Clydesdale and Athena are the more acceptable terms many events use to describe heavier male and female athletes respectively. With running, there is a lot of impact with every step, this is amplified with any additional weight you’re carrying. This makes it all the more important that you take it slow to start. The human body is an amazing thing that can adapt and overcome challenges, but it needs to be fed the work slowly so it can process and overcome.
One of my biggest challenges is finding the point where I’m pushing myself the right amount, not too much or not too little. You will have to find the sweet spot for you where you are pushing enough that your body will adapt, but not so much your body will protest. The training should not be easy, it should be a challenge but it should not be especially painful either.
Start very easy, there’s no shame in starting with a few minute walks a few times a week with breaks in between. There were times I would start a new plan to get into shape and be almost embarrassed how much walking took out of me. When I started running, the first few 30 second run segments made me huff and puff. Keeping pushing yourself through this initial challenge, and when you’re ready, you’ll be able to do more and more until you don’t even have to think about it.
When you’re first starting, you may not have a lot of control on pace, focus on running intervals vs walking and finding the right amount to push yourself. Even for me today, I will push harder or take it easier at times, but there are days a relatively faster pace feels easier and days I don’t know how I could sustain that pace.
Events are generally measured in distance, but your training should primarily be based on time. Your body is concerned with how hard it’s working and for how long, it doesn’t care how far you ran. At the risk of downplaying the work that professionals and faster runners put in, but I like to consider that in a lot of events, I may be out there running 2-4 times as long. It will naturally be at a lower intensity, but it is still an important feat to consider especially once you factor in the additional weight you’re carrying and the additional time you may be spending in the sun and the heat.