30 Minutes

Thirty-minute run today.  I felt pretty good.  I was on my way to pushing and then one of my worst nightmares happen --  one of my neighbor’s dogs started chasing me.  This is a huge fear for me because when I was a child I ran from a dog.  My uncle picked me up and he ended being bitten.  Fortunately, this dog’s bark was bigger than her bite.  I had to stop and wait for the dog to be retrieved.  I ran an extra minute or two to make up for the delay but I wasn’t able to get an accurate assessment of my progression on distance.  I’ll try again on Wednesday. 

Now, I don’t feel like it’s getting any easy for me to run.  I’m still pretty wiped out.  Today while I was meditating I realize that I can’t expect to unto 30 years of sitting on the sofa with 30 minutes of running when I’ve only been doing it less than a month.  I’ve made a lot a progress and I have to watch the internal, negative chatter.

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I also went to my quarterly doctor’s appointment.  I have a new doctor.  Dr. G took some time off to deal with some family issues.  Anyhow, I like her.  She was able to test my A1c right in her office.  It’s 6.0.  I’ll find out the rest of my numbers in a week. 

After my appointment, I dropped by a friend’s house and her husband immediately commented on my weight loss.  I was a bit shocked because according to the scale I’ve only lost a pound.  People have been making comments here and there.  I’m not sure I see it. 

I just need to stick to my food plan, continue exercising, and stay off the scale!

I am a real runner

Our slowness is not a measure of our value.  Not as individuals, not as runners.  We are slow, but we are real. ~ John Bingham, The Courage to Start

While I was reading The Courage to Start today, I was struck by the quote above.  It comes right on time.  Saturday I was working on increasing my pace and decided later on that day I should consider working on building my endurance.  For me, endurance is more important than speed. 

The issue is that there are some that have been asking me about my pace and how much distance I’m covering in the 30 minutes, etc.  I need to dismiss all the internal chatter than says I should be fast enough or that prompts me to compare myself with others.

To compare myself with others or worry about how fast (or slow in my case) I’m going is to set up me for defeat. 

30-Minute Run

Today I planned to work on my speed with a 30-minute run.  I lasted 15 minutes!  I am proud of myself.  My endurance is building.

I try this again on Monday but I'm going to try a different strategy.  I read an article or blog (can't remember) that it's best to push for a couple minutes and then go back to your regular pace.  So, I'll try this and see what happens.  I need to be able to cover 3.1 minutes by October.  At the rate I'm going, I could probably walk faster than I'm running.

Week Eight, Day Three: Graduation Day!

What’s my name?!? What’s my name?!? What’s my name?!? Today I completed the Couch to 5K program.  I think this is my third attempt.  I DID IT! Today, I ran for 30 minutes.  My name is Sheila and I am a runner!  I’m a slow runner but a runner nonetheless! Hmm...I wonder if I should change the name of my blog to "Run With Me"?

Rest and Recovery

I have not been feeling so well today so I did not jog today.  I'm planning to go out tomorrow so I'll be on a Sunday - Tuesday - Thursday schedule and then go back to Saturday - Monday - Wednesday.  In fact, if all goes well, I'll be a couch to 5K grad on Tuesday.  Yay! 

I did do some mental work on my first 5K.  I checked out the course today.  I drove the course and visualized myself running it.  It's not as bad as the AIDS 5K I walked last October out of the same park.  I was worried about this one hill because it was tough walking.  In fact, my friend almost had an asthma attack while walking up that hill.  I'm very grateful to God the course is different. 

Today I went to an arts festival so I did a lot of walking.  I could feel that my body is tired.  It was confirmation that I made the right choice in taking today off.  I also have a slight headache so I've been working on resting and hydration.  The fatigue is also probably because I worked seven straight days. 

Week Eight, Day One

Week Eight, Day One! I cannot believe it.  Although I am happy about my progress, I find myself obsessing about my speed.  I made the mistake of figuring out my distance.  I ran 28 minutes today and barely ran two miles.  I am nowhere near 3.1 miles!  I’m reading The Courage to Start and there’s a warning against worrying about speed when you first start running.  I just remember walking my first 5K and coming in second to last.  While I was happy about finishing, I did have hopes of doing much better.  I know that the only person I’m competing with is my self.  I guess I need to do a better job of focusing on the fact that eight weeks ago I could barely run for two minutes so completing barely two miles is a pretty big deal!

