A true beginner!

callie35

Reading some other 'beginner's' logs I see stories of 30 minute runs...slow 10km runs...and the like. I, however, am a true beginner! I'm almost at the end of a 6-week fitness challenge which has given me a kick-start.

On one very good day i managed to run 5 1/2 mins on the treadmill. That's the most i can manage in one go. In the past week i've done one 45 min session of running 2 mins and walking 3 mins and boy i thought i was gonna collapse at the end. I did a second blast of 30 mins, alternating 2 mins run, 2 mins walk.

Next step will be to get out running on the road, a major challenge for me for a number of reasons. Firstly i live on a back road full of potholes and hills... Add to that a lack of confidence from the bouncy belly from a few years of over-indulgence and top off with a dollop of a steady stream of male truck drivers on my road who i shall try to ignore.

Very hard to find the motivation when i have so many slow days in between the better ones so i'll try keep a log on here to keep an eye on myself. If anyone else can remember back to being at this slow, weak and looking up at a huge mountain then please share your motivation tips! I'd absolutely love to run a 10km by the end of the year plus lose 3 stone so wish me luck!

rainbow kirby

callie35 wrote: »

Very hard to find the motivation when i have so many slow days in between the better ones so i'll try keep a log on here to keep an eye on myself. If anyone else can remember back to being at this slow, weak and looking up at a huge mountain then please share your motivation tips! I'd absolutely love to run a 10km by the end of the year plus lose 3 stone so wish me luck!

Good luck with it, and having a log is a good way to keep motivated If you watch your diet and keep up doing some running you'll definitely notice a difference with the weight too, I lost about 4 stone in my first year running.

Couple of tips I'd give you for now would be to make sure that you've got the right shoes for you - maybe pay a visit to a specialist running shop? Also, enter a race or two. Having that date marked on your calendar is another motivator. In terms of doing a 10k, you would have a fairly decent chance at being able to run the Women's Mini-Marathon on the June bank holiday weekend if you are consistent with your training.

callie35

Four stone!? Wow that's fantastic, well done!! I just feel when i do a small, pathetic few mins of running that it can't really be doing anything longterm for me. I guess i need to 'just do it!'. Watch this space...:P

steoc

Wishing you all the best callie35,
I have being running now for 4 months and i love it, never did anything before and i have booked in for my first race which is the Wexford half.
I found by joining a club it helpt me a lot when motivation was lacking.
I run with the Menapians there are all fitness levels from walkers to runners. It might help you.
All the best and i look forword to reading your Log.
Steoc.

messed_up

Best of luck with the log callie35 and your fitness goals for the year. Being able to run a 10K may seem like a long way off so as well as taking on board R_K's advice, maybe look for a shorter race or races as an interim goal - a 3K or 5k to start. Once you get past these distance 10k wont seem too far at all

callie35

Thanks Messed-Up, a 3km actually sounds manageable, i'll make that my first mini-goal. I've heard of the Menapians but not sure a group is for me, I like to do things in my own time, own pace plus i've so many committments that time is a problem till the summer.

Went to the gym today and did 30 minutes on treadmill, run 2, walk 2 - caught a glimpse of my flustered self in the mirror afterwards ha. Stretches, weights and ten mins with heart rate in 170's on cross-trainer for dessert. Phew!

callie35

Missed two days at the gym due to the snow and found myself quite irritable and restless last night, i think i was missing the treadmill - never thought i'd say that!! In today and did 20 mins of 2 run/2 walk, not too bad but music was turned down very low so i had nothing to distract and found myself counting down the minutes..

Did a lot of stretching today as right calf was very tight, usual weights and 30 mins on Crosstrainer with heart rate in 150's, having someone to chat to made the time fly for both of us!

End of the fitness challenge 2m with the final weigh-in...not hoping for miracles as snowy roads really hampered things this week but still did more than i usually would have. Fingers crossed now to get those scales moving downward....

littlebug

Hi Callie35,
keep it up! This time last year I was in the same boat.... I was running on a track and running the distance of 2 lights/ walk 3 etc etc. By June I ran (jogged slowly) the 10k mini marathon. After a few weeks you'll really see the difference when you can stretch out the running and reduce the walking times.

