A little hope for my June Half-Ironman?

Since I have been basically crapping out on any meaningful training program (ie I am SOOOOO inconsistent!), I went ahead and looked up the refund/deferral process for the Raleigh Half IronMan coming up June 1st.  Basically, there is no deferral and you only get $75 of the $225 back if you cancel by April 17th.  I am super annoyed with myself and feeling pretty defeated. 

HOWEVER!  Today a gal in a Facebook triathlon group I belong to posted a 12 week HIM training program.  I am just over 14 weeks out, so this could actually work - although, Lordy, will I have to COMMIT.  I have decided to follow this plan until April 17th and then evaluate whether or not I think I can finish the HIM.  I have somewhat of a base so it's not completely out of the question and I really, really don't want to punk out on this race.  My goal is to FINISH and I have 8.5 hours to finish.

Today I did W1 D2 of C25K with no problems.  Looking to lengthen my intervals and just condition myself to keep running after a walk break. 

Am I crazy?  We'll have the answer by April 17th.

Day (I've officially lost track) of 100 (AND Princess Half Recap List!!)

Yesterday I added weight training so within weeks, I will be ripped like Linda Hamilton in Terminator!!  While I'm super excited for these excellent muscles, today I feel like I've been beaten in all my tender places.  :(

I also ran yesterday and since I have been somewhat inconsistent and have been wanting to increase my intervals, I re-started Couch 2 5k from Day One.  It was not terribly hard, with 1 minute run/ 90 secs walk, but I pushed hard on the intervals and did the whole thing.  Recall from previous posts that I peter out at halftime, regardless of the length of run.  I was pleased that I didn't give in to that little voice that tells me I can just skip a run interval and pick back up again next time.  I never do.  It's all walky-walky after I cave in.

 

Now then, you are invited to consider my big dilemma!  I was in Japan during the Dumbo Double Dare sign up.  To be honest, as much as I wanted to do this race, I just didn't see it in the cards for 2014 so the sign up day came and went without much thought.  Also, I was in Japan so I was pretty consumed with thinking about any food I could eat other than rice.

Imagine my surprise when I got an email from RunDisney saying I was signed up!  What?  Yes, well, that guy who's not really my boyfriend signed me up without my knowledge/consent/permission the day it went on sale.  So, I have mixed feelings because on one hand, DUMBO DOUBLE DARE - YAY!! And on the other, airfare and hotel and park tickets, oh my.

Also, if I'm going all the way to Disneyland for a race, I might as well do that Coast to Coast thang again. I was thinking of doing Wine & Dine anyway.  My question with this is that our big local race, City Of Oaks, is the weekend before W&D and I hate to miss it again.  Last year, I volunteered, but it was my first half and it holds a special place in my heart.  I could probably do both on back to back weekends, but do I want to?  It seems like you need a burning fire in your heart to want back to back halves.

 

Speaking of RunDisney, it was just Princess weekend and man, I missed not being there.  I think I will try to be a charity runner next year.  I've got to figure out a way to do more Disney races without selling my much-needed organs.  Here are some 2014 Princess Half Recaps.  I'll add more as I find them of  if you have one, please leave it in the comments!  (Here's mine from Princess 2013.)

Disney Princess Half Marathon Race Recaps - 2014:
Rachel - Undercover Diva: A Sitcom
Amy - The Point One Will Getcha

Amy - Mom's Magical Miles
Catie - Thank You For Running
Amanda - Disney Everyday
Tabetha - I Run On Water
Karen - Losing The Glass Slipper
Heather - Run Heather, Run: 26.2 or Bust
Meranda - Fairytales and Fitness
Jennifer - JennFaulk.com
Erika - Running Toward My Happy Ending
Amy - The Relocated Tourist
Bonnie - 'Cuse Runner Girl
Lauren - Will Run For Disney
April - Run The Great Wide Somewhere
Kara - Makeup, Cupcakes & Running
Julie - Run.Walk.Fastpass.Repeat.
Hildarys - Running Through Theme Parks
Patty - Margaritas, Miles & the Mouse
Laura - Run. Write. Rejoice.

And tell me, what should I do about my fall race schedule?  I only did my race goals for the first six months of 2014!!

Weigh day & long run

My last few weigh days (let's just be honest and say the last SIX) have been somewhat disappointing. I would lose a bit, then gain a bit and I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. I still have no idea! (Although the fact that it was the HOLIDAYS might have something to do with it!) For some reason, this week it all caught up. I lost 3.6 lbs doing pretty much the same thing I have been doing. Well, minus a holiday cookie or two. I didn't deny myself anything, but I did track every bit of food on my Lose It app and kept under the calories it set for the day. That plus 4 days of running seemed to kick start my plateau. So hooray! It's about time.

