Hoping to provide you with some inspiration and some tips, we interviewed three men who incorporated running in their journey to achieve their ideal weight.
Here you can find our guide on how to lose weight with running.

Here are our three guests and their stories.

Adam, from 332lbs to 160lbs

It had always been in Adam’s plans to start running. However, after his first evening run with a friend, he realised that he desperately needed it for his health more than he knew. Now, after plenty of time, training and practice, Adam runs 30 miles a week and is up to Marathon distance. This is his story and advice.

What challenges did you face when your first started your weight loss journey and how did you overcome them?

At the beginning of the journey I didn’t have any knowledge of nutrition or exercise. I didn’t move a lot and I always ate what I wanted. Thankfully I found that I could force lifestyle changes that made me exercise. I cancelled my lift to work and started taking a walk route adding 20,000 steps a day at least. I cut my calories and noticed a weight drop. After this I had the faith that it was possible.

How did you change and adapt your diet and fitness regime along the way?

I weighed myself monthly and each month I saw a drop I would add more to my lifestyle to push myself further. I believed if I stopped the weight loss would too. The more weight I lost, the faster I walked, the more calories I cut.

How has running changed your life for the better?

One evening a friend of mine coerced me into running with him. I always owned an unused pair of Brooks and always planned to run. By forcing me to run that one evening I realised I could barely move for 30 seconds. I was out of breath, my shins burned, I sweat buckets and I didn’t even get very far. I saw this as a warning that a 24-year-old should be fitter than this. Once a week I tried running again. I didn’t always run, I mostly walked at the start.

Once a week became twice, became three times, became four. Walking part of it became walking none of it, became running faster and further. I was hooked, running made me feel good, it got me outside, it pushed my limits and best of all it lost me weight. Each day I sit at my desk job and think about how much I want to be outside in the sun, rain, snow, it doesn’t matter as long as my heart rate is high and I feel alive. Sounds corny but it’s true. I ran in those unused Brooks until they ripped apart.

Are you still running now?

I still run today, I often run in Brooks and I’m currently up to Marathon distance. I run around 30 miles a week.

What made you decide that it was time to get serious about your weight loss?

I decided it was time to lose weight because I was miserable. I always knew I was big, I was well aware of what I was eating but I never knew how much being inactive and eating poorly made me feel mentally. One day I realised I was unhappy until I was eating sugar and that was unacceptable to me.

How long did your journey take and what was the timeline like?

It took me around 11 months to lose the weight, an average of around 14 pounds a month. I started after a new year and weighed myself monthly, going into the next month knowing what was working and what wasn’t.

What piece of advice would you give to someone to wants to lose weight and change their life?

I always thought I’d lose weight when I was ready, I knew I had to be in the right place at the right time so I understand why people put it off so much however as harsh as it is I have to tell someone who wants to change their life ‘Just do it’. There’s a reason Nike have it on a shirt.

You can’t put off saving your health. Find something you love doing that picks up your heartbeat. Put yourself in a position where you have to walk somewhere or choose better food. Start small then get bigger while you shrink smaller. Most importantly, go running, if you’re not hooked by the time you can run 5k then it isn’t for you.

Joshua, 60lbs lost

Six months ago, Joshua made the decision to start his weight loss journey. Through motivation and of course, running, he’s lost almost 40lbs so far. This is his story.

What challenges did you face when your first started your weight loss journey and how did you overcome them?

I faced many challenges when I started my weight loss journey but the common denominator was motivation. I knew what had to be done but most times I just didn’t feel like putting in the work. I overcame my lack of motivation by taking Nike’s slogan to heart “Just Do It.”

How did you change and adapt your diet and fitness regime along the way?

I changed and adapted my diet and fitness regime in many ways. First thing was to count how many calories I was consuming throughout the day. Then of course I used running to make sure I was burning more calories than I was consuming each day.

How has running changed your life for the better?

Running has changed my life for the better because I have way more endurance, stamina and energy now. I feel stronger. After a good run, I feel like I can conquer the world. If my body is capable of running a few miles then what else is my body capable of?

Are you still running now?

Yes, I still run 4-5x a week. It’s a habit I can’t break.

What made you decide that it was time to get serious about your weight loss?

I knew it was time to lose weight when I was tagged in a photo on Facebook. I thought ‘who’s that guy? When did he get so big?’ I was so unhappy with my appearance and realized that it would only get worse if I didn’t change something about my life.

How long did your journey take and what was the timeline like?

My birthday gift to myself was a treadmill so my journey started around 6 months ago. Almost 40 lbs down!

What piece of advice would you give to someone to wants to lose weight and change their life?

My piece of advice to someone who wants to lose weight and change their life is to “Just Do It!” like Nike. There’s no time like the present. I promise you will look back to the moment you actually decided to change your life and you WILL thank yourself. Do yourself a favour. It won’t be completely easy but it WILL be infinitely worth it!

Colin, 68lbs Lost

Last year, Colin made up his mind that he was ready to focus on his physical and mental health. Even when a knee injury caused him a major set-back, he came out the other side and ran his first 5K this summer.

What challenges did you face when your first started your weight loss journey and how did you overcome them?

My weight loss journey started simply with counting calories and walking. I attempted to get 6,000 steps a day. These were easy goals and after a month I pushed to continue with the calorie counting and upped the daily step count to 10K.

How did you change and adapt your diet and fitness regime along the way?

I purposefully did not want to change my diet too much as I want something sustainable. So, if I wanted a piece of chocolate cake; fine, just have to cut back on the daily calories and account for it. I began going to the gym about month two and started learning how to lift weights.

How has running changed your life for the better?

I didn’t start running until about month 2 or 3 of my weight loss journey. By “running” I really mean slow jogging. It was painful, hurt my shins, knees and hips. I ended up doing something horrible to my knee and could not walk, much less run, for about 6 weeks. This set me back a bit, but, I just counted calories for diligently and everything turned out just fine.

Are you still running now?

Yes! This time of year, it is blazing hot so I have moved my running times to the wee AM hours that used to be reserved for strength and swimming. So, I now alternate my days. Strength, Swim, Run, Repeat! Typical runs last about an hour including warm-up and cool down and I log around 10 -15 miles/week. I ran my first 5K earlier this summer.

What made you decide that it was time to get serious about your weight loss?

I finished grad school completely online while still juggling a demanding full-time job and two kids. Figure that time block that I was using for school could now be applied to better myself physically since I did the mental improvement. A bit hokie I know but that was my reasoning!

How long did your journey take and what was the timeline like?

It has been almost exactly one year since I started my weight loss journey. Initial stats were 288 lbs at 25%BF to my current 220 lbs at 18%BF. I still have a bit to go and I am taking it a day at a time. The overall timeline is the rest of my life. I am in no big rush, just enjoying the changes in my energy level and loving life!

What piece of advice would you give to someone to wants to lose weight and change their life?

Go slow, take progress pictures, enjoy the journey. There is no easy quick-fix. Accept that, embrace that and be consistent for the long haul. God, that all sounds like something off a motivational poster…

Hope these stories inspired you! Don’t forget to check 3 women who used running as part of their weight loss plan and if you want some help in starting your own journey, read our guide on how to lose weight running!