Week 4 Day 2

I ran yesterday.

I stunk it up.

I did the entire first three-minute run... but that was the only run I completed without stopping to take a break and walk.

I feel like I may be on Week 4 FOREVER.

I also feel like my calves are on fire.

You know how I eventually want to run a HALF MARATHON?  (That's 13.1 miles. Approximately 2 hours.)  Yeah... right now I can't even complete five-minute jog.

*sigh*

Slow and steady wins the race?  Keep on moving?  Pain is weakness leaving the body?

I can do ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME!

It may take me 5 years to build up to it... but I WILL eventually.... someday... run a 5k.

Week 4 Day 1

This morning, I got up early to go running before spending Thanksgiving Day lunch with my family and Thanskgiving Day dinner with my mother-in-law.  Yes, that's right... TWO Thanksgiving Day meals.  I can assure you that whatever calories I burned this morning will be taken care of this afternoon.

It was my first morning run, and I like that.  I feel a bit more energized (although sore) this afternoon, even after stuffing my face with turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, green bean bundles, and rolls.  (I'm not a fan of stuffing/dressing.)  Anyway - I enjoyed the morning run and my eventual goal is to be able to get up in the morning and go on a 30/45 minute run 4 or 5 days a week.

I did Week 4, Day 1, and I've been dreading it for several days now -- the 5 minute run was a scary thought for me.  I was SUPPOSED to do this on Tuesday, but for some reason I never got around to it, and yesterday I was busy all day, so today I knew I had to do it.  I woke up to mid-50 degree weather and rain.  Not my ideal running conditions... but I found a cap and hoodie to put on and headed out to do it anyway -- and God was sweet enough to stop the rain for my entire run!  Here's the Week 4 schedule...

Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then:

• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes)
• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Five-minute cool-down.

The first three-minute run and the first five-minute run, I completed without stopping!  Did you hear that??  I ran FIVE WHOLE MINUTES without stopping, after just running THREE minutes without stopping.  It's a Thanksgiving Day Miracle!

The second set of runs I did NOT complete, although I attempted them and did my best until my legs turned into complete jelly.

Baby steps -- I'm getting there, slowly but surely.  I foresee myself staying on Week 4 for at least 5 days.  We'll see.  =)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

The Jogging Stroller

The weather on Sunday afternoon was cloudy and in the high 60s, perfect to take the jogging stroller out for it’s first run!  Christopher was refusing to take an afternoon nap and Stephen had plans to go to his mom’s house when he got off work to help her with some chemicals for her pool. I decided around 3:15 that I would just load Christopher up in the stroller and head out for my run and end it at my mother-in-law’s house. (She lives a mile from us.) 

Oh.
My.
Goodness.

In case any of you missed this post where I (semi-jokingly) said I was going to name her Betty….

Well, I changed her name.

To El Diablo.

I tried to do another day on Week 3 (I figured it would be easiest to stay with the 90-second/3-minute runs) but I couldn’t even finish it.  Hard.  Hard hard hard hard hard.

Hopefully no more Diablo anytime soon.

Sorry so late on this post!  I haven’t had much time with the computer since Sunday – but I’m on Turkey Day Break now so hopefully I can get caught up with blogging!

I’ll update again tonight after I do Week 4 Day 1!

Week 3 Day 3 (Round Two)

Last night I did W3D3 again.  Since I hadn’t completed the 2nd 3-minute run the last time I did W3D3, I decided to do it again. I completed all the runs and felt great afterward!

Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then do two repetitions of the following:

• Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• five-minute cool-down.

I’m still loving the program.  I’m ready for my legs to stop hurting, though.  Stephen thinks that by a few more weeks time I should be feeling less pain in my legs. I seem to be sore all the time.

Last night I did NOT want to run.  I had a little bit of a tummy ache and it was pretty cool.  I need to go shopping for warmer running clothes.  I did go, though, and felt great afterwards – and of course by the time I was finished the temp outside felt really nice!

I THINK I am going to move on to Week 4 when I run next.  It will probably be Sunday because tomorrow I am going BRIDESMAID dress shopping for my brother’s wedding!  I’m nervous about moving on to Week 4, but I know that I just need to suck it up and move on. Here is the schedule for Week 4!

Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then:

• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes)
• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

I’m nervous!  Wish me luck! :)

Week 3 Day 3

Tonight I ran for the first time in 3 days – the longest I’ve gone since starting the program a few weeks ago.  I have been waiting on Stephen to get home before doing the program because it has been a little chilly during the day and I don’t really want to get Christopher out and running in the cool air.  Since DST ended and it’s getting darker much earlier now, it’s harder to get the run done before dark.  Stephen usually gets home around 4:15, and I have to leave within 30 minutes after he gets home. I hate that I have a nice big jogging stroller and that I’m not able to use it much right now (or probably through the next few months) but I know it will come in handy next spring, early summer, and fall.  Plus, I figure since I am a newbie to the program (and running, period!) it’s easier on me to run without the stroller – I know it’s going to be much harder to run with it, so I may as well build up my endurance as much as possible while I am “training.”

Anyway, tonight I did the last day of Week 3, which is the same routine as W3D1 and W3D2:

Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then do two repetitions of the following:

• Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• five-minute cool-down.

I’m not sure if it’s all the pizza I’ve been eating (not good, y’all, not good.) but it seemed tougher tonight than last time.  I did not run the whole 3 minute time frame during the 2nd 3 minute run; I had to stop a few times just to catch my breath for a few seconds, then I would run again.  I didn’t want to stop completely so I figured it was better to stop and walk for a few seconds rather than stop and not run again at all.

I am going to repeat this routine on my next run, instead of moving on to Week 4.  I’ll probably just do it one more time, and if I can do all 4 running segments without stopping, I’ll move on to Week 4 the next time.

Week 3 Day 2

Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following:

• Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• five-minute cool-down.

Tonight’s run was very good!  I hadn’t ran in two days – I had planned on doing W3D2 yesterday, but we got busy doing stuff and it totally slipped my mind, and by the time I remembered about it, it was already dark. I was dreading it today, to be quite honest! I had been following a fairly strict diet, but for the past 2 days I completely ignored my dieting rules for Mexican food and pizza.  Those are definitely my weaknesses.  But I’m back on the Weight Watchers bandwagon now and am enjoying a nice big salad as I type this.

Anyway, I was dreading today’s run, partly because I haven’t been eating right and partly because that second 3-minute run was a killer last time, and I just knew there was no way I would be able to complete it tonight, either.  But I did!  I totally did both 3-minute runs and both 90-second runs, just as the program is laid out!  I was super excited about it and very proud of myself.  (Toot toot!)

Can’t wait for Week 3 Day 3!

Week 3 Day 1

Tonight I decided to move on to Week 3.  I spent 5 days on Week 2 and I was getting fairly comfortable with the 90 second runs.  Here is the Week 3 schedule:

Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following:

• Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
• five-minute cool-down.

I feel pretty good about tonight’s exercise.  I did NOT finish the last 3-minute run – I probably did about 90 seconds of it.  But I’m okay with that.  :)  I will do my next run on Thursday, and I will try my BEST to complete the last 3-minute run.  My legs are still adjusting to running with all this weight and I’m still kind of sore!  But I’m working towards a huge goal and that is all that matters!

Week 2 Day 2 (Round 2)

Tonight’s exercise was good.  You are supposed to alternate days while on this program, but tomorrow is Monday, which is my loooong day at school and it would be dark by the time I got home, so I decided to go ahead and run tonight.  I did all 6 running segments without stopping.  That’s three days in a row that I’ve done that.  It’s definitely getting easier.  I also noticed tonight that the 90 second “walk” time periods are easier too – last week I was huffing and puffing and trying not to fall over in the ditch and die, but that’s not the case this week.

I’ll run again on Tuesday.  I’m not sure yet whether I am going to do Week 2 Day 3, or if I want to go ahead and move on to Week 3.  We’ll see.

Off to do homework and study for tests, then BED. I’m exhausted.  :)

Week 2 Day 1 (Round Two)

Tonight I did Week 2, Day 1, for the second time.  And guess what?!?  It was tons easier than the first time I did it, one week ago. 

I have been procrastinating these workouts every night, waiting until about 6:15 to leave, knowing that it will be dusk when I get back at the house at 6:45.  Since tonight ends Daylight Savings Time, it will be getting darker earlier and earlier and I am kind of dreading it.  Even though I’ve been putting it off until the last minute – I am still doing it, and finishing it!  Tonight I did all the segments of the workout without stopping during any of the jogging sections.  I felt really proud of myself and I can tell it’s getting so much easier.

Another thing that I noticed differently about tonight’s run was that I finished in much better time.  Usually when the 30-minute workout is complete, I still have several minutes to go before I get to the house.  Tonight, I finished much closer to my house than normal, meaning I am getting faster!

I can also tell that my poor knees are feeling the effects of running.  They were a bit sore today when I first started out.  As were my ankles and calves.  I have to remember one of my favorite quotes, though – Pain is weakness leaving the body.

That’s all for tonight.  See you day after tomorrow for Week 2 Day 2 Round 2!