I did my long run today - 4 miles at 16:35/mi average. My fastest yet. I start Week 5 of C25K on Tuesday.

6 miles DOWN! Charm day!

Was it my lucky socks? I don't know, but I conquered the 6 minute run today! I did Week 4 C25K exactly as scheduled for the first time, with 4/6/4. I am so happy! After my first 4 minute run, I felt like... "hmmmmmm, I could go longer" instead of "oh dear God, I am counting down the seconds until I can walk". This is a change, for sure! So I thought, hey maybe I CAN do 6 minutes today. Then about 2 minutes into the 6 minute run, I started to falter. I was thinking I should just do 2 and 2 like I had been doing. But then I pushed myself and said - "at least do 3 minutes". Then at 3, I said "might as well do 4 so I can say I did 4/4/4 today". But I kept going and the last minute was hard, but I pushed through. At that point, there was no way I was quitting when I was so close! So, I DID IT! Now I just need to rinse, repeat for the rest of the week so I can move to Week 5 on Monday.

Because I broke through the 6 minute barrier, I get a charm today! I picked the boy charm that matches my girl charm, since I have a son and a daughter. Zaine got me a dangling heart charm for Christmas so I have the girl on one side of the heart and the boy on the other. Now, let me tell you about my boy... There is no person on this earth more like ME than my son. His father calls him "Little Lisa" because he acts, reacts, and generally IS so much like me. This can be a blessing and a curse, because I see in him the mistakes I have made in life. Of course, at 13, he's not really interested in me telling him how to change those things, but I do try! I love the child he was and the young man he's becoming. For those reasons, I will now look down at my bracelet and have yet another reason to push myself to be the best me I can be!

For the last two days, I have done a 5k in about 52 minutes at a pace of about 17/mi. Yesterday was faster (16:56) and today was 17:20/mi. Since my treadmill lies, I think this is in the 16/mi neighborhood. I am thinking of running a 5k on the road when it warms up later this week to see what my road pace actually is. Until then, I just keep trying to improve on the treadmill and hopefully, I will make progress even though it is a filthy fib-teller.

YAY for today! Week 5 looks doable and I look forward to it. Now I just need to replicate my success from today for the rest of the week!!

Happy New Year! 4 miles today!

My mother says what you do on New Year's Day is what you'll be doing all year long and I am the superstitious type so you know I had to get in a run today. Hal Higdon 1/2 Marathon training calls for a long run on Sunday so I decided to go for his Week 1 suggestion - 4 miles.

I basically did Week 4, Day 1 of C25K TWICE (minus the 6 minutes - it still eludes me) and it took me 1 hr and 10 minutes at a pace of 17:42/mi. My plan right now is to follow Hal for distance and on/off days and follow C25K for intervals (repeating until I get the times down). This way I don't get too stuck in a C25K week (which has definitely been happening!)

I didn't get too bored being on the treadmill for more than an hour, but I was ready to get off of it when it rolled around to the 4 miles mark. I can see how running for longer distances would be better suited for outdoors. Still, I hung in there for more than an hour so this was a WINNING day for me! Definitely a great way to start the New Year!

Stuck in Week 4 now

I am sincerely trying to push myself and I see the results more in speed than in run length. I can do the 4 minutes at the start fairly easily, but the 6 minutes is kinda a mental block for me. I have been doing 2 minutes run, 2 walk, 2 run. Then usually I can do the final 4 minutes run, but today was not a good day for that. What I find is that my calves are getting so tired and sore... stiff maybe. HEAVY feeling. And it's hard to push through that. I am pushing through it to get to the numbers above. I can't imagine 6 whole minutes of it.

From what I have read on beginning runners, it seems that my muscular and skeletal system need to adjust to the new activity. My breathing is better (which tracks with what the info says too - your respiratory systems adapts to running faster than the rest of your body). I guess I need to just stay the course and this will improve. It doesn't HURT, it's just.... very uncomfortable.

The other thing it might be is that I am not giving myself enough recovery time between runs and this might just be the case. I am running every day (albeit, just a bit). I ordered Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2012 so maybe I can start doing that on my cross training days. I am trying to follow Hal Higdon's Half-Marathon app as far as on/off days. It doesn't seem like enough to only do C25K 3 days a week, so I admit that I have been doing it more. Maybe it is too much too fast? Don't know...

