Just Do It!

It's finally come... the night before the night before my first 5k run.

No, this whole post won't rhyme, although I'm fairly certain I could do it if I try.

Sunday is when I run my first 5k.  This past Sunday, I thought I should probably get on the treadmill and see if I could even go 3.1 miles without keeling over.  So my uncle and I went up to Anytime to do just that.  (I love when he's in town because 1) I never get to see him, and 2) he's always down to show me up at the gym)  So I got on the treadmill and covered up my time and distance, set my speed to 3.8 (.2 mph faster than I have been running), and just went. 

SIDENOTE: A week ago, I ran half a mile for the first time, all at once.  I was super pumped.  Read on....

Well wouldn't you know that I hit one of my goals: running a mile without stopping.

I never, never, NEVER thought I would be able to do that.  NEVER.  I absolutely couldn't believe it.  I'm not sure how quickly, or slowly, I did it, but I don't care.  It took me 51 minutes to complete 3.2 miles, so I know it was less than a 20 min. mile average. 

And then I did it again on Wednesday.

I'm feeling much better about this 5k now.  Melissa keeps driving home the point that it doesn't matter if you come in first or last becuse if this is your first "race," it'll be your best one yet.  I really have taken that to heart lately because in the end, life is just a race against yourself.  It doesn't matter if you're running slower than the person in front of you because you're not trying to change their body-- you're doing this for YOU.

Whatever time I get on Sunday will be my slowest ever.  I fully intend on keeping up with running because there are some advantages.  "A run never takes more than it gives," or so says Nike.  I believe it.

I did find that the Couch 2 5k program was more of a hinderance than something that pushed me.  I finally had to put it away and just run, not caring when I was supposed to take scheduled breaks or jog.  Now I just go until I need to walk, and when I know I can go again, I do.  If you want to do something, all you have to do is do it.

From here on out, my new goal is everytime I go to run, walk, jog, or any combination thereof, I will never do less than 3.1 miles.  I can't, because I always have to keep moving forward.  I have 3 months before I go to South Africa, and I need to do as much as I can in that time.

I have another 5k scheduled for the morning on June 9 in my hometown.  I would also like to do another one, maybe the Strawberry Festival or Italian Heritage Festival 5k.  There's also this thing called The Color Run that I'm hoping Melissa and I can do together.  With everyday, she's becoming so much more of a friend, and I'm always so thankful she has taken a chance on me.  When I went to run that half a mile the first time, she stayed right there with me and made me push past the pain and the negativity in my mind.  She could have just run on and lapped me, but she didn't.  I thank God daily for her.

Some Inspiration

Sometimes, you just have to realize you're no good at something.  For me, it's updating this blog. 

So, I've got some big news....  After months of being at -46 pounds lost, the numbers on the scale have finally started moving again.  I have finally hit my first goal...

-50 pounds!!!

51.5 to be exact, but I couldn't be more relieved.  

I was talking with Matt, the owner of Anytime Fitness, about my next steps.  He's been waiting for me to be ready to take pictures.  You know, one of those "see how big my pants are" pictures, where you stand there and hold your pants out.  Those are fine and all, but am I the only person who considers the fact that of course they're going to be bigger than your body...  there's nothing filling them out!  Personally, I don't see enough difference in myself with 50 pounds gone to really make that picture mean anything to me, let alone anyone else.  So I'm waiting until I lose another 50 pounds.  

However, I did tell Matt that my goal is to be on a billboard.  Right now, AF has a few billboards up displaying weight loss of their clients, which I think is AWESOME.  I WANT ONE, TOO!!  :)  Amber over at Love. Life. Fit! is on one, and she made the comment that she never thought she would be on a billboard promoting weight loss.  I just think it's so cool, pushing so much and working so hard to start inspiring yourself!

Any of us on this journey feels a small burden to inspire other people; I know I do.  It's rare that I inspire myself, but I think that's so important.  Amber inspires me, and I hope she inspires herself!  I want to be there, too.  So my goal is to push myself to the point of self-inspiration.  I'm not sure what that will take, but I think I'll know it when I see it.

For now, I've been set back just a little.  I sprained my right wrist, so weight lifting and planking are out for me for a bit.  I know Melissa will still work me hard, though, using other means.  There are plenty of exercises where I don't need weights.  :)  The jarring of running doesn't feel too good, but I'm hoping that if I keep using this wrist brace, I'll start to feel better soon.  After all, the 5k is in two weeks, which is really scary.  I know I'm not ready for it, and I highly doubt I'll be making my "Run a 5k in less than 40 minutes" goal a reality, but I'm sure going to try.  I'm hoping that some burst of energy and courage hits me that day, and I'll at least make my "run a mile without stopping" goal happen.

Fingers crossed!

Beach Blog!

I'm back at the beach, but I'm in Ocean City, MD this time. Thank goodness I actually get to go to the beach in MAY when it's WARM! Until then, it's indoor workouts for me. I was very determined to control my environment this time, as my last beach trip to SC ended in a less than lackluster health performance on my part. So this time, I prepared steel cut oats beforehand, Zone Perfect bars, natural peanut butter, kiwi, splenda, Breakfast-on-the-Go packs, and fruit cups. I was determined to eat healthy this trip to prove to myself that I have control over what I put in my body in strange environments. So far, so good. I will say that I plan on indulging in a small steak tonight. It's been almost two years since I've had a steak for dinner. This morning, I even got up at 8am and ran. I'm 2/3 way finished with Week 5 of Couch 2 5k. This is the furthest I've gotten in the program, and I feel great! I'm so surprised how easy running is becoming. I ran for 8minutes straight today, which is the longest I've run at a time. I wasn't even winded!! I can't believe that; I even felt like I could have run more. The last day of this week has me running 10 minutes in a row. I KNOW I can do it!! It is exactly 29 days until my first 5k. One of my goals at the beginning of the year was to run a 5k in under 40 minutes; I'm getting there! It's coming up so fast. That's all for now, but I'll leave you with this: you have complete control over your environment. If you don't control it, it will control you.