Week 5 day 2 = FAIL :(

(Week 5 day 2 was a 5 minute warm-up walk, an 8 minute run, 5 minute walk, 8 minute run then a cool down walk)

Today's workout didn't go so well. And by "didn't go so well" I mean it went terrible.

I started out strong. 5 minute warm-up walk and then the dreaded 8 minute jog. I was really proud of myself when I made it all the way through the jog. Then came the next 5 minute walk. I really didn't want to start jogging after that.

When Ms. Potts (is that right, Beth?) told me to start jogging in her English accent, or whatever accent it is, I kinda felt like punching her in the face. Or in my iPod, technically. Oh, wait. I forgot a part. Let me go back just a bit....

While I was doing the 5 minute walk I had some visitors. You see, I am a closet exerciser. I don't want to be seen or bothered while I am exercising. Especially when it is my ONLY time alone all day. Yet Carter felt like trying to lay down on the treadmill as I was doing my second 5 minute walk. I felt like I had to constantly watch where he was at because he was always attempting to stick some body part on the belt of the treadmill. And Darek saw this time as an opportunity to sit on our bed and talk on the phone. WHERE I WAS EXERCISING. So, I had lots of visitors tonight.

Ok, done with the back story. Did I mention I hate having visitors while exercising? I thought so. I finished the 5 minute walk hoping that the visitors would be gone by the time I had to jog, but no such luck. So I start jogging. I made it about 3 minutes into the jog and had to drag the younger visitor out of the room after repeatedly telling him to not put body parts on the belt. At that point, I was a bit irritated (quite the understatement!) and sat and waited for the older visitor to come watch the younger one so I could finish in PEACE.

I jogged another few minutes then gave up all together. I was frustrated and just DONE. I guess I will try again in 2 days.

Week 5 day 1

(Todays workout was a 5 minute warm-up walk, jog 5 minutes, walk 3 minutes, jog 5 minutes, walk 3 minutes, jog 5 minutes then a 5 minute cool-down walk.)

I REALLY did not feel like jogging today. Not at all. Zilch motivation. But I had to do it, so I did. It was ok. I expected today to be easier than it was- it sounded easier than last week's workouts! But by the last 5 minute jog I was pooped. I made it, but just barely. This makes me really nervous for my next workout which is jog 8 minutes, walk 5 minutes, jog 8 minutes. Ick.

I feel like since I have been running I have been depriving everyone of cute kid pictures. Sorry. So here are a few to make it up:

(Carter eating an ice cream cone in my new car. Scary.)

(Fatty McFats-alot- she weighs almost 17lbs now)

(Mimi and the grandkids)

Last day of week 4!

(Same workout as last time)

The workout went well, I completed it without croaking. I didn't have time until 8:00pm to run, so I had to do it on a semi-full stomach. That was no fun!

Anyway, next week will be interesting. Each day is a different workout. It will keep me on my toes.
I thought I would share with you my super Exercise List #1:

Black Eyed Peas- The Time
Black Eyed Peas- Don't Stop the Party
Ke$ha- We R who we R
Pink- Raise Your Glass
Nelly- Hot in Here
Enrique feat. Pit Bull- I Like It
Beyonce- Single Ladies
Black Eyed Peas- Do It Like This
Black Eyed Peas- The Best One Yet
Unk- Walk it Out

Don't judge me. This is just good stuff to run to! I would love to have an Exercise List #2, so if there are any suggestions out there I would appreciate them!

Week 4, Day 2

(Same workout as the previous one! 16 total minutes of running- not all at once, though!)

I am doing it! I am closing in on the halfway point of the couch-to-5k (C25K for short) program. It is amazing. I want to thank Beth for being my personal cheerleader! I need you here to make me run further, though!

Tonight, I just did NOT feel like giving up. I did the 3 minute jog, then the 5 minute, then the other 3 minute and then I was down to the last 5 minute jog. Go big or go home. Time to do or die. Sh*t or get off the pot (as my dad would say).

You might recall (and if you don't, then just scroll down to the last post) that last time I did a bit of extra walking in between the last set of runs and then I took a break during the 5 minute jog. I figured I would end up doing that again tonight, but I didnt. I wanted to do it just to say that I did it without any breaks. And I made it.

And you know whats crazy? When the nice English lady told me I have 10 seconds left I felt like I could still run another minute if I had to.

P.S. Does anyone have any suggestions for a name for my nice English lady??

So, I lied.

