Cheap and practical clothes to start running

I’m a bit late on the clothing advice, but anyway. I wanted high waisted bottoms and if you’ve got a Decathlon near you theirs were about £10 and are the best I’ve had! Nice high waist, I got the pink square pattern ones and they hide alllll my lumpy bits. The black nike ones I bought are shit, show everything no matter what size I tried.

Good luck on the running. I’m doing a half in May and not at all fast (genuinely think I’ll be last) and not really trained well enough so far due to work/life so 🤷🏻‍♀️

Brilliant! You'll be amazed at how much easier the next runs are, and how you can build up your time. It's a great way to get into running.

Hi OP

I’d like to reiterate how lovely and supportive runners are.

Park run is definitely a great way to work it into your routine so that DS is involved. Start by walking and add in more gentle runs each week.

Go slow and Good Luck

Sorry that should have been 10 times not 20...

And you get one after 50 runs too...

Loads of great advice here do I won't repeat it but just to add

Go Slow! Whatever pace you think is comfortable to start with will be too fast... keep it very slow and easy and build up very gradually - then your joints will have a chance to keep up...

It takes 4-6 weeks for cardio improvements but 12 weeks for musclo skeletal system improvements

Good luck and enjoy it... and once you get started at parkrun, take your 5yo with his own barcode... once he walks/runs 20 times he can earn a t shirt

If you have knee issues and a previous coccyx fracture I’d say some pilates rather than yoga - yoga is so brilliant but it involves quite a lot of twisting around the pelvis area which really aggravates my sacroiliac joint issues and general coccyx/ pelvic issues. Pilates is more boring and some of the moves are similar, but it is a bit more limited range of motion and thus safer if you’ve had multiple issues. I say this as a great yoga lover btw!

And good luck, you'll be a runner before you know it.

Decathlon for the clothes is fantastic and very reasonable. Decent bra, you shouldn't bounce at all, and shoes definitely needed. You'll lose weight quickly when you get into it, so I wouldn't spend too much on clothes, just make sure your tights/leggings have a drawcord so they don't slip.

H and m and primark do nice sports gear that is not expensive. Parkrun is fab, for any ability, run-walk or even briskly walk. Usually really friendly and have a newcomers briefing to explain how it works

"I will definitely look into the gait analysis but that involves bolstering my self esteem to run in front of some muscly Adonis when I've not run anywhere for over 20 years!!!"

I used to think like that. It really held me back when it shouidn't have done. Because what I didn't know, and you ouod not possibly guess from the outside looking in, is just what a friendly and mutually supportive bunch of people runners actually are. My local 'adonis' (young, fit, handsome, actually wins or places in events) is genuinely happy for me with my veteran results - and says so.

The ones in a fair-analysis shop might be a good source of info on local running clubs with a fab beginners' group.

Decathlon or Sports Direct (if you don't mind the management reputation) or TKMaxx are all good places for inexpensive and fit-for-purpose running gear. Also check out tops sold for cycling, as they often have better bottom coverage

I know you're set on running OP, but with your knees being the way they are, have you thought of trying swimming first?

Deffo a decent sports bra and trainers. I have leggings and top from Sainsburys and they're cheap and been brilliant.

C25k sounds brilliant but I've not used it. I mapped out a 3k route and just told myself I needed to get round it. Whether I ran it or walked it didn't matter. The key is to getting out 2-3 times a week at least.

I would say get fit & strong before running. Mixture of walking, high intensity exercise & lifting.

Running is quite complex, a massive amount of repetition each session & high-impact.

Run if you love running but to get fit & strong, do other stuff first to avoid injury from overuse, etc.

I think it's the Swedish health service that have a great PDF on lifelong exercise & I read this there.

Agree with everyone that the key thing is good trainers & a sports bra. Tk maxx & sports direct are my go to for leggings T-shirts' etc. I also quite like H&M & gap fit (using one of their many 40% deals!)
If you have time to add in something else I would suggest either yoga or swimming once a week as they will help build up muscles & give you less chance of injury.

I have this front loader

(34F)

The right trainers and a proper high impact sports bra are the things that really matter. Otherwise any old leggings and a t shirt can do the job for starters.

Enell bra if you are large of knocker. Nothing moves in one of them babies.

I teain quite hard and find Primarl brilliant for running tights - look for the ones with a zipped pocket at the back of the waist, and tops. The crop tops/bra thingies aren’t enough support for running, so I tend to wear two (having first taken out the cup padding) and layer over a long line tank top. Probably the whole thing for under £30.

But spend properly on shoes. As others have said, go to s running shop and have your gait tested. Ask them to recommend a range of shoe types rather than one brand. Once you’ve tried and used a pair, you can shop online for similar, at a lower price.

And the C25K is brilliant. Keep at it, but don’t fell bad if you need to replay a week. Go at your own pace.

But the other thing to remember is, as my trainer said to me the first time he put me through my paces: “You can’t out- train a bad diet”