Off-Day Exercise!

Happy Tuesday, all! It’s been a stressful day, so I’m glad I at least I have a run in the morning! WHOA! Did I just say that?! This running program is doing strange things to me! To think that I’m looking forward to EXERCISE??? Weird!

That brings us to today’s challenge! I can gladly say that my legs are at the point where they don’t hurt during my days between runs. This has led me to the great idea that I can do some other sort of exercise during my off days!

I don’t care if I go walking, or work on strength, or if I even do a “no presh sesh,” but I would like to keep myself moving, even on the days I don’t have to exercise! For this reason, I’m implementing today’s challenge:

Do at least 15 minutes of some kind of exercise 3 days a week, on non-running days.

I’m really looking forward to this one, as it gives me another reason to enjoy the beautiful weather we’ve been having lately!

If you are a “couch dweller,” I don’t look down on you at all; I’ve spent a lot of my own life on the couch! However, I fully encourage you to get out a few days a week, may it be only a few minutes here and there, to get some fresh air and exercise! Don’t worry about what you can’t accomplish; just do what you can! After all, every journey, no matter how enormous, starts with 1 step!

Week 6, Run 1

This morning was SOOO beautiful! God is the BEST artist!

First thing this morning, I found myself smiling about today’s run. At the beginning of it, when Coach Claire was briefing me on the run, she referred to the 5-minute runs as short! And to think that when I started, 5 minutes seemed like an eternity! I guess it only means that I’m improving, even when the steps toward this success seem slow.

This was my 4^th “pre-sun” morning run, and I’m feeling a lot less nervous about running in the dark. In fact, I look forward to seeing the sunrise at the end of my runs! The beauty of the morning light is another motivation to get myself up and out in the morning. J

So, for the actual run: today’s workout was a 5-minute, 8-minute, 5-minute run with 3-minute walks between. I was looking ahead to today’s run as being easy, after last Friday’s (AMAZING!) 20-minute run. I just knew that I had to pace myself on the shorter runs, or I would use up all my energy before my last run. So that’s exactly what I did. During the first run, I felt that I had plenty of energy to go a lot faster, but I still made myself go slow. Thankfully, I had just enough energy to zoom through the last run. I even “sprinted” the last 10 seconds!

It’s like a miracle that I no longer gasp for breath, and I actually enjoy breathing in the fresh air while I’m running along! Also, my legs even feel good after a nice run, and I feel so much more energized throughout the day!

If you’re reading this, and you’ve just started the Get Running program, you’re in for a wonderful ride! There will be a lot of ups and a lot of downs, but thankfully, the ups always outweigh the downs! For me, the first two weeks were pretty much one giant down, but it’s been a great upward climb since then! Again, if you’re new at this, keep your spirits high. You CAN do it! Always remember that your journey, no matter how large it may be, starts with 1 step!

Back & Forth 5!

What a week this has been! Just yesterday alone, I ran for 20 minutes straight, finished my K-LOVE 30-Day Challenge, got to see my Mom’s entire family (first time since ’08), and finished our family’s long-sought after Calvin and Hobbes collection! And yesterday was just a single day from this week!

On the only down-note to this post, my eating this week has not been healthy. At all. I had fast food twice this week (funny, how I would have considered this a good thing a month ago!). Next week, I’m going to focus a lot more on what I put into this body of mine, so I can continue on my journey to great health!

The biggest lesson I learned this week was that, no matter how tired my legs tell me they feel, I still have enough energy to finish the run. It’s all a game of “mind over matter,” and if your mind knows you can do it, then you definitely can!

I’ve spent all yesterday and today with family members (Happy 70^th birthday, Nanah!), so I’m quite a bit worn out and ready to hit the sack. I don’t know how next week can be better than this week, but I don’t doubt that it will!

May God bless you in all your endeavors! Remember Him as your go on your journey, and also remember that no matter how far your journey may be, it all starts with 1 step!

Week 5, Run 3 (The Big Run!)

I’ve got to say that God has definitely been helping me with my runs; I’ve yet to have a day where the conditions were too bad to go running! This fact has helped me greatly, as I fear I’ll have less discipline if I get off track with my running.

This morning was no exception to the nice weather! It was almost warm enough for me to run in a t-shirt, even in the dark (I still chose sweatshirt, too)! I got ready as quick as possible, so I wouldn’t be too awake before my (GASP) 20-minute run!

