Ha Girls!

I started running only recently and I LOVE it so much I just wanna check in everyday and tell about my run. There's a thread in the exercise board but it's a bit boring and I hang out with you girls mostly anyhow.

Besides I think we run into different things when running with studying and stuffs also. So just hope you wanna share or atleast check in your runs so we keep eachother motivated. And let me know if you use MapMyRun - we could be buddies! hihi.

When and how did you start running?
Did you fall in love with ir or do you do it as a 'must exercise' thing?
What is your current PR/type of run and what is your goal?

Great thread idea! When the weather gets better I'm definitely taking up running again.

I started running in 2009 when I wanted to start losing weight and get fit my holiday to Italy. At first I could barely even move! I sucked so much and I was really disheartened - but I kept up with it. When I went on holiday I stopped running, then in 2010 I tried to pick it up again at Uni but I failed at keeping it consistent and I started dreading it. In 2011 after doing the Jillian Michaels 30 day shred and her Making The Cut programme I decided I needed more cardio in my life, so I took it up again.

Well needless to say I fell in love! I love running along the canal near my house, it's so pretty - just lots of fields and wildlife to look at, really private so I don't worry about people seeing me. It's also just 1 long path so I don't have to worry about cars or twists and bends, it's really relaxing. I was finding it hard to be consistent so I entered a 10k race and that really motivated me to improve.

I was running 4 times a week with 2 cross training days, and I got better and better. I ran the 10k in 1 hour 11 mins which was a personal best since I had done 5 miles close to that time. I was getting to a 10 minute mile I recall, so I was getting quite good at it for my standard. I could run 4.5 miles without stopping, and considering I had to stop after 5 minutes when I first started it was a huge achievement.

I really want to get back into running in around April, I'll probably run another 10k race because I loved the 10k training I did. Building up to a race was so exciting and motivating, I'd recommend anyone to just go ahead and enter themselves in a race because it really helps!

I love how personal running is. It's just you and yourself running and trying to break personal records. I always tried to push myself to go faster than the run before!

Great Thread!
I've only recently taken running up again. Last time I did pretty well but never quite got to where I wanted.
I have a 5km circuit which I try to run/walk 4 days a week and simply try to shorten my time. It incorporates some pretty steep hills which is why I still can't run the whole way but I figure the hills add some great challenges to the circuit and when i can run the whole way i'll be really proud of myself.
HOWEVER i've been having real issue with my joints, knees and ankles killing me after every workout so it's looking like I'll have to ease up for abit untill i've got more strength and hopefully loosing a few more pounds should help.
Hopefully i'll be able to update with some positive progress in the future.

Good idea!

I started couch to 5k at the end of last summer to help get in decent shape after having a baby. It started off as just a get-in-shape thing, but by the end I was really enjoying it. Around November-ish I was running 5k three times a week in about 32 minutes. Not very fast, I know, but it's the first time in my life I was running more than about ten meters at a time, so I was pretty proud of it. Over the holidays I kind of let it go, and now I'm running about two miles (with a two-minute walk between them) a few times a week. I'm hoping to work back up to 5k three times a week in the next month or so, and then improve my distance and pace from there. I will DEFINITELY keep checking in here!

I really want to take up running again when the weather is nicer (although it's been a rather warm winter, I might be able to start sooner). I did it for a little bit in the summer and got up to around 3 miles or so (I wanted to be able to run a 5k) but my joints started hurting and then I started working so I stopped and focused on weight training.

When I went away in October I made sure to use the gym at the hotel. I was able to run 2 miles without any problems on the treadmill before moving on to other equipment.

I'm exactly 30 pounds lighter now, and stronger, so I'm hoping that it'll be easier on my joints this time around. I get home quite early from work so there really is no excuse. I'm just worried about doing too much since I enjoy going to the gym for my group fitness classes as well.

Hi!

I started running with a c25k thing from Runner's World. I did it with my (something not ex but not sure I can call him my) boyfriend, and he wasn't very into it but we both wanted to lose weight. When he hit his goal weight he stopped (and gained some of it back, sadly). I have a lot more to lose than him so I'm still running. I like it, but only outside. If I have to run on the treadmill I dread it. So I've done a number of 5k races and one 10k. I'm a slow and steady runner, so my PR for the 5k is 32 minutes. My time for the 10k was 1:11 which I'm pretty darn proud of. I trained for it in 7 weeks. I could have used more time but I saw the race I wanted and I signed up! Now after taking a break in December for graduation/Christmas/vacation, I'm training for a half marathon. I'm slowly work up my long races. I started at 2 miles because of the break. Now I'm at 4 (which I did yesterday on the treadmill and it sucked). I run 2-3 miles every other day, with an attempt at interval or cross training on the off days. I don't plan on running this half marathon until May or June. 13.1 miles is really daunting, but hopefully I can ease myself up to it!

