New year, new LAUF10! For this year's sports beginners or those returning to the sport, that means getting off the sofa and out onto the track – the goal: the big final run on July 13, 2024, in Wolznach.
In his project "LAUF10! How can I get fit in 10 weeks?", Prof. Dr. Martin Halle, Head of the Chair of Preventive Sports Medicine and Sports Cardiology, is once again accompanying four runners who have neglected sport in recent years and developed some unhealthy eating habits. The project was initiated in 2007 by the Center for Sports Cardiology, Bayerischer Rundfunk, and the Bavarian Athletics Association and has been regularly covered by public broadcasters in TV reports.
This year, four new candidates are participating: Ralf, Christina, Elisabeth, and Mate. Spoiler: not all of them will make it to the big final run. But first things first. Candidate number one is Mate. The 47-year-old looks fit but is far away from it. "You're below average in your age group, at least 90 percent of the people have a better fitness than you," says Prof. Halle. No wonder, Mate can only manage two push-ups in a row. But that is about to change.
Conversely, Ralf is struggling with being overweight: "I've got you on my back, in a positive sense: I want you to come out of LAUF10! healthy," Halle hopes. The IT specialist has let himself go over the last ten years. Heart problems, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes determine Ralf's everyday life, in addition to 141 kilograms of body weight. "The heart and liver are fatty. We have to get your obesity and diabetes under control because that's your life insurance. If we don't do anything, our life expectancy will be significantly reduced. I trust you to do the LAUF10! Program, but it will be tough," explains Prof. Halle to his most significant "problem child" this year.
Christina has also put on a lot of weight recently, although she likes to present herself as a strong woman. However, weight gain is an emotional issue for the truck driver, who weighs 106 kilograms. She has gained around 17 kilograms due to personal misfortunes. "LAUF10! has come at the right time. If you can get your body feeling back through training, I'm very confident," says Halle.
The last of the bunch is candidate Elisabeth. It's almost a miracle that she's taking part in LAUF10! Although the 49-year-old seems full of energy and “joie de vivre”, she has had some difficult years behind her. After recovering from breast cancer, a new period of suffering began for her last year when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer. But Elisabeth never gives up. After a successful operation, she fought her way back to life bit by bit and is now taking part in LAUF10! as a forerunner.
All four have to complete a ten-week training program from Prof. Halle and his team to participate in the big final run in Wolznach. For the candidates, this means stressing ECGs, independent training plans, and group training sessions with the sports physician and his team. And, of course, the objective truth on the scales. This requires good will and constant self-motivation to achieve this.
And all of them have got a high motivation. Model pupil Mate is already showing fantastic progress after just a few weeks and has reached 17 push-ups. Ralf and Elisabeth also show positive development, only Christina is causing a minor concern. The 39-year-old has had to cancel several training sessions and complains of heart palpitations. Prof. Halle, therefore, sends her for an examination. A few days later, the big disappointment: "I have to take Christina out of the program, there are a few abnormalities. We can't just do 'business as usual' ", the professor decides.
So, the three of them continue. While Ralf is ill, Elisabeth and Mate are already doing interval training. Sprinting for 100 meters, then going back to steady endurance running. The two show their resilience, keeping up the training on the tartan track of the TUM Campus in the Olympic Park. Sports scientist Emanuel Adjei swears by the intervals: “Variety is the key to training. You don't get bored so quickly, and you always incorporate new elements and stimuli into your daily training routine.”
New stimuli is a good keyword. In addition to the running program, the three have a team of nutritionists, mental coaches, and chefs. Still, they also excel in other sports, such as boxing with martial arts world champion Tina Schüssler or running with trainer guru Manfred Skibbe.
Before his second health check, Mate is still skeptical as to whether he has really improved, but the results are astonishing: "I've rarely seen such an improvement in the anaerobic zone as I have with you. That's sensational," praises Prof. Halle. And Mate is moved to tears. But things are also looking good for Ralf and Christina. The kilos are tumbling, the values are significantly improved, and the sports physician is thrilled!
After ten weeks of intensive training, the time has finally come. The big final run in Wolznach is coming up. While Prof. Halle sticks close to Ralf's heels as he walks the course, Elisabeth and Mate run towards their big goal. But only some things go smoothly. Mate's heel hurts - Elisabeth breaks from dancing with her running partner, and Ralf slips on the slippery forest floor. But after 1:45, it was inevitable - everyone had reached the finish line, and Mate and Elisabeth, who had already been waiting for Ralf, crossed the finish line with him, and Prof. Halle: LAUF10! has passed. What an achievement!
"I was happy to get the three of them to the finish line, and I'm incredibly proud. The atmosphere on the course, the weather, the people - everything was just right," says Prof. Halle enthusiastically at the end of this year's LAUF10! Project.
To the homepage of the Chair of Preventive Sports Medicine and Sports Cardiology
To the Abendschau report "LAUF10! That was the 2024 season"
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Martin Halle
Chair of Preventive Sports Medicine and Sports Cardiology
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 56
80992 Munich
Tel.: 089 4140 6774 (Klinikum rechts der Isar)
Phone: 089 289 24441 (Uptown Campus)
E-Mail: Martin.Halle(at)mri.tum.de
Text: Bastian Daneyko
Photos: BR-Abendschau/private