I arrived at the normal time and set out on my warm-up walk. It surprised me that coach Claire came on to give me a “pep talk” before my warm-up was even over! But, before I knew it, she told me it was time to start running. So I started running. And running. And running. Before I knew it, Claire told me that I’d already run for 5 minutes! I must have spaced out in that time, because before I thought about how long I’d been running, the 10-minute cue came on! Then the 15-minute cue! I didn’t even have time to worry about how far I’d gone when coach Claire told me that I’d made it! I didn’t have to count down the minutes or anything! Claire told me something special, and it’s made me feel amazing! (If you wanna find out what she said, you’re gonna have to run this run :D)

One thing I’ve noticed: my breathing has gotten SOO much better over the past 5 weeks! My resting heart rate has definitely lowered, and I no longer gasp for air during my runs. It’s absolutely wonderful!

My legs have been tired today, but I’m ecstatic that I can feel the results of my run today!

One thing I can say: I’m a real runner now!

Keep up your own good work, and remember that no matter how long the journey, it all starts with 1 step!

Health Check 4!

Good evening! Or morning, or whenever you’re reading this!

What’s today? It’s Thursday! And you know what that means…. Health Check 4!

Here’s the measurements!

WEIGHT: I’m down 1 pound this week! That puts me at 222 lb, with a total of 3 lb. lost to date.

WAIST: 37”. Same as last week, which keeps my total at 1 ½” to date.

ARMS: 13 ½”. Still the same as last week, keeping my total at 2” to date.

NECK: 16 ½”. Funny! Since it’s the same as last week, I’ve lost ½” to date.

CALVES: 16 ½”. They’ve gone up an inch bringing me back to 0” to date.

So, I’m not sure if some of these measurements are supposed to be going up, or if they’re supposed to be going down. Either way, I just report ‘em as they are!

Hope you have a great day!

Week 5, Run 2

You know that feeling you get when the President tells you that you’ve just won the Congressional Medal of Honor? Yeah, me either. But that’s the kind of rush I felt this morning after my run!

I’m still dealing with the fact that I have to get up so much earlier than I’m used to, and my body doesn’t like it one bit, but I’m coping with it! Thankfully, my brain is usually still sleeping, so my run is almost over by the time I’m awake! Also, seeing the sunrise is pretty much  the only motivation for running first thing in the morning, because that phenomena is so beautiful!

As you can see from the picture above, it was nice and dark in the park when I started this morning. My first lap around the park each time I go is a test to see where all the icy spots are. From there, I develop my route and keep reminders in my head as to where I should be running, lest I fall on my behind. :D

In my pre-running days, 8 minutes was nothing! It was just one segment of a TV show to sit through on the couch. In running minutes, though, 8 “normal” minutes is somewhere between 3 and 4 lifetimes. At least, that’s what it felt like!

But, thanks to the afore-mentioned “not-awake-ness” of my mind on early-morning runs, the 8-minute runs seemed easy! During both runs today, I made it all the way around the park, which is quite a distance (for me) for 8 minutes!

My legs have been sore throughout today, but I think they’ve completely deserved it! I’m going to let them rest before I get back out there and try to survive Friday morning’s (GASP) 20-minute run!!

If you’re just starting and need motivation, don’t worry at all! Do what you can handle and take it as it comes! Do your best and always remember that every journey, no matter what the distance, starts with 1 step. God bless you!

How are you?

Here’s a typical conversation:

Person #1: Hey, (name here)!

Person #2: Oh, hey (name here)!

Person #1: How are you?

Person #2 Good! And you?

Person #1 Good!

*End of conversation*

Really? I look up at this and think, Gosh, that is so insincere. It would be stupid if people actually talked like that. Well, they do! I do.

I think you can see where this week’s challenge is heading. And you might think, isn’t a weekly challenge supposed to benefit my health in some way? What does all this have to do with my health? Well, this week’s challenge won’t benefit your physical health, but you can bet it’ll impact the way you live socially. Imagine having a real conversation with somebody! Instead of talking with one-word answers, let’s try to be REAL!

Still clueless? Well, here’s today’s challenge:

When somebody asks you “How are you?” you are to respond with AT LEAST 5 words.

As a society, we each speak thousands of words every single day, so now it shouldn’t be hard to add 5 more here and there!

In order to be sincere people, we have to build relationships that last. Admit it or not, great relationships aren’t built by saying words like “Just fine,” “good,” and “great!”

This week’s challenge might pull me (and whoever chooses to follow) out of our comfort zones, but by following it, a difference just might be made in the world.

