Day 12 - 5K - Next Week

I am on a business trip next week and doubt if I can squeeze in a couple of runs, given my reputation to run by myself. The following week is my race. I am pretty nervous about the it given, I am not going to be working out as much as I should be.

Shoe update - My stability seems to be weighing down my feet. I might just switch it back for a neutral shoes.

Day 11 - 5K - Stability Shoes

You cannot reason out every thing in life. It's tougher to do so with running. Unless you keep all the variables constant and play around with one attribute a time. My Thursday run did not go well and I have no clue if it was the weather that day or what I ate. Which sucks as I ate caramel popcorn. I could not make it to the cafeteria before lunch time, all that was left was snacks.

Also I got my new shoes. The person at the store did a shoe fitting. That means she watched the way I walked with a focus on how I land when I walk or run. My job was to take the shoes outside for a spin and give her appropriate feedback. She suggested neutral shoes with cushioning to protect my knees. After a few try outs I walked out of the store with a pair of Stability Shoes.

I met my running group on Thursday after our run at a local restaurant for a happy hour. I am not there yet where I can talk and run at the same time, it was a nice to exchange conversations and to get to know the other runners in a relaxed social setting

Sunday the weather was fabulous with temperatures around 70. My friend and I went on our mind-clearing 5 mile walk. I am looking at adding some regular yoga to improve posture and some weight training.

Day 10 - 5K - Power Of Stretching

As you know from my previous post, I walked for 2 miles last Sunday after my 1 mile run. I totally under estimated the workout and did not stretch. Well, it was just walking. That's what I thought until I woke up tight around my knees and if you saw somebody walking crazily around the Dallas TX area, it was probably me.

What came to my rescue was ice. The title should have been, "The Power of Ice".

We added rolling hills to our run today. Again, another 2 miles in 30 minutes run.

Day 9 - 5K - Social Walk

A long long time ago, when I first started Yoga, I taught my husband Surya Namaskar. His routine every morning is to run/walk a mile and some Surya Namaskars. He is slim and fit. I just cannot bring myslf to do all that by myself. That's just not me. Exercise is fun for me only when it's a social event. I do great in classes or group activities.

You probably know my routine now. I run 2 times a week with a group and once during the weekend by myself. I don't do justice to the weekend run which is supposed to be a long one. You guessed it right, it's done all by myself. I am trying to look for a workout buddy, one who can either run (preferably at my pace) or cross-train in the gym with me. I found one this weekend and we went on a 2 hour walk. Guess walking buddies are the easiest to find.

Workout Log - Sunday 10/30
Run - 1 mile
Walk - 4.5 miles in 2 hours.

Things To Keep In Mind While Working Out With A Buddy

• Ensure your excuses and theirs' does not result in skipping too many workouts
• A similar workout level and interest is preferable, especially with the running or gym workouts.
• Walking is more accommodating when it comes to working out with buddies
• Have more than one buddy. One for cross-training in the gym, one with whom you can talk your heart away or another one who loves water aerobics just like you do.

Go easy on the candies tomorrow. Happy Halloween!!!

Day 8 - 5K - Running in the Rain

We all have our imaginations or notions of a defining moment. Mine was always me reaching for the finish line in a race; that I thought defines me as a runner. Instead, the moment was somewhere in the middle of a trail, me running with my eyes down avoiding the rain  in wet cotton socks freezing my feet. On the spur of a moment I looked up with a conscious effort to correct my posture. The tree line by the canal on a cloudy day with tiny droplets falling down;  I was proud of myself for not coming up with another excuse and the freezing feet did not bother me one bit.


I ran another 2 miles today. We ran early today as there was a guest speaker from Cooper Clinic to talk to us about restorative exercises.

Right after the run, I bought a three pack dri-stitch Brooks socks that keeps the feet dry from sweat/rain/water while running.

Points to Ponder

• Never run in rain when accompanied by lightning
• Always wear clothes including socks that effectively wicks moisture and keeps the skin dry
• Cotton clothes or socks can get heavy and makes you cold as it absorbs water.

Day 7 - 5K - Running Form

The best thing about running with a group is that your coach can assess your running form and provide the required feedback. The right form can make sure your energy is spent on moving forward and not wasted else where. Hips and arms are where my focus is going to be this week when I run.

I ran 2 miles today and I can tell you I am in wrong shoes.

Notes to Self

1. Get a good running shoes this week
2. Try to add workouts outside of the running schedule
3. Be good to knees. A pound lost is a pound off those knees. Remember portion size & healthier options.

Day 6 - 5K - Roller Coaster

Work hard, party harder was my motto this weekend. A few bites of desserts and 2 cups of wine got in the way of my Sunday work out. I spent most of the day lazing around that I am not quite proud of.

For some motivation, I called up my brother and was chatting with him. He is a huge fitness buff. He hiked Half dome in California this year and is planning to hike Machu Picchu next year. That did not help much on Sunday. Motivation needs to come from inside, isn't that right? I ran a mile Monday, which is still less than what is expected. Hopefully I catch up tomorrow.

Day 5 - 5K - Eating Right

The first few days I had second thoughts about the running group I was assigned to. The runners were faster than I am. My coach and I discussed this a bit. She did not seem too concerned (atleast she did not show it). But I gave myself a 2 more runs to see if I was able to catch up. Last class, I was leading the group in some places. There was no panting and I did not want to stop running. I could have gone for some more time. I finally found my running secret.