Week Seven, Day Three -- Repeat

Repeated Week 7, Day 3 again today.  I did so much better.  Yesterday I worked on my hydration, stretched, and went to bed earlier.  I read somewhere that running keeps you honest about your fitness.  It’s so true.  There’s no half-stepping in this running realm.  You have to eat, hydrate, and rest properly or you will pay!  It's all good because the pay-ff is wonderful.  Today I ran 27 minutes!  I'm a runner!

Week Seven, Day Three

Horrible! I knew it was going to be horrible before I opened the door.  I just wasn't feeling it.  I snoozed for a good 30 minutes. Once I forced myself to get dressed, I walked outside and it was hot and muggy from last night's rain.  I thought... No way!  So, I decided to go to the gym to complete the workout on the treadmill. 

I did my five-minute walk, started running, started sweating, and gave up.  I walked for another five-minutes and tried running again.  I lasted three minutes.  I then did 20 minutes of cycling and went home.  I will try again on Monday.

Week Seven, Day Two

Today my workout was to run for 26 minutes.  I'm so happy to say I did it.  I do have to admit that I was a little disappointed that I only ran 1.5 miles.  I guessestimated I would run at least 2 miles.  It's all good.  I didn't really push myself until the last ten minutes.  My goal has been to finish the workout.  Now that I'm nearing the end of the Coach to 5K program, I am going to focus on increasing my pace. 

The app says I should be able to finish a 5K in 30 minutes.  I don't think this is a realistic goal for me.  I'm shooting for 40 minutes.  Truthfully, as long as I finish without walking, I will be happy.  A time of 40 minutes or less will be a bonus. 

Week Seven, Day 1

I don't even know what to say.  It is beyond me how I made it this far.  I give all the credit to my amazing God who has been with me every step of the way.  I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  I am going to finish the Couch to 5K program!  Yay!

Week Six, Day Three – The Repeat

I was really anxious today.  Actually, I've been anxious since Wednesday. What if I can’t complete this again? I did my best to visualize my workout and then stay present.  During my first run I realized that my body is not working as hard as my mind thinks it is.  I was able to relax into a comfortable breathing rhythm and enjoy my run.  The last five minutes of the first run were kind of hard but I reminded myself that I’ve run up that little incline many times before.  Today was no different.  I recovered during my three minute walk and finished strong with the ten minute run.  It wasn’t as bad as it was on Wednesday for a number of reasons.  The two most important:

1.       The weather wasn’t as humid.   There was a nice cool breeze.

2.       I had a good night’s rest.

So, Week Six is behind me now.  I still can’t believe my progress.  I had to laugh at myself today.  While driving I saw this really nice park with a path and thought, hmm… that would be a nice place to run.  The funny part was that I was soooo lost at the time.  I had no idea where I was.  I did the same thing yesterday.  I made a mental note to change my route in a few weeks to incorporate more inclines.  I realized the perfect (for me) spot to start. 

I also had swim lesson today.  It sucked! It's my own fault I didn't go to the pool and practice at all this week.  You better believe I'll be in the pool tomorrow.  Next week is my last lesson.  I want to be able to swim a lap and back.

Week Six, Day Three

Today’s workout was 15-min run, 3-min walk, and 10-min run.  Not sure what happened this morning but I didn’t finish my first run.   I started my walk break early and told myself I would just tack on the remaining five minutes to my second run.  Well, everything went fine.  I added the remaining five minute to my last run only to discover after I’m home that I owe myself an additional five minutes! WTH?  I don’t think I had another five minutes left in me anyhow so I will be repeating this workout on Saturday.

The perfectionist in me is so disappointed in myself.  I ran for 20 minutes on Monday so I don’t know why this workout was so hard.  I’m thinking maybe my pace was too fast or maybe not.  I know I’m notorious for self-sabotage!  I’m trying so hard not to beat myself up.  I have to remind myself that I have come a long way, to be very grateful for the progress I’ve made.  Some workouts will be like this.  I know my opportunity is getting enough rest.  I stayed up late watching the Olympics when I should have been in bed sleeping. 

Oh well, Saturday I will do better.  I will not give up! I have to remember to take this one day at a time, one workout at a time.  I have 65 days before the 5K.  One “bad” workout is not going to break me.  I can do this!