Time to be sincere!

Week 5, Run 1

Week 5? Are you kidding! I know that I’m supposed to be inspirational and optimistic in all my blog posts, but, when I started this program, I honestly didn’t think I would make it this far! But now here I am, and I’m one run away from being half way through the program!

This morning, I tried something new. As I may or may not have said last week (I can’t remember), I started my new schedule that requires me to be at school 2 hours earlier than I have been since I started the program. Since it’s mid-winter here, that means that I have to start running before sunlight! I was really intimidated about running this morning, but as you’re about to read, I had nothing to worry about!

I set my alarm for 6 this morning, so I could be ready go and have plenty of time to get ready for school. So, I woke up and was ready at 6:10, but outside was completely dark (I checked, and sunrise wasn’t til 7:02 today). I was nervous about my “pre-sun run,” so I stalled until 6:30, when trace amount of dark light (if there is such a thing) were starting to show through the trees. Knowing I couldn’t stall any longer because of school, I left the house then.

Cars seldom drive down our country road, but I wore a reflective vest and carried a flashlight just to be safe. And it turned out I needed them, because several people must have left for work during my run! I’m glad I took the vest and light, so I’ll definitely be using them on future runs until I’m running in brighter conditions.

Now on to today’s run: today was three 5-minute runs, with 3 minute walks between them. After last week, I was unsure if my legs would adapt to the 5-minute runs, but I can now rest assured that they did! The first two runs were easy peasy, and the third run was more difficult, but still do-able!

Even though today’s run was easy, I started to worry about Friday’s run. I thought, In four days, I have to run 20 minutes, which is today’s run PLUS another one, with no rests! How will I survive? Honestly, I don’t know how I’ll survive, but I know that I CAN DO IT! I’m not going to worry about it, because I’ll have spent FIVE WEEKS getting my legs ready for it.

THIS IS POSSIBLE. DON’T GIVE UP!

Back & Forth 4

I ran my first night-time run this week!

Back and Forth 4? How can this be? Didn’t he skip last week, and the week before that was Back and Forth 1? I’m so confused!

Well, don’t be! I’m just using the number to describe what week this post is describing (should have thought of that two weeks ago, huh?).

What a week this has been! At the start of it, I was skiing down wintry slopes in Michigan, then came home to spring-like weather, and then watched it shift back to an icy winter at my house!

I feel like I’ve made a ton of improvement this week as far as the running goes. My legs have felt achy (in a good way) after each run, so that they feel stronger by the next time around. Also, the time for my runs almost doubled, shifting from 9 to 16 minutes! I didn’t think it would be an easy feat, but with patience and endurance, I was able to conquer every challenge before me! It’s been said time and time again, but the makers of this app sure knew what they were doing when they designed it.

This week, I’ve also sustained my first athletic injury. My toe and foot are in pain, but I smile when I think that I actually “earned” this injury as a “reward” for running!

Taking a look ahead to next week, I will be running the ginormous 20 minute run! Monday and Wednesday will be shorter (I smile when I type shorter, thinking how 5 minutes now seems short after week 1’s grueling 1-minute runs) runs that work up to the large run on Friday. I know I’ll be nervous about finishing it, but so many others that have followed the program have said that the large task is completely do-able.

In terms of weather, I have no idea what this week will bring, but I have full and complete intentions of running 20 minutes on Friday! Woohoo!

As you go about this next week, remember to do your best at everything! Don’t be worried about any impossibly large tasks before you; just step back and take them a moment at a time, because every journey, no matter how large, starts with 1 step.

Week 4, Run 3

Boy, oh boy! Guess what? In exactly 1 week, I’m scheduled to be running for 20 minutes straight with no stops. NO STOPS! I’m so pumped about this! I cannot wait to get out there next Friday!

I have some more good news! For the first time in a long time, I have an injury caused by doing something athletic! I’ve got a pinched nerve in my big toe on my right foot (from it being crammed in a ski boot for 2 days and then running on it), and it’s been causing a lot of pain the past few days. My mother asked me why I was so happy about having a foot injury, and I joyfully explained that I got an injury from actually DOING something (I’d rather have a pinched nerve from skiing and running than a strained arm from reaching too far for the remote. Heehee!).