Good luck!

callie35

Thanks Littlebug, i love hearing people's stories and how they motivated themselves through to succeed.

Well today was a great Monday! My work destination was under six inches of snow so i got the day off! A morning of housework followed by some study (uhhh) and then into gym for a workout. Was under pressure for time so no weights tonight but did manage 30 mins of run 2/walk 2 on treadmill finished off with a 4 minute run which is a mini achievement for me. Did extra stretching as my right calf still feeling a wee bit tight and then 15 mins of crosstrainer with heart in 150-160's.

Straight over then (about 20 mins to get dressed and drive) to do a circuit training class for 45 minutes. Not as hard as i thought it would be, perhaps because i was well warmed up. I definitely would have found it harder 2 months ago!

Good news is that the personal trainer reckons if i put the work in that i've a fair chance at doing the Dublin 10km in April so i might just do that!!

steoc

Well done callie,
I went circuit training in wexford last night too. Did you go to the Pres School?

callie35

Hey Steoc, no i was a Loreto girl!! I won't be there every Monday as it clashes with something else - great workout tho, my bum/thighs are still a bit sore!

Tues night i took it easy, 30 on crosstrainer and few stretches...bit stiff from the circuits... Wed was taken over with a college assignment which meant way too long sitting on my ass but i managed to squeeze in a workout in the evening, just 30 on treadmill 2 run/2 walk, weights, stretches and a quick 15 mins on recumbent bike with heart rate around 150. Gym was jam-packed tonight so was a challenge in itself to grab a free machine!

My routine may seem dull to some but i quite like it that way. Different strokes for different folks i guess. I am waiting for half decent weather though to try outdoor running. Might head off Saturday morning to a quiet road i have in mind... Weighed myself this morning and i'm now down a full stone. Next mini-goal is another half stone and perhaps scrape through a local 10km in February...if i could run even 2-3km by then it'd be a start.

metamorphosis

You're starting out really well there Callie and congrats on the weigtloss. Feels great doesn't it?

callie35

Losing even this amount has given me a huge boost!! I've still a way to go but it's a great start. Today the skies finally cleared so i managed to get outdoors! I'm embaressed to say it took me 25 mins to half run/half walk 2.6km but hey i still made the effort to run in public. Note to self...buy proper running earphones! Was more distracted with them falling out than anything. Finding my shoulders quite sore the past two days, perhaps i'm swinging my arms too much or something when i'm running?

Later in the afternoon i did a 45 min walk/run although it was more brisk walking, still it was better than sitting on my ass. Made it to the gym Thursday afternoon and struggled in Friday evening too. I'm surprising myself at my motivation, didn't think i'd last this long but it's slowly becoming addictive and the mini-goals are helping. Meeting the girls 2m night...homemade coffee cake - i shall resist!!!

hinault

According to your log, you've lost over a stone, in two weeks.
That is some going : huge loss in such a short time span.
Well done.

callie35

No no sorry if you picked me up wrong, it's taken six weeks... I'm happy with that though, they say if you lose it slow you've a better chance of keeping it off and i need all the odds in my favour!

callie35

Gee is it that long since i've been here? Well i won't bore you with the in's 'n' outs but suffice to say that i've improved from run 2 mins/walk 2 mins up to running one kilometre (about 7 mins)/walk 3 mins & doing that 3 times per session although from tomorrow i've to do it 4 times!

I found the running was hurting my lower back so i invested in new runners and wow such a difference, the pain is gone and i've been running more than before.

On one hand i'm happy that progress is being made but i'm impatient by nature so it just can't progress fast enough. I'm down 1st 1lb but again my weight has plateau'd over the past week or so so i'm not happy with that at all. And me being me, i totally sabotaged my diet today out of my stressful encounter with the weighing scales on Thursday. :mad:

Very hard to keep up the motivation on days like this. I'll give it another few weeks and really hope that scales reading moves downward!!