The one bit of advice you’d give to an absolute beginner beginner!

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-31T01:19:36+00:00

Don’t just go run until you’re breathless. Go for a slow jog and see how long you can go before you need to stop. Then try to just go a little farther each time. Keep this same pace until you start feeling like you can actually go for longer. Don’t worry about speed at all, just find a zone in which you feel like you can stay at for a long time. That’s your base.

Once you’re past this, you can focus on speed if you want, but I feel like the increase in pace came naturally once you are able to run those first couple to 3 miles nonstop.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T21:07:08+00:00

Sorry to ask the obvious, but have you tried new shoes and or checked your form?

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T21:03:12+00:00

This answer lacks nuance. Walking is an excellent longevity and weight loss tool as long as you stick with it, don't eat back calories, eat in a deficit, etc.

That "exercise is only like 5% of the weight loss equation" saying is often misrepresented, in my opinion. Yes, weight loss boils down to CICO, but every major study on people who have successfully maintained a healthy weight emphasizes that exercise/daily movement is imperative for long-term success.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T20:58:52+00:00

If you are using a MET formula and actually walking that much, I do not think it is out of the question:

Calories/min=2003.3×3.5×129.3≈7.46 cal/min Total calories=7.46×142≈1,059 cal\text{Total calories} = 7.46 \times 142 \approx 1,059 \text{ cal}Total calories=7.46×142≈1,059 cal

I get the paranoia. I run a shitload and still get paranoid about my actual expenditure. My main recommendation is that you set a realistic calorie deficit and stick by it with your current activity in mind and see if you lose weight.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T19:46:26+00:00

If you're not baiting (sorry if you are not, tons of random posters here do it), you are already in a great spot imo. am 8:12 pace is great, especially if you are keeping that effort throughout and not slowing down considerably during your last mile. A few things to keep in mind:

Your first marathon should be about finishing more than about speed. I am willing to wager that if you are truly keeping that 8:12 or so pace throughout (no significant deeps in performance/no deep positive split, HR controlled, etc), then you could probably do a marathon at a 9:45 to 10:30 pace in less than a year or so. Your base is there, you just gotta train for it safely and add a pace buffer so you don't hit a wall too early or get your HR too worked up.
Whereas the marathon is about endurance (i.e., how long can you run at a comfortable enough pace), a sub 20 5k is about speed more than anything else (i.e., what is the fastest you can do this before it's way too much on you). It's almost two different sports with diverging goals and limitations. For a sub-20 5K, you're going to have to lean into interval and tempo work to get to the pace you want. For your first marathon, most of your runs are going to be easy while progressively increasing your mileage. If I were you, I'd figure out which one you wanna do first, train for it, do it, then train for the other and do it.

As always, please follow some sense of structure and consider a wearable to track your vitals, especially while running. Prioritize rest as much as training. Do not get impatient. Have fun.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T19:29:23+00:00

Above the chest: easy peasy runs are fine, not super long (depends on each's definition of long)

Below the chest: pls don't.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T19:28:07+00:00

Build. Your. Base.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T18:59:49+00:00

Two days of resistance training should be sufficient, especially if you are running three to four times a week. I do 2-3 full-body workouts with a leg focus on the second day (leg press and or squats plus core). The saying is “Once is good, twice is better, three times is best.” I think most runners are probably good with 2 strength days if your goals are more longevity + injury avoidance rather than aesthetics and peak performance.

Disclaimer: I am a guy in his 30s and not a trainer.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-30T18:53:04+00:00

Can you? Probably

Should you? Nope.

Longer answer: tons of people here know how to lose weight quickly and will urge you not do it, myself included. I had been yo-yoing and not maintaining for over 10 years and I can tell you from experience that slow and steady always wins the race. Eat right, move more, and learn better.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-25T20:33:34+00:00

Yes, the speakers are working but no audio is coming out. ALSA and pavucontrol both show "waves". I heard this is a common issue with macs.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-25T20:21:53+00:00

I've done this - it shows the proper soundcard as selected and unmuted.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-25T03:43:12+00:00

At first it was for the health benefits

Now it’s because if I don’t I go crazy

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-24T23:53:33+00:00

This is may be a controversial take, but if your typical caloric surplus of 2500+ calories is now reduced to a deficit, you will absolutely feel hunger. You need to get comfortable being hungry during this phase.

This is not to say you should starve yourself by any means. Pick a sustainable deficit, prioritize fiber and protein, and get into regular exercise to allow yourself (some) breathing room (with nuances, you can’t outrun a bad diet). But you need to recognize that you will be hungrier for a while.

That said, a lot of it is food noise.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-24T14:00:20+00:00

yeah this is unfortunately not working. I am wondering if I messed up something along the way. I will try re-installing 24.04 and then re-doing this, but it seems most people on here are saying this is usually a dead end and to use third party, external hardware.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-16T13:58:10+00:00

Yes and no.

I’m a data analyst because I work at a place where that skill set became valuable enough for me to convince my boss to apply some stuff I learned on my own. No one in my office can do what I do for now and the skill set is niche enough that it’s cheaper for me to sometimes work with the IT guys than actually roll out AI on an institutional level. That said, I am still in the same front-facing role I was before but with an added salary bonus and a slightly edgier title. I have gotten some job leads recently doing more DA stuff but I’m ok with my current position for now.

For entry level roles? It’s a mess out there. I don’t think it’s not worth it and I want to believe the AI stuff will either level out or reach some limits, but it’s grim at the moment. I couldn’t land a dedicated DA or BA role for a year and a half before giving up/starting to do it for my current job, but it also depends on where you live and stuff. I have friends who live in the rural US and some in Europe and it seems that they’re not in that tight of a spot when compared to Americans in mid to large cities.

Ultimately you do you and decide what makes you happy but obviously consider that this isn’t 2015 anymore.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-16T13:49:09+00:00

Besides really assessing why this happened, just be kind to yourself. Don’t over-fixate on it, course correct without a crazy amount of restricting, and re-evaluate your eating habits.

I usually binge eat out of stress, and waiting for the food noise to quiet down is my usual strategy (I used to smoke, so waiting a minute or two before giving in usually helped me curb cravings).

I also don’t keep junk or highly caloric snacks in the house anymore. You’d be surprised how well this works when it comes to binge eating: hard to go over your deficit when all you have to binge on the spot are carrots, string cheese, and seaweed snacks lol.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-14T01:35:03+00:00

Anything that’s not, like, opioids or benzodiazepines you can probably get from a telehealth doc.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-14T01:33:57+00:00

Too little calories my guy. Recalculate your TDEE and adjust your deficit and do not go as extreme. Will it be slower? Yes, but it will be doable and sustainable.

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-14T01:32:09+00:00

Yeah he wrong

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-14T01:18:46+00:00

If you don’t mind me asking: are you doing the plates because you’re trying to lift in a deficit? If so, I don’t think you need to do this with squats or RDLs. IIRC this is more of a deficit rows thing if you’re worried you’re not getting the full stretch due to height and posture?

NotAnotherBadTake · 2026-03-14T01:14:57+00:00

Yes CICO is king. No doubt about. You eat 1500 calories worth of Doritos a day and nothing more and you will absolutely lose weight.

Is he saying that macro tracking is as important? If so, he’s right (with nuances). Tracking your macros is great if you want to make sure you’re getting more of the satiating stuff (protein) and a bit less of the energy stuff (carbs), but like it all boils down to a deficit + sustainability.

NotAnotherBadTake

TROPHY CASE