I hope this thread sticks around! I know some of us 20-somethings are runners and it's fun to trade tips and everything.

Awesome to see so many 20somethings enjoy running!

Riestrella - why wait till april, due to the weather or some other reason?

Ali - that sounds quite daunting, hills. I live in the flatest country on the planet so no hills for me. Just a few dikes/floodbanks because we are also the only country that is mostly below sealevel. LOL.

BigChief - that sounds like a decent time? I can't imagine doing it much faster anytime soon. lol.

MusicalA - You are going for half a marathon after a break? How long was your break and when is the half marathon? Doe treadmill miles feel the same as outside miles or is it really different?

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I tried running several times for just 1 or 2 runs over the years and I felt so horrid that I couldn't even run to the end of my street. Then this summer I found the c25k plan and I got excited! Finally something I could do. Though the thought of ever running longer than 8mins seemed ridiculous still, I decided to go for it. Around week 5 I went on my 'life is too busy I'm maintaining see you all later' break.

Came back just a month ago and also started running again, after few runs from wk 3/4/5 I decided I didn't wanna wait another 4weeks before running 5k. So I ran my first 2miles a week and a half ago. It went so well and I instantly fell in love with running for a longer period of time without stopping for walk breaks I've been increasing my distance. Did a 3.5mile the other day and even though it was in the snow and took me 45mins, I LOVED it.

So, I feel pretty hooked. And I think I want to run a half marathon in 2012 somewhere, if I can manage. But for now my goal is to just run a 5k next month and make decent time. Though I am not very competative and don't care much about the time aspect of it. I just wanna be out there and running. I live in a beautiful area near a river and could run for hours along the river crossing towns and such. So new territory to look forward to every day.

philana - It seems pretty fast to ME, but I hang out sometimes on a running site where people are bragging about 18-minute 5ks and it makes me feel like a tortoise. But hey, still lapping everyone on the couch, right? Are you planning on running in an actual organized 5k next month? I'm trying to find one in my area, too, in the next month or two. I feel like it'll be incredibly motivational to have an actual event to train for.

Yay! runners! And runners my AGE!

I tried to start running in spring 2011. I had barely started my weight loss process and I felt I needed to add sport to it. I lived in a hilly neighborhood though, and I was exausted after lile 5-7 minutes, had to stop all the time to catch my breath... So I decided that running sucked LOL

However at the beginning of the summer, I joined the team for Run for the Cure of a friend to raise money for the Canadian Breast Cancer foundation. We were a few friends from college, me and another one specially who lacked training and cardio (the other were in a okay to super good shape). We wanted to run it like everybody else and not walk it. So my not-in-shape friend and I started to train during the summer for the race (in October).

Oh god it was rough. We were running on a 3.4k loop around the lake (beautiful) after job (HOT weather) so it was hard. We would run the 3.4k in 28 minutes, walking part of it... Eventually it became easier. And I really got hooked.

I was going for run with my friend, but also by myself, and I discovered how nice it was to run with somebody, but also by yourself, just to be in your head and think about nothing. I slowly increased my distance and I was ready for the race in October, where I did the 4.6k path in 29 minutes.

I'm not a fast runner, and I never really cared about beating somebody else in a run, I only care about beating myself.

My friend quit running, but I continued all fall long and during the winter (Canada here, cold here LOL). I've spent a lot of money on appropriate gear and honestly, I don't care about spending a lot of money in that, I prefer paying for that to get me heatlhy instead of paying for crappy food.

I'm doing the 2012 Ottawa Winterman 10k in 12 days (oh lord) so it kept me in my training. I fell a bit off the wagon during the Christmas vacations but I went back to it. It's gonna be my first official 10k race ever, so I'm not expecting and outstanding time, but I just want to be able to finish it in my standard times

After that 10k, I don,t know what I want to do. I know that I want to slowly increase my distance of my long sunday run (up to 15k). There is the first running race in my town on June 30th... I think I'd like to join in, but I don't know if it's gonna be for a 5k or a 10k. Might want to try for the 10k to compare my ''winter'' time with the ''summer'' one

Wow this is a busy thread already! I think I'll join in this one as well since I've got back into running and am 21

Where do you guys do your runs? I do them in our fields here (cos I live on a farm atm) with my sheep dog who loves it (although took me a few goes to teach her that knocking me over into puddles is NOT part of the game :P) and we're both getting fitter together. She can nearly catch the rabbits now!
I'm moving house in less than two weeks time.. and I'm moving to an estate.. so I'm going to have to switch from running on soggy marshy grass to hard solid pavements... I'm a bit nervous about this as that's quite a change. Anyone got any advice? The trainers I have atm are designed for off track and fields and basically for what I'm doing atm.. they're very well cushioned though. Will I be okay to use these to run on pavements too?

