Comments on: First Treadmill Machine Workout http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/ I lost nearly 150 pounds by counting calories. I once weighed 344.2 pounds, now around 200. My story has been told on CNN, CBS, and Newsweek and will soon be in a book. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:25:22 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Stephanie Denman http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/#comment-10353 Stephanie Denman Sat, 10 Jul 2010 19:13:17 +0000 http://www.344pounds.com/?p=2429#comment-10353 How do you feel about running outside of the gym? I went from never running to running a half marathon without stopping in 5 months. I'm a slow runner, the half marathon took me 2hr and 58 minutes but my goal was not to stop and under 3 hours so I was happy with it. My reasons for telling you this is that I CANNOT run on a treadmill for more than 10 minutes....I get so bored and that makes me constantly focus on how hard I'm breathing or how it hurts etc... I won't lie to you, my first run outside was hard, the first part and the last part suck, but I started out by running toward a downhill and I would tell myself "I will run til the downhill part and then if by then I still want to stop and walk I will" the interesting thing is I never wanted to stop running by that point. For me I start each run realizing that the first mile is going to suck and the last mile is going to be hard. After the first mile, it seems like all the kinks are worked out and my breathing is in a groove and I really don't feel the need to stop, the last mile sucks because I'm like those horses who know they're near the barn and they just want to get it over with. The key for me is to not stop, so actually I have a hard time improving my average mile pace because I'm afraid if I speed up, I will have to stop and for me, I'll feel like I haven't accomplished what I've set out to....I think I'm going to take a running class this summer to help me with that........what amazed me was how fast I got better at running. Like, the second run, I was much better...I could go farther and it didn't hurt so much, then the third run was even better.....that was really shocking to me, a week later I really felt like a runner.....I know not everyone likes it, but when you said you could only run a minute or two on the treadmill and that you were bored it rang a bell with me.... I can't either, but I can really run outside however, I live in Alaska, I'm not sure I could run in the heat in South Carolina :) How do you feel about running outside of the gym? I went from never running to running a half marathon without stopping in 5 months. I’m a slow runner, the half marathon took me 2hr and 58 minutes but my goal was not to stop and under 3 hours so I was happy with it. My reasons for telling you this is that I CANNOT run on a treadmill for more than 10 minutes….I get so bored and that makes me constantly focus on how hard I’m breathing or how it hurts etc… I won’t lie to you, my first run outside was hard, the first part and the last part suck, but I started out by running toward a downhill and I would tell myself “I will run til the downhill part and then if by then I still want to stop and walk I will” the interesting thing is I never wanted to stop running by that point. For me I start each run realizing that the first mile is going to suck and the last mile is going to be hard. After the first mile, it seems like all the kinks are worked out and my breathing is in a groove and I really don’t feel the need to stop, the last mile sucks because I’m like those horses who know they’re near the barn and they just want to get it over with. The key for me is to not stop, so actually I have a hard time improving my average mile pace because I’m afraid if I speed up, I will have to stop and for me, I’ll feel like I haven’t accomplished what I’ve set out to….I think I’m going to take a running class this summer to help me with that……..what amazed me was how fast I got better at running. Like, the second run, I was much better…I could go farther and it didn’t hurt so much, then the third run was even better…..that was really shocking to me, a week later I really felt like a runner…..I know not everyone likes it, but when you said you could only run a minute or two on the treadmill and that you were bored it rang a bell with me…. I can’t either, but I can really run outside however, I live in Alaska, I’m not sure I could run in the heat in South Carolina :)

