Name: Adam De La Rosa
Age: 38
Hometown: Leming, Texas
Occupation: CDL Truck Driver for Jordan Foster construction
Time Running: 2 years
Reason for running: Running started off as a way to lose weight but once I ran a 5K, running became a passion for me.
I was an amateur boxer as a teenager. I stopped boxing after age 17, and never took care of myself until I was 36 years old. For 19 years, I ate badly and did not exercise, and started to gain weight rapidly after the age of 30 when I became a truck driver.
Being a trucker, I ate a lot of truck stop food and fast food and didn’t move much. My life was simple: work, eat, come home to my family, and do it all over again. My struggle was always my diet. I had a food addiction.
I didn’t have any major health problems other than high blood pressure, but I knew I had to make a change as it was only a matter of time before I’d be on medications, and other health issues would catch up to me because of my unhealthy lifestyle.
It started as a New Year’s resolution on January 1, 2022. I was 36 years old and my clothes no longer fit me. I also realized that I couldn’t keep up with my 8-year-old daughter or do anything outside with the family because I was out of shape and tired all the time.
I thought to myself, ‘What kind of example am I showing my daughter?’ So I made a promise to myself and family that in 2022, I was going to take care of myself and set goals. I set a very challenging goal to lose 50 pounds in three months.
I started out by walking in January 2022, and lost 25 pounds in that month alone. In February, I started to implement running with my walks at the local parks in San Antonio, Texas. By March, I joined a gym.
I began walking and running on the treadmill—it was so hard for me to run at first because my legs and calves cramped up often. I couldn’t even run for 30 seconds in January, so in March, my challenge was to try to run the length of the song the gym had playing on the intercom. In April, I completed my first nonstop mile of running—I was so excited to achieve that.
After April, I ran about two miles a day on the treadmill after lifting weights, and met my goal of losing 50 pounds in three months.
My main focus during this time was weight lifting, but one day in late August, I challenged myself after my workout to see if I could run three miles nonstop on the treadmill. To my surprise, I did it. After that, I started to go back to the parks and run.
A buddy at the gym told me about a local 5K in San Antonio. I ran it and fell in love with the race environment. It was there I heard runners talking about the San Antonio Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon.
It was 11 weeks away, and I told them I would love to run the full marathon. They all chuckled a bit and looked at me like I was crazy. How would a person like me who barely started running have time to prepare for a full marathon in just 11 weeks? Well, I started training for it by following runners on TikTok and finding out what training schedule they followed.
One month later in October, I was running 15 miles nonstop. In December, I completed the San Antonio Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in a time of 5 hours and 9 minutes. The feeling of accomplishment was beyond amazing.
After the marathon, I made up my mind: Running was something I would continue. Six months later, in May 2023, I ran the Shiprock Marathon in New Mexico in 4 hours 57 minutes. It was quite an honor to run with the Navajo people at the Navajo reservation. I then ran the San Antonio Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon again this past December 2023, and my time was 40 minutes faster than the year prior. The next marathon on my list is the Utah Valley Marathon in June 2024.
Today, I run four to five times a week with Saturdays being my long run. My goal is to keep running marathons and to get faster. My ultimate goal is to qualify for Boston. It sounds far-fetched because I’m currently running 4:30 marathon times, but running this distance seemed impossible two years ago.
I work 50 hours a week for a local construction company. While I have the luxury of coming home every night, the days are long. To maintain my healthy lifestyle I pack a lunch everyday—I’m fortunate that my wife prepares these lunches for me. If I didn’t pack my lunch, I’d be eating truck stop food. After work, I go to the gym for strength training, and or run around the local parks. I usually don’t get home until 8:30 at night.
My life is totally different today because I have purpose. I also feel 100 times better health-wise.
These three tips have made my running journey a success:
1. Stay consistent
Stay consistent with running, your workout routine, and diet. Consistency is key. Just start and never give up. It’s going to be difficult, but stick with it and results and progress will come. It’s you versus you. Don’t compare your journey to anyone else’s. It’s your battle.
2. Eat healthy
Diet plays a huge factor on how you fuel for your runs and the right nutrition helps you perform better. I’ve noticed on days I eat bad it really affects my runs. Before this journey, my diet was horrible. All I drank was soda and ate fast food. I’m Hispanic and I love Mexican food, but it isn’t the healthiest. Now I only drink water and black coffee. I stay away from fried food, processed foods, sugar, and flour. I love pasta and chicken Alfredo the day before my long runs. I eat lean meat, chicken breast, lean ground turkey, salmon, and sweet potatoes, along with a lot of fruit and vegetables.
3. Stay confident
You have to believe in yourself. You have to have faith in yourself and the process. Faith over fear. I learned you can do more than you can imagine. The mentality I have now compared to two years ago is night and day.
Adam’s Must-Have Gear
→ Nike Vaporfly Shoes: Of all the shoes I’ve tried, Nike Vaporfly are my go-to race-day shoes. They feel the best and I’ve had my PR with these shoes.
→ GU Running Gels: These work the best for me for fueling on long runs and don’t upset my stomach and give me a great boost.
→ Night Buddy Headlamp: For my early morning or night runs, this headlamp keeps me safe and well lit. It’s a super light headlamp and very bright.
Emily Shiffer is a freelance health and wellness writer living in Pennsylvania.
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