Another 5K in the books

Yesterday, my husband and I both finished the local YMCA’s St. Patrick’s Day 5K Run/Walk. He did the run and I did the walk.

I have done other 5Ks in the past, but this one was a little bit different for me.

A couple months ago I told my trainer I intended on working on the couch to 5K (again) and trying to run this one instead of doing my normal 90 minute workout with him. He told me that I would be better off doing the workout because I would burn calories for longer after the workout was over than if I ran.

So I decided to do the workout.

When I heard my sister in law and husband both intended to do the run, I decided I would register, and if I was feeling good enough after the workout, I would do the walk.

I wasn’t feeling so great after the difficult workout, but I decided to suck it up and do the walk anyway.

It was extremely hard. I regretted doing it before I even took the first time. I also regretted wearing my brand new running shoes.

As I winded my way through town, I had to talk myself out of stopping at friends houses along the route and begging them to drive me back to my car.

I was tired, sore from the workout, my feet hurt, and I was getting shin splints with every step. Around the 2 mile walk I texted my husband, who i was confident had already finished his run.

Me: My back hurts so bad.

Him: Walk

Me: That’s all I have done

Him: U got it. Where are you?

About 5 minutes later I see him walking up the street toward me. Honestly, I was fighting back tears. Now I knew there was no way I wasn’t going to finish. He wouldn’t let me.

He walked the rest of the way with me, and made me jog the last 1/10 of a mile or so.

To say I was dusted at the end is quite the understatement.

It was far from my best 5K time ever, but with the exception of my first ever race, it was the one I am most proud of for finishing.

I am also INCREDIBLY proud of my husband and sister in law for each finishing in under 28 minutes.

Living a healthy lifestyle isn’t always easy, but it is so much better when you have company!

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It’s hard, but it’s worth it. I think?

There are days I look forward all day to going to the gym and working out, there are even days I get up first thing in the morning and go before work. There are days I truly like being there.

Today was not one of those days.

Today I had to drag myself, kicking and screaming, but I went. I particularly dread going to the gym on running days, I still haven’t reached the point in my training that it is fun — at all. But people keep assuring me I will get there. We’ll see.

Thursday I started Week 3, day 1 of the Couch to 5K program, and while I did better than I expected, I wasn’t able to make it through all of the running parts. Today, however, I did! I was pretty pumped. Even though I was dreading going, that feeling made it worth it.

Of course that isn’t making me dread Monday’s run any less.

I think I am starting to get my diet back under control after my slip ups while traveling. That is, and probably always will be, the hardest part.

I wish it were easier to think of the milestones that made me proud of myself before I slip up on the diet. I just need to keep reminding myself that in the long run it will be worth it.

Today’s weigh in had me down 6.2 pounds this week, which I was thrilled about, so overall now I am down 33.2 pounds. I would like to lose another 67 this year, which will me hard, and maybe not possible, but that is my goal.

Making slow, painful progress

There are only so many times one can say “I am starting over again, and this time I am going to succeed” before people stop believing you.

I crossed that line several times ago, yet here I am again.

That’s why this time I wanted to wait until I really got the ball rolling and accomplished something before I post anything on here.

It has been seven weeks today since I started the lifestyle change (again) and I feel like it is time to start writing about it again since it seems to help quite a bit.

Even though I have been at this a while again, the weight isn’t coming off as quickly as I would like (not that it ever does). I am down 13 pounds, but honestly I could definitely be doing better on my food choices, so it is my fault the numbers on the scale aren’t dropping as fast as I would like.

There were two weeks in the middle that I was travelling the whole time, the first week I was in Chicago and managed not to be completely awful on my diet, and was very active exploring the new city.

The second week visiting my parents, wasn’t so pretty. That’s behind me though, and here I am again

I have been pretty good about making it to the gym on a regular basis, despite my busy schedule. Even though I can’t see any difference in my body, I am definitely getting stronger and my endurance is getting better.

I started the Couch to 5 K program again a couple weeks ago. It isn’t easy, it’s slow going and it’s painful and tiring, but slowly I am improving. Today I did week 3, day. I couldn’t quite do 100 percent of the running portions, but I did better than I expected. When I first started a couple weeks ago I seriously struggled to get through the first workout — like, I couldn’t to it. Looking back on that makes me feel better about what I have done in a fairly short amount of time.

My goal is to be in shape enough to jog the YMCA’s Turkey Trot 5K in November. I have set this goal before, and have never succeeded, but hopefully I will this time.

Only time will tell.

 

Color Run — Exercise in disguise

Post run color party.

I see what you did there Color Run… You made a 5K so much fun, people couldn’t possibly know they were exercising. Bravo.

Looking back on the crowd. There were about this many people in front of us as well.

I work up Saturday morning to a chilly, rainy day outside. I checked the website for the st. Louis Color Run and was excited to see it was still on. There had to have been 20,000 people there to for the race. Despite the huge number of people, it was remarkably well organized (I had to wait in line for about 10 seconds to register and pick up my number ans shirt). I was impressed.