My secret may never work for you and yours might never work for me. I will spill it anyways. Eating a light lunch and little to no snack until my run at 7 happens to be secret. I found my secret when I was randomly pondering about a time in my life when I ate right, exercised and was well with in my desired weight range. I can't imagine it now, but this is how simple my life used to be.

Breakfast - Coconut water
Coffee at work
Light lunch
An hour long aerobics after work 3 times a week
Light(er) dinner. Weekends meant usually eating out(with dessert et al) with family or friends.

I am trying to follow the same routine at least food-wise. Please note the above schedule does not include 2 kids and a husband. This is the schedule I try to follow and keep it up most days.

Breakfast - Oatmeal at work
Coffee @ work
Soup for lunch
A few bites of snacks does get in the way that I am trying to avoid.
Run - 2 times a week for 20-30 minutes.
Dinner

Its the weekends that turn things upside down. I seem to have much less control over my weekends than what I have with the weekdays.

Day 4 - 5K - Breathe Easy

Talk about being over booked, actually triple booked. My son's soccer practice, my daughter's choir performance and my run, all at the same time this week. Did I miss the party I am coordinating this weekend? By the time I got together with my running group, it felt like an achievement, not to have used these as an excuse to skip running.

It was 65 degrees cool and windy. A perfect day for a run. We continued with the same workout as last Thursday's but the breeze or borderline winds helped my breathing immensely. I was hardly ever panting.

Moral of the story
#1 If you are new runner starting to run in Texas, Fall is a good time to do so.
#2 I can always workout early in the morning but too bad I would have to be awake to do so.

Day 3 - 5K - Long Run

My husband joined me on my run today and we left before anyone else in the house woke up. Run for 4; Walk for one; Repeat 5 times. I covered 1.64 miles in 25 minutes. If you have none of those expensive gadgets you can always use mapmyrun.com. and other sites to see how many miles you walked/ran. We continued the walk and covered a total of 3.11 miles including a stop at the local coffee shop.

How interesting, I did not have to perform any kind of soliloquy in my head to stay away from the pastries. All I wanted was a bottle of water.

What a cruise to victory for the  Rangers last night!!!! I hope they win the finals.

Day 2 - 5K - Back to Basics

Apart from being mammals, I have two odd similarities with dogs. I swim doggie paddle like a dog and pant like one while running. My legs were not hurting; I was able to keep up the pace except for the breathing. The Lazy-Me wanted to move to a group that walked for two minutes and ran for one. There is no pushing myself in that space and consequently no benefits either. The Idealist-Me wanted to work on my breathing. Only time will tell who won in the end or even which one was a better decision for me in the long run.

We ran for 4 minutes, walked a minute and repeated the same for the next 20 minutes. No matter what philosophers tell you about time, a minute is not long enough.

Lung capacity is not one of the greatest strengths in my side of the family tree. There are numerous cases of asthma. I had asthma when I was younger and grew out of it in my mid-twenties. There are tons of tips on improving breathing techniques on the internet highway. I know well, I can't solve this in one post but made a pact with myself to head to the Friday Yoga class today at my local gym.

Day 1 - 5K - Get out of the couch

Day 1 aka assessment day. Every one who signed up for the program was asked to run a mile. I ran mine in 12 minutes 44 seconds. Is it face book-status worthy or something I should be embarrassed about or does it not even matter in the big scheme of things? Well, I am not going to jump in and set a number goal as yet. But pretty soon, I will need to. Its easier for me to set measurable goals in baby steps and mark off as many as possible as complete. I will be assigned a group and a coach this Thursday.

One of my friend living in New York called today to let me know she is getting married. She is the one I promised I will host her bachelorette party. In between ... do send in all your ideas. Also learnt a couple of weeks ago that I have to be in New York sometime in November. Umm ... What a lovely coincidence!!!

Turkey Trot Race

I enrolled for the walk to 5K program in July for 9 weeks. I followed the regime to about 10% and generously excused myself for rest of the time for varying reasons from road work to 'too far away'. I can't give up, can I? I enrolled today for the Turkey Trot race held Thanksgiving Day.

As I filled out the form, there was a spot for listing existing physical conditions. "Laziness" would fit right in there as it stands in the way between me and my first 5K. May be its not a physical condition but a mental one.  Freud called it a psychoanalytical concept where people sought pleasure and avoided pain* . For most of us, prolonged exposure to laziness makes the body inactive; it turns out being a physical condition as well.

Well adieu to laziness and hello 5K as my training starts tomorrow.

* Reference : Freud's Pleasure Principle

Welcome

Apart from all the other things, supposedly my daughter's friends think of me as a"cool mom" who blogs about style and is always dressed up well for the school occasions. So my daughter was not too pleased when she heard I was taking a detour with the subject of blogging. Well, a girl women has to do what she has to.

The story behind the change is not by any means impressive. But I will spill it out anyway. Right after I reached home after a business trip, I asked my husband how his mornings were? Did he have trouble getting the kids ready for school and taking the kids to the classes? Blah ...blah... More importantly I wanted to know if he squeezed in his morning run and yoga practice. I was surprised, he ran 2 out of 4 days; kept up with his yoga all 4 days and to top it all, he more than compensated for the 2 non-running days during the weekend. That was the light bulb moment.

What to Expect

Be it running, yoga or simply walking around the neighborhood, I will post my activities and my efforts on taming temptations of excuses and laziness woven with tit-bits of my life stories. At some point I will try to break away from the delusion that I have healthy eating habits and I am not over-weight.