Running habit helps Farmington couple lose combined 205 pounds

Three years ago, Chad and Stephanie Garrett wouldn't have been able to run with ease for very long.

Grad school followed by busy jobs left them out of shape, but longing to get moving and get healthy.

"Unfortunately we both looked at the scales and neither one of us liked the numbers we saw," Stephanie says.

The couple consulted a running coach and joined a running group, and so far, so good, to say the least -- they've lost a combined 205 pounds.

Stephanie, speaking to Chad, says, "I've lost 80 pounds and you've lost 125?"

"Yeah, I started off at 388," he replies.

At first, the couple did intervals of 10 minutes walking, 10 minutes running.

"It was the longest 20 minutes of my life," Chad quips.

But from those humble beginnings, they've made remarkable progress. Stephanie, in fact, ran the Twin Cities Marathon in 2013. She ran it again last year, and Chad joined in by doing the 10-miler.

"You almost want to take a step back and feel how heavy and how hard it was to breath and feel the strain on your knees, ankles, or whatever it was," Chad says.

Chad has taken up Cycling and wants to work toward triathlons. Stephanie, meanwhile, sees many miles of road ahead of her.

Now, exercise is just a part of their lives.

"Remember this isn't easy," Chad says. "It hurt. It hurt a lot, but the payoff was well worth it."

Be sure to catch Fox 9's "Get Moving" special at 9:30 p.m. Friday. We'll give you some tips and inspiration on how to keep active, especially during these winter months.