That all being said, I promised myself last night that, no matter how bad my foot hurt this morning, I was going to run, even if I had to hobble through it. After icing it, heating it, elevating it, and having a nice foot rub, I felt like I could take on the world when I woke up this morning. During today’s run, my toe only bothered me twice, and both of the pain “spasms” were completely bearable. I sure hope it feels better in time for me to continue running on Monday!

I let my sister use my car to drive to school today, as I’m on finals break this weekend, and too late realized that I’d left my earbuds in the car. After searching the house for earphones of any kind, all I could find was a plug-in speaker for my iPod, which I ended up using for today’s run. It didn’t take the place of my earbuds, but I liked being able to hear my breathing and my steps for once!

I found that I was right on Wednesday’s post. After having 2 days of rest from donating blood, I felt much better this morning. I breezed right through the first three runs (3 minutes, 5 minutes, and 3 minutes), and I only had slight troubles running the last 5 minute run. My lungs felt great, but my legs were tired. To help me out, I pictured my sisters and friends following me in their car, cheering me on (from Monday’s run)! Just by changing my thinking, I was able to finish the run with energy to spare!

I can’t wait til the next run on Monday! I’m really excited that I’ve kept with the program this long, and I can’t wait til I can finally say that I finished it, 5 weeks from now!

As always, keep up the great work, and remember that every one of your runs starts with 1 step!

Health Check 3!

Good day to everybody! Time for a Thursday Health Check!

Before I do measurements, I should take note of something strange, but wonderful. I’ve noticed that, since I’ve started Get Running, my eating habits have been gradually improving. For instance, since I’m required to get up earlier for running, I’ve been regularly eating a healthy breakfast each day, which has lessened my appetite for junkier and “unfilling” foods throughout the rest of the day. Also, since my challenge to drink 8 glasses of water a day, I’ve almost completely stopped drinking unhealthy drinks! I limit myself to small amounts of soda pop each week, and I drink so much water that I haven’t been bothered by my smaller intakes of caffeine. So then, maybe running is actually twofold: it not only helps me exercise, but makes me feel better about eating healthier!

That being said, I’m really hoping that some of my healthier decisions will be reflected by today’s health check! Haha!

Alright, here’s today’s measurements:

WEIGHT: I lost 0 lb. this week. On the brighter side of things, I gained 0 lb. this week, too! I’m definitely okay with that! This means that I have lost 2 pounds to date. I’m at 223 right now, and hopefully heading down!

WAIST: 37” That’s down an inch and a half from when I first started! So the total loss for my waist is 1 ½ inches to date.

ARMS: 13 ½”, each down an inch in the past 2 weeks! Which brings my totally arm loss to 2” to date.

NECK: 16 ½” That’s half an inch I’m never gonna welcome back! Woo! So that means that my neck has lost ½” to date.

CALVES: 15 ½”, both down from two weeks ago, when they measured 16 ½” each! So that brings my calves down 2” to date.

I lost all the way around the board this week! I know that can’t happen every week, but I’m enjoying how good I feel to pull out the tape measure to see how well I’ve been doing! Keep up the great work with all that you do, and always remember that every journey, no matter how long, starts with 1 step! 

Week 4, Run 2

Another cold day! I can’t say that I enjoy running in the cold, but I LOVE being able to say that I ran in the cold! Five weeks ago, I couldn’t imagine myself walking, let alone running in the winter time! I’ve always used the good ‘ole “I’m asthmatic and can’t breathe in cold weather” excuse, but I think I’m getting over it!

So now we’ve come to today’s run. I woke up at the usual time this morning (that usual time will be switching from 8am to 6am next week, unfortunately), and got ready! I’ve been so blessed that the weather has been almost perfect every time I’ve run. So, I got to take advantage of another beautiful, yet bitterly cold, morning.

The first 3-minute run was cold, as my body was still warming up from the cold. However, the first 5-minute run made me realize how difficult today’s run was going to be. My legs felt completely different from last run, like I was depleted of all energy in my legs! Boy, did I welcome those walks between the runs!

I kept going through my runs, telling myself that it was all possible. And, like all the other runs, I was right! (Everyone keeps saying the makers of the program knew what they were doing when they made it, and I completely agree.) The last half of the run almost killed me (at least, it felt like it), but I just slowed my pace until I felt comfortable with it. Finally, after 31 grueling minutes, I finished today’s run and walks! The rest of the day, I felt so tired, but oh so good!

