Thinking of trying running - is it normal for chest to feel really tight ?

[fakeblonde]

I have often wanted to try running but never really perservered with a proper beginners running programme.
I tried tonight the walk 1 min and gentle run 1 minute but it still totally floored me !
The thing is i am a really good and regular swimmer so its not that i`m really unfit-but i have recently given up smoking after many years.
Its the pain in my chest which really put me off-i used to get it at school if we had to do cross country.
Did anyone else have a really tight chest when they first started running.
I felt dizzy nauseous and my chest really hurt for a couple of hours.
Did i just overdo it ?

Sounds like you overdid things. How fast were you going?

Yep. Sorry but if you can't go to running to start with - walk UPHILL for several minutes at a time for a few weeks. Then try to run for 30 seconds.

I had to do 30 second intervals for a month before I could start running, then one day I just did five minutes!

Also drink lots of water before and after.

If your chest hurts and you feel dizzy, stop and check with your GP. Just in case. Physical stress is a more likely cause than heart disease but best to be sure.

Not fast but i have never been able to run really.Everybody keeps telling me it can be achieved tho if i follow a plan and gradually build up.I get breathless running after the children !

Heart disease !
Heck !

hopefully you just overdid it but i would go to your gp to check you're ok.

VERY unlikely btw. But when people get chest pain that's immediately what they think of (even though in women heart attacks tend to manifest as grumpiness, tit pain and backache!)

Just go easier next time and if it does continue, see your doctor to receive your 'well done for stopping smoking, yes you are fine' pat on the head

Chocolate-that sounds much more managable.
I suppose its a case of wanting to run before i can walk with everything i do.
I will change the plan accordingly and march out the door with no pressure to run for a while .
Thanks x

Remember to keep your breathing under control and start off VERY slowly. You will find you can keep going once you've warmed up.... this takes at least 15 mins I find. If the breathlessness and dizziness comes back, SLOW DOWN, until it is under control again... you will find eventually that you can keep a steady pace for longer and longer.

Thanks the moon.
Whats the best way to keep my timing-i mean i cant keep counting to 60 when i do start running and i dont think i could keep looking at a watch ?

Umm a clock sometimes works

Or buy a watch which beeps every 60 seconds

fakeblonde - you're probably just going too quick to start with. My first run (other than the dreaded cross country during which I generally hid in the first bush) I thought I was going to die. Start off with a walk, get a bit faster and the point where you just break into a run is the pace you should aim at to start.

I don't do the in through the nose out the throght the mouth breathing - just open your gob and get as much air in as you can lol!

It will get better - honest - and if you stick at it you'll enjoy it, you might even get a bit addicted.

If you're running in a built-up area you can run between lamposts otherwise get a watch.

Someone lent me one of those sat nav things you wear on your wrist. I found it wonderful for pacing myself. It tells you your mile speeds... ie: 8 min miles.

A tip given to me by a personal trainer was to relax your face and drop your shoulders, I have to admit I was a bit like you in terms of wanting to run but not feeling like a runner. I had the chest tightness and nausea, make sure you have had enough calories before you run as this can be a cause. The slow build up and interval timing works, there are lots of good beginners training programmes and support on the Runners World website.

I had that when training for a marathon. I was told it was asthma induced by exercise. Even during the marathon I was wheezy, I didn't actually find out till after the marathon.