Anyhow, I am pleased with the last two days - my average pace is in the 17:39 range on the treadmill which we all know is faster in real life since my treadmill lies to me. I can see improvement and that helps me to keep going!

Gotta start pushing myself.

As I reflect on my 2 mile run/walk today, I realize that I really need a push and that has to come from myself. My legs were tired today (haven't run since last Thursday) and I was not really pumped to do my Week 4 over again. But, when I got off the treadmill, I knew I could have pushed harder... I don't want to kill myself, but I'd like to see some results. I did intervals of 2:1 instead of the 4/6/4 on the C25K plan. Just wasn't feeling up to the distance.

See? This is the crap I need to push through.

I had a wonderful Christmas and now it's time to start looking to the new year. My favorite gift was a gift certificate to Raleigh Running Outfitters! I can't wait to go and spend it! I also got compression socks and a new Sweaty Band. It was most touching to get these gifts from my mom, who I didn't think really supported me in this new venture. So, that was really cool.

This week, I am going to HIT IT HARD and push. I WILL start the New Year strong!

Week Four - Day One

Today I started Week Four, and the beginning was pretty good. I did the first 4 minutes with just a bit of pushing. But the 6 minute run... ugh. I did 90 seconds, walked 2.5, then ran the last 2 minutes. For the last 4 minutes, I only ran 2. The problem was that my legs were getting so tired. I did finish out with a fast paced walk (well, fast for me) to do a 5k. I was able to shave 1 minute and 22 seconds off my time from Sunday, which was cool. It took me 54:07 at an average pace of 17:27. Much faster than ever before!

Tomorrow I will try harder to push through the tired legs and make it further into the 6 minutes. I'd love not to have to repeat this week!

My first 5K! (well, sorta!)

It's been a great week! I ran my Week 3 as planned 5 times this week! I was very pleased. Next week is Week 4 --- this means 4 minutes of running, walk break, 6 minutes of running, walk break and then 4 minutes of running again. I am nervous about upping my times, but I know if I go slow, I will get it eventually.

This weekend, I ran/walked my first 5k (that's 3.1 miles to you). I did it as part of a great fundraising project for Team In Training - The TNT Lousy Medal Virtual 5K. Basically, you just run your 5K wherever you are and report back to them that you did it. Then they mail you a medal. And even if they advertise it as a lousy medal, it will be my first bling! I was SLOOOOOOOOOW and much slower than I hoped, but I have only been running 7 weeks now. It took me 55 minutes and my pace was 17:53 minute miles. I won't lie... it was a stretch. My legs were hurting and I got tired. It's the farthest I've gone so far.

Now for the weight loss report, I have to laugh! I was so annoyed last week at GAINING weight (1.8 lbs) when I had tried to watch my food intake and exercise. So, this week, I said SCREW IT. I will do my running work, but I am going to eat whatever I want. AND I DID! I had pizza, donut holes, Christmas cookies... all yum! And all in moderation. Guess what? I lost 1.6 lbs this week!! I just don't get it. My body is wacko.

I continue to chip away at my running goals. I have decided to join Raleigh Galloway next year. I actually know one of the pace leaders through an Internet message board and she trains all year long, so I may start meeting with them to run after the beginning of the year. I just worry that I am so slow I won't be able to keep up! It will be nice to meet people who are also interested in running and I'll bet they will have lots of great advice for me.

Well, that's my week in a nutshell. Christmas has got things all mixed up, but I am staying the course and will continue to do so through the holidays.

3 minutes - DONE

I didn't run Saturday or Sunday. I was busy, but mostly, I just didn't want to face the 3 minute run that has vexed me for almost 4 weeks now. I also ate pizza and gained a pound and a half this week. In all, a great week to throw in the towel. I don't think I have been more discouraged in a looooooooong time. I did do something usefully this weekend and that is I read a lot on the C25K boards - specifically looking for "Why am I stuck at Week 3?". I did find some posts (although more about getting stuck at Week 4) and the answer was always the same: SLOW DOWN.

Dude, if I was going slower, I'd be standing still.

So, I don't know what made me put on the shoes and go today, but I did. And I slowed down to 17.38 minutes per mile. Guess what? I did it! THREE LONG MINUTES - TWICE! Plus the two 90 second runs (which I did 4 of because I keep going to 2 miles). So, I did the day exactly as it is supposed to be done, plus some. And for this, I deserve a charm for my goals bracelet!
I picked a little girl charm to represent my most precious angel daughter, Zaine. Of everyone in my life, she has been the most supportive of me going on this journey. Of course, she doesn't understand how much that means to me, but it really really does.
She inspires me and I love her more than words can say. Now I can look at my bracelet and I have one more thing to remind me why I need to keep moving forward!

