No More Excuses!!!

I got professionally fitted for running shoes today!  It felt like Christmas, but without having to wait to open the present!!!

I have no more excuses!  I have the shoes, and I even bought some clothes to match my shoes, lol.  Foot Rx Running of Asheville gives 30 days to return the shoes if they don't fit right, so I am going to have to get all I can out of my trial period.  Can't wait to see how they do!!!

Back in the Saddle Again

After feeling like a was on the losing end of sickness this week, I finally felt similar to a person today.  It is so much easier to feel good when God gives us a beautiful sunny day.

I ran 1 min/walked 1 min out about 1 mile, then walked 2 min/ran 1 min back.  Entire Run/Walk took about 35 min.

While I feel like a champ, I don't think I was/am entirely over the crud I had/have because now as long as I don't take a deep breath, I am okay.  However if I take a deep breath, it hurts and when I very first got home, deep breaths had a funny "taste" to them.  But now as long as I talk quietly (N8 is loving that) I am good to go.

Now I know this was the second hardest run (1st being the very first run), because it is very hard to get up after a 2 week time off.

But now I'm back.... to let you know... I can really shake it down (get a good run time).  :-D

Drats, Fatman, Foiled Again

Ever feel like you are stuck in an episode of Batman, the original with Adam West?  It is hard to fight the Fatman when crazy shenanigans happen!

I had plans to work out this am and break a sweat, but when N8 went to walk the dog last night before bed, he found that the water heater had busted!!!  I can't break a sweat before church and not be able to take a shower.  The other people would not like that so much.  So I am going to have to break a sweat this afternoon.

Now to decide what to do.  It is WAY too cold to go outside, and while I love "playing" on our Wii Fit Plus, I am feeling like I need a little more.  I may look into getting Zumba for the Wii, or any of TBL workouts for the Wii.

GOAL THIS WEEK: Break a sweat everyday!!!

Resetting

All this past week I have been making excuses not making sweat.  I have no doubt that I will have a weight gain tomorrow morning.  I have run out of steam.  It started with a cloudy overcast day, then I had to stay at the house and wait for a guy to come by to give N8 a quote for something.  Strange that it JUST  now hit me, I could have worked out on the Wii, but since I couldn't run, my one track mind was my enemy, and I didn't do anything.

Since I have spent this week feeling sorry for myself and eating all kinds of junk, I know I have my work cut out for me.  Not only in my weight loss journey, but also on my 5k journey.  I have noticed how lazy I have felt, and how tired I have felt.  I even went as far today as to have popcorn/butter with Brawley today.  Good news: I have come very close this week to breaking down and having a Coke, but NO!!!  I have come so far on that one aspect, I can't lose that!

Tomorrow will be the day the Lord will make and I will rejoice and be glad in it.  That will look like a NEW start.  Morning time on the Wii, even if it is just yoga, but it must be something.  I have to channel my inner "Stella" and get my groove back!

I will remember how GREAT I felt when I was running, and being proactive on my activity level and how I feel.  I will look for and learn Scriptures that God is speaking to me about how I take care of my body!

The Goal Still Stands!!!  A slip up is not failure unless I quit and I have a "goal shirt" to get into!

It's Not Over!!!

I started a new week of my running schedule.  This week I am going 1.5 miles and walking 1 minute, running 1 minute.  It went better than I anticipated, since I was going from running 4 minutes to running 13!!!  Of course when I set out on my run today, ignorance was bliss, and I didn't know how many times I was going to be running, so it didn't freak me out.

On the route I mapped out, there was a hill that had conquered me before, and when my minute was up on that cycle I was mid-hill.  I knew if I stopped in the middle of the hill I was going to feel defeated, so I finished RUNNING up the hill!  TAKE THAT!!!

I am not sure why I have started doing this, but at the end of my run, I run around the house next to us, and come back to the house from the parking lot behind the house instead of stopping in front of the house.

Calves: not too sore, Shins: getting not too sore, and my chest has not hurt since that very first run!

Last week I went 1 mile from 19 minutes to down to 15 minutes.  While it took me 25 minutes to walk/run the 1.5 mile, I can't wait to see how long (or how much less time) it takes me to run it at the end of the week!

I just pray that I don't get overconfident and push myself into an injury.

Swing and a Miss

I weighed in this am, and did not get the results I was wanting, but it was at least a loss.  I ran 3x this week, but I had slipped on my food.  While I was getting started on my running, maybe as far as burning calories go, the walking/running didn't do as much as I thought.  Maybe I was doing a little bit of work, while it was good for me, but expecting TBL results.  (The Biggest Loser)   I think because I thought I was doing great with the walking/running I slacked off on my food.  My math equation was off:  more in than out.  But my God is amazing, and everyday that He gives me is a fresh new start!

So this week, it is back to paying attention to my food intake, and doing the running and the Wii.  I  need to pay attention to the strength training on the Wii, b/c while muscle weighs more than fat, muscle also burns more calories from what I understand.

