Here We are At Week Four....

OK....I think I finished week three...I honestly cannot remember.  The last post I did was October 2nd and today is October 18th.....that tells you how long it has been since I've posted and probably since I have run.  I think I did the first day of week three and skipped the rest.  Today I ran week four day one, but I did great on it!  No wonder the music sounded different to me.  I kept thinking.."haven't I already started week four?  but I do not recognize the music."

Well, in summary, I think I did the first day of week three, let life get in the way for two weeks, and now I started week four today.  I guess that is ok?  Because I certainly didn't have any trouble doing the running routine for week four today -- right now I am in Oregon visiting and friend who lives in the mountains, but the roads around her house are flat.  So I got to run the whole time on flat ground, which I think made a HUGE  difference in my stamina and ability to complete the run easily.

Next week when I go home, I will have to go back to the hills during week 5 -- maybe I need to seriously consider a different, flatter route at home because I do believe that the hills are killing me and I honestly do not know if I can do the hills when I have to run 20 or more minutes at one time. 

Still...that being said....I am excited that today's five minute run was very easy for me, especially after taking two weeks off from running.  I am proud of myself.

Week 3 Day 2 - Stressfully Difficult Week!

This has been a very tough week for me with running and personal things as well.  Monday started off great, but on Wednesday I slept a good part of the day and didn't do my second day of running.

Fast forward to today - I did Day 2 today of Week 3 and I made it - today I tried something a bit different.  Instead of walking/running all the way to Highway 108, I did the first 90 second run/walk and then the first 3 minute run/walk and then turned around to head back towards the house, thereby bypassing one of the larger hills (although I still had one large hill)...which got me to thinking that with starting to do a full 5 minute run next week, Week 4, maybe I ought to rethink my route a bit and try to time it so that I am not running those 5 minutes on the hills, even if it means doubling back and/or repeating parts of my route.

I am SOOOOOOOO S - L - O - W when I am running - not that I expected to be faster than a speeding bullet like Superman or anything -- but when I was doing the 3 minute run up the hill today and Monday it felt like I was walking but with more energy, lifting my legs higher or something.  I sure hope I get better at it.  Well, okay, if I can just FINISH the C25K program from start to finish and run a 5K the whole way, no matter how slow, I can certainly say I have accomplished something!

One more day this week, then on to Week 4!

Week Three Has Begun!

I did NOT want to do this today -- absolutely, positively did not want to get out and run -- it was cold, foggy, sprinkling rain -- I was tired, cranky, I overslept -- but guess what?  I got my butt up off the couch and got my running clothes on and I did it.  I ran the first day of Week 3.  I ran for 3 minutes without stopping, for the first time in my life! 

Week 3 involves a 5 minute walking warm-up, followed by 90 seconds of running, more walking, and then a 3 minute run, followed by 3 minutes of walking, then repeat - or something like that - I don't remember the exact order.  :0)  I really wasn't sure if I would be able to handle the 3 minute run -- as it happens, it comes on the worst hill in my daily route - figures, right? 

As I was coming near to the end of my run, the last 3 minutes of it before the cool-down walk, I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned to see my husband had been running behind me, following me the whole run!  Scared the tar out of me!  I run in the mountains, alone -- and so I certainly wasn't expecting a tap on the shoulder at the end of my run!  Well, I guess it was a nice surprise :0)

So, I am proud of myself.  First, I got up and did the run, and second...I DID THE RUN! 

I feel hopeful that I might actually be able to finish the whole 9 week program!

Week Two - Check! Week Three, here I come!

OK, so I finished week two of the "Couch to 5K" running program this morning.  I normally run on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but when I got up yesterday (Friday) I just did NOT have the energy to go running.  I went to bed too late the night before, and didn't sleep well, I guess.....and then, I felt GUILTY all day long for not running.  I thought to myself..."Am I giving up yet again?"  "Will I fail this, too?"  No, really!  I was very concerned because I do have a slight history of starting things and not finishing them.

Well, I am pleased to say that, lo and behold, I DID get up this morning (Saturday) and finished the week's run!  And I actually looked forward to it!

I just really want to be successful in this new venture in my life.  So many times before, both before and after surgery (especially before) I have begun exercise programs and paid for gym memberships, only to quit before I hardly even got started.  You can see why I was afraid I'd fail yet again with C25K. 

But I DIDN'T QUIT!  Yes, I took an extra day of rest off -- maybe my body really needed it -- after all, this is the first time IN MY LIFE I have done some form of consistent exercise.  So I found that I can take an extra day off, if necessary, in the training -- the key is to NOT GIVE UP - to get right back at it even when you feel like you have failed.

