Peachtree Road Race: What I Learned

Now that I have completed my dream race, I have been thinking about my next running goal. I know I will never be a fast runner. I do know that running consistently will help increase my pace. So, one of my goals is just to continue running and improving my time and pace.

My three takeaways from Peachtree/my first 10k are:

1. Trust my training – As long as I follow my training plan, I will be fine. I was very surprised how well I did. I really did expect to feel much worse than I did. I am sure that some of this had to do with my slow walk to the finish line. I started my training early. This will be my plan of action for my next 10k.
2. Pay better attention to the road – This should really be my number one lesson. There is no way I should have stepped in the puddle of water. I was so distracted trying to avoid the water spray that I wasn’t paying attention to where I was placing my feet. I could have injured myself.
3. Run my own race – Although I did a great job of this on the road, I was so worried before the race. I need to just focus on me and what I am doing. I think this will come with more experience in races.

Part of the hidden curriculum was the support that I received from all my family and friends. When I first started sharing that I wanted to become a runner, I was meant with some discouragement. I know many doubted me. As a result, I have learned not to share my running dreams and goals with everyone.

Peachtree Road Race Training

Check out what I received in the mail today!

It’s really starting to sink in that I am going to do this. The Peachtree Road Race has been on my bucket list since I started my fitness journey. This year is the first year I have had the courage to go after it.

I am so excited and nervous. Tomorrow I finish Week 9 of my training plan. I’m running about three miles. I have five weeks left in the plan and 11 weeks left until the race. I pray I’m able to run/walk/crawl 6.2 miles by then.
I went into Big Peach Running today. They’re always so nice and friendly. I went in to purchase some NUUN to help me with my hydration goals. One the guys asked me what I was training for. Me? I felt like a real runner. One of these days it will sink in that I am a runner now.

So, we chat about Peachtree and he gives me the best advice ever – HAVE FUN! He told me the funniest story about supporting a friend during her first Peachtree. She told him to go ahead and run his race. He waited and waited and waited for her at the finish line. She finally shows up all happy. He was so worried. She was having a blast. She stopped for a doughnut and a beer along the course. She did exactly what he advised her to do -- have fun!


In the end, that’s what it’s all about. I am having a wonderful adventure. While I want to be prepared and take my training seriously, I do not want to forget to enjoy the journey!

Transformational Tuesday

Many of the blogs I read and Facebook pages I "like" post Transformational Tuesday entries. Most of them are about physical transformations. For me, at this point in my journey, I need to work on a mental transformation. I am reminded of that part of the scripture which says,... be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind....

More than anything right now I need to get my mind in shape. With the exception of the occasional pain and discomfort I have in my back and knee, most of my challenges are with my mind. My workouts are fine, when I am consistent. I would like to be more consistent. For whatever reason, there are times I get so self-conscious about working out at the gym or walking/running in public. The truth is people are so self-absorbed, especially at the gym, they probably do not even notice me. Even if they do, it's their problem not mind.

I also know I can achieve the goals I have set for myself. Lately, my opportunities are with my food, not my exercise. I cannot out-train a bad diet. Every time I feel like I am depriving myself of something, I am mentally sabotaging myself. I need to turn that around. Each time I make a healthy choice, I am going to remind myself that I am empowering myself.

I also went out today I purchased a presentation board so I can make a vision board. It will be fun to add to work on over the next six months:

Happy Birthday!

I did it! I ran 3.1 miles. It was my birthday present to me. I almost gave up before trying. I was so nervous. One of the things I noticed was that I had to hold back on my pace. I was worried that I was going to run out of steam. Whenever I started getting a little weary, I told myself…”you can take a walk break once you get to that cone, just make it to that tree…” Before I knew it, I was done!

I am still in disbelief. I can't believe I did it! I ran three miles nonstop! I’ve recently accomplished two of my fitness goals:

Completing the Couch to 5K plan
Running 3.1 miles on my birthday

Now my goal is to continue running three times a week (I’ll run another personal 5K in two weeks) and consistently doing strength training at least twice a week. Both my GYN and Endocrinologist keep telling me strength training will really help improve my health. I need to stick with it. Thank God tomorrow is a rest day. My arms are still sore from Tuesday's workout.

This has been one of the best birthdays. This afternoon I treated myself to a pedicure. Tomorrow I am getting an adjustment and massage.

