Into Week 4 of the RW Beginner's Program

So, today marked Week 4/Day 3 of the beginner running program I'm doing.  There's a link to it below (in my ranting post-lol) but just in case you want to check it out I've added the link above as well (just click on the title of my blog-post) :-)

Also, as I wrote in my previous (ranting) post - I did take to the open road for today's run.  I noticed an immediate difference even just during my warm-up walking!  Having dabbled with running in the past I knew there was a difference (at least to me) between treadmill running (TM) & pounding the pavement (PTP) but ... it's been a while.

Today I had to not only make up my run/walk but also my 30 minute walk from yesterday so as I've done before - I just tack on 15 minutes of walking before the walk/run & 15 minutes after.  Although, it sucks that I'm missing days here & there & re-arranging my schedule to compensate for it .. it's actually quite nice because then I get a nice long warm-up & cool-down!

Ok, so back to how it went.  The first thing I noticed was that my ankles were getting sore, then my back started getting achy.  I thought to myself, no biggie - you expected this to be different (especially after 3 weeks of TM running), so I continued putting one foot in front of the other & after my nice long warm-up I proceeded to take to running.

Now, as I explained (or complained-however you want to read it-lol) in my previous post I've been struggling with keeping to my schedule.  Today, per the schedule, was to be my Run 9/Walk 1-3x's.  I missed Monday's Run 8/Walk so I had tossed it around in my head about whether or not to stick to the schedule or to do Monday's run.  Technically, rather than jumping from a Run 6/Walk to a Run 8/Walk, I'd be jumping to a Run 9/Walk (3 more minutes running - which I did).  I decided that I would push myself, yet be conscious of my body at the same time so that if I felt as though it was too much - I could cut my run cycle short by a minute & do the Run 8 instead.

I ended up pulling off the Run 9/Walk though!  It was HARD - no kidding, & I ended up walking 2 minutes between runs instead of 1 & for the last cycle - I walked 3 minutes prior to the final 9 minute run.

It's funny though, because I'm so used to knowing how fast I'm going (thanks to the TM), I kept thinking to myself - how fast am I running?  Am I even running?  Am I just jogging?  Are my feet even moving?  That then progressed on to:  Ok, getting a cramp so I'm definitely not just walking .... Ouch, that cramp hurts ... Be tough, you want to be a runner right?  Runner's deal with pain-deal with it!  Ok, breath .. keep running .... it's going away ... I can do this!!  God, I must look funny to people driving by ...

Needless to say, as I said - I pulled it off & really enjoyed my 15 minute cool-down!  The sense of accomplishment I feel each time is more than enough to keep my doing it.  The great thing is that since I knew the mileage for the road I was on - I know that I did at least 4 miles today!  The most I've done yet.  Now, granted that includes walking but it shows me that I wasn't running as slow as I thought I was!  It also serves as a reminder that my focus needn't be on speed but on completing my runs.

All in all - today was a great day.  A HARD-ASS-run definitely, but a successful run & that is worth it every time!



Oh, two more things:

1.  I'm tracking my running/walking progress so if you scroll down to the bottom of my blog, you can see what I've done so far this year.  Thanks to today - I broke 30 this month!  Once I complete the Beginner's Program I will only be tracking running (of course). &

2.  Since I started I've been using my spreadsheet/schedule to put notes about each days running & today I looked back at my week 1 & week 2 notes.  It was so neat to see how I've progressed!  I had a hard time going from Run 1/Walk 2 to Run 2/Walk 1 & now (of course) it'd be a breeze to just Run 2/Walk 1!  I found it to be very inspiring :-)

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Fitting my exercise schedule into my day is proving to be not quite so easy ...

As I posted previously, I devised an exercise schedule to hold myself accountable so that I'm more apt to continue on the path towards being healthy ...

Well, it's proven to be quite difficult to stick to.  I find that I'm more often tweaking the schedule & making up missed days on other days than I am actually sticking to "said" schedule.  It's frustrating because I created the schedule to make life easier, but instead it's making it more cumbersome (& as I said frustrating) when I have to continuously alter it.

Why am I having difficulty sticking to the schedule, you ask?

My weekly schedule basically consists of 6 days of cardio (The Runner's World 8-Week Beginning Runner's Training Program) along with 3 days which yoga is also added in.  That only takes up about 30-60min/day to accomplish depending on the day.  Not so bad right?  Wrong.

I am helping my boyfriend with his company & our schedule is such that I have every other day "off".  On my scheduled days I put in 12-13 hours straight.  On my "off" days I need to be available to help out as well so ... it's near impossible to get my running in half the time (yoga I can do in the office while working).

I feel like I'm making excuses which is partly why I'm writing this blog post (to put my thoughts into words; if even for just myself to read & work through).  He & I talked about fitting exercise into our schedules & agreed that we would happily cover for the other should one of us need to exercise on an "on" day.  On occasion, I've asked him to do so for me but I feel like I'm being selfish because he never asks me to do so for him, nor does he typically take me up on the offer when I offer to do so for him (ok that's super wordy ..).

So I ask myself ... Self?