***CONFESSION TIME: I went into today’s run knowing that I would feel extremely tired. You see, last night, I got to donate blood on the spur of the moment. I had been eligible to give since December, but had problems last time I attempted. When I tried to give blood in December, I was unable to pass the physical exam because of my heart rate. I was so out of shape that my resting heart rate was almost 120 beats per minute. However, last night, after 4 ½ weeks of running and healthy eating, I am SO proud to report that my resting heart rate was down to 75 beats per minute. I’ve never been so happy to be stuck with a needle! After December’s letdown, I promised to do my best to lower my heart rate, because it means so much for me to be able to donate to help save peoples’ lives.

So, even though this morning’s run was extremely rough, I felt so good about it! I knew that I would be drained of energy (along with a pint of blood), so I can now rest assured that I made it through today’s run! I expect Friday’s run to be a lot smoother, so I’ll report back after my run! See ya!

Week 4, Run 1

Catching Up

Wow! What a weekend this has been! Shortly after leaving for Michigan on Friday (an 8-hour trip), our bus broke down on the side of the road. Four hours and a different bus later, we headed on our way! I got to ski with all my friends on Saturday and Sunday, making this weekend pretty much perfect.

As far as exercising, I feel like my calves got a couple pretty good workouts in the ski boots. After the weekend of worship and skiing, we made it back last night just in time for me to start my run…

Starting Week 4

The sun had already gone down upon our arrival home from skiing, so I hatched a plan for my run. I asked my younger sister to follow me in the car to shine headlights on my path, and she happily agreed. Pretty soon, she had enlisted two of her friends and my older sister to join her on this run!

So I started out running week 4 in the dark, a bit nervous about the thought of running 5 minute-segments. With the headlights behind me, I started into my first 3-minute run, which turned out to be a breeze! After my minute and a half cool-down, coach Claire told me it was time for my first 5-minute run!

The 5-minute runs seemed super easy last night, because I had the support of the four girls in the car behind me, who rolled their windows down and shouted their encouragements at me. What fun! I only wish everybody could have their own person cheerleaders when running. It made me feel great, and the my longest run yet seemed surprisingly short and easy!

I found the 5-minute runs pretty easy, and my 3-minute runs (my older sister joined me for one of them, and we had a blast!)  were a piece of cake! I can’t wait to do the run tomorrow!

Tuesday Challenge?

Today is Tuesday, which means that I’m supposed to present a challenge for myself. I have some trouble coming up with my ideas, but I finally came up with one this weekend. However, I think I’ll test it out this week before making it an official challenge.

Even though there’s not a new challenge this week, I’m gonna keep going with my old ones! Remember them? They are:

-Drink 8 glasses of water a day

-Get 9 hours of sleep a night

Good luck to everybody else running, and be sure to stay healthy and safe! Don’t be discouraged, and always remember that every journey, no matter how large, starts with 1 step!

Week 3, Run 3

I couldn't feel my face after today's run! I actually felt a lot happier than I look :)

I’m sitting on my couch right now, wishing that I could sleep the rest of today. However, I’ve gotta get up in just a few minutes to pack for a skiing trip that I’m headed to in just a couple hours. I guess I’m okay with that :D

I guess today’s run was practice for the cold this weekend, because it was absolutely freezing out! Ice and snow were on the road as well, causing me to slip a few times (but don’t worry, I just kept plodding along!).

As far as the run, I feel like I’m really starting to improve! At the beginning of this week, 3 minutes seemed like an eternity. Today, however, I was caught off guard when coach Claire said that I was already half way through each of my three-minute runs! Maybe my legs and lungs are finally starting to get used to this whole concept of running.

This will be the last post I post this week as I will be in Michigan with my (awesome) youth group. I’ll be back Monday, ready to tackle another week of running!

As always, remember that, no matter how far the distance, every journey Starts With 1 Step…

Health Check 2!

Talk about a whirlwind of weather! Just yesterday it felt like spring outside during my run, but I woke up to snow this morning… I guess that’s Illinois for ya!

It’s time for health check #2! I’m sorry to say that I have misplaced the measuring tape, so I’ll have to wait to check up on my measures until next week. So, that only leaves me to report weight, which I will happily do!

Weight: Stepped on the scale this morning, and to my delight, I’ve lost 3 pounds! I plan on only going down from here!

Well, there’s not much to report, but what I can report is definitely good!

Until tomorrow…

Week 3, Run 2

I remembered my inhaler today! That in itself pretty much sums up how today’s run went. But I should probably elaborate a bit more so this blog post isn’t only 2 lines long.

