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Original poster

Help kit me out - first time runner

40 replies

365ThingsToDo · 05/02/2015 10:33

I need to start exercising. I'm going to be 40 at the end of the year and have always loathed getting hot and sweaty (in public), but I've decided to bit the bullet and do the 0-5km NHS programme.

But I think I'd be very motivated if I had the right outfit, rather than ancient joggers and an old T-shirt. My trainers are 20 years old.

Where can I start? I don't want to spend a fortune, and last time I contemplated this my DH insisted I go to some specialised running shop where they'd observe me running on a running machine before declaring which vastly expensive trainers they should sell me. My enthusiasm instantly fizzled.

I'm size 14-16, I've had three children, and I want long tops which would hide my enormous bottom and tummy. I just want to look the part so I can stop feeling humiliated about being beetroot-faced in public and start concentrating on the getting fit bit.

Where should i start?

OP posts:

motleymop · 05/02/2015 13:26

My thoughts on shoes were swayed a bit by this: www.telegraph.co.uk/men/active/11243944/Are-expensive-running-trainers-a-waste-of-money.html

Original poster

365ThingsToDo · 05/02/2015 13:30

That Telegraph link makes me happy . Now, when is my local Aldi going to start stocking running shoes...

OP posts:

NakedFamilyFightClub · 05/02/2015 15:26

Have you checked out Decathlon? You might not need more clothes now you've done your sport direct offer but I get most of my sports stuff from there. They do great basics. My DH also has these armband lights (though he didn't get them from Amazon) and he thinks they're great.

Also, can I hijack your thread for a moment please to ask HolgerDanske about how the foot balance insoles work with Nike free? Doesn't the insole cancel out the free running bit?

AliceInHinterland · 05/02/2015 15:34

You also need an ear warmer thing in this weather (a head band with bits that cover your ears). And a cheap stopwatch to start you off, easier than looking at your phone. Good luck!

HelpMeGetOutOfHere · 05/02/2015 19:04

Ooh I like that telegraph article as well. I've always thought it was a way to make you buy more expensive trainers.

Fabulassie · 06/02/2015 11:06

I decided to believe the theory that expensive running shoes are hokum and bought cheap ones from Decathlon. (Less than £20.) I never had any problems with them. They probably wore out faster but even replacing them regularly was cheaper than buying expensive shoes. I have never had my gait analysed so perhaps I have a "neutral" stride. I have even run in £12 shoes from Asda without a problem (although they definitely wore out quickly.)

I do think that a good bra is important. I have tiny boobs but I still need to have something that is tight on my tits as I really hate when rubbing fabric makes my nipples sore.

For the rest of it, I would recommend something that has a special pocket for your smartphone/whatever device. I liked to listen to music on my phone whilst running a C25K program and tracking my distance, etc. Running bottoms with a special pocket in the small of the back (right where a "tramp stamp" would go) are really awesome.

Fabulassie · 06/02/2015 11:12

The only problem I ever had when I started running was soreness around the knees. I had an idea that this may have been caused by an imbalance in the muscles: I was working my quads by running and tightening up the mucles on the front of my legs, so it was pulling on my knee. So I started to work the other side of my legs (the hamstring? I don't know what the muscles are.) I alternated running with climbing a steep hill by my house. Within a week, the knee pain had gone. So, if you get into running regularly and start to feel a bit "off" around the knees, consider doing squats or stair climbing to balance things out. I realise that this doesn't sound very scientific but it did work for me.

HelpMeGetOutOfHere · 06/02/2015 11:16

oh yes I covered earphones, but not what to do with the ipod/phone. Ihave an ipod nano for running now that clips on, but previously had an arm pocket for my phone, it is clear pocket on a Velcro strap that you could still press the screen through, think it as 99p on amazon or ebay. I only use the nano now and don't take my phone with me. I don't want to be disturbed on my run and am only out for an hour or so anyway. still use my iphone for going to the gym though.

Fabulassie · 06/02/2015 11:23

I tried one of those arm band pocket things and it was too loose. I have scrawny arms. But there are all sorts of solutions to try.

HelpMeGetOutOfHere · 06/02/2015 11:32

sorry its the ipod shuffle not the nano. it has a clip on the back so just clip it onto t-shirt/vest/top of your running tights and ready to go. www.johnlewis.com/shop-by-brand/apple/apple-ipods/ipod-shuffle/c8000024530

Anjelika · 06/02/2015 12:09

Just wanted to mention that you will find some great support over on the Exercise forum of Mumsnet (Health -> Exercise) for the C25K programme. I too did the NHS Choices programme downloading the podcasts to my phone. It was a great way to get up to running for 30 mins / 5K without being too hard.

Clothes wise, I have been lucky sometimes at TK Maxx. Got some really comfortable tights and capris from there. I have forked out for trainers (if you do have your gait analysed at a shop it might be worth asking if they price match as I paid around £100 for my last pair of trainers then went home and found them online for about £60) a running jacket and a base layer top - it's a Ronhill one and I wear it all the time. Have also picked up some vests in Sweaty Betty sales.

Good luck with it!

Nancy66 · 06/02/2015 12:37

The custom insole thing is a complete waste of time and money.

A good, lightweight pair of running shoes will suffice.

HolgerDanske · 06/02/2015 12:43

No I'm sorry but it really isn't. Fair enough if you don't need them or don't want to spend on them but many people do. Sure it might not be scientific but I do believe there is some credence to anecdotal evidence. I wear them for chronic and very painful plantar fasciitis and they have helped a great deal and still do. I wear them all the time as I am constantly on my feet for work.

We fit them for many army personnel and they find them very helpful on marches and so on. We also fit them for many serious runners and have had nothing but good feedback. We've had two or three pairs back with the money back guarantee in years of selling them, and as I said we get people in on a regular basis who have been referred from podiatrist, chiropodist or GP. So I don't think there is any basis for calling it a complete waste of time and money.

Nancy66 · 06/02/2015 13:24

to get them fitted routinely, before you've even started running is just daft though. They're expensive.

the 'science' behind the gait analysis is just nonsense. I researched this quite extensively last year for a work project and spoke to lots of leading surgeons and not one said they were a good thing. At best they 'probably didn't do any harm'

HolgerDanske · 06/02/2015 13:37

Fair enough, it might be a bit silly to go that far to begin with. In any case we always say to check with a medical professional first before getting them done, so I don't rightly know why I recommended it here without saying that too! I suppose I get evangelical about it as they've been so good for me after years of agony, and hearing so much good feedback in my line of work.

What's most important at the end of the day, OP, is that you'll instantly be 100% more 'runner' than you were the day before! Bigger and better things to come

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