New to this

[mmphc]

Hi everyone. Here I am, oldish,( 54) fattish ( BMI over 25) , dodgy knee, loathe exercise but have lurked around this forum for ages, and have been persuaded by the enthusiasm and commitment of other posters. So, now on W1R3, sheepishly trying not to catch my neighbours in the eye as I puff past, redfaced and panting. One of them called 'Have you lost your dog?' as I ran past her house for the third time, wearing my dogwalking trousers as running trews. So, here I go. Feel like an idiot but will give it a try.

[parkbirdy Graduate]

Stick with it - you've done one of the hardest bits just getting out the door for the first time. Don't feel you have to try to run anything but slowly - once you've done the programme you can speed up. And if you struggle with any week or run - just take a couple of days rest and have another go. Lots of people repeat some runs or even whole weeks.

This is a brilliant programme and I'm just one of many who've taken up running almost 30 years since I last tried it at school.

good luck!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to parkbirdy]

Many thanks for your encouragement ( although I did absolutely everything to get out of running at school!)

[Stefliser Graduate]

I sympathise! I'm also fattish and had always worked very hard to get out of any type of exercise. But Parkbirdy is right - in terms of sheer guts you've definietly done the hardest bit. Getting started is the biggest hurdle of the lot. You'll have a few bad runs as you go through - we all do, but if you're anythign liek I was you'll also amaze yourself by actually enjoying it. Maybe not the actual running per se at the beginning, but definitley the feeling of 'Blimey! Did I just DO that?'

Well done!! Let us know how you get on!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to Stefliser]

Thank you - very encouraging! And you are right, I have already thought ' Blimey! Did I just DO that?' Although I have also thought 'Blimey! Have I got to do that AGAIN'!

[Khrissy Graduate]

Welcome and well done for getting started. I can confide in you now that I absolutely HATE running, always have and always will. I don't get that runners 'high' that people talk about and the best bit is when it's done BUT the sense of achievement and well being that follows when I've cooled down, showered and feel human again is priceless. It's that that will keep me doing this for as long as my legs and lungs will let me.

Oh, and blog and question as much as you need on here, this community is amazing and will keep you going

[mmphc Graduate in reply to Khrissy]

Thank you very much Khrissy for your candid admission. Yes, I hate running too, although I do quite enjoy being outside as I live in the country. I think that the people who do this on treadmills are astonishing - that really would be too much for me. And thank you for your encouragement to ask questions - that's kind.

[amsjo Graduate]

I may not be as old (44), but am fatter (BMI over 30), hated running with a passion, would snear at joggers running past, I felt I nearly died in week one and have always run in the dark so no one sees me, and started out in grotty old jogging bottoms where the elastic finally perished when running as they were so old!

But you can do it, as I completed week 9 last night, and never in a million years did I expect that ... but each step is a step away from the couch, and once I realised that speed wasn't everything I got there.

You can do it as it is more a mind game ... just keep putting one foot in front of the other and distract yourself and you soon get the wonderful - I finished that run feeling.

Keep going and well done for getting this far

[mmphc Graduate in reply to amsjo]

Thank you Amsjo - I'm glad that others have the same challenges! I too feel very self conscious and would also run in the dark but there are no pavements so I'd be worried about being run over by a car! I agree about the mind game part - if I try to think about shopping lists and housework it does make the time pass more quickly.

[rockchick69 Graduate]

Welcome to the programme As the others have already said the hardest bit is getting out there the first time....and you've done it, well done! As for being oldish and fattish what the hell, you are now getting fittish Just do you own pace and rythme, it's not how fast you run, but the fact that you do run. I'm now on W5R2 and I also avoided exercise as much as possible and now I look forward to my next run each time.....don't know how long that will last though...lol.

Keep posting and asking questions, there is always someone to give an answer or support. Enjoy week 2

[mmphc Graduate in reply to rockchick69]

Many thanks Rockchick69 - it's good to hear from people who are a bit further on and have shared my dislike of exercise, but can say that they look forward to their runs. Haven't got there just yet, but I'll let you know!

[kateanna]

Thank you so much for making me laugh at your neighbour asking if you'd lost your dog! I agree with the other commentators that this is a brilliant program, so keep going and good luck.

[mmphc Graduate in reply to kateanna]

Thank you Kateanna - it made me laugh too, afterwards - I think that she thought it could be the only possible explanation. And thank you for your encouragement and kind words.

[newrunner56 Graduate]

Keep going - I've now done week 1 twice, as am 57 (eek), and bigger than I should be, but I feel really smug and proud of myself. I bought some running socks, and they made a difference, and now that pay day is here will treat myself to some 'proper' running shoes. Keep it up - I can't believe I'm doing it and want to hug myself! Sounds daft, I know!

(I've not told anyone in the family, either)

[mmphc Graduate in reply to newrunner56]

Oooh, Newrunner56, I know just how you feel about being bashful about telling people. I could hardly bear to tell my husband, and won't tell my children until I have progressed a bit further. Fear of failure, I think. Well done on completing Week 1, and I like the socks tip - I wouldn't have thought it would have made so much difference. I hope that you enjoy your new running shoes.

[MaryDerry Graduate]

Like everyone else, I want to encourage you to keep at it. I am 60, never ran a yard EVER. If I can do this, you can. I loved the programme and amazed myself every time I completed a week. I still can't beleive it. I used to only run in the dark or on roads where I wouldn't see many cars. My husband tryed to tell me no one was interested in who is running down the road, but I didn't buy that. Now I run anytime and anywhere! Well done and keep at it!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to MaryDerry]

MaryDerry, thank you so much for your very encouraging and positive words. Particularly the part about gaining in confidence about people seeing you. I live in a small village and know lots of people, so I feel very self-conscious. It's good to know that this is likely to go away as I carry on. Thank you.