I think I will finish out Week 3 this week so I have a good base of the 3 minutes. They also say on the boards that speed comes later, so I will not stress on that part, I guess. It's more important to have the longer times and work on speeding up later. I do still have a year and two months, so there is no need to stress!
But YAY! I did it! I really didn't think I could, but I did and that mental hurdle was a huge one for me. Whoopee!!

And this is why people quit

I've heard the stats on the percentage of people that actually finish C25K and they are low, low, low. I can imagine people quit for a variety of difference reasons, but here's the one nagging at me: I just can't run 3 minutes in a row and it makes me feel like a complete failure at this program. I am repeating Week 3 for the third time because I am not going to continue when I have not completed the goals for the week. I am beyond frustrated and have no idea what to do about it.

So here's what I am doing:

1) Not quitting, because screw that. I will make running my bitch or die trying.

2) I increased the duration of my sessions in DISTANCE and am gauging wins in chipping away at that average run time instead of worrying about interval time spent running.
3) Running 5 days a week, because 3 is not enough to lose weight and I need to get SOME benefit from all this sweating.

I have started going for 2 miles instead of stopping at 30 minutes. I am increasing my walk speed so my average run time is going down:

Monday - 18.09 average minutes per mile
Tuesday - 18.00 average minutes per mile
Wednesday - 17.47 average minutes per mile

The Princess 1/2 requires 16 average minutes per mile, so I am getting closer, even if I am not running for 3 long minutes at a time.

Anyway, I have been sad about being stuck at Week 3 and I realize I need a running buddy or someone else to care. No one in my life cares what I am doing, really. My former therapist called it a severe lack of a support system. I don't really notice so much except when I get stuck somehow - kinda like I am now - and it really, really sucks. Sorry to be so whiny, but I've got no one else to tell and I am just a whiny crybaby today. The good news is that when I finally do run for 3 minutes, I'll tell you about that too and we can celebrate together.
I hope it's soon because I need to see progress or I will be tempted to quit. And I really, really don't want to do that.

Sunday = Scales

Not fish scales, unfortunately. I only lost 4 ounces this week which bums me out quite a bit. I'm not sure what I am doing wrong. It's very discouraging.

One bit of good news is that my C25K iPhone app updated and is a whole new program. It's now called "Ease Into 5K" and it does seem easier. We'll see... I restart Week 3 (for the third time) tomorrow.

I made it to 2 minutes!

I was crazy busy yesterday and didn't get a chance to work in a run. Today I did W3D2 over and did the full 90 seconds both times, then for the 3 minutes, I did 2 minutes the first time and 90 seconds the second. A definite improvement!

After much thought, I have decided to let go of my grand plans to bust through C25K as it is laid out and instead, do it at my own pace. This means repeating weeks until I can do the run as it is supposed to be done. Of course, this ruins my plans to run the Raleigh Rocks 1/2 Marathon in April... well, I think so anyway. Maybe at some point, it will get easier? I've read that once you start running any distance, you can zone out and it isn't as hard. Right now, 2 minutes is all I can do.

I will repeat Week 3 again next week and hopefully, I'll nail the 3 minute run by then.

I really don't get how anyone could literally be a couch potato and start C25K and run it exactly as laid out in the 9 weeks. It makes me feel crappy that I can not, but I can't compare myself to others, I guess. I can only go at my own pace and that's what will work for me. Slow but steady wins the race...

Zaine has not been training with me since I have been doing my runs during the day. I need to get back out of the road with her. It's so fun to spend that time with her and it makes the runs go faster.

Oh, almost forgot - today's stats:
I walked 2 miles in 37 minutes
Walk Pace - 20.00/mile (slowed it down to hopefully help on the longer run)
Run Pace - 15.00/mile

I have to fight this discouraged feeling and just accept that it is going to take a loooooooooong time to get into the kind of shape I want to be in. SIGH.

Back on track!

Well, I was a lazy, lazy girl on Sunday and Monday and did NOTHING. The good part of this is that my knees are 100% back to feeling great. I ran today and yesterday - redoing Week 3.

