Runtastic Success Story: “I pulled this off with the help of Runtastic!”

I remember doing Kung Fu as a child, or playing soccer in the park. During my youth, sports was always a part of my life. After my wedding, with all the bills that had to be paid, things changed radically. I treated myself with sweets and passed from one clothing size to the next. Still, I kept telling myself “You’re not fat” or “You’re far from being as fat as this guy or that guy.”

Then our two kids arrived, and with them the stress of being a parent. I basically lived off cakes, biscuits and gigantic pizza slices until I reached size XXL. My knees started hurting and I couldn’t deny the pooch under my shirts anymore. But I quickly got used to it. Because, seriously, “everybody puts on weight after the wedding” and “those who don’t put on weight just can’t be really happy.” Right?

I eventually realized I had a real problem the day I had to do a competition together with my daughter in her kindergarden class and was barely able to finish the tasks. However, I didn’t want to bail on my little one. Then, yet another year passed, I felt increasinlgy tired, powerless and struggled up the stairs at work. I realized I had to do something. Things just couldn’t go on like this anymore. I tried repeatedly to throw my bad eating habits over board – but never thought of doing sports. In the end, I never succeeded in banning sweets, succulent buffets, liters of soft drinks or my beloved fried treats from my menu.

Until this happened: One morning I felt really dizzy, had to walk up to the second floor and was hardly able to breathe when I got there. I felt as if I was going to collapse any minute. So I went to the clinic in front of my work place, where they checked my heart and told me I was fine. Thank God! I escaped with no more than a scare, but the doctor told me that, unless I changed my lifestyle, the next time I might not get off that lightly.

That was just what I’d needed! I had myself checked by my family doctor again, she put me on a diet and told me to start walking 30 minutes per day. When at the park, I always wondered what all those people did with their phones and headphones. What were they listening to? Why did they walk, then run, then walk again? I wanted to run too, so I just started doing the same. After a few weeks I ran once around the whole park – and felt great! From that day on, I ran every day. Then, I started searching the internet for training plans and discovered Runtastic.com. When I found the app, I was delighted! I couldn’t wait to go for a run with it the next day and was eager to start running with my new, portable trainer. My first plan was the 5K, then I did the 10K training plan and so on. By now, I have been able to reduce my weight from 287 to 183 lbs and I’m planning to lose another 10 lbs.

I never ever want to go back to where I was, weight-wise. I love running and I really enjoy tracking my progress on Runtastic.com. It’s part of my life now. My next goal won’t be weight loss, but maybe a 5 or 10K. Or maybe just maintaining my weight.

I still have a sweet tooth and love my treats, but I have them in moderation now. Popcorn without fat or salt, chopped fruits, etc. I am more mindful of my diet and figure now but I know that there is much for for me to learn.

Oh, and one month ago I took another step: I started training my abs with Runtastic. This is really hard for me. But thanks to the Runtastic Six Pack app my abs workouts are rich in variety now, plus the app counts my repetitions and makes my training a lot more fun. It’s just so motivating!

My life has done a 180, my kids see me differently now and my wife, as well as some other family members, have also started working out with Runtastic.

At work, my colleagues asked if I’d had surgery. They thought I couldn’t have done this on my own. Well, I didn’t do it on my own, actually – I pulled this off with the help of Runtastic! 😉

I hope you enjoyed reading my Runtastic Success Story!