Kristina Richardson Has Come a Long Way in 3 Months of Running

Kristina Richardson may still be new to running, but that doesn’t mean she’s any less of a runner than you, I, or anyone else that I’ve been able to talk to on the show in the past!

Kristina Richardson & Her Girls, April 2016

Taking Control of Her Health

Kristina wasn’t a runner as a kid, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t active. 

Kristina Richardson, From Her High School Dance Days

She was a dancer as a teenager, and continued finding ways to stay physically active as she got into adulthood.

She got married and had kids, lost the baby weight, but over the next several years “life” happened and she was gaining weight. Eventually she was over 200 lbs, and didn’t recognize herself physically upon seeing herself in some photos.

She decided it was time to make a change and get healthy. And not healthy from a physical sense (size, weight, etc), but in order to change her lifestyle to be healthy for the long run.

Taking Control of Her Health

One of the most important things that Kristina did early in the process of taking control of her health was being honest with herself in terms of what was realistic for her at that particular moment.

Kristina Richardson & Her Husband, May 2015

In the fall of 2015, Kristina looked into a number of different options for exercise; from yoga to zumba to whatever else she could find. She also had an elliptical machine at her house, and eventually settled on a morning routine of getting up early and doing 30 minutes on the elliptical before work.

She also knew that she needed to improve her diet, so she met with a nutritionist to help determine what kinds of foods she should (and shouldn’t) be eating on a regular basis.

It wasn’t always easy, and she wasn’t always perfect, but she was able to stick with it.

And it didn’t take long for the changes she implemented to start showing results.

Becoming a Runner

As she was losing some weight and feeling stronger physically, Kristina decided to give running another shot. In the past, she’d tried running a few times without sticking with it, but she was ready to try it again.

In March of 2016, Kristina started walking while waiting to pick up her daughter after practice. In April, she finally built up the courage to try running the perimeter of a nearby park, which was about 3/4 of a mile.

Not only did she do it, but she was hooked!

That doesn’t mean it was smooth sailing by any stretch, but she found success during that first attempt at running again and she was determined to stick with it.

And she has.

Advice for Others in a Similar Situation

Kristina’s story is clearly inspiring.

She decided she wanted to make a positive change to her health, and has.

I asked her to offer some advice to those that might find herself in a similar position as she was in just a few months ago, and her two biggest pieces of advice were to eliminate guilt from the equation and do research.

Kristina stopped beating herself up for her “short comings”, and by releasing that guilt that she wasn’t able to do something on any particular day she was able to keep going.

And by doing research, she has been able to learn the tips/tricks/secrets that have helped her figure out what she needs to do to keep pushing every day.

She also mentioned the importance of celebrating small successes and not comparing herself to the achievements of others. Remembering to celebrate success is important, because it allows us to see just how far we’ve come.

This Teacher is Still the Student

Kristina has only been running for a few months, but in those months she’s learned a lot about herself because of her running.

She’s learned not only that she can run, but that it helps her to feel better and feel accomplished because she can do it.

Kristina said that by pushing through and learning to run, she can push through and learn in other aspects of life as well.

Well said Ms. Richardson.

Kristina Richardson, April 2016

Make sure you say hi to Kristina on Twitter, @kw_richardson!

Find out how @kw_richardson got started as a runner and what she's learned from #running in just a few months. #runchat Click To Tweet

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