Both days, same stats:

I walked 1.64 miles in 30 minutes
Walk Pace - 18.00/mile
Run Pace - 15.00/mile
For Week 3, it requires 90 seconds of running, 90 seconds of walking, then 3 minutes of running, and 3 minutes of walking REPEATED TWICE. I do the 90 seconds with no problem, and for the 3 minutes, I am doing 1 minute run, 1 minute walk, 1 minute run. Somehow I need to bridge that 1 minute in the middle to a run before I move onto Week 4.

Now for my happy discovery of the week! Fiber One Dark Chocolate Almond Fiber Bars. And they are not great on calories or to help me poop, they are great because when I wake up in the morning, I am STARVING and a cup of yogurt doesn't get me where I need to be. I turns out that if I eat a fiber bar at about 8:30pm the night before, I don't wake up ready to eat a horse and can refrain from eating from the moment I get up until roughly 2pm. Because REALLY, I could do that. I am a snacker, for sure, and I could graze from when I wake up until I stop wanting to eat in the early afternoon. And here's the weird part - after about 4pm, I don't want to eat AT ALL. I could skip dinner with no problem. Is my system whacked up or what? Soooooooooooooo, with my happy discovery of Fiber One bars, I can eat more like a normal person and not consume my weight in Cheez-Its before lunchtime.

And the photo for today is two of my favorite things - a pug (because I have the most beautiful pug boy ever!) and a princess (which I am going to be in February 2013!). It's my YAY picture for getting back on track and not letting two days of laziness knock me off my path. Believe me, this is a huge deal because I am not known for finishing anything I start.

But THIS is getting finished. I promise you that!

Workin' off that turkey!

Did W3D2 today on treadmill:

I walked 1.63 miles in 30 minutes
Walk Pace - 18.50/mile
Run Pace - 15.00/mile

I ran the first 90 seconds, but for the 3 minutes, I ran the first and last minute with walking inbetween. I am definitely repeating Week 3 until I can run the total 3 minutes both times. I slowed down on my walking since my kneezles hurt. I iced them right after running, but they are sore now.

I've been at this for 4 weeks now and I thought I would be farther along... getting in better shape. I guess it doesn't happen overnight. I just want to be able to sail through C25K and I am not. It's discouraging, but I need to keep chipping away at it. Ultimately, I have more than a year to get 1/2 marathon ready so I don't really need to rush it. Right?

Sigh. I just didn't know it was going to be so hard this soon. I thought my major challenge would be Week 5 when I have to run for 20 minutes. Maybe C25K isn't the plan for me? I don't know...

All I do know is that I have to keep moving forward.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I did W3D1 yesterday, but did not do the full runs. If I can't do better tomorrow, I am going to repeat Week 3. This upsets me because I had my race schedule timed out perfectly, but if I can't DO Week 3, I should go on to Week 4. And there always will be another race if I have to push back. My knees still hurt, although not quite as bad today, it seems.

Today is Thanksgiving. I am not big on pigging out since I did have gastric bypass so my tummy is still not Thanksgiving Day friendly, but I do like to sample all the flavors and save room for a few spoonfuls of pumpkin pie. My kids are with their dad in South Carolina, so my mom and I are going over to our good friend's house for dinner. I have been there for T'giving several years and always have fun.

I am certainly thankful for all the blessings in my life... my children... my mom... my dad... and all my family. I also am thankful I have kept with an exercise program for 4 weeks now and am still going strong. It is daunting to face the C25K schedule each week, but I will overcome my fears and work though it.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Weigh Day

Sunday is Weigh Day and the news is good!

I lost 3.2 lbs this week. That makes up for the zero loss last week.

This week, I made an effort to journal my food intake and watch my calories. I was super good at it for about 4 days and marginal for the other 3. However, even when I didn't journal, I was aware of what I had eaten. I also cut down on snacking - which is my biggest problem. I LOVE Cheez-Its and anything salty and crunchy. When I got a craving, I would eat a handful of spicy Chex Mix because it satisfied my need to crunch and it was so spicy hot that I didn't want to eat anymore. Hey - whatever works! This week, I will continue to watch snacking and keep on course. I am pleased with my progress so far and I am almost under a big number. I should be under next week if all goes as planned. This will be a big accomplishment for me and will feel soooooooooooooo good.

My knees are a little sore today, but nothing too uncomfortable. I should be ready to hit the road again tomorrow. Week 3 of C25K means I have to run for 3 minutes straight. Yikes! I am nervous about the increase. And honestly, nervous that it only goes up from there... 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes... can I do it? Right now, from here, I can't imagine it happening. But hopefully, I can do it.