If you’re not familiar with the way the Color Run (a.k.a. the Happiest 5K on the planet) this is how it works. You are given a packet of color (dyed cornstarch) at the beginning of the race to hold on to until you get to the end. You start out wearing as much white as you can. Costumes and tutus are encouraged. As you make your way through the course you come to four color zones where — for about 50 feet — volunteers douse you with colored powder. Yesterday’s colors were blue, yellow, orange and pink. Along the way you can stop, take pictures with signs, play in the color, etc. There is NO rush to finish. There were people in wheelchairs, strollers, even one girl on crutches (someone was following her with a wagon for when she got tired).

One color station down, three to go.

When you get to the end, there is a color party where all the runners get together and throw their packets of color up in the air. If you weren’t colorific before, you will be after this. The color throws go off about once every 10 minutes so everyone has the chance to participate, regardless of how slow or fast you are.

The race was really fun and went by very quickly. I wasn’t tired at all by the end and the rain really didn’t bother us. The rain combined with the color to make everything extra vibrant. I don’t think my white shirt and headband will ever be the same, I am going to try to wash the tutu so I can wear it again, and I have no idea what I am going to do with the shoes! I shouldn’t have stomped in all those puddles!

If you have never done one of these runs before, I really encourage you to try it. I plan on doing another one with my mom and sister in September in Albany, N.Y.

It was a great way to celebrate my 50 pound weight loss (51.1 pounds now).

After I got back from the run yesterday, I had one of my many less than graceful moments and fell down my stairs. In the process, I rolled my ankle, big time. The popping sounds my ankle made almost made me sick. I went to the doctor today and she is sending me for x-rays tomorrow. I hope it gets better soon, because I really don’t want my ankle to hold up my weight loss progress. Hopefully the doctor will at least give me the OK to ride the bike and do weights. Oh well, this too shall pass.

Here are some more pictures from the run Saturday.

I’m confident these clothes will never be the same.

After.

All done! On to the color party.

Busy, busy, busy!

When I first started this healthy lifestyle I told people that if they saw my blog posts get less frequent (or stop all together) that I had probably fallen off the wagon and they needed to come drag me out of the nearest McDonalds — ASAP.

I haven’t posted in a couple days and I got texts from two people asking me if I needed a McIntervention (thanks guys). I am happy to report that I am still doing well, I have just been INSANELY busy.

Between working like crazy, hitting the gym and packing to move halfway across the country in two weeks, I have been too busy to blog much. At least I am not slacking off (too much) at the gym.

Counting down till the Color Run Saturday. I’m pretty excited! The more positive stories I read from other bloggers and friends, the more excited I get.

I’ll admit, I am a little disappointed in myself that I am not to the point I wanted to be with my fitness. I wanted to be able to run the whole 5K by Saturday, but several weeks ago, I realize that wasn’t going to be even close to happening. I redid my goal to be to run the first mile of the Color Run. Unfortunately, that isn’t going to happen either.

I am trying not to get too down on myself. Even though I am not improving as fast as I would like, I am still improving. Look for the positive in life!

Laziness is not an option

I’m feeling pretty proud of myself today.

My only pair of jeans that fit me drove me nuts falling down all day. As obnoxious as it was, it was a good obnoxious (is that possible?)

I made it to the gym after not going for a couple days thanks to a killer headache. Even though my last try at Week 2, Day 3 of Couch25K was a disaster (an asthma attack kept me from jogging half the running segments) I decided it was the day to move on to Week 3.

It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t as hard as I prepared myself for. Today’s cycle consisted of a 5 minute warmup, 90 seconds of jogging, 90 seconds of walking, three minutes of jogging, 3 minutes of walking, 90 seconds of jogging, 90 seconds of walking, three minutes of jogging, 3 minutes of walking, and a 5 minute cool down for a total of 28 minutes

It might sound cheesy, but every time I thought I would have to stop running and walk, I would start thinking of some of the people injured in Monday’s bombings. Those people CAN’T run even if they wanted to. I can run, quitting would have been nothing but laziness.

I’m not going to allow laziness to be an option anymore.

I jogged very slowly, but I jogged. When I stepped off that treadmill, I was proud of what I had done, even though it was a very, very small accomplishment.

While at work today reading a story about Monday’s bombings I came across this quote in an Associated Press story:

“We find peace and perspective in our running,” said Rick Nealis, director of the Marine Corps Marathon. “A marathon runner goes out in all kinds of weather. People say, ‘You’re going in the rain? In the snow? In the morning? At night?’ And that’s right. It’s ‘me’ time. And you do feel safe, because you’re in control of your route and your destiny when you’re training.”

Clearly I am not a marathon runner, but this quote struck me. It made me realize I need to approach my workouts from a different perspective. Instead of viewing it as a chore, something I HAVE to do, I need to teach myself to look forward to it. That needs to be my “me time.” When I can think things over in my head — or not think at all if I don’t feel like it. I may not have control over other aspects of my life, but when I am walking, running, biking, or working out, I am in complete control.

It’s up to me to decide if I am going to take advantage of those moments, or waste them.

A terrifying new goal

The events at Monday’s Boston Marathon have shaken me to my core. More than that though, they have inspired me.

