Jogging for beginners

[rmaryt]

I am hoping to take up jogging (new year's resolution), but I also need to lose some weight, about 1 stone.  I'm a bit concerned that if I start jogging before I lose the weight, I might do damage to my knees, but I know that it will take quite a while to lose the weight.  I know I need to decide on an appropriate diet, but I want to get started with the jogging, so has anyone any advice on the best way to get into jogging?  Any other general fitness help would be good too!!

[smudge]

Rather than jogging, have you considered 'power walking'. It's not so bad on your joints & is quite exilerating.

[rmaryt]

Thanks for the suggestion smudge, the only problem with that is that I already walk my dog at night, but he's a bit too old for power walking or jogging & I just thought that jogging would a change from walking - if that makes any sense!!  I'll maybe give it a go tho - do you know if there's a particular technique or is it just walking faster?

[smudge]

My best friend & I would find jogging a bit hard going at our ages - 57! However, we start off by slowly walking arm in arm, chatting for England. When we've reached our destination, usually an hour later - we head back home walking faster, with a spring in our step & arms astride. The journey back takes us half the time & overall we're out for about 1.5 to 1.75 hours. We love it! 

[Scarlett]

Wow, Smudge, that sounds like the perfect exercise to me! You should patent it. Sell it to a women's mag!

rmaryt, how about joining a gym? They will be able to advise you how much to do to start with, plus you could use their jogging machine.

[krissy04]

If you wanted to see more results just by normal walking, get some ankle weights...I find they work excellent...and Rmaryt...dont forget to swing those armS!!!!!

[Miss Zippy]

If it�s specifically damage to your knees you�re worried about, you could try �jogging� (albeit on the spot) on one of those little exercise trampolines until you feel confident to go out jogging properly. The trampolines are only about �20 from Argos and they are brilliant for cardio vascular exercise and toning up your legs. I used to use mine with some little weights strapped to my wrist and ankles for added resistance.

[MuppetBabies]

I have quite weak knees, and if I run on the road/pavement, they end up a bit knackered. In general, it's not recommended to run on concrete, as long-term, it's not great for your joints, so do what I do - run in the park. It's a bit of a pain when it's a bit far away, but it's so exhilirating to be running in a pleasant environment and have a bit of fresh air in your lungs! It's so much nicer than running in a sweaty gym.

If you're new to jogging, take it easy and build up slowly. You want to be working on the amount of time you are running for, not distance covered. One method would be to do jogging for say, one minute, then walk for two, then jog again for a minute. You could vary the times a little to build up your fitness, and gradually, you could run for longer than you walk. Also, don't be afraid to run for a short period of time - 15 minutes 3 times a week is better than a thirty-minute haul you weren't prepared for, and will end up puttin you off long-term.

Another thing is to remember that however long you run, the first 10 minutes will be hellish. I have been in agony wanting to give up after seven minutes in the past, but once I got through the 'toxic ten', I have gone on to run for another hour on some occasions. It's a barrier that most runners have to get through. Stick with it, and good luck!

[smudge]

Thanks Scarlett - maybe I will send my idea into a woman's magazine. I can just imagine a brigade of  women (or men) walking along arm in arm, chatting for England! lol.

[Marvin84]

rmaryt, I think that I can safely say that we ALL have the same NY resolution :-)

I found that going to the gym has been helpful for me. I started with 3 personal training sessions to get me on track, after that, I at least had a fair idea what to do (be it in the gym or at home). But it's all really a  personal thing - i started jogging, but stopped after about a month or so (too boring for me!), but for me the gym was easier to keep me in a routine... other than that powerwalking is a great first step...

 

best of luck!! :-)