• Am I just being foolish?
• Should I feel like I'm being selfish about this?  
• Am I really asking myself if I think I'm being selfish about something as important as my health & general well-being?  
• Why should I feel selfish about doing something that's good for me just because he's not? 
• (NR:  I totally just sneezed on my laptop screen.)
• Is it bothering me more because he's not doing the same?  
• Am I over-analyzing this?  
• Why is the sky blue?  LoL ...

Ok, time for a brief break.  I'll come back to this.  Time to grab a cup of coffee.  I need to get off my butt & go run too.  I need to go early in the day so I'm available to help out later.  I'm so stressed out - I can't even go run without wondering if it's really a "good time" to do it.  What if he gets super busy & I'm not here to help & he gets all stressed out?

Right, I just remembered - that's why I run - to de-stress.  Ok, time for me to get changed & get outside.  I've been hitting the treadmill since I started this schedule/program -  but today - it's gorgeous out & I'm hitting the pavement.  I can't wait to feel the breeze & the sun on my face ... putting one foot in front of the other ... just me & the world God gave us ... doing what we were all built to do ... live life & love that we were given the freedom (the blessing) to do just that.

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Want to add a nifty signature to your blog posts?

I stumbled upon this today & thought - I just have to share!!  Here's how mine looks.



If you'd like to get one for your blog or website simply go to: My Live Signature & create your own.  They offer a 100+ different fonts, as well as sizes and slopes to choose from.  You can even customize the color & background to compliment your blog or website design (like I did).

They do offer instructions on how to use the signature in blogger, but they appear to be outdated so I'll help you out:

• Once you've copied the HTML, sign into your blogger account.  
• From your dashboard click "Settings" then "Formatting".  
• Scroll down to "Post Template" & paste the HTML code.  

Note:  You can delete the "read more ... " portion that gets pasted - that's not part of the code.  Once you've pasted the code just save your changes & you're golden!  The next time you add a post you'll notice your signature already in the window.  You'll just have to type above it so it displays at the bottom of your post.

Enjoy!

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Rhino Spray & the Joys of Allergies ...

Well apparently I will be taking nose spray (aka rhino spray) for the rest of my God-for-Saking life (no offense to the big G).  I was prescribed it (along with Allegra) for my allergies, abundance of ear fluid & constant post nasal drip (sexy, I know).  The nurse practitioner that gave me the prescription asked that I truly give the rhino spray a shot & really commit to it & I gave her my word I would, even though I hate the feeling of spraying anything up my nose-ughk!  She said that given enough time, it would help reduce the amount of fluid in my ears & the post nasal drip.  I should point out here that when she looked in my ears, she was actually shocked at the amount of fluid in them!  She then looked in my throat & said "Yup, post nasal drip" (not that she needed confirmation after seeing my ears).  Anyway, I have to admit I was hoping it wouldn't work so I didn't refill it along with my Allegra last week.  I also thought I had more left over in the bottle than I did.

At some point last week I had a conversation with my boyfriend about whether or not the medications were helping.  I said something to the effect of "I think so" & proceeded to tell him that I was hoping it was the Allegra that was helping not the rhino spray.  I believe he then just looked at me like I was nuts (he does that a lot).

The night before last I realized I'd pretty much used up all of said spray so last night I went without (obviously).  I didn't think too much of it & went to bed as normal.  I woke up at about 3 o'clock in the am with my ears draining, a stuffy & runny nose (yes, that's possible) & this nasty taste in my mouth, complimented with a lovely amount of phlegm/mucus which, of course irritated my throat thus causing me to have a sneezing fit.  Needless to say, I immediately thought:  Shit, the nose spray was working!

What's funny is that I had completely overlooked the fact that I wasn't waking up with that awfulness when I was taking the nose spray.  I knew I was sleeping better & that my ears weren't draining nearly as much but that's about it.

Needless to say, I promptly jumped online to have my script refilled & will be picking it up today.

I also need to pick up some brown hair color (my highlights were growing out & driving me nuts so I attempted to go blonde & it's more strawberry blonde - no likey!), finish my laundry, vacuum*, & get my run on.  I've actually already put in 15 miles since the beginning of the year!  I'm tracking my miles via the little tracker-thing-a-mabobber at the bottom of my blog.

Oh & I had a really vivid dream this morning right before waking up.  Yes, my sleeping patterns are still all f'd up even though I sleep sooooo much better since putting my allergies in check & exercising regularly.  Ok, so -  it involved my mom, our old house, ghosts, skeleton keys, enormous spider webs & a black widow spider.  Don't worry, no-one was hurt (well, except the black widow).

* I swear, I will never in my life be able to properly spell the word vacuum.  Thank you my dearest spell checker, than you!

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"The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed"

The weather is starting to warm up, my blog layout is pretty much finished, running totally kicked my ass the other day & today is my day off.  What do I plan to do on my day off you ask (or you would if you were reading this & of course you are because my blog is just so incredibly-super-interesting, so who could resist reading it really?)?