I woke up in the middle of the night last night to the sound of rain tapping out my window. I think I even groaned a little as I fell back asleep, dreading the prospect of being drenched as soon as I got out of bed.

However, as soon as my alarm went off, I forced myself out of bed and out of the house. To my surprise, the rain had stopped completely, and the weather felt almost spring-like. I took advantage of the calm and ran, and today’s run ended up being so much better than Monday’s!

As I walked up to my house after running, the rain started to fall again! I guess that even God is encouraging me to get fit :D

Tonight, about 2 inches of snow are supposed to fall and freeze throughout the day tomorrow. I only hope that I can still run Friday! (I’m sure I’ll find a way to run even if it does, so I’m encouraging the weather to go ahead and let loose!)

Be back here tomorrow for Health Check Day #2! As always, remember that every journey, no matter how large, starts with 1 step!

30 Day Challenge!

Overall health consists not only of physical health, but is also dependent on both mental and spiritual health. That’s why this week’s challenge is a focus on something different than just physical health.

I actually started this week’s challenge at the beginning of this year, but today is the day I’ll implement it into this blog. The challenge that I am doing this week is K-LOVE’s 30-Day Challenge.

The challenge as listed on their website (klove.com) is to listen to nothing but Christian music for 30 days straight. I signed up for this challenge on their website, and have kept up with it for 10 days so far.

For me, listening to the encouraging messages conveyed in Christian music rather than the oft-degrading themes of secular music make quite a difference in the quality of my day. I notice that I find myself smiling to the lyrics and learning how I can apply a more positive outlook to my life and my actions.

As with all Tuesday Challenges, I challenge you to do the same thing! You don’t have to sign up on their website; just commit to 30 days of positive music! Maybe it will change your life!

Week 3, Run 1

I’ll start off by saying that today was a self-induced bad run, but it turned out good! I made two changes today to my previous runs, and felt the effects of both.

I got up, did my “get ready to run” routine, and then headed out the door. Before I left, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was forgetting something. I couldn’t think of what I might be forgetting, so I went to the park and started running.

Halfway through my first minute-and-a-half run, I remembered: I forgot to use my inhaler. Normally, when I exercise in cold weather, I can barely breathe. Today, however, I noticed that, although breathing was very difficult, I was surviving! I decided not to push myself to run fast, but instead to just finish my run. This seemed to work just fine!

At the end of my run, I could barely breathe, but I made it through all my runs! I found and used my inhaler the minute I got back, and I feel so much better now!

Wow, three minutes seems so long! Anyone can sit on a couch for three minutes and not notice a thing, but when you’re running for that amount of time, you really notice how long it is! It’s difficult, but most definitely do-able! I’m glad I have coach Claire’s voice to help me through all the difficulties.

Tomorrow’s a challenge day, and I’m not sure what I want to do yet, but no doubt it will be… erm, challenging!

Back and Forth 1

Our Bible Quiz team!

Before I get into today’s blog post, I would like to take a moment to show off my wonderful Bible Quizzing team! Today, we spent the day in fierce competition against teams from 4 states, on our home turf! After 7 team quiz rounds, we finished the day undefeated, a feat which rarely occurs in groups of such advanced teams. This was our team’s first time getting a first place trophy in almost 2 years! It’s been a great day! I’m proud to be captain of such a wonderful team!

I may have been late publishing several posts these last few days, but I made it through the week, which seems to be a big accomplishment to me :D

Looks like it’s time for our first Back and Forth Day! So here’s this past week in review:

What I liked:

-My legs stopped hurting! After week 1, I thought my legs were going to fall off. Thankfully, this week was a completely different story. Whatever was hurting felt a ton better, so I was able to enjoy (mostly) painless runs this week!

-I feel good! I’ve heard of the term “runner’s high,” and I’m pretty sure I’ve been experiencing it to some extent. I feel slightly more confident, more physically fit, and more able to accomplish large tasks.

-Changing it up! Running on the road in front of my house is fun, but I found it extremely entertaining to look around at the change of scenery at the park. I hope to start running in even more places as time progresses!

What I didn’t like:

-Baby, it’s cold outside! I can’t change the fact that it’s winter, so I guess I’ll just have to learn to cope with the frigid weather. Brrr!

-Slowing down. I notice that, as a run progresses, I start running slower. I suppose this is only normal for someone who just “got off the couch” less than two weeks ago, so hopefully, my speed will only progress with time!