Couch to 5k: Week Six, Day One

As soon as I got out of bed this morning, I repeated my new favorite mantra:

Because I'd had three days off, I have to admit I was a little nervous about today's workout. Remember the quote above reminded me that the hard part was over. I walk out the door and started to smile as I felt a cool breeze rush across my face. As much as I hate getting up at 5:30 am, I often enjoy how the morning greets me. My perfect weather conditions...cool with a light breeze.

For the most part, it was uneventful. I did get another little sign from nature as this rabbit dashed across my path. The last two minutes were hard but I kept telling myself, you can run for two minutes, you can run for one minute, you can run for 30 more seconds.... Two thumbs up!

The disappointing part was looking down at my app and seeing I had barely ran two miles and my pace was 15-something. I realize I can't get too hung up with those numbers or else I will get discouraged. Right now my focus is on being able to run a 5k without any walk breaks.

Personal Best: 30- Day Plank Challenge

Yay! Today I did it! I met my goal of hold a plank for two minutes:

I'm so excited! This just goes to show what happens when I stay consistent and persistent when working on a goal.

Sandy Springs Lightning 5k - September 21

As the scriptures say, Man plans his way, God directs his steps.

Well, I will not be participating in this 5k due to a conflict. I recently signed up to volunteer at an Interfaith Power Over Prejudice Summit at my church. I thought the summit would be the same day as the statewide summit in October. Anyhow, I was going to look for another 5k in September but I decided to just keep training for the one in October.

I'll be done with the Couch to 5k in a couple weeks. I will give myself some goals to work on during September to help me stay focus. The last time I completed the Couch to 5k and the Firefly 5k I did not continue to run. I want to keep up the running this time so I will be in great shape to cross off the Peachtree Road Race from my fitness bucket list.

Couch to 5k: Week Three, Day Three

Today I thought about all the races I want to complete, especially the Peachtree Road Race and a half marathon in 2014.

I can do this! I will do this! One step at a time!

Couch to 5k -- Week Three, Day Two

I had a great workout this morning. I really pushed myself to run a little faster. I feel pretty good. No aches. I still iced my knees as a precaution. While I am taking it one workout at a time, I am thinking long term. I really want to do the Peachtree Road Race and a half marathon next year. My planking is coming along nicely too!

I Love Swimming!

Today was my last swim lesson. I wasn't feel so great about it because I haven't progressed as much as I thought. I almost skipped my last lesson because I didn't feel like being disappointed. Well, guess what? I had a great lesson. I was so pleased with how things went.

I am constantly reminded about how my thoughts limit my ability to achieve my goals. I have to keep practicing mindfulness and my swimming.

New Kicks!

I went back to Big Peach Running to be fitted for shoes again. Long story short, the guy who helped me thinks I should try a stability shoe. I’ve been walking and running in neutral shoe. I keep having issues with my knee. Anyhow, today I tried out my new kicks and they felt great!
I decided to start with Week One using my Coach to 5K app thinking it would be a breeze. The second half was pretty challenging. I really need to make sure I make running a regular part of my fitness routine.
I’ve set a goal of being able to complete a 5K running nonstop in September. I’m going to make sure I train on hills this time. Over half the year has passed and I haven’t done well with my fitness goals. I need to step up my game!

***

Oops! I forgot to mention that my new shoes are Nike Zoom Structure+ 16. I was having a hard time choosing between this shoe and the Saucony Omni 12. In fact, I think I'm going to go back and get the Sauconys.

Motivational Monday

Motivational Moment

Weekly Weigh-In: Week Four

Today’s weigh was a big, fat disappointment! I’m not sure if these weekly weigh-ins are more detrimental than helpful. We’ll see….

I just watched a very inspirational video by Mindy’s Fitness Blogthat really touched me. She talked about setting New Year’s resolutions and how it is more important to set monthly goals. HELLO! I’m doing great in this area!

I started taking a nutrition course this week. I also started Spin classes a few weeks ago. I know all about S.M.A.R.T. goal-setting yet I still allow that number on the scale to discourage me. So, as January is coming to an end and it’s quite apparent I will not be where I would like to be on the scale, I’m still off to a very good start with my goals.

I will continue focusing on my daily, weekly, and monthly goals and my yearly goal to be at a healthy weight will take care of itself.

