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“I’m Overweight and Ready to Start—but How?”
Question:
I am thirty years old. I’ve not really done sports since college. Unfortunately,
I’ve put on—I hate to say this—a few extra pounds since graduating. Having kids does that
to your body. But I’ve got two wonderful children, ages two and four, and since I’ve been
a full-time mom, I have neglected my health. I want to get back into shape, but the problem
I find—I mean, taking care of the kids is one thing—but really not exercising is another.
I stay active, but I don’t think it’s the right kind of activity. I’m a little bit
intimidated about how to start. I’m about 50 pounds overweight. I’m short. I’m afraid to
even go the local running store and try on a pair of running shoes. What do I do to start?
Answers:
Since you haven’t exercised since college or after you had kids, I would
suggest you start by walking. Then you can see where your current fitness level is and you
can go from there. You can always build up to running. Some people can jump right into it,
but I think that’s where a lot of injuries happen because people that haven’t exercised in
a very long time think, “Okay, gung ho, let’s go do it!” Then they get themselves injured
and then they’re back on the sidelines. If you start slow and build, you go from there.
As to being intimidated, I know that is so hard. I experienced it and I still get
intimidated. My best advice is going to a local specialized running store. Even if you’re
going to start out walking. Those people know their stuff, and they know shoes, and they’re
going to watch you walk, and they’re going to look at your feet, and they’re going to ask
you questions, and they’re going to fit you in the proper pair of shoes. It may be
intimidating because they start asking questions like, “Are you a pronator?” Now I know
what those words mean, but back then, I was like, “What? I don’t even know what that
means?” I was too embarrassed to say I didn’t know whether I was a heel striker. I just
didn’t know what any of those words meant. It is so hard. That was just such a horrible
experience because I was just embarrassed that I was so stupid. I was very overweight. I
wanted help, but I didn’t even know the right questions to ask. It was just kind of—I need
shoes.
Maybe you could go with a friend, but if you don’t have a friend or you’re too embarrassed,
there’s a great mail order catalog called Roadrunner Sports. You could talk to those people
over the phone and you don’t have the face-to-face type of thing, if you’re embarrassed,
and they will ask you questions. Unfortunately, with mail order you don’t get to try the
shoes on until you get them in the mail.
But if you’re really intimidated, you could at least talk over the phone and get some
questions answered. But I’ve had very good luck. I avoid the big-type chain stores because
I don’t think they necessarily are as experienced as a good, local running store.
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