I posted this in the other thread but I guess I'll post it here too, I hope that's okay
Woop Woop just completed week 2 of C25K and today I was actually surprised when it was suddenly the end rather than thinking "Argh when will this end? I must be done now?!". I'm so itching to start week 3 now...
Only problem is back in August I tore the muscles in my calf/knee and it was all really swollen and nasty and I was on prescription pain killers and walking with a stick for weeks but then it all healed up fine and both me and the doctor decided it must just have been a muscle tear not a ligament damage.. but now that leg is killing me when I run! It also aches the next day. Don't get me wrong it's no where near as bad as it was in August and I can still run on it with no problem (apart from the pain) but I'm really not loving this for obvious reasons. It starts as an ache in the calf then progresses to like a pulling sensation in my knee.. like I've pulled a muscle.. and later on my calf and knee feels like it's burning.. it's usually alright by the second day and well until I run that day again! Anyone got any idea what this is and what might help? I warm up, stretch and warm down... but I'm thinking since the other leg doesn't bother me it must be more than just not warming up/stretching properly. I'm seeing the doctor on Thursday for something else so I think I'll mention to him then I just hope it's nothing serious and I can keep running on it!

Hey everyone! I started trying to run months and months ago when I started losing weight and really struggled with it. I got horrible shin splints and was extremely out of shape. It took me a long tome to even get to the point where I could complete week 1 of c25k and even took a lot of extra time before moving on to the next weeks. I just started week 4 yesterday and at the end I just felt so thrilled at my accomplishment! I think I'm really starting to enjoy running. I used to have to count my way through my runs because I'm having to push through them but that became a bit harder now that I'm running longer intervals so I've noticed that I might start out counting but lose track and interest and just run. I'm doing my first 5k in a little under a month and then another race two weeks after that! I'm excited to see how I can do!

Hello everyone,

I need to start running and I just joined MapMyRun and I found out my normal walk is 2+ miles! yay! I have a mile run scheduled for St. Patricks day and I need to really get going because my coworkers are doing it with me :/

I want to do a 5k in the states called run for your lives with zombies and it's more of an obstacle course so we will see what happens... that's in october so I'm hoping I'll be amazing by then.

there's also a Half Marathon by Disneyland that I'd like to do... the next one is in august/ september but I'm not too sure I'll be ready for it yet.

How have you all been with C25K?

My break was for a month, and I had planned it into my schedule so January was getting back into it. The half marathon I would like to do in May, but so far the only one scheduled around then is in June. I'm hoping one will be scheduled sooner than that!

PaintedButterfly : Talk with your doctor about your pain. Running without knowing what is wrong only risk to make it worst

darlinbrit : I did not do c25k but I heard a lot of great things about it! Actually I tried it, but quit it after week 2, I felt it wasn't going fast enough.. I think I was actually making excuses and did not wanted to focus and keep doing this. So when I started running for real, I was running short distance, walking a bit until I was able to catch my breath... It was a form a c25k in a way Oh and you have tons of excited run ahead of you

philana : thanx for starting this thread!!

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I jsut came back from a run (a paved street in a loop around my work) and it was greeeeat! 6k at a pace of 6:57min/km, , -8 degrees Celsius with wind... Felt great

YAY! Running!!!

I've been a runner ever since...5th grade or something? I ran really competitively in high school and since then I've always kept doing it in an effort to stay in shape. That said, I'm also a HUGE advocate of running to stay in "mental" shape. I like to use it as quality "me" time when I zone out and listen to pop music
I actually ran my first marathon last summer! It was tough, mostly because its such a huge commitment time-wise, effort-wise, etc. the whole summer. But it was so worth it for the accomplishment! I'm thinking of doing it again next summer
Other than that I mostly run around outside (when I can...I'm in Minnesota...) or on the treadmill. I'm thinking I should sign up for more road races.

I'm wondering if any of you runners have experienced this, especially those of you have been running for many years. Sometimes I feel like I don't burn that many calories when I run. Especially since running a marathon. Like, if I go on the treadmill for 30 minutes it doesn't really seem like I'm doing anything. It seems like (maybe it's all in my head), I'd have to run 10 miles to burn any significant amount calories.
I went to the doctor for a check-up right after I ran my marathon and I mentioned to her that over the course of my training (4 months) I GAINED two pounds. Which was RIDICULOUS in my mind. She said that could be very possible as my body adjusts to running and just learns to operate efficiently on less net calories. Or something like that. Now I fear I've set my body up to operate so in the long run...