Have we totally lost our minds?

[tammyandtommy]

Ok so in December I decided that I wanted to walk the half marathon or whole marathon on Jan 2007! I figure a year is a good time to train! Well My husband wants to go too, and now my sister! Heres the crazy part, I am 28 and probably 100 lbs over weight and diabetic, my sister is 20 or so pound overweight and smokes (will work on quitting for this), and my husband is tall thin and dorky ( but I love him to death do us part). Can anyone help me? Can an overweight person do this, can a past smoker or current smoker do this? Can someone tell me that we havent lost our minds?

Tammy

 

[Wish I lived in Fl]

Definitely start with the half marathon, not the full.

Look for training programs on the resource thread for Wish walkers.

"Wk of Jan 22--2007 WISH Walking/Running Club "

They are usually 3 to 4 months. So the first 7 months (one month is already gone) will be just building a base of walking and losing some weight/quitting smoking. It takes 3 -5 cardio workouts per week to lose weight. Maybe 5 x 20 minute sessions to start.

This year i did the half marathon, not the full, and still felt like i was jumping in the deep end of the pool because of being so sedentary before signing up for the marathon.

Good luck, sign up, and get started!

 

[MelRhoads]

Tammy - You can do it. For encouragement and support, visit the walking/running tread! Many of us just finished walking or running or a little of both, the 1/2, full and goofy. You will get lots of training encouragement here!!!

Walking/running club thread

 

[TiffJ]

All of us feel that we have "lost our mind" at some point when deciding to do this. I decided in Aug I wanted to walk the 1/2 and I did it! You just have to put in the steps. There are all types of people there, not just elite athletes. It is a wonderful atmosphere & noone is every made to feel out of place. I have never been athletic & I felt totaly comfortable there & loved every minute of it.

I would recommend losing as much as you can before the race. I cant remember the exact numbers someone put on here, but for every pound you lose you gain 5 sec on your time. Plus it's easier on your joints. I lost 40 lbs before the 1/2 & planning on losing 30 more before the Minnie in May.

Good luck, yes you can do this!!!! Go ahead & sign up, that is a real motivator. Then all you have to do is : put in the steps

 

[lizdotcom99]

Ok so in December I decided that I wanted to walk the half marathon or whole marathon on Jan 2007! I figure a year is a good time to train! Well My husband wants to go too, and now my sister! Heres the crazy part, I am 28 and probably 100 lbs over weight and diabetic, my sister is 20 or so pound overweight and smokes (will work on quitting for this), and my husband is tall thin and dorky ( but I love him to death do us part). Can anyone help me? Can an overweight person do this, can a past smoker or current smoker do this? Can someone tell me that we havent lost our minds?

Tammy

I WISH that I could tell you that you haven't lost your mind.....but you have and it is a GREAT thing!!!

You and me have A LOT in common, and I was where you are last year....still over 100 pounds overweight, didn't know then but know now that I am diabetic, and used to be a smoker.....Well here is the very short version of the story...about this same time last year, I got the silly notion in my head (it is all Lily's fault) that I could do a half marathon. I trained and actually participated in my first half in Chicago in the middle of AUGUST!!! As things would happen as they sometimes do, I did not make all 13.1 miles of that race....I made 9, but did cross the finish line. What an experiance! One you really do not want to miss.

So here it is a new year and I am signed up for 2 half marathons and I am determined to finish them both.....regardless if I make it in the 4 hour time limit or not! I am still over 100 pounds overweight and now am now diabetic and once was a smoker. If I can do this....anybody can do this.

I think if you want to do it and can commit to the training, you really ought to go for it!! Be warned though that this FREE sport can be somewhat of an investment....Shoes are about $100, socks can run anywhere from $5 to $15 a pair and that is just for starters...then you come and hang around here and you find you NEED an iPod, a Garmin and any other fun things that someone gets and we all HAVE to have.

You will never find a more supportive group than you will here. And I can promise that some of the people you meet here will become lifelong friends.

Join the insanity and have a great time with us. You will be so happy to a part of the group, and we would be happy to have you!!

 

[Buckalew11]

Tammy,

My DH helped me lose my mind by signing me up for the WDW 1/2 next January. he did the full and loved it so next year he'd like us to do the 1/2 together and then he'll do the full on Sunday. Somehow my doing the 1/2 sounds goofier than him doing the Goofy!!

On to that thread I go....

 

[DisneyGirl]

Welcome Tammy!! This is a great place to help you on your journey!! May I also suggest that you start with the 1/2?? I think it is a good idea to get a shorter distance in-- it's a lot less scary (13.1 miles instead of 26.2). Once you get that, though, the marathon will be just around the corner!!! I find that training for the races are a great way to be motivated to lose weight and stay healthy!!

 

[MickeySP]

You are not crazy!! Go for it.

I was where you are and never thought I could actually do it but I did. It felt so good to get that medal it was worth all the training.

Use the WISH training thread it will keep you going.

 

[Kristi1357]

Tammy, I wish you could see the people that do the WDW 1/2 and full marathons! ALL shapes, ALL sizes! You can do whatever you set your mind to!

I might agree with the other posters regarding starting with the half first though. You don't want to go too crazy and get injured, ok?