Hey everyone

[LaMenta3]

The short version of my story is that while I've never been particularly athletic, I was once pretty active and in good shape, and due to a lot of life factors (money, moving, mental health...among others), I'm not anymore. I enjoy running (I ran cross country in high school), but my excess weight has made it absolute murder on my joints. I've never been particularly fast, even when I was in shape and running competitively, it's just something I like to do, and I miss being able to run as I once did. I'm currently working my way through the Zombies, Run! C25K program, which is working pretty well for me so far.

 

I've also long wanted to become stronger overall--I have never, not once, ever, been able to do a pullup. Not even as a kid. And even if I'm only ever able to do one in my entire life, I want to at least be able to do that one. I've always had pretty decent strength for picking things up, moving things, and all of those everyday "feats of strength," but when it comes to anything that requires me to have much strength or muscle endurance below the elbow, I've yet to crack that nut.

 

I have absolutely no access to a gym right now (which I miss sorely) and only occasional access to anywhere that's safe to run, which is both the main cause of my current situation and my main obstacle to doing better. I've let the loss of convenience of having workout facilities at my disposal and no longer having sufficient activity built into my lifestyle (I used to live somewhere that I could walk everywhere. I don't anymore.) become my excuse for doing nothing. I might have to get a little creative, but I'm not going to let that stop me any longer. When I was wheezing and gasping for breath after running the full length of Concourse C at the Atlanta airport trying to catch a flight a few weeks ago, I decided that I'm tired of not being able to do things that I used to be able to do. There was once a time where I could, with little difficulty, sprint two concourses to catch a connecting flight, while carrying two bags.

 

I'm not just doing this because I want to be able to book tight itineraries when I travel, though. I help run a number of conventions, which requires a LOT of energy and endurance--both physical and mental. It's not unusual for me to walk over 10 miles each day of the event, and the events usually last 3-4 days. Over the past year, I've put on enough weight and been sedentary enough that I'm actually concerned that the rigors of con staffing may cause me injury next time I work if I don't start making some improvements right now. And even beyond that, I used to really enjoy cosplay, but it's not as fun for me to cosplay the characters I want to cosplay when I don't feel like the costume would flatter my body. Not to mention, larger sizes mean more fabric, and fabric isn't cheap. But above all, I just want to do better for myself.

 

So yeah...that's a little about who I am and why I'm here.

[Bob the Bardbarian]

Sounds like you have some good motivations for getting healthy.

Welcome to the Rebellion!