Well, week two started ok, I did the first repeat week one run, then somehow I have fizzled out...
It's not that I'm getting breathless, as I'm really not gasping for air or anywhere near it...it's the size of me that is making iit so hard. I'm 5ft 5, I now weigh 13 stone (somehow have put on 4lb since starting to do this) and even a slow jog feels as though someone is piggybacking on me as I lumber along!
One of the reasons for doing this is to try to lose weight and get fitter but I am struggling already...can someone please tell me when / if this becomes a little less like a form of torture and more like something I might look forward to! I have taken a three day break now, as my knees felt very weak during the last session and its only today that they feel as though they'll be ok to go out again. I really want to persevere and succeed for all the reasons I put in my first post, but I hadn't expected to feel this downhearted so early on.
If anyone has any motivational tips, I'd be so grateful. I knew that starting an exercise programme after many many years of being a real sloth, wouldn't be easy, but I didnt expect to feel tearful about it!
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Mamahen
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Do not get disheartened in time you will have tears of joy. Your body shape will change during the programme weight will only go overtime I am only doing the running but my wife is doing Slimming World so in directly I am on a weight loss programme. The only thing I can say is tell yourself I can and will do this and remember if you need a boost we are al here to help each other.
The hardest bit was beginning..honestly it was! Huge hug.. and dry those tears..!
So.... slow, slow and slower is the plan. Follow the programme very steadily at your own pace When I say slow... I mean snail on a go-slow and so laid back too!
The weight bit.. you know? This is only going to work with the right food. Healthy, greenness and goodness, and sticking with it. Food to fuel and keep you feeling fine! Lots of folk on here are on the NHS Weight Loss forum too and find it really helpful.. I am sure some will give you advice.
We will be with you every step of the way.. the support is fantastic, helpful tips, sympathy encouragement and a push if needed.
Start slow and build up gradually... keep a smile on your face.. even if it is with gritted teeth.
The only was, is.... Graduation.. and you can do this!!!
Welcome to the beginning of the You, you want to be
Hi Mamahen. Don't panic. This is doable. It really is. I am shorter than you and heavier. Or at least I was when I started a few weeks ago. Your description of someone 'piggybacking' is EXACTLY how I felt. I just didn't know how to put it into words. My legs felt like lead!
Please don't get downhearted. I wrote in my diary "I am NEVER going to enjoy running" but now I do. And I bet you're thinking "but that's because you can do it and I just don't believe I can" and that's exactly how I felt when I read the posts of people trying to encourage me in the early runs. I bet you think you're going slower than anybody else too. And if I say "try and slow it down" you'll think impossible! But try that. Really, really slow it down. All you have to do is keep moving.
I can't say it's ever 'easy' but even though you think it won't, your body will adapt. Gradually. If you need to repeat a run, that's fine. If you need to re-do a week that's fine too. I am 55, overweight and slow but I can now run (very slowly) for 28 minutes! 11 weeks ago, the one minute runs killed me. I felt like my legs were going to explode! Like you, it wasn't the breathing that was the problem, just the fact that it felt like I weighed 50 tonnes and it was a hard slog.
Keep on going. Slow, slow and slower still. There will be much more technical advice from experienced runners on here which will be more helpful than this, but from a fellow 'piggyback' sufferer, you seriously CAN do this. Trust the programme. And keep posting!
I too am carrying round more than I should but going slow helps and my body has changed shape without dieting. Don't give up. Those first couple of weeks were hard work and I remember feeling like I'd never make it. Lots of inspiration and support on this site. We will hold your hand, dry your eyes, hug you and push you out the door to do your next run.☺
As the weight comes off it will help you physically and mentally. Do keep plugging away, slow but sure. Patience and doggedness always pays off. Maintain your healthy eating. Be disciplined about it and you'll realise your goals. Nothing is easy, sad to say,but this is so important to your wellbeing, and you will get there if you get your head down and push on. You have to be tough with yourself at times ☺
Walking is a great thing to do more of. It helps build strength, boost your puff and burns calories -- lots of them! Try and walk as much as possible.
As Cowabunga sang, "I get knocked down but I get up again" 😊
Never quit! You can do it. You just better believe it! ☺
The idea is that you run at a speed at which you could talk to someone running with you so don't be afraid to take it down a little, it is all about the running time rather than a belting pace, being hot and bothered and gasping for air. The weight issue is another thing that is quite difficult. I love food, I know I have two stone to lose and even with running,min is not dropping off because I eat too much and I eat the wrong stuff. It is only really reducing food intake I will lose the weight and I still treat myself with food because I run! However, my confidence, my mood, my heart and lungs are all better than they were and my sturdy legs do me proud. When we are ready, we will tackle the food issue but be a little satisfied you are moving along nicely and enjoy your achievements 😀
Just keep plodding on. If you need to, repeat a week. If you have to walk it doesn't matter - you're still out there, off the couch, doing something. Repeat the run after a rest day and surprise yourself that you get further, run longer etc. Slow and steady is the key to this running lark. And then slowly, but surely you'll miss your run when you can't get out there. And then you'll start to look forward to your next run. And then you're hooked.
Successes, perceived failures (which don't exist on here - they are "practice runs"), post them all on here and we will comment, cheer, console, encourage etc. until you cross that finishing line. And then you discover it's not a finishing line, but a starting line.
Good luck - you can do this! Getting off that couch was probably one of the best decisions you ever made!
I know of what you speak, and so do many more here, Best advice I can give you is what works for me when I start second guessing myself and this programme - read as many posts as possible. You are NOT "terminally unique" and you CAN do this. You may not do it as quickly or as "easily" as you would wish but it WILL happen and it WILL get easier if you simply just "keep on putting one foot in front of the other"
I can personally promise you that, take a look at my earlier posts to see my history 😉
I hope you stay to run with us, we are all in this together.
Only just started, but at 5ft 7 and over 15st, I have a sense of what you mean about the torture!
If like me running was never your thing, then I guess it's about accepting that it isn't going to come easy to us and the 30 mins won't necessarily be hugely enjoyable - but as I'm huffing and puffing today, I kept reminding myself why i"m doing it, and that growth doesn't come from comfort. I 'fessed up to my running buddy husband that I'm afraid I'm going to want to quit as its just too hard, Just hearing myself say this (and accepting that this is how I feel) now helps in some way.
Sat here now an hour after doing the run, still in my gym gear after a relaxing coffee and browse of the Internet (yep - should have been in the shower already, but it is what it is!!), I feel really good about what I've done. I want to make this (and the time spent with my other half) the memory of my run rather than the backache, breathlessness, etc,. as I love the feeling of accomplishment t I have right now.
Sorry - this as rather a long-winded way of trying to say that accepting that this is how you feel just now, and that this is okay, is half the battle. If it was torture and you've done it, then that's an even bigger accomplishment than if you'd really enjoyed it x
PS: apols for all typos in pre-edited version -really must stop trying to send long messages on phone without glasses,
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Week one done :)
W9R3 - Two graduations in one week!
Brand-new C25K starter here!
Newbie, again, kind of....
Newbie Runner - onto week 2
