My Personal C25K Story

First a little history. I was born and raised in the Netherlands. I didn't own a driver license or a car. Everywhere I would go I would do it on foot, by bike or use the outstanding public transportation. In 2003 I decided to move to the US and ended up in California. I soon found out that having a car is a necessity. Without one you are lost. Having a car is great but there are some downsides to it. One of the many is your general health.

I didn't walk anymore. Even when visiting a friend down the street I would take the car. It's amazing how lazy one can get once you find out the conveniences of a car. I would go to a drive-through for lunch. Eat my lunch in the car, get back to work and sit for the rest of the day in front of my computer. Same story for dinner (except the eating dinner in the car thing). Pretty soon I gained 20+ lbs.

According to my BMI (Body Mass Index) I was overweight. 5'11'' and 206 lbs. with a BMI of 28.7 thus putting me in the overweight category. Here are the BMI Categories:

Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
Overweight = 25-29.9
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

Time for some serious action!

First thing I cleaned up was my diet. I love food (I used to be a cook) and switching your diet is not that hard as many of us think! Cut down on processed food and sodas! You will feel and see the difference. Start eating raw. Not only does it taste better it will make you feel better as well.

So what are processed foods? Processed foods have been altered from their natural state for safety reasons and for convenience. The methods used for processing foods include canning, freezing, refrigeration, dehydration and aseptic processing. Go to your fridge now and throw it all out, seriously... Also get rid of your sodas, especially the diet drinks. Worse fluids ever. The body is made out of 70% of water. START DRINKING WATER! You will be amazed how many pounds you will loose just by drinking water.

The C25K program

My next step was physical exercise. I tried most of them. Weight training (of course I want a body like the cover of MEN'S HEALTH magazine!), stationary bike, bikram yoga. For some reason all of the above exercises didn't work for me. Not sure why but it just didn't feel right. Don't get me wrong. It might be the perfect solution for you.

One day I talked to a friend who was practicing for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. I hadn't seen her for a while but I could tell she lost weight. She really looked great! So I asked how she did it. She walked. This was the moment the little running seed was planted in my head. It wasn't until a few weeks later I was thinking about walking/running again and did some research on the internet. And there it was: the C25K Program.

Put on you running shoes and run!

I must say I'm a pretty impulsive guy and I can get excited about a lot of stuff. This was different. I felt that this was/is the thing for me. I got new gear, all the gadgets, signed up on numerous running forums and yes, I dedicated a spot on mindplunge to the C25K program. I don't care if I have to get up at 05:15 AM and run for 30 minutes. I LOVE IT!

What I like the most is the outdoors. Fresh air, the warming sunlight on my skin. The program is less of a running regimen than a walking and jogging program. The idea is to transform you from couch potato to runner, getting you running three miles (or 5K) on a regular basis in just two months.

So this is my personal C25K story. I would love to hear your story! Drop a line or comment on my blog. look for the C25K category for all my C25K related posts.

Richard Lemon
Santa Rosa, CA