Here's praying that next Sunday yields better results!!!

Feeling the Results!!!

I didn't do anything on the Wii yesterday, but I didn't worry about it, because we took the youth to a concert last night and I can not just sit and and listen to music.  I JUST GOTTA DANCE! However, having 8 youth girls at your house is not very good for sleeping.  I ended up with about 3 hrs of sleep last night, and N8 suggested I call and cancel my walk/run with a friend today, but I knew if I took this excuse it would be easier to find another one then another one and so on, which is not going to help me reach 130 by Christmas.  

So I took a nap, was a little late, but off we were!  I impressed myself with how I was able to walk 2 min, run 1 min, and by the 4th run minute I was still able to talk to her!  My one mile even walking/running only took 15 minutes!  That is 4 minutes faster than Tuesday... so excited!

But I am not going to sit on my laurels, next week the mileage goes to 1.5 miles and my walk/run goes to one and one.  Not sure if I want to wait until Tuesday to run, and have 2 days in between so this week may be a Monday/Wed/Friday/Sunday walk/run week, 

I am interested to see what the scale tells me in the morning.  Oh the suspense!  

Short Term Sacrifice for Long Term Gain

I went for a walk/run this am and my shins are killing me.  I know that I run heavy, and am working on that.  I am going to be looking for some stretches, and look at different ways to run to take the pressures off of my shins.  Right now my shins are killing me.

I had a little surprise while I was running this am.  While usually I have some dogs bark at me, they stay in their yards.  Bad thing: I heard a dog barking at me really close, thought it was the dog that was in the fence, turned around RIGHT BEHIND ME!!!  I screamed because it startled me.  Good thing: my screaming like a girl, scared the dog and he ran off scared.  I WON!

Now to start carring a water bottle or something non-toxic to squirt!

Priorities

Sometimes our days don't go as planned... sick kids, as precious as they are, can be a huge monkey wrench.  I didn't get any work outs or any Wii time in today.  However, I did do over 1 hr on Wii fit and ran, which about killed me, and I know that the Bear is going back to school tomorrow, which works out great since it is the next training day.

Currently I am looking for some great shin stretches, and if anyone knows any, I would love that information.  Because I run so heavy at this point, it does take its toll on my poor shins.  Innocent parties in this whole thing.

Goal tomorrow: stay true to the walk 2 run 1 program, and get a 45 min Wii strength/yoga work out in.

 

Starting the 5k Training Today!

I mapped my first 1 mile walk/run on map my run, and used the beginning runners program from the Asheville Runners club (see previous post) which was walk 2 min, run 1 min x 4.  

First three cycles went well.  After I finished the third "run 1 min", my chest got super tight, so I walked the rest of the way till the last minute, and I was determined to get in the last minute and by this time my chest was okay, so I ran the last minute, from Spud & Deb's mailbox to the church's mailbox then decided I was going to loop around the parsonage and back up to the house the back way beside the house.  I knew from previous experience that I had to cool down, so I made 3 laps, slowly, around the front yard.  

IT FELT GREAT!... 1.15 mil in 19 minutes for a first run!  I am super psyched.  Look out 10 min mile, YOU WILL BE MINE!!!  

Be the Tortoise, Not the Hare

At my weigh in this am, I am down 3.4 lbs from last week, for a total of 5.6 lbs in January.  I had one week where I had gained 2.2 lbs, which was a great reminder in how to not lose focus.  Slow and steady wins the race, and by making slow changes to my life instead of a lot of drastic changes I am more likely to stick with them than go back to my old habits and enter the self destructive cycle of action/guilt.

The weather is clearing up, possible warming up, so I can start my training for a 5k that I am now obligated to.  Good and bad thing.  No slacking off now.  Thought about doing the Couch to 5k, and am also looking at the Asheville Beginners Running Program, so I can use my timer and not have to make a lot of changes while I run.  Now to find some different routes around town with hills and the like to build up endurance.

Here goes nothing!

"Not Someday... Today"

It is amazing how reading a book about something completely unrelated can impact other areas of your life.  I have been reading Wess Stafford's book Too Small to Ignore, and one thing that is radiating through not only the care of children throughout the world, but in my life as well, "Not Someday... Today"

Since my calf was still tender, and the fact that I was up late the night before helping N8 with a paper, I didn't do anything in the way of walk/running.  So today is make-up and  last chance workout day.  Tomorrow is weigh in day!!!  

I went ahead and dropped the number of spoons of  sugar in my coffee this am. Now down to one, not two or three! "Not Someday... Today"

I have agreed with my mentor to run in the White Squirrel 5k on May 27th.  "Not Someday... Today"

N8 also has mapped out a track around the house that is 5k.  It is on the road, so I can't take the boys, but I can do it while they are at school.  "Not Someday... Today"

We are not promised our next breath, so we need to do the best and most we can with each breath we are blessed enough to be given.