Nine weeks ago, I started the couch to 5K running program. I never thought that I would last more than a few weeks, as I haven't run more than a block in roughly ten years. I took up road biking two years ago, and that has been my main source of exercise. Living in Minnesota, it is obvious to say that I ride only in the summer, and consider myself a "fair-weather-rider". With that said, I can safely say that my level of fitness was low, and I figured that it would remain low, as I stated above, I didn't think this running thing would last more than a few weeks.
The insanity all began on a whim, in fact, I cannot clearly remember what caused me to go against my better judgement and start running....of all possible forms of exercise.....running?! The program is pretty straight forward, as it lays out exactly what you need to do each day of the nine week program, starting with just running 60 seconds at a time followed by 90 seconds of walking. Just about anyone can do that, right?
Wrong!! I struggled through the first week of workouts, dreading each minute that I was "forced" to run and counting down the seconds until I was able to slow the treadmill down into barely a crawl in order to catch my breath. I was in bad shape, and it was pretty obvious. The first week of "running" (I like to call it running, it makes me feel better about the experience) was painful, I was in pain in areas that I didn't even knew existed. My shins were the worst of it all, each step I took caused my lower legs to feel like they were being prodded with hot pokers.
After week one, I was pretty sure that there was no way I was going to continue on to week two. But I did, I got back into the gym, climbed back on the treadmill and continued the program. The pain and suffering continued, and my friends were amazed that I was "so devoted" to this program. Devoted? My ass! I again, can not pin point the reason for the insanity, but it was a driving force behind my progression.
Things did get easier, and I progressed through the weeks, mainly I just LOVED crossing off the workout on my C25K calendar. This was my motivation, I could cross off the workout, it was my sense of accomplishment. I got hung up during week 5 and had to repeat that week twice, before moving on to the next week's workouts. I again got stuck on week 6 and ran those workouts twice in order to become comfortable with the about of running.
At this point, I am not finished with the C25K program, I am still working my way through weeks 7, 8 & 9. These weeks involve straight running, and no walking, which is a very scary thing for me, those little walks are my motivation to keep running, they are my little treats during my workouts. Ahhh, I guess everyone has to give up sweets at some point, now is my time.
About a week ago, all of this running madness hit a high point, I bought a Runner's magazine. Why? Again, I have no real reason, perhaps I felt it would give me some motivation to continue running, I just don't know. Anyway, inside of this magazine, I found something -- it was shocking and life changing -- Disney World has a 1/2 marathon, a "princess" marathon!!!
Now, this might not sound exciting, or life changing, but for me it was. I have never thought about running a marathon in my life, but the idea of running at Disney World, instantly made me think about training for a 1/2 marathon. Weird, I know! But here is my logic: If one was actually going to run a 1/2 marathon, and put all that work into training for it, wouldn't one want to run it at the happiest place on earth and get a tiara at the finish line? I would!!
So, that brings me to today. I called my sister this morning, and asked if she wanted to join me in the insanity. My sister is a tiny person, however not physically fit, and I was shocked to hear that she would "think about it". Being the fashion forward person she is, she said she first needed to go to Lululemon and check out the running clothing, to see how she looked in athletic wear. Ha!
About 4 hours later, she called to say that she bought running tights and was "in"!! She had the same logic as I did, if you're going to run a 1/2 marathon, running it at the happiest place on earth will make it so much more fun, and perhaps easier.
I am going to run a 1/2 marathon.....it still hasn't sunk in to my brain, that I actually have to put the work in, and train for this thing. I still have the feeling that it is going to be easy....hahaha! I am not very good with reality...hence the love for Disney!! :)
I decided to change up my training a bit today, as now I am not just running a C25K but I am now thinking ahead to a 1/2 marathon. I actually ran 3.5 miles today, with some but very little walking. I was very proud of myself. It was quite an accomplishment for me, coming from dying after just 60sec of running.
Starting this blog, is my way to keep a log of my training ups and downs, and as a way to keep myself on track.
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