i felt like runnin'...

I just finished week 5 of the Couch to 5k running program, and I thought I'd give an update. I just met a major milestone, not just in this program, but really in my life. As I explained earlier, I am not by nature a runner. Not one bit. So, not even in high school when they made us run sometimes do I remember running this long. Maybe I could do a mile, with some walking. And yesterday, I ran 20 minutes, 2 miles, without walking. No, it's not a high paced speed, but jogging to me is running. And I am beyond proud of myself.

Before I went out to tackle this latest challenge, I felt really uncertain. The longest time without walking that I had done was 8 minutes. I felt it was a HUGE jump to go from running for 8 minutes with walking then 8 minutes again to a whole 20 minutes. I actually doubted I could do it. But I prayed. I prayed for the strength to last and to push through no matter what I felt. And so I went out. I had driven the area I was running in, in a way to mentally prepare and understand where I'd meet certain goals. I knew where it was one mile. I started to go. I kept going. When I hit 10 minutes straight, I celebrated a little inside. I hit the mile. A little more celebrating. I kept going. I wouldn't say it was easy, but surprisingly, it felt easier to keep going than taking the walking breaks. My body was ready for the challenge. The last two minutes were the most challenging, where I just kept telling my tired self that I had made it that far so I could make it all the way. And I did. I made it.

I am more than halfway to my goal. I started out in a place where running for 3 minutes at a time was hard. Now that is the easy part. It amazes me how much our bodies can be pushed and can do more and more. When I started, I couldn't wrap my head around running for 20 minutes straight, let alone a 5k. But now, I see that I can, and will do it.



This picture and the video I showed you in my first blog about running are the reasons I started this. You might look at this picture and think I look nice, but seeing this picture made me sad. I had been fighting to lose weight for months, well, really years, and I was back in the range of being the heaviest I've been. I knew I needed to make a real decision to dig in and be healthy. I still struggle. My trip/birthday week threw me off in my eating habits, and I am just now getting that back on track. But I kept running. I am not sure what is different, but I have a motivation that won't quit. Even when I don't feel like it, I still find the time to run.

I haven't lost much weight, but again, I feel different. I can't wait to share with you once the weight starts coming off more. In fact, I am tempted to take pictures in that same outfit throughout the process. We'll see. I am just taking this one day at a time!