So, I totally overestimated my fitness in terms of running. I guess I was tricked by my hard exercise biking the day before and by my ability to walk really fast and leave my friends in the dust. But running is a whole different beast and right now, I suck at it!
I started out really quickly walking at a fast pace to warm up, then I started my first running burst. I live on a large �block� that is one mile around. My original plan was to do 100 steps running followed by 100 steps walking and so on for 2 trips around the block (lake actually). I started my first running spurt at the first corner and did my 100 steps. I actually had trouble and got out of breath at about the 80th step but I kept going. It took me until well past the next corner before my breathing calmed down enough to do a 2nd burst. So, I did my 2nd burst and also started running out of breath around step 80. But again, I finished the burst. I never did another burst, just finished the trip around the lake walking. My whole head started to hurt by the time I got back to my street so I decided not to push it for a 2nd trip around the lake.
I felt kind of discouraged at first. Last time I started running, I could do 150 steps and that was on the first try. This time, I could barely do 100. I was kind of worried. But I had done one thing differently this time. I had talked to someone who started running last year and her big advice was right from the start to really make sure you put your foot down heel to toe. She started out running on just the tips of her feet and it took her a while to get the right stride. So she said to really focus on that at first. So last night when I went running, I did. I made sure with every stride I put heel first and rolled my foot to the toe. I felt it a lot more in my legs, and definitely in my lungs. I still feel it in my legs this morning. So I realized that doing it the right way is a harder workout than doing it the wrong way. I also realized, everybody has to start wherever they are at. It doesn�t matter where you start, it just matters that you keep going. So I�m going to keep it up, going to try to run 3 times a week and do other exercises at the gym 2 times a week. The amount of time I can run will vary a bit due to the weather. I have trouble on treadmills and get all disoriented. But if I try walking a bit on the treadmill, I can probably overcome that, I have before when I used to do the treadmill a lot. So until I overcome that, I won�t run on the treadmill. Plus, I find it harder to run on a treadmill than in real life because in real life, when you want to change your pace, you just do it. But on a treadmill, you have to adjust the treadmill speed. So anyway, that�s my plan. And I�m not even going to THINK about how I�m doing for at least 6 weeks. I�m just going to listen to my body and do what it tells me. If it feels like I can do more than 100 steps, I will. If it tells me it needs to walk, then I will. I know that in 6 weeks I WILL see a difference and improvement.
I have had a really productive day at work, so I need to get back to it before I disrupt my momentum. I have to go on a business trip to San Antonio sometime either at the end of this month or early next month. I don�t know which yet, but I have a lot to do to get ready for that trip, so I need to get on it.
I got home late for 2 reasons. First, traffic was INSANE. The second reason was pure stupidity. I needed to pick up some dry cleaning after work. I remembered it when I got in my car. But as I pulled out of the parking lot, my body just went on auto-drive. Before I knew it, I had gone several miles towards home, the wrong direction for the cleaners. So I had to turn around, back track and then some to get to the cleaners.
Alright, really, I�m going to go work now.
