. It was a horrible experience but an eye opener. And kinda discouraging. I was so disappointed in myself but then I knew I was gonna get myself in shape so that I could run. It was a challenge to myself. I wouldn't call myself a runner - no matter how bad I want to. I can now run for 5 minutes at a time. Slowly building myself to run a 5k. And it's a wonderful stress reliever. I never thought I would consider running my me time.

    People constantly overlook the stress relief aspect, especially when discussing the merits of cardio vs. weight training. It's unlike any other activity in that way (that I have found)! Its great for mentally crunching problems too- there's a thought clarity that you get while running, like you could solve any problems.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    Options
    After being told all my life that I look ridiculous when I run, (thanks Mom!), I decided that I did not care. I have exercise ADD and need a tangible goal in order to finish something. So I signed up for a 5K so I could get me a cool race bib and started C25K.

    I am slow, but I finish without walking. Ten 5ks and two 10ks so far. Next up are two half marathins in the fall and the PF Changs Rock n Roll marathon in January.

    I even have my new tattoos picked out for when I accomplish these goals.

    Note: everybody looks ridiculous when they run. You are not alone.
  • XXXMinnieXXX
    XXXMinnieXXX Posts: 3,459 Member
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    My calorie burns were dropping like crazy, my amazing friend on here sent me a message about hiit and I started to do it on my walks... Jogging to get my heart rate up. I immediately learnt I love it! 6 weeks later or so I did my first 5k on Sunday for cancer sufferers called the race for life. I jogged well over half and jog\walked the rest in 42 mins. Slow, but its a time to improve on. I've gone from being very depressed and anxious just 6-8 weeks ago to being in an amazing mind set and no anxiety. Just the best thhing ever! I've got injuries but I will not stop. Going to see the physio thursday for advice! X
  • shabbychick81
    shabbychick81 Posts: 168 Member
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    hi all! i have to lose 100 lbs and i have always wanted to run . i started at running 20 seconds and now i am running 8 minutes. at over 100 lbs over weight it is great! so proud and i am on week 3
  • CassieReannan
    CassieReannan Posts: 1,479 Member
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    Walking was becoming too easy for me... and I have recently (2 days ago) started to run in my walks.
  • Cold_Steel
    Cold_Steel Posts: 897 Member
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    I am taking a risk at guessing that the Zombies in the Impending Zombie Apocalypse will be more like the Walking Dead / Romero / Shaun of the Dead type walking slowly creeping zombies and not the OH MY GOD THEY ARE FAST RUNNING DEAD zombies like 28 days later / I Am Legend.

    It is a risk I hope is rewarded when the big day comes.
  • kdeaux1959
    kdeaux1959 Posts: 2,675 Member
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    Cops.


    ^^^^Muhahahaha.... ^^^^^
  • iqnas
    iqnas Posts: 445 Member
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    my tummy :/
  • kaliyat
    kaliyat Posts: 4
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    I lost 72 pounds and realized that I had to exercise to keep it off. I worked out once a week with a trainer and a couple times a week on my own and started feeling really strong. Someone asked me to do the Bootcamp class at our local gym...basically, she would do it if I would. We were scared. I showed up (she didn't), I almost chickened out, especially when it started with a 10 min run, but I stayed, made it through and each class (3x/week) I could do more laps without walking. Eventually, I was able to run 3/4 mile without stopping and I enjoyed it. I keep pushing myself a bit further every time and don't try to keep up with the runners in the class. It's empowering that I can "run".

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