I cannot run. I have wanted to run for as long as I can remember. I am 35 years 110 kgs (236 lbs) 6 feet and an inch tall. I can walk for long distances (a 10K walk is not a problem), but I can’t run for more than 100 meters at a time. Last week I started the C25K running program and I like it so far.

An Environment of Success

Scott Dinsmore in his coaching programs and his blogs has repeatedly said that if you want to succeed, you need to create an environment around you that enables you to do the work that you need to do to succeed. So first thing that I started looking for when I was contemplating starting to run was, a running group or a running partner.

In the past, whenever I thought of doing any form or exercise, I always planned to workout alone. I only sought out exercises that I can do alone. The only time I voluntarily got into a group activity was back in 2013. I joined a Krav Maga class. But I didn’t last long in the class. After a particularly tiring training session, I reached home to find a lot of pain near my right knee. A visit to the hospital revealed that I had a hair line fracture just below my right knee. I could not sum up the courage to go back to the class and face that kind of a strenuous activity again and so I quit.

Running Groups

Irrespective of whether I prefer to workout alone or not, I never stuck to any kind of workout long enough for it have any impact on my fitness levels or my body dimensions. But copious amounts of hope runs in my blood, so here I am beginning another attempt to adopt an activity that will get me fitter and better. Coming back to setting up an environment for success; I first started looking at running groups in my area in the Runners for Life website. I found one close to my house.

I did not contact the running group that I found. Various thoughts started going through my head - what if it is a well established running group with veteran runners, how can I match their running ability with my non-existent running stamina. I decided to not contact the running group.

Instead, I decided to look for a running partner. I started thinking of people who might be in a similar situation as me and who wanted to start running. The person who would have been most suited to run with me would have to meet these conditions:

• That person would have have to stay close to me, so that we can go running three times a week without having travel very far from the house to run together.
• That person must want to do something about getting fit.
• That person must be open to running as an exercise.

Running Partner

I starting thinking of all the people who fit this description. There was one person who stayed really close to me, in fact in my own house. My wife. I knew that she wanted to do something about getting fitter because she frequently uses the treadmill in our house to do a cardio workout. But I did not know if she was into running. And so I prepared an elaborate sales pitch to convince her to start running with me. My pitch included a motivational video as well.

The pitch then listed the benefits of running and I touched up on all the things we could do if we were fitter people. Half way through my pitch she said yes. That was two weeks ago. Yesterday we finished the Day 2 of Week 2 of the C25K program. It feels good every time we finish a day.

Running Gear

I am overweight and fat. Every time I walk or try to run I experience chaffing between my inner thighs. The solution to this problem is not unknown, a pair of running tights. With the running tights walking and running got a lot more pleasant. I also bought moisture wicking socks and dry fit T-Shirts for the runs.

To guide me through the training program, I figured that a C25K app was an excellent addition to my running gear. There are a few C25K apps out there, I am using this one - C25K Free.

The Walk-Run Approach To a Fitter Me

The C25K program is designed to deliver tiny victories every week and it builds running stamina, in tiny steps, and it has not given a shock to my body that is big enough to scare me away from the program (yet). So its all good so far.