Beethoven1827 Member

The best shoes are ones that fit and support your feet properly. Different brands and styles work for different people. If you can get to a running shop, they should be able to help you by looking properly at how you put your feet down when you run. I confess I've not had this gait analysis done; I started off with my very…

I've just finished week 8 today, and the programme I'm doing has one more week to go to get me running a full half hour. I highly recommend it - I've never been a runner, hated sports at school, and have done no regular exercise in over 11 years until I started this in September. Lots of good advice here already; I'd…

Do you take your measurements? I measure waist, hips, widest part & thighs regularly, so when I'm needing a reminder of how far I've come, I can hold the tape at my starting measurements and think 'That's where I was!' It certainly helps me see the changes that I don't notice on a daily basis... :smile:

I'd definitely recommend starting with a Couch to 5k programme or similar - they're structured to take you from not running & very unfit, to being able to run for 30 mins in 8-12 weeks, depending in on the particular one you go with. If you're unable to complete a week, then you can simply repeat it until you're ready to…

Last night I was hit by the tummy bug that one of my daughters has just had. Today I have eaten buttered toast for breakfast, and peanut butter on toast for lunch and dinner. All washed down with a couple of glasses of diet coke (which I normally hate!) and several mugs of decaff coffee. Can you guess I'm a carbs girl?!…

It seems to me that very few things are absolutely 'healthy' or 'unhealthy'; by far the most important thing is the overall balance of your diet. Fruit is 'healthy', but if it's all you ever eat, your diet won't be... As has already been said, many people on here are firm advocates of particular ways of eating (and equally…

I bought two new pairs of jeans in a UK size 14. One's a tiny bit tighter than ideal, but I'm waaaay happier with them than the 18s I was wearing a few months ago! The trousers I bought three years ago - thinking that they'd be an incentive to lose weight - have fitted me for about three weeks, and are already loose!…

I avoid this by not keeping food in the office at all! Most mornings I could happily eat something mid-morning, so teh easiest way to avoid it for me is to not have anything available. I just go get another drink instead :smile:

I do my workouts at their regular times because that's just what I do at those times! But I think part of what makes me stick to it is my determination to see this through. I'm GOING to finish C25K, and hopefully in only one week more than the plan says! I'm GOING to be fitter. I'm GOING to show Mr Beethoven that I'm…

A massive 'Well Done!' to you! Particularly on learning to recognise what could be the start of a downward spiral, and taking action to reassess and avoid it! :-D I'm a beginner runner, and dream of being able to do 3 miles in 30 mins!

I'm afraid the only real answer is that you have to work out how to make it a priority, if it matters to you. I'm a wife & mother, and work 4 days a week while my children are in school. After school I have to take them to the various activities they do, get them their tea, etc. I have one day to myself in a week. And up…

Just to add, RunKeeper is also free, and can be set to intervals - and I believe it works over your own playlist. I only use it for timings/pace/distance info, but it seems excellent. And all the better for the price! :wink:

I'm another C25K-er, using the free NHS podcasts. They come with their own music, but that's fine by me - it's supposed to be the right sort of beats per minute to help you run, I think, although I clearly run at a very different rate! :wink: I like the encouraging comments and hints & tips that you get given particulaly…

Yay, well done you :smile:

I was happy enough to think I'd lost 1 1/2 of my friend's 10lb baby just after he was born (if that makes sense!). He's a bruiser, though, and is putting it on quicker than I can lose it now! But I love thinking about what I've got rid of in terms of 'real' things. 20lb is a lot of bags of sugar or flour, or heaps of packs…

I've had a good few days of NSVs now: - Tried abseiling for the first time ever at the weekend. It was AMAZING! And despite it being something I've wanted to try, six months ago I'd have been waaaaay too self-conscious of my huge bum to do it. That's the part where I've lost the least, but I have so much more confidence…

Most mornings. I don't worry about slight fluctuations, as long as overall it's going down more than up! I only log my weight on a Monday morning though. And I think my scale's realised this, since the last two Mondays I've either stayed the same for several days, only to drop on Tuesday, or even put on a couple of pounds…

If you want to live without eating meat, and like fish & seafood, then go for it. if you don't, then don't. It's a personal choice - that's all. :) You can be an omnivore with a healthy diet, or one with an unhealthy diet. You can be a vegetarian with a healthy diet or an unhealthy one. I'm pretty sure you can be a vegan…

I eat cereal most mornings - all bran, fruit & fibre, weetabix, special K, whatever we've got in the cupboard. Actually that's not quite true. I've stopped eating the really delicious cinnamon one, since it's incredibly high-calore (probably something to do with the amount of sugar it's coated in...!). No…

I ran this morning without breakfast - as a total change to my routine, and the only way I could fit a run in today. I don't think it was any harder than usual, given that I'm a newbie to the whole fitness thing. And the initial reluctance I put down to the fact that I should have still had another 30 mins to lie in bed,…

That depends entirely on how well cooked it is...! My microwaved potato was definitely a bit crunchy in the middle the other day, but I couldn't be bothered to wait any longer. But a calorie isn't anything to do with how much the human body can absorb - it's purely a measure of energy...

I'd say plan your workout times in advance - certainly for me that's the only way it happens. Never had time for exercise what with working, kids, husband's working times etc. until I started Couch 2 5K. Now I have three runs a week scheduled, plus one class. Nothing else has changed in the family schedule - it's just that…

Going wedding dress shopping with a good friend who's getting married next year, and dreading the day when we'd be going shopping for bridesmaids dresses. (She's petite in every way. I'm about 5 inches taller, and was probably more than 5 stone heavier!) Decided that that was it. Went and bought a diet book, and started on…

That's one reason my diary is only available to my (very few) friends! What I choose to eat is up to me. If I don't want to eat 100% clean/paleo/vegan/macros-balanced-the-way-someone-else-has-them, that's my choice. What I'm doing is working. And I absolutely agree - if this is a long-term lifestyle change, not a…

But cups and tablespoons are standard measures! (250ml and 15ml respectively). I enter stuff in my diary using cups and tbs - doesn't mean I've not measured - it means I've got out my cup measures and checked how much of a cup or how many ml!

Go back to weighing weekly then! Weight can fluctuate by a couple of pounds from day to day, or stay static for a while before dropping, so if you're finding daily weighing stressful and frustrating, stop doing it!

I used to get my inlaws to come and help do the cleaning & preparation regularly when we were doing lots of entertaining. Since F-i-L got great at doing my hoovering for me, it means I no longer feel the need to tidy up before they arrive. Oops...! On topic - no, I don't log cleaning. But I don't log any exercise. I have…

Well, I'm sure there are plenty of people here who'll tell you in detail :wink: but (don't tell anyone) I still eat it. And pasta. And rice. And I don't immediately get cravings for a ton of sugar. So that's why it's not a biggie to me.

Unless you either have a problem with digesting normal bread, or sit and eat the whole lot in one go, I really wouldn't worry about it, tbh. Just make sure you look closer at the label next time you're shopping. :smile:

I'm still using the C25K podcasts, so need my phone with me when I run - and a key so I can get back in the house. So far I've been just holding the phone, but that's not too great when it's been raining(!), so I've just bought myself a race belt for it, which has a separate little pocket for key/cash etc. This afternoon…