Why I run and the benefits I have gained from running
Up until 2005, for most of my adult life, I had always been a bigger, heavy set guy. Through out 5 years of college, I did not do a great job of staying fit and active. As I felt myself get heavier and heavier from 2000 – 2005, I always had plans to get active and lose weight, but I never took any action.
Several major things were happening in my life to force me to make a commitment to losing weight and getting fit:
I was traveling extensively for work. In mid-2004, I began working for a big4 consulting firm and flying out to different clients in other cities. I noticed how uncomfortable I felt flying in a coach class seat. When I was in school, I didn’t fly that much and didn’t really think or worry about personal comfort on a plane. Additionally, I began to worry about affecting other passenger’s comfort on the plane. I didn’t want to become the person who other people dreaded to be sitting next to.
I was becoming uncomfortable hanging out with friends. I have a lot of active and fit friends and certainly not many of them are what I would consider overweight. As I became more aware of my weight, I started thinking how I would be perceived by other people and my friends. My friends never said anything to me and always invited me to hang out, but I still felt uncomfortable. Another example of feeling uncomfortable was having fun as amusement parks. There was never a I ride that I was kicked off of because of weight, but I certainly didn’t feel comfortable “squeezing” myself into some of those seats. It was during one of those experiences at an amusement park where I made a mental decision to do really do something about my weight.
After making a decision to do something about my weight, I weighed myself one day in May 2005. The scale showed 280. This scared me more than anything else. There was no way I could let myself hit 300 pounds and now I was really close 300. I told myself I would never let myself hit 300. I decided the easiest way to lose the weight was to do an exercise like running. I started off slowly running on an indoor track less than a mile a day and gradually increasing my distances.
By 2006, I was running distances of 4-5 miles and training for my first half marathon which a friend of mine convinced me to run. On the day I ran my first race, I weighed in at 200 – 80 pounds less than when I started running in 2005. I also started to see the many benefits of running and staying fit…benefits which I still enjoy today.
Benefits from running
- Mental toughness. Sometimes when you are running and you think you can’t run any further, you push yourself to hang on and finish the distance you are currently running. I’ve always thought running was 80% mental and 20% physical. I still think this. If your mind believes it can finish a race, you will finish the race. It is only when you introduce doubt into your mind when you start feeling the physical side of running.
- Confidence. There is nothing like crossing the finish line of a marathon or any other long distance sport. I can not adequately describe the rush of adrenaline and surge of confidence you get from crossing that finish line. I think this release of adrenaline and confidence boosting is something that adds an addictive quality to running.
- Ability to participate in more activities. Running has given me the opportunity to quickly pick up other activities. A great example of is cycling. I purchased a 20″ Trek 7.5 FX hybrid bicycle this spring and wanted to start cycling. After only a few weeks of riding, I was able to do a 75 mile bike ride. My fitness level from running helped have this ability. As I do more traveling and want to see places like the Great Wall of China or hike in Machu Picchu or even do something as crazy as attempt to trek up Mt. Kilimanjaro, I am confident that the fitness I have gained from running will be to my benefit.
- Travel and flying is easier now. No longer do I worry about being a person that will cause uncomfort for other passengers on a flight. Instead, I worry about if I will be the unlucky and uncomfortable passenger on my flight. One other thing that I noticed is that fit people are just more approachable in terms of wanting to be around because they are just more active and willing to try different things. This makes traveling and meeting fit people even more worthwhile because they are more likely to want to be active.
- Physical and Financial. Of course there are many physical benefits to running. After losing the weight, people didn’t recognize me at first. Running just makes you look better, more fit. The financial benefits of running are a little harder to quantify. As I lost weight, I had to replace my wardrobe. One thing I noticed is that clothes are cheaper for fit people.
- Beer. Ah how I love to drink beer. Running has let me enjoy my favorite beverage without guilt. Of course, enjoying beer also acts an incentive for me to keep running and stay active.
I ran my last half marathon at the end of May just to prove I could still run that distance. The last 3 weeks before the race I prepared by just riding my bike. After the race, I decided to take some time off from running and do biking. Earlier this week, I started running again. I have run 4 out of 5 times this week. I’m only doing 30 minute runs on the tread mill at an easy 9 minute mile pace. I figure I will continue to do these runs so when I decide to train for my next race, it will be easy to increase the distances.
I have several more ideas for running articles that I will share on the site. Feel free to leave a comment with your success stories with fitness, running, or cycling.
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Totally understand where you’re coming from regarding flying, Tim. Just like you I hopped on a scale last December — and weighed in at 312. It blew my mind. I was always a bigger guy, but this was the most I had ever known myself to weigh. That was seven months ago. I’m weighing in at 240 now, with designs to get down to 190. Already feel more comfortable flying, and driving my tiny asian import — a Hyundai. Great posts, thanks for this!
Dan,
Thanks for the comment. Congrats on your weight loss! I am sure you will make it down to 190 soon enough. Maybe we should find a half or full marathon to train for.
Great info… I lover running with a good iPod playlist. It’s the best way to stay motivated and moving.