I have been working on losing weight, getting in shape, and running.

I set a goal at the beginning of the year to run an entire 5K next weekend. My progress is going slower than I was hoping, and I’m not going to make that goal. I’m going to run what I can and walk the rest. Regardless of how it turns out, I will be proud of how far I have come in the last few months.

Running a marathon has never crossed my mind. I have always been so overweight, it wasn’t a possibility. The Boston Marathon bombings have me seriously thinking about setting a goal of running it someday. Honestly, that scares me to death.

I am going to keep working toward running a 5K, then a 10K, then a half marathon. Hopefully someday I will be strong enough mentally and physically to run the Holy Grail of marathons. I think that’s when I will know I have arrived.

I am so proud of my friends who ran the race yesterday, even though they were stopped at the 25th mile, they are such inspirations. I would love to be able to run along side them one day.I have cheered the Boston marathoners on a couple times. I would love to know what it feels like to cross that finish line, having hundreds of thousands of people cheering for me, to feel that medal put around my neck. This is an unrealistic goal at the moment, but hopefully, someday — even if it takes me 10 years — it will become a reality.

Tutu time

Want to look like you INSTANTLY gained 80 pounds? Put on a tutu.

My neighbor came over tonight so we could catch up on our Dance Moms (It’s a horrid program, but we can’t get enough). Between watching the show and trying to figure out the logistics of what it would take to set up a dance competition in our cul-de-sac (so we could be the judges) we also constructed a tutu for me to wear in the upcoming Color Run in St. Louis.

The run is two weeks away. When I first started my new lifestyle, I wanted to be able to run the whole 5K by now. Not gonna happen.

Then I wanted to run at least a mile (without stopping). Not gonna happen.

While I am getting more fit, I am still not where I would like to be. I am going to run what I can and walk the rest. My neighbor did the Color Run in a different city a couple weeks ago and she said there were so many people walking, it was hard for her to find space to run (she’s a track coach and avid runner, if she couldn’t run it, I didn’t have a chance).

I am just going to have fun with this one and finish it.

Anywho, we got the tutu for the most part done (I still need to add the velcro) and I put it on. Instantly — 80 pounds on my hips. I’m not sure I am going to wear it. I probably will, just to be goofy, but man, it is NOT flattering. (Five yards of fabric around your hips will do that). Once I get it finished, I will take a picture and post it on here and you guys can let me know what you think.

Throwing a pity party

Eventually I knew I would come to a point in my weight loss that I would hit a plateau. I was prepared for that. What I was not prepared for was a dramatic weight gain. Even though it wasn’t a weigh in day for me, I weighed myself this morning hoping to see a loss after gaining 0.8 pounds last week.

Does this look like a tornado to you? Yeah. Me too. (It wasn’t, but it was still enough to scare me.)

Big mistake — now I know I’m up a total of four pounds. I don’t know what the problem is. For the most part, I have been working out. I didn’t go yesterday, but we had MONSTER storms all day and spending an hour in a glass building under a tornado watch and thunderstorm warnings was NOT on my to-do list.

I have been good on my diet. There is every reason for me to be losing weight and zero reasons for me to be gaining it.

The morning weigh in put me in a funk all day to the point where several times I was in tears. (Including now as I am trying to write this). It’s hard to be doing everything right and getting the opposite results from what I have earned.

The view out my office window Wednesday afternoon. This happened all. Day. Long.

I didn’t want to go to the gym today, but I forced myself to go. It was the first time going to the gym didn’t make me feel better.

I did the same Couch to 5K day I have been working on successfully for two weeks now and I absolutely could not finish it today. I ended up walking about three of the six running segments because I couldn’t breathe. I am hoping it was just an asthma attack and not another sign of failure.

I’m not giving up on my weight loss, but this has been a really hard week. I either need this pity party to pass on its own, or to see some kind of progress, because where I am stuck at now is nothing short of miserable.

 

Step ouch, step ouch, step ouch

I have laughed at the above photo many times before. Today, I totally get it.

Yesterday I wrote about how great I was doing on the Couck25K program. I was majorly pumped up over finishing Week 2, Day 1. That enthusiasm carried over to this morning’s trip to the gym.

I hopped up on the treadmill this morning and figured, “hey, this went so well yesterday, let’s give it a go again today.”

It went great. Even only one day later, I felt better and stronger doing Week 2 Day 2. I made it through 1.9 miles in 31 minutes (up from 1.85 miles yesterday — baby steps). I felt great, less tired than I was after I did the program yesterday. I hopped on the bike and 7.71 miles – up from 7.42 yesterday.

While riding, I was thinking “I don’t know why Couch 25K recommends a day off between runs, I feel great — I’m doing this again tomorrow!”

I… am an idiot.

Twelve hours later I am hobbling around like a 70-year-old ex-baseball catcher. My knees get super sore when I even THINK about attempting a flight of stairs.

From here on out, I am going to take that day off between workouts.

Tomorrow it’s all bicycle to rest the knees. Hopefully they’ll be better by Thursday to try Week 2, Day 3!

Now where did I put that ice pack…