a funny young womans long run no return road
Spring goes and summer comes. It's the season for mini skirts and flip-flops again. Should I cheer: I have long legs, I have a V-shaped face. I thought this was supposed to be an inspirational story, but it turned into a long and winding road of running for a goofy youth like me. It's been a year since I started down this path.
I first got into running last June when a colleague and I signed up for a local long-distance race. At that time, I weighed 60kg. I finished third in my group on my first run, even though there were only ten people. I was so pumped that I couldn't stop. This was also my first encounter with the Codoon app, as I followed a running expert who had a voice prompt for every kilometer. This expert naturally became my running mentor. When we discussed the app, he told me that if I lost some weight, I could run even faster. So my weight loss journey began with my love for running, and Codoon's voice prompts every kilometer were a big help.
The thing about interest is that it can turn into a habit, and then it becomes as essential as eating and sleeping. That race introduced me to many running experts and brought me into this circle, into our small city's long-distance running group. Every evening, we would gather at the city center's lakeside park to run. One lap was exactly five kilometers. I developed this 'bad habit' over the summer, setting a goal for myself to run five kilometers every day. By the end of August, I had lost 10 pounds.
Can I insert a bit about my amazing talent here? In November, I participated in a 5km race held in the city and finished second among women with a time of 22 and a half minutes. In October, I was invited by a local running association to join a team for a triathlon, running a 10km mountain trail, and I finished first among women with a time of under 50 minutes.
By this time, I weighed 106 pounds. I also completed my first half marathon, choosing a scenic county road and following the most experienced mentor. We strapped on our waist packs, ran through fields of Gesang flowers, chased the sunset, and completed my first marathon.
I remember that every half marathon seemed to make me lose two pounds, even though I knew most of it was just water weight from sweating. But I was still glad that my weight wasn't like those lazy people who say they gain weight just by drinking water. At least the water I drank was sweated out again.
At 106 pounds, I hit a plateau. During this period, I focused on not rebounding. Maintaining this number was actually a form of weight loss. A reminder to all the girls trying to lose weight: if you choose to lose weight through exercise, don't drastically cut your food intake. Running consumes a lot of energy, so apart from cutting down on snacks, I ate and drank as usual, but I always controlled my intake of Sprite, Coke, and high-fat foods. From November to January of the following year, my weight stayed within two pounds of 106. The feeling of being slim was so great that even a walk in the park could look like a fashion shoot. For the first time in my 25 years, I felt the beauty of being slim.
After the New Year, due to a job transfer, I moved to Shanghai. For the first month, I couldn't find a running group and got lazy, eating out every day. In half a month, my weight went up to 110 pounds. During this month, I didn't experience the feeling of sweating profusely. Every morning, I felt like I was squeezing onto the subway with a puffy face. I started planning my running routine: three workouts a week, ten kilometers each time. In two months, I am now 51kg. It's not as miraculous as those weight loss ads that promise you'll lose ten pounds in a week.
But you have to believe that running gives you more than just physical benefits; it also gives you friends and beauty. This is my takeaway from a year-long love affair with long-distance running and my journey from fat to fit.
(This article is part of 'My Weight Loss Diary' submissions. For reprints, please contact Codoon's editor.)