Yay! It's CHARM day!

Actually, tomorrow is the end of Week 2's training, but I was so pleased with my run today that I went ahead and gave my charm to myself today. I ran the C25K run exactly as directed. It was hard, but I did it! I really had to push myself on run 5 and I was enormously proud of myself for making it happen. As seen in the photo, my new charm is a little running shoe. It's very cute and looks great with my Princess charm. I love it!

Now the bad news... my knees HURT! They were somewhat sore this morning, but mostly felt like they needed a stretch. While I was doing my run, they didn't bother me a bit. But afterwards - yikes. They are SORE. So, I am sitting here blogging with ice on my knees just like a real runner.

What's that you say, invisible blog reader? I AM a real runner? Oh you are too sweet! But I think I will feel like a real runner when I can actually run longer. Right now, I am a baby runner in training.

I do think I will continue to use the treadmill to build up my endurance. I know I need to run on road - outside - to train... that's what they all say on the internet... but the hills just serve to discourage me and the fact that I can't finish the run as directed is upsetting. I want to know I can do what each week has planned for me and I just can't do that outside right now. I think what I'll do is run on the treadmill twice a week and outside twice a week. Then I can do the program to a "T" on treadmill days and give myself a break on road days. I mean, I'll do the best I can, but those hills are dream killers.

I need to bottle how I felt today after my run and take little sips when life starts to suck!

And again in the same day...

I was so excited about my shoes that I posted that and forgot I had a run to do today. I took the new shoes out for a spin and they are comfy. My calves seemed to get more tired than my old beat up tennis shoes though... which I thought was kinda weird. Anyway, my walk pace continues to be slow but my run pace continues to improve. I swear, I am trying to walk faster and run slower, but this is what I get:

I walked 1.81 miles in 31 minutes
Walk Pace - 18.15/mile
Run Pace - 13.37/mile

The hunt is on for a treadmill in earnest. It's getting chilly outside and the hills are discouraging me. Just running on the treadmill at the hotel made me feel like I was accomplishing something HUGE since I could do all the runs. I'm sorry, but this chubby gal just can't haul her booty up hills with anything resembling speed or grace. I know I will get better at it and I am really not trying to be hard on myself, I just thought it would be getting easier by now.

I did look down at my bracelet several times during my run and it was inspiring. I have decided to do a charm every other week and stretch it out to include my 1/2 marathon training. I downloaded Hal Higdon's 13.1 app for my iPhone. I chose it because it's the same developer as the C25K and I like the interface. So, funny enough, I calculated through the end of C25K and then the 12 weeks of HH 13.1 and it ends on April 1st. HH 13.1 wants you to pick a race day and then it plans the 12 weeks before it (down to the day). So I started looking for a 1/2 marathon in Raleigh around the first part of April and - whadaya know? There is a cool one on the very date I was to end training - April 1st. It's the Raleigh Rocks Half Marathon and 5K, so I guess this will be my first 1/2 marathon. I was sorta thinking the Princess 1/2 would be my first, but I don't want to go down there and be worried about finishing or be unfamiliar with how races work, etc. I want to be fast enough to stop and take pictures with the characters without worrying about getting swept. Soooooooooooo, Raleigh Rocks, here I come. I need to find a 5K before then and it would be nice to find a 10K too, but 10Ks are harder to find around here, it seems. Zaine is all about running with me at Raleigh Rocks, so we are both exciting to have a nice goal in the not-so-distant future. It's a mini-goal really... I'll never lose sight of the Princess 1/2, which is my ultimate goal. I wish Zaine could run with me in that one, but you have to be 14 years old.

I am going to run again tomorrow, and now that I have a goal in site that requires progress every week or I'll get behind, I really need to up my game. Plus, I just bought an $18 headband... I need to sweat it up so I get my money's worth!

I completed Week 1 of C25K!!!

OMG - I am so excited and pleased with myself. Now, I just have to do it all over next week! LOL

Today I walked 1.9 miles in 30 minutes.

Walk Pace - 18.27/mile

Run Pace - 15.53/mile

I slowed down my walk pace to try to do better on the runs, but my run pace was faster. I don't think I can run slower!! I was trying to run slow and this is what I did. Anyway, each day is better and better. I feel great at the end of each outing and not like I am fixin' to die. In fact, I probably could keep going, which is a good feeling.

I noticed I am going a bit further each day, which is great. The goal is to go 5k (or about 3 miles) in 30 minutes. I am really close to being at 2 miles!