Runtastic Success Story: Never, Never, NEVER Give Up!

Almost 2 years ago I suffered symptoms of a heart attack 3 times in only 2 weeks. Dizziness, tachycardia and panic were the signs that worried me. I went to the doctor 3 times, and every time he told me that I didn’t have a heart attack but had too much stress. These days I weighed 213 lb at a little over 6 ft tall.

During this time I did absolutely no sports. When I would go hunting I would become out of breath quickly and would sweat a lot. My doctor recommended I change my life completely. He suggested I do more meaningful things rather than watching TV, eating chips and drinking wine….and work less!

Suddenly, I remembered my Unihockey playing times in my teenage years and I decided to start playing again. But, this was harder than I thought. After 300 meters of jogging I was knocked out. I downloaded the Runtastic App.

This is how I have been training for almost 2 years now, 4 – 6 times a week: during the summertime I cycle (racing bike, mountainbike), jog and stand up paddle board and in the winter months I do cross-country skiing. From the start I began setting goals. My former goal was to participate in the Engadiner Skimarathon (26 miles) – even though I had never tried it before. Additionally, I wanted to run a half-marathon.

I reached those goals and I managed the  13.1 miles in 2 h 8 min. I could have never imagined  I would be able to complete these goals (even if they don’t seem so amibtious to others – for me they are). I am more than satisfied, I am thrilled!

My life totally changed. Now I do sports every other day for 1.5 – 2 hours and use Runtastic. I sold my motor-bike and purchased a road bike, mountainbike and cross-country-skis. Now I am 46 years old and weigh 187 lb with a total body fat of 19.5%. For my age this is pretty good .  I haven’t felt this comfortable in 20 years. This feeling became a way of life for me. My next goal is to improve my time at the Engadiner Marathon to under 3 hours and also run a marathon. My joy is contagious and I convinced a lot of colleagues to participate.

I share with everyone that it is only too late when the door is shut. But before that, anything is possible.

My motto: Never, never, never give up!

I hope you enjoyed reading my Runtastic Success Story.

Christophe Sambalé