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Congrats on getting started, Laberge and Psmeby! You'll find plenty of help and motivation in this forum. Good luck with your running.

Once upon a time in the faraway land of West Michigan, there was a fat, lazy guy named Tony. Tony was the fattest, most laziest guy in aaaaall the land. One day, Tony went to a doctor appointment and found out that he weighed 312 pounds. Embarrassed, Tony told the doctor that he wore his heavy shoes that day and that he forgot to take them off when he stepped on the scale. With a *tisk, tisk* from the doctor, Tony knew he had to lose weight. Tony saw the effects of a sedentary lifestyle in his family: bad knees, a bad back, fatigue, high blood pressure and diabetes. Although Tony was not diagnosed with any of these, he knew this was the life waiting for him if he didn't change. Tony was tired of not fitting into clothes he bought less than a year before. He was tired of wondering if a chair would hold him or not. He couldn't take the feeling of being fat and hating every picture that was taken of him. One day, Tony finally decided enough was enough and made the decision to join a fitness center. Immediately after joining, Tony knew he needed to find a workout schedule or a running plan with challenging, but achievable goals. He downloaded the C25K app by ZenLabs to his phone and his life was never the same again. He was at the gym three days a week working on the program. Each week was getting a little more intense, but Tony stuck with it. He told himself "Just keep moving your feet. Just keep moving your feet." and that's just what he did. Suddenly, out of the blue, the dreaded creature "Week 5 Day 3" arrived snarling and shrieking! "20 minutes!?" Tony said. "I cannot run 20 minutes! Who thought of this anyway? I'm not a runner!" But Tony knew if he just kept moving his feet, he would get past the dreaded creature that was Week 5 Day 3. So Tony did just that. He put his phone in his pocket so he could not see how much time was left on the program and just ran and repeated again "Just keep moving your feet. Just keep moving your feet." Then, finally, the moment had arrived. Week 8 Day 3: the very last run of the program. 30 minutes! Tony was nervous and honestly a little skeptical that he could do this, but he believed in the program, but most importantly, he believed in himself. He had come this far. Why WOULDN'T he be able to do this?! So Tony ran. It wasn't fast. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't... a big deal. Really! Well, it wasn't a big deal in the sense that Tony was worrying and overthinking the run. It WAS a big deal, however, how he overcame his fat and lazy lifestyle. He went from barely being able to run for 30 seconds to being able to run 30 minutes and that, children, IS a big deal! Tony had had trouble breathing when he ran. He had what felt like the worst shin splints imaginable and thought that running wasn't worth the constant pain. Tony even lost count of how many times he wanted to quit and how easy it would be to give up and eat a burger and fries. But Tony also knew the secret to running and running well... and what is that secret, boys and girls? That's right: Just keep moving your feet. Just keep moving your feet. ******* Follow up: So here's the big secret: I am Tony! I know... I know it's hard to believe, but it still does not make it less true. One week after completing my C25k program, I ran in a local 5K, the 2015 Yellow Jacket Challenge. My goals were to run it in under 40 minutes and run the whole thing (no walking). I reached both goals on that day, only thanks to a friend who pushed me (mentally...not physically; that would be cheating) the last mile up what seemed like Mt. Everest. Nonetheless, I finished without walking or stopping and in a time of 39:07.6. (I told you Tony wasn't fast). Time wasn't the issue though. It was distance. To know that 312 pound Tony can lug around all that weight and cross a finish line after 3.1 miles was astounding to me. Now obviously, I have since lost some weight, but I am also not done running. I really do enjoy it now. I have even set a goal of completing the 2015 Detroit International Half Marathon in October. This goals seems a little lofty, but not impossible. I have plenty of time to get there, and I know I will, just as I did every week in the C25K program and just as you will too! I hope that this story (as cheesey as it is) will give some inspiration to those who are feeling a little scared or intimidated by the idea of running. I know you hear this in basically every infomercial and motivation speech, but I really do mean this: If fat, lazy Tony can do this whole running thing.... I think you're going to do just fine. Just keep moving your feet!

For what its worth, I understand where you're coming from. I'm hauling 300 lbs on a 6 foot 1 inch frame. I never really ran before, but am finding pain I'm my knees and especially in my shins and calves. The pain goes away with stetching before and after and icing a couple times a day... Maybe a couple ibuprofen too. If you take it easy, it will be easier. Good luck!

Hello 5k'ers! I just signed up for my first 5K and I'm due to finish my C25k program just one week before the event. I know it's coming up soon, but if I don't look forward to an event early in the year, I may make excuses for myself and end up quitting. Now, I have absolutely no intention of finishing near the front (website shows record for my age group as 19 minutes and some change and I'm nowhere near that), but I feel I should probably do more to better prepare myself. Currently, I'm running at 4.6mph as I was fighting 5mph on week 2. Due to the weather, I have been running on a treadmill but I also like the benefit of setting and recognizing the correct training pace. So my question is should I start today (W6D1) on messing with the incline and upping my speed or should I wait until I get my base down and work on those things when I complete week 8? I know the route for the 5k and am familiar with the grade changes. Although not major hills, I'm sure they'll eat away at my stamina and make me feel like quitting. Thanks for any help you can offer.

Good to hear! Today is W5D3 for me and I have been fearing this day for the last two weeks. Hopefully I can push through it like you did. It's nice to see posts like this where people have success with their runs. It gives someone lIke me hope and motivation that it is possible. Congrats and thanks for sharing.

I am a 29 year old male and etrememly motivated to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle. The last time I was anywhere near healthy was my senior year of high school. Since then, I have continuously gained weight every year even though I have joined fitness centers and tried eating healthy. Where I usually fail is in the motivation department. I get really excited and motivated for about a month and want to reward myself by having having a burger or a candy bar... then, of course, it becomes my routine. It's rather disappointing. I've decided now, however, that C25k is my new routine. I did it last year for the first time, and got to week 4 before I told myself "I'm not a runner. Why am I doing this to myself?" I was in pain and couldn't even make it through 5 minutes of running. I tried it again this year, telling myself to slow my jog down if I need to; I can't run a 10 minute mile right away anyway. So, I'm proud to say that I made it past that 4th week and am almost through week 5! C25k is great because it sets fun, realistic, and attainable goals for anyone. Just a few months ago, I was 312 pounds -I was quite ashamed of that- and C25k pushes me without setting unattainable goals. I know now that running is more mental than physical and when I feel like I want to be done, I keep reminding myself to keep going. Anyway, that's my story and experience with this app. Hope it helps me and you all too.