One concern I have is that I do not want to injure myself as I learn to run.  I have sore muscles, mostly in the upper thigh area, every time I do run.  But today I had some pain in my left knee.  I tried to take it easy, while still doing the running program as designed this week (90 seconds running, 2 minutes walking), and by the time I got back, the pain was pretty much gone from the knee.  I cannot imagine anything worse in trying to establish a habit of healthy exercise than injuring yourself and not being able to complete your training.  I have read many posts on the C25K blogsite where people have injured their food or ankle or knees and could not complete the entire program.  I do not want that to happen to me. 

So I try to take it very easy, not push myself too hard -- and YES, perhaps I really did need that extra day off to rest yesterday before finishing out my third run for week two.

ON TO WEEK THREE!!!!

Day Two Week Two - TWO TWO TWO!

I had alot of different thoughts go through my head as I prepared to run this morning.  First, my day started off with my 13 year old dog waking me up around 7 am - nothing unusual about that.  But then I thought, "Oh man, today is a running day...boy do I NOT feel like running today!"  Yea, who among us have not had that thought when learning to make ANY kind of exercise a part of our lives, right?  Well, it hit me big time this morning.  But, I persevered and got my running clothes on, and off I went (after walking the doggie, of course). 

So, the first 90 second run was okay, and I'm thinking..."Ok Wheeler, what was all the fuss about not wanting to go this morning"  But then came the first hill....."Oh man, I can feel that one...."  Yup, it didn't hurt my muscles, but it hurt everything else.  Then the third hill came, and this one is the worst of the whole run.  I thought..."Can I make this?  Or am I going to have to give up and quit half way through the 90 second section of this morning's run?"  Well, I made it -- it wasn't fast.  In fact, it was more like a walk-jog rather than a jog because of the steepness of the hill, but I pushed and huffed and puffed and made it to the top of the hill.  Yea for me!  By this time I'm thinking "Well, half way through....I've made it this far, the rest is a piece of cake..."  But then that fourth hill came.  Oh man!  But I kept going - yes, I did!  And finished all six of the 90 second intervals of running.

Now you are probably thinking, "Well Wheeler, isn't that what you are supposed to be doing?  I mean, you are learning to be a runner, right?  So if you make it to the end of your morning run, isn't that what is expected?"  No, you have to understand that I typically am a quitter when it comes to stuff like this -- heck, I am a quitter in general when the going gets tough.  But even though this is only week two, I kept going, and I finished the morning run!  I didn't feel like running today.  My mind and body were saying "no, no, no" but my will to succeed in this new venture of my life said "yes, yes, yes!" and the YES won!

I know each week will get harder with longer periods of running and less walking,  And quite frankly, it scares me to death to think of that.  Will I fail at this new goal in my life?  All I can say to myself is "Take it one day at a time - one week at a time - and don't worry about tomorrow, just focus on today's accomplishment."  Hopefully today's success will be tomorrow's victory.

Finished Week One!!! Hip Hip Hooray!!!

So, as of yesterday (Friday) I finished the first week of C25K and am extremely proud of myself.  The second day wasn't too bad -- I even kept running more after the last 60 second run when I was supposed to be doing the cool down walk.  The third day was a bit harder - but I think it is because it was warmer outside and I ran in the middle of the day instead of early or late.

I need to take my measurements and some pictures this weekend before I start week two.  I have been looking at 5K races in November/December, knowing that I will have completed the whole program by then.  I figure if I already commit to one race around that time, it will keep me motivated as the running program continues to get more intense.

The hills were a bit easier each day I ran.  On Thursday, I rode my bike up part of the hills, something I couldn't do before.  That made me feel really good.  Running must be strengthening my legs already, do you think?  Or maybe I just happened to have more energy as a result of the running?  I don't know - either way, I'm glad it is working. 

Well....on to week two!

Day One - C25K

Monday was my first day running.  C25K is short for "Couch to 5K" and it is a wonderful program designed to help you learn, gradually, to run a full 5K course.  I found a podcast to download to my ipod that helps to guide you through the steps by alternating a 60 second run with a 90 second walk the first week and gradually increasing the running interval each week, all set to music.  We live in the mountains, and so it seemed that all the "running" periods ended up being on the hilly parts of our road, which added to the challenge of learning to do this.  But after running the program both Monday and today (Wednesday) I have found that so far my body seems to be handling this drastic change in exercise quite well with just a bit of joint pain in my inner thighs.

Blogging this journey, or blogging at all, is a new experience for me - I hope you can bear with me!  My daughter and husband are the writers in our family.  Blogging, for me, is a tedious and difficult process, maybe even more tedious and difficult than learning to run! 

I made the mistake of not journaling my weight loss surgery journey by creating a blog.  I wish I had now.  Since this is the newest "adventure" of my life, learning to be a runner, I didn't want to miss the opportunity to journal my joys, my triumphs, and my discouragements and set-backs.

So...thank you for your patience with me as I grow into both being a runner and a writer at the same time!