Week 2 Day 3 (part 1)

Tonight, I completed the 2nd Week of the Couch to 5K program.  As I mentioned in my first post, (I think I mentioned it…) I started out with Week Two, instead of Week One.  I did this because I did Week One several weeks ago and thought it was fairly easy, so I decided to speed things up this time around and started out with Week Two. 

And it was really, really hard.

I have decided, for my own sanity, to do Week Two twice.  So instead of moving on to Week Three next, I will do Week Two, Day 1 again.

I know that the point of this program is to push you – but trust me, doing three more reps of Week Two is plenty of pushing.

Brisk five-minute warm-up walk. Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes. Five-minute cool-down.

This is what I did tonight.  It’s the third time I’ve done it, but…. (wait for it…) it’s the first time I’ve done the WHOLE THING.  The first two times I did it, I was not able to run all six 90-second runs.  This time, I did ALL SIX!

The first four weren’t the ones that were tough.  It was the fifth and sixth ones that got to me.  The past few days, I would pretty much just skip the fifth run, and the sixth one I would just do probably half.

But tonight – tonight I did ALL SIX RUNS!

I think there are a couple of factors that help me here – first of all, of course, I’m building up endurance.  Things are going to seem hard the first time around, but the more I do them, the easier they will get. 

Secondly, I changed my workout playlist.  I have recently started listening to K-Love on my drive back and forth from school.  It’s the only radio station that doesn’t go fuzzy on me between Mena and Arkadelphia, PLUS because it is listener-supported, it has NO commercials.  Y’all, I have fallen in LOVE with Praise & Worship music.  So – you guessed it, I changed all of my workout music to Praise & Worship songs.  Well, mostly.  It’s probably 98% Praise & Worship, with a few other soft rock/pop songs thrown in.  Listening to the encouraging words makes my run SO much nicer.

And lastly, during the “tough spots” of my workout – runs 5 and 6, I kept saying over and over in my head, (and aloud) “I can do ALL things through CHRIST who strengthens me!” 

Running

I have decided to start a new blog and dedicate it to all my Couch to 5K/Jogging-related posts.  I will post this entry on the blog and then all of my future jogging blogs will be on that blog only.  I added a link to it on the right column of my blog.  Feel free to follow that blog and follow my journey to a 5k!

Several months ago I wrote about starting the Couch to 5K program.  I am very good at starting things, then not finishing them.  I only did 1 week of the program in September.  :(

I am hoping that is not the case this time around! I started again this week and I am hoping to STAY WITH IT!  I love, love, love it.  I LOVE jogging.  I have NEVER been a runner, but I’ve always wanted to be.  I read several blogs of girls that I both know and don’t know, who have been running half-marathons, and I am super jealous because I want to do that! 

SO, anyway.  Day before yesterday, I started up the C25K again.  I thought about starting out with Week 1, which is probably what I should have done.  Week 1 is a 5 minute warm-up, then you alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes, followed by a 5 minute cool down.  When I did the first week 2 months ago, I loved it, thought it was tough but definitely “do-able,” and finished it without feeling like I was going to die.

Week 2 is a 5 minute warm-up, then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and 2 minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes, and a 5 minute cool-down. It doesn’t sound that hard to me. It’s SIX 1.5-minute jogs and FIVE 2-minute walks.  Let me tell you…. it’s hard.  The first three jogs are not tough.  The fourth one starts getting to me. The fifth one I skip, and the sixth and final jog, I can barely get through.  BUT, I do as much as I can without falling over on the side of the road and dying in the ditch. And at the end of the run, I feel really good.

By the time the 30-minute workout is over, I still have a little ways before I get home, so my cool-down is more like 10 minutes instead of 5, but that’s a good thing.  Right now I am running/walking right at 2 miles, but as I move on each week, I will run more and walk less, which means I will be going further.  I cannot WAIT until I will run my entire first 5K!  And my long-term goal is to run a half-marathon (13.1 miles) next FALL.

I have done 2 days of the 2nd week, but I am going to do it twice, instead of doing the 3rd week next week. I am hoping to post each time I run until I finish the program, then I will start training for a longer distance.  :)

If you want more information about the Couch to 5K program, click here.  There are also apps for the iPod/iPhone (and Droid as well, I believe) that are very handy.

And, last but not least, I’d like to introduce you to my new best (and worst) friend.  I’m not positive yet, but I think I’m going to name her Betty.

I say best, because she will make it so much easier to go for a run while I am by myself with Christopher.  I say worst, because she weighs 30ish pounds… plus 25ish pound-Christopher.  You can do the math.

Happy jogging!