C25K Day 2

Before I get started, I just want to say that I will try to not to be one of those people who blog about their health and fitness progress and what they ate everyday and all that stuff all the time (I will start a new blog for that if I feel the need to be so detailed).  BUT I did want to say that running day two was great! It went so much smoother than day one and it is really motivating to see even a teeny smidgen of progress from day to day. And to not be mostly dead and ready to pass out afterward is good too! ^_~

I slapped on some blister blockers so my current owies didn't get any worse and got to it. I also shortened my stride and didn't have any problems with my hip hurting today which was fabulous! My legs muscles burned pretty good (as expected) but even right now as I am writing this they hurt less then yesterday when I didn't run at all. It is amazing how quickly your body heals and adjusts!

The hardest part was the "Battle of the Bed" and laying there at 5:30 as the alarm went off and arguing with myself about whether to go out or not. "But I'm so sore." "I have a late night tonight so I need more sleep." "My blisters hurt." *whine* But I sucked it up and got to it and am so glad that I did.

I like that Jon is participating too. Having someone else to go with really helps. I can make excuses for days for myself to stay in bed, but if I am committed to someone else then I am less likely to back out.

Another bonus was that it was refreshing to be outside so early in the morning. It is like Arizona woke up yesterday (conveniently on the first day of Autumn) and decided "okay, it is time to be fall". And even though the days still creep up to 100 degrees in the afternoon, the mornings have been crisp and beautiful. I am happy to have been awake and outside to enjoy them. =) This might bode very well for my wanting to be a morning person goal.

Lastly, my new running shoes shipped today and should be here next week! So excited!

One Step at a Time

Today I took the first step in a healthier lifestyle. The Boy and I started the Couch to 5K (C25K) running program.

It was a great day to start. We are (hopefully) coming to the end of a long, hot summer and are experiencing a few cloudy and rainy days. Today at 6:30am it was overcast, 67 degrees (which is a much welcome change) a bit humid out, but otherwise a beautiful day.

I downloaded the C25K app for my iPhone so that I wouldn't have to worry about keeping time of the walking/running intervals and just ran or walked till it beeped at me to change.

Overall it went about as well as I expected. It was tough, tiring, and almost fun. I think that doing strength training with EA Sports Active this summer helped to build up my endurance so I wasn't totally dead by the end of the run. I was sweaty, flushed, and felt like I might pass out or throw up. But I hear that is common for a newbie. ;)

On the plus side, I didn't have any knee pain or shin splints which is very normal for me when I do any high impact sports or exercises and is mostly why I hate running so much. But I didn't experience any of those problems, which was a huge relief! (Thanks again EA Sports!)

I still had issues towards the end of my workout with my hip hurting (again, another common issue for me) which limited me to walking for the last two run cycles which was kind of a bummer. But it will just take some time to build up strength in those muscles and I didn't want to overexert and injure myself on the first day and be put off on running all together.

I also read up a little today about hip-injuries in runners and there are some things I can do to try to help with the issues so I will try some of those things and see if it gets better. =)

The other problem I had was blisters. I also expected this. Even though it's sandal season, I have very soft, callous-less feet, that I take pride in thank you very much. But those delicate toesies make it easy for blisters to form. I also didn't have the best shoes or socks for running. But had I kept letting not having the right equipment get in the way, I would have never gotten started. ;) Excuses, excuses. So I think that The Boy and I might go shopping for proper shoes sometime this week if we plan to keep things up - which I hope!!

Oddly enough, the hardest part of the whole thing wasn't the running. It was getting out of bed in the morning. I have been trying all summer to "force" myself to become a morning person, and this too will just take time to form good habits. But whether I'm getting up at 5:30am or 11:00am that part is never easy. =P