C25K: Week 3

Good morning! I was very tired this morning, I didn't feel good, and I didn't feel like going out...but I did it anyway! And I'm one step closer to my goal because of it!

Friday, I didn't go out because my shins had started giving me problems again. £ decided to take a long weekend to rest up and give them a break.  I thought they were better, but the moment I started running this morning, the aches came right back. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do my run and would be walking the entire time, but at the end of my first 90 second jog, the ache had lessened, so I pushed through and did all four running sessions.

I fid, however, cut my 2.5 miles back to 2. This morning was extremely humid. Both Harley and I were struggling to catch our breath and couldn't cool off, so I called it quits after I finished the C25K workout and didn't finish my half mile walk do we could both go get some water.

Here are my stats today:

Distance - 2.03 miles
Time - 30:19 minutes
Average Pace - 14:54/mile
Fastest - 10:09
Slowest - 23:03
Calories Burned - 213

The humidity and traffic slowed my time down by a full second. The thickness of the air made it feel like I was running through a wall of water! And I probably slowed my pace slightly because of my shins.

Thanks so much for reading!

Weekly Weigh In

As promised, here are my updated stats:

Arms - 12.25
Chest - 37.5
Waist - 41
Hips - 42.75
Thighs - 21.5
Weight - 172.2
BMI - 27.4

I am dissappointed, but I also understand why I gained it back. This week, my goal is to do all three of my runs and drink at least 54 ounces of water every day.

Why I Want to Lose Weight

I've had a few people ask me why I started running and the simple answer is to lose weight. But there's so much more to it that that. I want to be able to fit my dobok and be a certified bad ass again. I want to be more active so I can keep up with my kids. I want to be a role model to my kids. But most importantly, I want to feel better about myself.

I dream of the day that I can look in the mirror and not hate what I see. Many days, I simply avoid looking in the mirror so I don't have to see myself. I know that when I see myself, my mood sours for the rest of the day. I pick myself apart and tell myself how much I hate this or that, how I wish I had just a little less fat here, a little more muscle there.. My inner Mean Girl comes out against my own body.

My mind still sees me as I once was - a fit, lean martial artist. When I see myself in the mirror, the reality sinks in and I realize I no longer have that body and I hate myself for it.

Not too long ago, my husband made me go though all of my clothes and give away anything from my previous body size. Why? Because every time I looked at them or tried to wear them, I started crying. I wanted so bad to be able to fit them again and when I couldn't,  it was like my soul was crushed.

It's been hard for me to adjust to the realization that I'm no longer a slim 7 to 9, but a little chunkier 14. There were even times when I really needed to go up to a 16. For over four years now I've been struggling with this. For over four years now, I've hated the person in the mirror. For over four years now, I've hated myself.

This weekend, I'm going to post my updated body measurements and pictures. I know I've gained a few pounds. I know I've lost some of my progress. I know I'm going to be discouraged and disappointed with myself. But I'm not going to let myself quit. I'm not going to give up. I'm going to keep pushing and keep working until I can look in the mirror and be proud of who I see reflected back to me. I'm going to keep working until I reach my goals.

C25K: Week 3 Day 2

I know I said I was going to post yesterday, but ad I was getting up and getting ready I noticed the house was awfully hot. Turned out, there was something wrong with our A/C system that we spent most of the day fixing.

I went out for a run today instead. Maybe it's a good thing this week is going to be a 3 day week instead of a 4 day. My shins are really sore from Monday's run, so I may have a few weeks of "recovery" 3 day runs instead of jumping back into the 4 day weeks like I was planning.

Anyway, here are today's stats:
Distance - 2.62 miles
Time - 37:36 minutes
Average Pace - 14:19/mile
Fastest - 9:03/mile
Slowest - 96:33/mile ??
Calories Burned - 281

I must have walked faster than usual today, as my average pace is almost a minute faster than usual, even though my running was a little slower. I will admit, I have been trying to speed it up because I want to keep my heart rate up in the "calorie burn" zone.

I changed up my route slightly today as Harley has been getting stickers in his feet in one particular area. I considered trying to put socks or something on his feet to try to try to repel them, but I know he would absolutely refuse to go outside if I did. If he did decide to put up with the sicks, hoeever, it would be quite comical to watch him trot along beside me!

It's been quite humid here the past few days, so any little breeze is much appreciated. However, on my last 3 minute round, I was running against the wind and it literally felt like I was trying to move a mountain. And it wasn't even a strong breeze!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go soak my shins an some Epsom salt bath. I'll see you guys Friday!

C25K: Week 3 Day 1 (Again)

This week, I'm repeating Week 3 again, and probably will for a few more weeks. I still have trouble running the full three minutes without stopping early because I can't catch my breath.

Last week, there was only one buzzard sitting on the tree watching me. Today, there were six! A few times, one of them would even fly over about 10 feet over my head and hover for a split second. I can only imagine he was checking to see how close I was to passing out.

Buzzards aside, however, I'm running some of my fastest times the past few outings. Here's today's stats:

Distance - 2.75 miles
Time - 35:40 minutes
Average Pace - 13:51/mi
Fastest - 8:59/mi
Slowest - 33:43/mi
Calories Burned - 248

I'll see you tomorrow!

C25K: Week 3 Day 1 Repeat

I know, I know.. I've been very lazy and unmotivated for the past few weeks. My husband was out of town and I was staying up too late to want to get up and go running at 7:00 am. Bad Hunter...

But I'm back into it now! Just got back in from a 2.5 mile run and I feel great! I was quite impressed with my stamina as I was able to still run for the 3 minutes that are in Week 3. Here's my times:

Time - 34:42
Average Pace - 15:13/mile
Fastest - 9:35/mile
Slowest - 33:12/mile
Calorie Burn - 244

I also had this critter watching me the entire time.. I was beginning to feel like Simba passed out in the desert!