Nonscale Victories

Since I have been so frustrated with the scale, I saw a post on Facebook about celebrating nonscale victories (NSVs). It dawn on me that I do not do this enough. So here are my recent NSVs: 1. Finally completed my goal of being able to run a mile nonstop 2. Joined a gym 3. Started strength training three times a week 4. A friend gave me a pair of jeans that were too big for her and there are almost too big for me! 5. Completed a spin class 6. Learned how to swim 7. Planked over 1 minute 8. Ran (with the exception of the hills) a 5K 9. Complete a set of 100 squats I'm looking forward to added to the list this year!

My First 5K Run! I Did It!

My first 5K.  The nerves.  The excitement.  The self-doubt.  The positive self-talk.  I had all these thoughts swirling around in my head.  To top it off, I had a backache.  Oh yeah, and the course was changed at the last minute!  It was much more hilly than I anticipated.  I tried but I had to walk up most of the hills.  It is was it.  I completed the race in 52 minutes.  I had a blast!

I did learn a lot last night.  I preferred running alone.  The crowd and the encouraging words from my friends was a bit much for me.  While I appreciated it, there were times I just wanted to lose myself in my thoughts and/or music.  I am now having second thoughts about joining a running group.  Another thing I learned is that I need to do more hill work.  I trained on inclines similar to the original course.  I need to be prepared for anything. 

When it’s all said and done, I showed up, and completed the race.  Scratch "Running in a 5K" off my fitness bucklet list! I am very grateful to God for bringing me this far.

 

 

 

 

 

UPDATE:  Hmmm...it appears my time may be a little better than I thought.  My goal was to finish around 45 minutes.  They had to change the course late Friday afternoon.  The organizers acknowledge that the course was a bit off.  They were switching around the course right in the middle of the race! Some runners who were wearing their GPS watches are saying it was around 3.28 miles.  The first leg of people possibly ran up to 4 miles.  I feel awful for the people who were trying to run PRs. 

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"?

Swim Lesson #3

I can swim! I can do the freestyle! Today I worked on my breathing technique.  It's not going so well but I know it will get better with practice.  I managed to swim an entire lap today! I was so excited!

Swimming definitely goes you a great workout! I'm wiped out!

I Can Swim!

Today my teacher took my noodle.  What?  She was like, you can swim, just try.  I admit I was scared out of my mind but trusted that she knew what she was talking about.  Guess what?  I can swim! Today I swam about half a lap.  I can’t believe it!  So, we worked on doing the freestyle. 

I really need to practice my breathing.  If I can get my breathing together, I could probably swim an entire lap.  I also need to get over my fear of going into the deeper end of the pool.  As I can see I’m getting to that halfway mark, I know the water is going to get deeper.  The anxiety kicks in. I forget to kick, lift my head, and breathe.  Tomorrow I’m going back to the pool to practice.  Yay!

Swim Lesson Numero Uno

It took me three years to get here but I finally started swim lessons today.  I’ve been anxious for weeks.  Well, what can I say?  Fun, fun, fun!  There were three other adults signed up for the class.  The other three were no-shows so I had the instructor all to myself.  Cool!  A private lesson!

He asked me to dunk my head under the water a few times to assess my comfort level.  I guess I was so excited I forgot all about my fear.  So, we moved onto learning how to dunk my head under the water, blow out of my nose, come up, and breathe out of my mouth.  WHAT?  I wasn’t so excited about this but managed to get the hang of it after about 50 dunks.

We then moved onto kicking.  He asked me to grab onto the side of the pool and kick.  It took a while but I was able to relax my shoulder enough to eventually float to the top and kick my legs.  Kicking was a bit harder than I thought it would be…don’t lock your knees, point your toes, relax, relax your shoulders, don’t kick too hard, keep your legs together, don’t move your shoulders, good, better, no, try again. …. Whew!

We weren’t done.  Then he grabs a noodle and says, you’re going to hold onto this and kick.  I am?  I started to panic a little because I was unsure about not being able to hold onto the side of the pool.  He goes, you’re going to kick toward the direction of the wall.  Okay.  Cool.  don’t lock your knees, point your toes, relax, relax your shoulders, don’t kick too hard, keep your legs together, don’t move your shoulders, good, better, no, try again. …. Whew!

Now I want you to turn around and kick away from the wall.  Dude, are you crazy?  How deep is the water toward the other end of this pool?  I did that for another 10 minutes or so. Lesson complete.

Tomorrow I plan to go back to the pool to practice my kicking.   Hopefully, I can get in another session or two during the week.

Yippee! I’m going to learn how to swim!