I received this question from a new runner and reader of this blog & thought my response might help other newbies struggling with the same thing.
So...here's the question (edited down some):
I am hoping you might be able to give me some additional advice as my girlfriend (T) and I continue to work on progressing with becoming runners. T and I are coming into running with a similar background to your own. We are both overweight and basically hit a point where we were tired of being sick and tired. We've both tried numerous other things to get fit. Only to have them work and then fail to take a permanent hold onto our lives.
We both feel like we're almost classical Yo-Yo Dieters. Something works - a diet change or a new exercise regiment, but 6 month later - those tried and true Size 18 Jeans are starting to fit tight again. So - T and I are both coming into running with caution - will this work or just another Yo-Yo attempt. (The jean sizes are starting to shrink and the scale does occasionally show us some love.)
But now we're stuck with that nagging question. Is this just another Yo-Yo or is this the real/final change? We both stuck with running much longer than any prior exercise attempts and the results are obvious to everyone who sees us - even when we're not willing to always admit it to ourselves. We've been very fortunate to have found each other as unexpected Running Partners. T was actually a complete chance of fate that we even spoke to each other the 1st time. So for us to have gone from barely knowing each other to seriously considering attempting to run a 1/2 marathon together has been quite a journey onto itself.
I guess the question that T and I have is - is this anywhere close to your memory lane of your first year of transforming from walking around the block to jogging from Telephone pole to telephone pole to actually running? And do you have any advice on eliminating to that inner negative voice that say don't get rid of those Size 18 - you'll be back....
I realize that this is a personal question. But I figured it can't hurt to ask. As I've seen on the blog, you are willing to share how much running has changed your life so I thought I'd see if you could give us some additional reflections on how the transformation occurred.
Here was my response to Christine:
"
"The thing about running -- and probably why you've stuck with it this long -- is that it's not a yo-yo attempt or a diet. It's a lifestyle change that will progress -- gradually and naturally -- to a complete lifestyle overhaul. It will change the way you live your life -- it already has, no?
For instance, now you probably don't drive around the parking lot looking for the closest spot anymore, right? Why? Cause you can run miles and miles you are now more willing to walk an extra 20 feet into the store. Do that day after day...combine it with taking the stairs instead of the elevator and taking a walk at lunch instead of sitting in the breakroom watching The Young and the Restless...and you've got a minor changes that end up leading to big lifestyle changes. If you have kids or a spouse...you'll see that you will start choosing (consciously or unconsciously) to do more active things with them on the weekends. A dreary winter Sunday once spent lounging around watching TV is no longer something you want to do -- instead you'll pack everyone up and go to the Y to go swimming or take them ice skating, or whatever.
You will start making smarter food choices -- not eliminating everything you love (no way...never, never deprive yourself of the things you truly love...everything is OK in moderation), if you're not doing this already. It should all be a natural progression....something that just happens over time because you're aware of the fact that an apple and bagel will be a much better pre-run choice than 6 Oreo cookies (and because you know that it takes a few miles to burn off those Oreos and you WANT to keep wearing those great new size-12 jeans you just bought).
I think you'll see (soon) that the jeans will start to get a lot looser. Once you start to see results...it starts to happen quickly. It did for me.
I remember vividly the day, the place ( I can point to the exact point on the road) when I went from being a jogger to a runner. I was doing my jogging/walking thing (about 6 months into it) and I saw a woman run by me who was heavier and older than me and yet, she was running along without stopping. I thought...well, if she can run the whole time, so can I. And, I did.
I am a competitor. I'm a quiet and a humble one -- but I am a competitor deep inside. :-)
And I have a confession to make -- I was so afraid that my weight loss (11 years ago) would be temporary...so afraid I'd go back to wearing my "fat clothes" ... that I hung onto them for....oh....10 years. Seriously...they were all in boxes in my basement -- all these size 18s and 20s -- and my husband would bug me to get rid of them, but I held onto them for fear I would need them again someday. They were my security blanket (or insecurity blanket, I guess).
We burned those boxes of closes at a bonfire this summer (they were too old and out of style to donate!) and I realized that it was the final chapter in those unhappy days. The book is forever closed. All that remains is a pair of my fat shorts -- for posterity.
Now, I've been (about) the same weight/size for a decade. The older I get, a few pounds creep on here & there and things aren't as taut as they once were (and should be!), but I'm getting older and bodies change. So what? I'm healthy and that I can celebrate that.
So, the key to this not being a temporary thing is to make it a lifestyle change. Like I said, this is something that will happen naturally and gradually as you become more and more ensconced in running and fitness.
You already have a fitness-minded friend, but it pays to have more. Become active in the local racing scene....make friends...get to know people and they will all encourage and inspire you. Immerse yourself in the fitness culture...go to the races...take active vacations...help those who are unfit, have seen you lose weight and look to you as a role model...subscribe to "Runners' World" magazine....think like a runner (because you ARE a runner) and don't take the easy way (eschew drive-throughs...walk your stuff into the store, take the farthest parking space in the company parking lot, take the stairs, walk to the post office at lunch instead of driving...).
If you're still running now -- in this winter-weather -- this is not a temporary thing for you. You're a die-hard. Welcome to the club.