]]> By: kate http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/#comment-1931 kate Sun, 07 Jun 2009 14:51:11 +0000 http://www.344pounds.com/?p=2429#comment-1931 I agree with JEJ. The elliptical is a great cardio workout for people who weighed as much as you did because it completely takes care of any impact on your joints and back. I would personally wait til you lost another 20 or so pounds to really start running, and then start witha jog/walk program. If you're getting bored with an elliptical try the stationary bike or the stair climber. They both provide more resistance to slightly different muscle groups and a great cardio workout still without any impact. When you start running you should get a specific pair of shoes for it, made for running and if possible get someone to check out your posture. Like weight lifting, running can be damaging if you do it with the wrong form. It stresses your joints, your back, your bones as well as your muscles and trust me shin splints are nothing to laugh about and more than enough to stop anyone from even walking for quite a while. If your gym offers it, get one or two sessions with one of the trainers (a real one though not just gym staff) and ask them about running posture. You should be able to belly breathe, land on the balls of your feet and roll your feet as you move. There's a lot more you can do with your arms but a lot of people slump when they run which makes breathing difficult and will make your back hurt. They don't keep a pace with their breath and get out of breath easy or don't go hard enough, or worst, they slam the heels of their into the ground (even a treadmill) and can get shin splints, bone spurs, knee cartilage damage over time, crush and hairline fractures, sprains, tendonitis, hip problems etc. I would even go so far as to suggest don't run on treadmills if you have a nice rubber/asphalt or polyurethane track at your disposal. Many local highschools put these it now. Never on concrete if you can avoid it, and be wary of indoor running tracks that aren't anything really more than carpeted cement circles. I agree with JEJ. The elliptical is a great cardio workout for people who weighed as much as you did because it completely takes care of any impact on your joints and back. I would personally wait til you lost another 20 or so pounds to really start running, and then start witha jog/walk program. If you’re getting bored with an elliptical try the stationary bike or the stair climber. They both provide more resistance to slightly different muscle groups and a great cardio workout still without any impact.

When you start running you should get a specific pair of shoes for it, made for running and if possible get someone to check out your posture. Like weight lifting, running can be damaging if you do it with the wrong form. It stresses your joints, your back, your bones as well as your muscles and trust me shin splints are nothing to laugh about and more than enough to stop anyone from even walking for quite a while.

If your gym offers it, get one or two sessions with one of the trainers (a real one though not just gym staff) and ask them about running posture. You should be able to belly breathe, land on the balls of your feet and roll your feet as you move. There’s a lot more you can do with your arms but a lot of people slump when they run which makes breathing difficult and will make your back hurt. They don’t keep a pace with their breath and get out of breath easy or don’t go hard enough, or worst, they slam the heels of their into the ground (even a treadmill) and can get shin splints, bone spurs, knee cartilage damage over time, crush and hairline fractures, sprains, tendonitis, hip problems etc.

I would even go so far as to suggest don’t run on treadmills if you have a nice rubber/asphalt or polyurethane track at your disposal. Many local highschools put these it now. Never on concrete if you can avoid it, and be wary of indoor running tracks that aren’t anything really more than carpeted cement circles.

]]> By: JEJ http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/#comment-1898 JEJ Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:53:49 +0000 http://www.344pounds.com/?p=2429#comment-1898 As a former very big person myself, I can tell you I tried running too early and had injury setbacks because of it. My advice: WALK on the treadmill and during the course of your workout increase and decrease the incline--I promise you that when you're at a 12 or 15 incline you'll feel it. I started at a 4 incline and increased 1 degree every two minutes until max, then decreased one degree every two minutes until back to 4. Then again. As a former very big person myself, I can tell you I tried running too early and had injury setbacks because of it. My advice: WALK on the treadmill and during the course of your workout increase and decrease the incline–I promise you that when you’re at a 12 or 15 incline you’ll feel it. I started at a 4 incline and increased 1 degree every two minutes until max, then decreased one degree every two minutes until back to 4. Then again.

]]> By: Brandon S. Adkins http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/#comment-1890 Brandon S. Adkins Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:50:35 +0000 http://www.344pounds.com/?p=2429#comment-1890 Use inclines all the time, when you can. Inclines will definitely boost the amount of calories you burn in the same amount of time. Use inclines all the time, when you can. Inclines will definitely boost the amount of calories you burn in the same amount of time.

]]> By: Chris http://www.344pounds.com/2009/06/first-treadmill-machine-workout/#comment-1889 Chris Wed, 03 Jun 2009 15:34:10 +0000 http://www.344pounds.com/?p=2429#comment-1889 Running outside is approx .5 to 1% include on treadmill. It's something to keep in mind if you bounce between them. Running outside is approx .5 to 1% include on treadmill. It’s something to keep in mind if you bounce between them.

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