Tired of being tired!

[WendyClarke]

Good afternoon everyone. I'm Wendy, 42 and I'm a first time runner. Wow! I feel like I joined a 12 step program (I guess I kinda did! lol). I started getting pains when I stood for long periods and I noticed that I would lag behind everyone when we would go places, so I decided to get into shape. I started walking about 2 years ago. My dog and I would take 3 mile walks 3 days a week. I enjoyed our walks, but they were getting tedious and they took forever! The other problem I have is that I don't have a well trained dog, so we have to walk either when it's dark outside or early in the morning. About a year ago I changed jobs. I used to get home later at night so we could take a walk later, but now I get out at 4 pm. It's too light out to walk when I get home and by the time it gets dark, I'm tired. So I decided to try getting up before work to exercise, but as I said, those 3 mile walks take forever! I would have to get up at 5 am to get through it. 

My only alternative is to try running. I figured that if I could run 3 miles, it would take a lot less time than walking and it would have more of an impact. Also, I started having hip pain during my walks. I would have to stop every so often to stretch to try to relieve some of the pain. I noticed that since I started running, the pain is gone. I used to dread going for my 3 mile walk because I knew it would hurt and take forever. Now I somewhat enjoy this challenge, mainly because of the day to day aspect of it. I know I'm not going to run a marathon tomorrow, or even a 5K, but I know that I'm accomplishing more than just sitting around. I don't mind waking up at 5:30 am to go do my exercise now. It's quiet at that hour and me and my dog can just do our thing in peace. It's also really satisfying when I'm done to know that I accomplished something before I even went to work.

I have a friend who runs half marathons and she used to be just like me. She's my motivation. She told me about the struggles she had when she first started. She said she used to be a size 18 and now she's a size 8. She eats all the time, but she also runs, and she told me that she runs so she can eat. We all have to start somewhere, but I can't let it get me down. I don't want to go back to sitting around and being lazy. I want to be able to participate in life without pain and without feeling like I'm holding others back.

I'm also a plus size girl. I've been this way for a few years and it would be nice to lose some weight, but I just want to feel better. 

Thank you for listening. I am really glad I found this forum. I needed a place to vent, share stories, get motivated and help others stay motivated.