Agree with needing to learn now to run. Just checked my records and I was over 15 stone when I started C25K last spring , having already lost some weight at that point.
First session really wasn’t promising and I felt sick but I kept at it, pausing for a couple of weeks after week 3 to have my gallbladder out. I got decent trainers and bra as felt good support at my weight was really important. The secret to it is to go really really slowly, dog walkers were faster than me to start with! You want to be going slowly enough to have a conversation. Speed will come later, to start with it’s about gradually building stamina.
If a run doesn’t go to plan then it’s a practice run. Someone I was talking to the other day who is very athletic looking and you would think would be a natural said it took her 3 months to get through it. It takes as long as it takes. I find running music helps. I listened to it whilst walking briskly, over time my body associated it with faster movement and it really helped me. Others I know don’t like it so an individual thing.
What you realise when you get going is that it’s a psychological thing as well as physical thing. The strategies I learned from C25K I use in other areas of my life when things get a bit stressful, it teaches you to push through barriers.
Parkrun is great and you see people on mine doing C25K. I’ve gone from going out first thing to avoid people wearing baggy clothes to go8ng out wherever, whenever as don’t give a shit. It has become a bit of a social thing to my surprise, that’s good as it helps keep you motivated.
Long distances aren’t ever going to be for me . I have done 10k once to prove to myself I can do it but am happy with 5k. I don’t think I’m going to get any faster than I am now and a 5k under 30mins will forever be elusive I think but I guess never say never. I’m over 100lbs down now and onto my last half stone and feel much much better than I did, despite having perimenopausal crap and a large fibroid going on.
It really has made a huge difference to me and I wish I’d done it years ago instead of being a touch scathing about it. DH has started too and we still laugh about the fact that we doing it and kept going through the winter in minus temperatures.