[jbroox Graduate]

Trust me, every day that goes by they are saying to themselves, "I should be doing that."

There is a women in our neighborhood who started walking past our house twice a day, every single day one summer. Every time I'd see her I'd smile and wave. We started referring to her as "the walker." She was a little overweight in the beginning, but by the end of summer she must have lost 50 lbs. It's been years now and she's still thin and still walking. I don't see her as often because I think she changed her route a couple of years ago when our street was torn up to replace the water main. But, every time I see her I think, "I should be doing that."

With each week, as they see a new slimmer and more fit version of yourself passing by, you'll be becoming more of an inspiration than you know!

Congrats on finishing your first week!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to jbroox]

Thank you Jbroox - that's a great motivator, as also really helpful in enabling me to focus on the positive changes rather than the current self-consciousness and discomfort. Many thanks for your kind words.

[k6daisy Graduate]

Keep going! Im 41, my BMI was 33.4 beginning Dec 2012 and now is 29.8 last night! All from just running...... The benefits are too many to mention and for the first time in years I feel energised and healthy. We all huff and puff, just try to zone out of their radar, I just keep my head down. Im a coward!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to k6daisy]

Wow K6daisy - all from just running! That's amazing - many congratulations! It's great to hear that one can progress from hot and exhausted to energised and healthy and I will hold onto this thought on the bad run days. Thank you.

[Hidden]

Great to hear another newbie like me. Just stick with the advice on the podcasts, and dont try to run too fast. I'm on week 4 and i didnt think i would manage it, but (at the age of 41) my two 17 year old running partners have given up, and i am still plugging away at it

[mmphc Graduate in reply to Hidden]

Many thanks, 4Xfan - no danger of running too fast, at least not at present. It's really good to hear from people further along the programme and I am sure that it is mind over matter when it comes to do it, so perhaps age is an advantage. Thank you for the encouragement.

[Wishfulthinking]

Well done! Your description of yourself is the mirror of me. I am now on w4r2 which I can't quite believe. I have only told one friend who is very supportive. I had the courage to run when the hoades of secondary school kids were on their way to school this morning. Guess what no one cares (too busy on their mobiles). My next goal is to go and get some running shoes but I haven't got the nerve yet. Keep going it will be worth it.

[mmphc Graduate in reply to Wishfulthinking]

Thank you so much Wishfulthinking - like you I have kept my C25K under my hat, and still feel self-conscious. I do have some running shoes which I bought at TKMaxx to wear on holiday last year when I anticipated lots of walking. As at that point I had no intention of running it never crossed my mind to feel silly about buying them, which I suppose illustrates the ' it's a mind thing' that others have talked about. Well done for getting to W4r2 - and thank you for your encouragement.

[mmphc Graduate]

Thank you all so much for your real kindness, support and encouragement. What a wonderful community. I feel genuinely moved. I will let you know how things go, and who knows, one day I might be in the happy position of being able to offer support to another newbie.

[greenlegs Graduate]

Welcome to your new home! This is such a friendly place, you'll soon want to run just so you can blog! I'm 54 (that extra year sounds so much older than 53 somehow!) and hadn't run since primary school, where I hated it, and found week 1 hard going. Didn't tell anyone I was doing it for the first couple of weeks (hid my shoes under the bed!) and felt terribly self-conscious, even though I've always been under- rather than overweight - it just didn't seem right to be seen attempting to run.

3 months later and I can run 5k (it takes me a lot longer than 30 minutes, but who cares). My last run was a bit of a tough one, but I've had quite a lot of enjoyable runs too, and the satisfaction of graduation was one of the best things I've ever done.

Your blog probably already includes enough to encourage someone else - reread it, and imagine someone else wrote it - it sounds brilliant, doesn't it? You started - well done!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to greenlegs]

Hi Greenlegs - many thanks for your friendly and helpful message. Yes, I agree about the extra year sounding much more. I am dreading the next one as so many questionnaires seem to have 45 - 54 as an age range and then '55 and over'. Eeek!

I love the idea of you hiding your shoes under the bed... Buoyed by the encouragement of the community I actually ran through the village today, and felt a bit more like a runner, though still wearing my dog walking trousers. I have told myself I will buy a pair of running trousers as a reward if I get to week 5, so that I am properly equipped for the scary one!

[upandout]

Hi there

I'm new too and feeling quite nervous as well, so it will be good to follow your progress as someone just a few podcasts ahead. Well done for getting to run 3, I have a feeling the getting started will be the hardest part for me. Don't worry about what the neighbours think - people are going to judge you whatever you do so you may as well do what you want and have fun!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to upandout]

Many thanks, upandout. I spent months and months and months thinking about it, and it was only meeting someone who had been born with one lung, and still Graduated, that made me get up off my warm couch and do something. If it's of any help, I found that within two minutes of starting the first walk,I felt much more positive, and really glad that I had actually begun the programme. I'm nervous, too, but have found the support of the community really helpful. Just go for it!

[Gregg Graduate]

Do not feel like an idiot!

You're great, you'll be great! You'll rock, I'm sure about that. Happy running!

[mmphc Graduate in reply to Gregg]

Thank you so much Gregg, I'm gearing myself up for Week 2, despite the bitter east wind and will feel slightly less idiotic than I did last week, not least as no-one else in their right mind will be out in this weather!