...And a look ahead into next week:

-From 1 ½ minutes to 3! I’m extremely excited to get running in segments of 3 minutes as opposed to a minute and a half. I have a lot of room for improvement, so this will only help me improve!

Thanks so much for following me through my journey this week! Come back next week for even more fun and maybe even a few surprises along the way!

God bless!

Week 2, Run 3

I slept til 8 this morning, but the dread of instantly going out for a run made it feel more like 5. I got up and did my becomingly-normal routine of drinking water and getting ready, and then I headed out! I mentioned on Wednesday that I would be running at a park in the town where my grandma lives (a new running scene for me), so that’s exactly what I did this morning.

I’ve heard of other runners feeling insecure while running in the same area as others, and haven’t been able to relate with them thus far. However, while I was running this morning, the two (almost a crowd!) other people in the park made me feel awkwardly nervous. But I quickly shoved off the feeling and ran.

As far as endurance, I found this run to be the best of the week. I happily finished after 3 laps around the park (I have no idea on the distance; maybe I should look into it). I didn’t feel overly tired, and my legs felt almost good when I was done stretching!

Looking ahead to next week’s running schedule, I can see that I’ll be running the same amount (9 minutes), but with different times (2 circuits of 1 ½ minute running, 1 ½ minute walking, 3 minutes running, then 3 minutes walking). I’m excited about next week, but I’m even more looking forward to 3 weeks from now, when I’ll be running 20 minutes straight! It’s thrilling to know that the ability to achieve such a long run is less than a month away!

Health Check 1

Happy Thursday, everybody! We’ve almost made it to the end of the week, and that means…drum roll, please… Health Check Day!!

On a normal Health check day, I’ll update as many things as possible, but since I haven’t thought of taking measurements for some things yet (arms, legs, neck, waist, pretty much everything), I’ll be starting some things off new!

So, here’s the first Health Check Day!

Weight: (I measured my starting weight last week when I started) My weight has actually increased by 1 pound this week. I would like to lose weight, but it hasn’t been a big concern. Hopefully it will at least stay the same, or even go down over time! (:

Waist: 38 1/2”

Arms: 14 ½”

Neck: 17”

Calves: 16 ½”

Okay, I think that’s it! Now, to check up on my Tuesday Challenge! In case you don’t remember, my challenge this week was to drink 8 glasses of water per day. On a trip to Walmart later that afternoon, I bought one of those Mio drink mixes, and have used it to help me out! The two days that I’ve been following this challenge, I’ve kept up with my water-drinking! Only a long time to go!

I hope everybody has a great Thursday, and an absolutely wonderful weekend! 

Week 2, Run 2

Well, I got up at a dawning hour this morning (7:00 is pretty early to me, at least)! Ate part of an apple, drank a half a glass of water, and headed out for the 2^nd run of week 2!

I felt great on Monday’s run, even though it was snowing,  but today was a different ball game. My legs weren’t in pain, but they felt very tired as I made my way through the 6 minute and a half runs. I was really struggling to put one foot in front of the other, but the thought of repeating a day’s run motivated me to finish the run. After 29 minutes, I made it back home!

In other words, last night I used the handy dandy internet to find out that there’s a 5k in my town in March 24, exactly one month after my scheduled finishing date of the program! I’ll hopefully be signing up for that soon, which will be an added motivation for my runs!

Tomorrow’s Health Check Thursday, so I guess I’ll get to find out how well I’m doing, at least, according to the numbers. See you (or rather, blog to you) then!

Water!

I know it’s my day to rest to prepare for tomorrow’s run, but I have to make a confession: I started running the week between Christmas and New Year’s, so regulating my food and drink intake has been a very poor affair. I’ve been drinking a ton of soda, and I’ve eaten so many treats, I’m surprised I haven’t turned into a gingerbread man!

I’m not promising a complete change in my lifestyle (as far as food is concerned), but I’m ready to change what I drink. Yes, it’s that dreaded water talk. We all know that water is extremely good for us, yet almost no one drinks the recommended 8 glasses a day. I decided that I would like to change that.

I’m not saying that I’ll cut every single unhealthy drink from my diet, but I would like to drink a ton more water. Any internet article will show the numerous benefits of a steady amount of water, so I’ve decided to listen.

CHALLENGE: (A challenge is mostly for me, but if you would like to do it, too, then go right ahead!) Drink 8 glasses of water a day (EVEN REST DAYS) until I run my first 5k race.

I sure hope I can keep this! Well, that’s it for today. See ya again tomorrow after my run!

