Tina Neese launched her mid-life makeover in March 2006 with a good pair of running shoes and a goal to enter a 5K run in seven months.

Even though the 43-year-old Cantonment woman had started a walking routine months before, running was a daunting challenge.

“I went to an online site, www.coolrunning.com, where I found a program on how to train for your first 5K run called, ‘The Couch-to-5K Running Plan.’”

Following the plan, she started out slow with a walking and jogging regimen, and then she built up her endurance over the next months.

By the time of the event, she was ready.

“I finished in about 32 or 34 minutes,” she said. “The time wasn’t the important part, the important thing was, I finished. I ran the whole way.”

Tina has kept on running and walking on a regular basis, a routine that has provided a multitude of benefits, including helping her shed more than 30 pounds.

“For me to lose weight, I have to exercise,’’ she said. “But running is more than losing weight. To me, it’s a very big health issue. My father died at an early age of a heart attack. My doctor told me a few years ago that exercise is like a medicine. He said, ‘I can write a prescription and you’d take it. But exercise is the best medicine.’ ’’

Tina now treats exercise like a prescription for health.

“I feel better physically, sleep better, and I feel better emotionally,’’ she said. “I don’t tend to get as depressed. When I exercise, it gives me a better outlook on life. It’s my time to think and put things in perspective.’’

Running has helped to relieve her menstrual cramps, and it gives her incentive to eat healthier.

“When I get out and exercise and run an hour and work so hard, and then I come in to eat, I’m really careful about what I put in my mouth. I just ran my behiney off, so I’m not going to shove something in my mouth that will undo all that work.’’

Most of the time she runs alone on a walking path that her husband, Don, carved out on their property.

She also hits the track at University of West Florida, or she runs the hiking and biking trail at Naval Live Oaks Gulf Islands National Seashore in Gulf Breeze.

Her dedication has inspired others.

“A friend at church heard me talking about running the 5K, and she wanted to do it, too,’’ Tina said. “We didn’t (train) together because of our schedules, but we did talk to each other. We’d say, ‘Did you run today?’ That was nice to have that type of companionship.’ ”

That friend is Larren Truitt of Cantonment, who said Tina’s support was invaluable in lighting a fire under her to get moving. She was 300 pounds when she started running in June 2006.

“I was like a little kid. ‘Mommy, mommy, guess what I did?’” said Larren, 42, of how exciting it was to report her progress to Tina.

“When I first started, I couldn’t run 60 seconds,’’ she said. “Then I ran more and more. It was something that I always wanted to do, but because of my size, I believed that I couldn’t.

“My excuses were that my boobs are too big and my belly was too big,’’ she said. “I put on a girdle to support my stomach and bought a sports bra. I had to armor up to run. It was a big deal just to get dressed. That was the hardest part about running.’’

With Tina as inspiration, Larren was determined.

She completed the 5K, and did so in the middle of the pack of runners, and shed a whopping 60 pounds during training.

“I quit making excuses and just did it,’’ she said. “Tina and I supported each other through it, and it was the most awesome experience.’’

Both of the women said getting started was the hardest part of becoming runners.

“There is no excuse for someone not to run if you want to run,’’ Tina said. “If you can’t run at your home, go to the tracks at UWF or PJC (Pensacola Junior College).”

If you don’t like running alone, Tina said, there are tons of running clubs in the two-county area you could join.

Tina’s Tips to running
• If you’ve been thinking about, do it.
• Buy a good pair of running shoes.
• Start slow.
• Be prepared, in the beginning, to psych yourself up to run every day.
• Set a routine and stick to it.
• Don’t give up.
• After a while, it beomces addictive.
• Join a running club. Log on to Running Wild’s Web site at http://werunwild.com for a list of area running clubs and groups. The Palafox Place running-gear retailer offers "My First 5K" training sessions in the spring and fall to help novice runners prepare for up-coming 5K runs.

Tips Tina Neese followed from CoolRunning.com “The Couch-to-5K Running Plan.’’
Each of these sessions should take about 20 to 30 minutes, three times a week, which is the same amount of moderate exercise recommended for optimum fitness. Space out the three-day sessions throughout the week to allow your body time to recover between each routine.
Week 1
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.
Week 2
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and 2 minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.
Week 3
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then do two repetitions of the following:
• Jog 200 yards or 90 seconds.
Walk 200 yards or 90 seconds.
• Jog 400 yards or 3 minutes.
Walk 400 yards or 3 minutes.
Week 4
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up, and then:
• Jog ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Walk 1/8 mile or 90 seconds.
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
• Walk ¼ mile or 2.5 minutes.
• Jog ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Walk 1/8 mile or 90 seconds
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
Week 5
• Brisk 5-minute, warm-up walk, and then:
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
• Walk ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
• Walk ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
Week 6
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then:
• Jog ½ or 5 minutes.
• Walk ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Jog ¾ mile or 8 minutes.
• Walk ¼ mile or 3 minutes.
• Jog ½ mile or 5 minutes.
Week 7
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then jog 2.5 miles or 25 minutes.
Week 8
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then jog 2.75 miles or 28 minutes.
Week 9
• Brisk 5-minute warm-up walk, and then jog 3 miles or 30 minutes.
Log on to www.coolrunning.com for variations on this routine.