First, more coffee.
Second, a nice long shower.
Third, the gym.
Fourth, ok - I didn't actually get that far yet, I do need to run out & get some milk though (exciting - I know!) ...

I am excited to get to the gym though.  I took yesterday off to rest so today I'll be walking a good 1/2 hour prior to running.  I'm really going to focus on my form because I've been doing some reading & I think I'm a major heel striker.  It's a bit controversial - some say it can/may cause injury & some insist that's absolutely untrue.  Additionally, I'm a sloppy runner so I'll be concentrating on maintaining not-so sloppy (lol) form as well.  I also plan to start out running a tad slower than I have been so I don't bonk 1/2 way through.  I had a hard time getting through my last run & I'm almost positive it was due to my running speed.

Oh & the saying that's the title of this post kept me going during that run so I wanted to share it.  It's an old Chinese saying (I'm not sure of the author) that I find to be simply amazing.  I found it to be such even prior to running & more so when I was fighting a mental/physical battle running & it rang as completely true.  I hope you like it too.

If anyone has any other quotes they'd like to share - please do!

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Brrrrrrrrrrrr!

After a brief break from the cold weather in South Florida (yes, I used the words SOUTH FLORIDA & cold weather in the same sentence), it has once again reared it's ugly head. In some areas (slightly north of here) there were actually reports of freezing rain & flurries. This is something I haven't seen in my 2+ years down here & it's a first for SoFlo as well. Record breaking low temperatures in fact!

You see folks, in Florida, going outside & being able to see your breath is not something that occurs very often (ok, not at all), however this morning, low & behold, as I stepped out onto my terrace, I saw my breath. This made me think 2 things:

1. Ok, I'm not being a sissy. It IS flipping cold out! &
2. OMG, it could actually snow (I didn't look at the weather reports of said snow until after these thoughts, but I'm from CT so I know the tell-tale signs).

This is by far the strangest winter down here. I feel so bad for the northerners that came down for Christmas or just a vacation from the cold, only to find themselves ... well, in the cold.

I can't help but ask ...

Mother Nature?

If you're reading my blog (which I'm totally sure you are, because anyone who's anyone reads my blog) ... Could you please bring back the warm temperatures? Or at least give us one good, true snow so we feel like it was worth it? I mean, what are cold temperatures good for unless they produce some type of frozen precipitation? A little help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Oh, & please don't let this kill the flowers.

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Still Working on Updating ...

Wow, I picked out one template & then found some really nice backgrounds & voila ... started searching more & found more & more.  Unfortunately, one can completely zone out while sitting at their computer trying to find the "perfect" layout for one's blog & I have been doing just that.  I did have a lot of fun tweaking my header picture & I'm very happy with how it came out.

I did end up finding one that I really like (the one you're seeing now) however, it has tons of options so I'm still working on changing it to be just how I want it.  When I started, I didn't realize I would be spending hours upon hours until I was happy with the final outcome.  Watch me end up changing it completely back to the way it was!  I'd totally kick myself in the ass for that but, yet .. at the same time ... I wouldn't put it past myself :-)

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Under Construction (again)

Sorry folks, I'm revamping the blog layout again.  As previously stated, I realized the previous template wasn't compatible with Chrome or FireFox & I'd like for it to be compatible with all browsers.  It shouldn't take too long so kindly bear with me :-)

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Exercising & the runner's high

It's been a while since I've gotten off my lazy butt & truly exercised.  Well, until this past weekend anyway.

I know the stigma associated with making a "New Year's Resolution" ... blah, blah, blah ... however I've been putting it off & putting it off so I figured it was the perfect time.

Without delay, immediately on New Year's Day I went in search of the perfect routine to get started.  I used to be a Certified Personal Trainer so I know where my weak areas lie & I know what I need in order to stick with a program.  Taking that into consideration, I went with a Yoga/Weights combination workout & to kick my cardiovascular system into gear, as well as to maintain health, I also added a beginner's running program.

I also put them both into a spreadsheet so I can monitor my progress & be held accountable for my actions (or lack there of should I miss a day).  This is key (for me anyway).  I need to be able to map out my plans & also be able to watch my progress.  This monitoring for me = motivation.  Granted, I don't have to answer to anyone but myself ... but, it's still there in black & white (well, & green & blue because I used MS Excel & made it all puuurrrty :-)).



Anywho, thus far it has been terrific.  I love that I've worked Yoga into my routine & that weights are a part of it.  I feel wonderful afterwards & I know I'm doing something good for both my mind & my body.  The other terrific aspect about yoga is the versatility.  I can add & deduct poses & even completely change it around of I want to.  I tend to get bored easily when working out (if I do the same routine for a while) so change is imperative!

I chose the beginner's running program because quite frankly I've really hated running in the past.  Admittedly, I far too often started out too gung-ho & ended up getting shin splints & being out of breath & frustrated.  This time, I'm doing it right.  Also being a beginner's program it includes a lot of change to help you progress in running skills.  The program also involves walking which bores me but it's good because it forces me to slow down & gives me a chance to "rest" while also getting exercise.

Since starting my new routine I've also been sleeping A LOT better & I'm loving it!

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