Week 2, Run 1

First off, know that I don’t consider myself an athlete of any kind. Second off, I have asthma that is induced whenever my lungs get exposed to very cold air (winter isn’t my ideal time to start running, but it’ll have to do!), so I have to take a good couple doses of my inhaler before heading out to run. All that being said, I accomplished a lot today!

Last week, I looked ahead to this week’s runs and saw that I would be running 6 “circuits” of 1 ½ minutes of running, followed by 2 minutes of walking. Even though it’s just 30 seconds more of running, I felt really intimidated at the prospect. (I find that it’s easy to doubt myself when I feel tired and worn out.)

So I took Saturday and Sunday off to enjoy the New Year. I got plenty of rest this weekend… Well, maybe not on New Year’s Eve, but I was pretty much FORCED to stay up til New Year’s, right? Anyways, I felt really rested this morning, and got ready for my run as soon as I woke up, at about 11am (I’m gonna have to start getting up much earlier when school starts again in a couple days, so I haven’t pushed myself to wake early while I’ve been on break). I could hear the wind whipping outside, so I put on my windbreaker and my new running case that I ordered from Amazon, along with my Angry Birds sock hat, and headed outside.

I can actually say that I enjoyed hearing coach Claire’s voice after a weekend of rest. I was refreshed and ready to go, but, as I started down the road on my warm-up, I began to realize how cold it was. Looking back on today’s weather, I think it was about 25 degrees during the time I ran today, which is awful compared to last week’s highs in the 50s. But hey, that’s Illinois for you!

I decided that, no matter what the temperature, I could do it, because it’s only 30 minutes. So I began my run. The minute and a half didn’t seem any longer than the minute from last week! My legs didn’t hurt and I felt great for the first 3 runs! On the 4th run, my legs began to feel tired, but I didn’t mind; I was grateful they hadn’t bothered me until that point. The 5th run, however, is when it started to happen. I had noticed that the whipping winds (which hadn’t bothered me much til then) were bringing some snow flurries. I was really enjoying running in the flurries, until the clouds broke loose. From the 5th run until the end of the cool-down, it was like I was running in a blizzard! I couldn’t look up, but I still forced myself to try, which made my eyes tear up, which made me look like an emotional freak. But I finished the run and did my stretching inside, as opposed to my outside stretches that I did all last week. I made it, and that’s the important thing.



I can’t wait til I go back to school, when I’ll be staying at my wonderful Nanah’s house in town. I think I’ll be running in the park instead of my current back road. So I guess all the early-morning runners will get to hear my dog-like panting and see my ridiculous running getup? No worries, at least I’m getting in shape, a step at a time!

Exercise?!

Greetings!

This is the first blog that I have written, so you’ll have to cut me a bit of slack if I don’t have all the proper “Blogiquette.” I’m hoping that by writing these posts, I’ll only make myself stay more committed to exercising regularly. I recently downloaded the “Get Running” app for my iPod, and I intend to use the majority of this blog to document my running progress. So, here goes!

The Get Running app is an iOS application very similar to a Couch to 5k app, but tons better (at least, that’s what all the app reviews said, so I took their word for it). I’ve already completed the first of 9 weeks of the program, and am glad to say that I have survived.

Week 1 of the Get Running program can easily be described in one word: PAIN. Don’t get me wrong; it’s (extremely) painful, but it’s a good kind of pain! It’s a “Hey, you’re actually off the couch and doing something good for yourself!” kind of pain. After the first run, I felt good, but during my rest day, my legs started burning. It only got worse from there, and, when I started the last run of the first week, I thought my legs were going to fall off! Thankfully, the pain subsided completely over the weekend, and my legs felt great today during the first run of Week 2.

So, if you’re reading this right now and thinking I don’t want to hurt for a week straight. It’s not worth it, know that I’m a really big sissy when it comes to pain tolerance. If I can make it through, then anybody can make it through!

So, that pretty much sums up the first week of running. Each workout was a 5-minute warm-up, followed by 8 “circuits” of running for 1 minute, followed by a 1 ½ minute walk, followed by a 5-minute cool-down. These runs showed me how out of shape that I was. By the time I made it to about my 7th run each day, I was very tempted to slow down or just walk instead. However, I told myself that I’d done it 5 times already this run, so I could surely do it 2 more times. That philosophy, however accurate, worked! I did it 3 times last week, and then decided that, however nervous I was about increasing running times, I was ready to move on to week 2…