Hi, my name is Alex, and it was a fateful day almost 2 years ago when I decided I needed to lose weight. I was snacking on chips while watching a television program advertising the merits of exercising the abdominals. The presenter used blocks of fat to illustrate the percentage of fat in an obese person who only weighed 20 pounds more than me. When confronted with this stupendous pile of fat I realized I needed to lose weight, I needed to start running. To prevent the physical and psychological barriers of my new running regime from overwhelming me I trained every day and the benefits of this are innumerable. I’ll attempt to give justice to these personal benefits below.

1. It got me into the gym

Many runners planning on taking part in long distance runs such as marathons avoid weights and the gym due to the fear of bulking up and losing their prized lean physique. It is true that extra mass without function will inhibit endurance performance but if you design your weight lifting program properly, strength can be developed without useless bulk. In addition, lifting movements can provide a greater range of motion than running. If you always remember to lift weights and keep good form throughout the entire range of motion then you will gain rather than lose flexibility and reduce the risk of injury. Before I started running I never went to the gym. However, I wanted to gain a holistic level of fitness that would help me be both physically and psychologically prepared to sprint and run long distances.

2. It helped my career

I continued to increase my weekly mileage and found that I wasn’t just losing weight, I was getting fitter. I felt more energized and mentally sharp at work which boosted my ambition and productivity until my boss called me in one day 2 months ago and promoted me as a junior director charged with overseeing my own engineering project and team. It might seem crazy but I credit this personal and professional success to my decision to start training for a marathon. The sad and slightly depressed pizza eating, beer guzzling man of 12 months ago would never have got to where I am now.

3. I feel more confident

I’ve lost weight and gained muscle after so much training and as a result, I feel more comfortable in myself. Close friends and acquaintances alike are complimenting me on my new physique. This has drastically increased my overall confidence, especially with the opposite gender.

4. I lost weight

My initial weight prior to running was 220 pounds but after three weeks of running almost every day I discovered I had lost nearly 5 pounds. I celebrated by heading out with my friends for a night of drinks. After weighing myself the morning after I found that I was again back to 220 pounds. This taught me a valuable lesson about running. Its benefits are innumerable but being a runner is about accepting a long-term mindset. Since then I have become more disciplined and have kept the weight off.

5. I became healthier

Personally, choosing to run and lose weight kick-started a whole new mindset for me. I started educating myself on an assortment of nutrition and fitness related topics: What food is the best energy source for runners? Does stretching after a run help? How to avoid gastric distress on a long run? And I’m not kidding about that last one.

6. I have more friends

Running exposed me to a whole new little subculture in my local area. Every day when driving to work I saw runners sweating it out throughout the day and night. If you start running chances are you’ll somehow become friends with one of these dedicated souls who’ll in turn introduce you to their friends and their friends until you find yourself swapping horribly inappropriate stories with the running gang about gastric distress during a half marathon. This was one of the key benefits of running to lose weight, I found out I wasn’t alone and I gained a valuable group of friends who understand and accept my running obsession in a way my family and other friends never will.

7. I learned how to eat

I was burning so many calories running every day that for the first time in my life I began to seriously consider what I was putting in my mouth. I went online and started educating myself about everything from macro-consumption to the amount of protein I should be eating. My pantry became increasingly green and lean and I haven’t looked back since.

8. I got back into other sports

With my newly garnered athleticism due to running I was encouraged by one of my new running friends to join his basketball league and my game on Friday has become the absolute highlight of my week. I am rubbish at basketball and cannot shoot to save my life but I enjoy the camaraderie and fast paced nature of the game. I intend to try out some other sports and make the most out of what my body can do at my age.

9. I appreciate nature more

I get a chance every day to admire the natural beauty of forest trails and magnificence of human constructs. I have never before appreciated endless highways and cabled steel bridges so much. Concentrating on my breathing and gait while running amidst the hustle and bustle of the world in my own little bubble of self-contemplation I have come to a fundamental and personal conclusion. The true beauty of running for the purpose of losing weight or any other reason is that it becomes something more, something that infiltrates your life in way you never planned for.

10. I ran a marathon

I really can’t understate the benefits that successfully training for and finishing a marathon have had upon me. Immense discipline, self-confidence and a feeling of accomplishment are among the things that have stuck with me. However, the race never ends and I am already trying to improve my speed rather than distance now for my next race.