(Week 4- brisk 5 minute warm-up walk, jog 1/4 mile or 3 minutes, walk 90 seconds, jog 1/2 mile or 5 minutes, walk 2 1/2 minutes, jog 1/4 mile or 3 minutes, walk 90 seconds, jog 1/2 mile or 5 minutes)

Last time I wrote I said that I was going to do another day of week 3. But then I got to thinking: how will I ever go further if I don't just push myself? So why should I do an extra day of week 3 when I KNOW I can do the week 3 workout just fine?

I decided to be brave and try week 4. It sounded SUPER hard, and it was. I did the warm-up walk, jogged the 3 minutes (right now I am going to just go by the time because that is what the program does on my iPod. It should be pretty much right on with the distance), and then walked the 90 seconds. I still felt pretty good but I was sure I wouldn't make it through the 5 minutes. But I DID! I was so proud of myself. 5 WHOLE MINUTES! Then, it was a 2 1/2 minute walk, then I did the 3 minute jog just fine. But after that I was DEAD and so I extended the 90 second walk by about 2 minutes to catch my breath and decided to give the next 5 minute jog a shot. I made it about 3 minutes into it, took a 2 minute walk and then finished up the jog. After a 5 minute cool down walk I was pooped! But I feel great. I'm not even disappointed that I had to do some extra walking because I still did awesome.

I have also been getting a lot of compliments on my weight loss. That is always nice. But the best part is I notice it myself. I am a little less squishy and a little more fit and that is amazing. Anyway, after this week I am half-way through the 5k training!

Same old, same old.

(still on the week 3 workout)

Ever have the feeling there are not enough hours in the day? Seriously, where did today go??

From the moment I woke up, it has been changing diapers, feeding children, entertaining children, more diapers, nap time for children, more food, play, diapers, snacks, play, supper, tv time and then hustling to get ready for bed time. Oh yeah, I did manage to exercise in there. Just barely though (and I had to miss some of my favorite show to make time).

I am trying to give Carter more of a schedule. I made a "Good Boy Board" to help us out some. There is this ride-on toy he wants from Wal-mart, so we are using that as incentive. There are 4 categories on the board: Pick up toys, go to bed on time, pee on the potty, and poop on the potty. Each time he does one of those things he gets a sticker on the board. 25 stickers in each category = the ride-on toy.

So far, it's going well. Carter had been going to bed at like 1130. it was a mess. So I wanted to change that. Now, at 9 he gets his jammies on (or bath if it's bath night), brushes his teeth, then we read books, he gets a bit of tv time, then lights off at 10. I know that sounds late by most peoples' standards, bur it is a vast improvement! And I managed to take a 2 second shower which i consider a luxury because I wasn't trying to fight him to get him to sleep!

Anyway, exercise went well tonight. No breaks- I completed the workout. I don't think I am ready for next week yet (it has a couple 3 min runs and a couple 5 min runs- EEEK!). I might do one more day of week 3 and then move on. We will see!

Week 3...continued.

(Same workout)

Happy Valentine's Day (a day late!). Hope everyone had a great day! We went vehicle shopping and traded in our car for something a bit bigger. That way whenever we need to go anywhere (like when Darek's parents visit) we won't have to take 2 vehicles everywhere. So, it was a good day.

Today, I did another week 3 workout. Last time was AWESOME and this time not so much. I did great until the last 3 minute run. I paused for a minute to catch my breath, then i finished it. I always hate pausing because I feel like I failed the workout or that I ruined it or something. But I know this isn't the case. I also read that sometimes you have a bad workout and your next one is a breakthrough one where you just do amazing. So, I will accept that.

I also got a knee brace and that REALLY helps. No pain today! I am going to do one more week 3 workout then move on to week 4 (which sounds REALLY DIFFICULT. Ugh).

Week 3- whatever # I am on....

(Same as previous workout!)

Today was an OK workout. I don't think that I am positive enough about the whole situation. I tend to think "Oh, I ONLY ran that much??" not "OMG! I am TOTALLY AWESOME for making it that far!!!". I'm not sure why this is. I am usually a very positive person.

Last workout I had a very hard time. This time my knee hurt like crazy but I MADE IT! I completed the entire workout with no stops or cheating.

I had a little help this time. I downloaded an app for my iPod- it is made especially for people doing the couch-2-5K program. It is awesome. I can still listen to my music, but it lowers the volume on it every now and then and tells me "Keep going! You only have XX seconds left" and "The next run will be 3 minutes, but you have done that already! You can do it!". I love it. It also told me something I hadn't thought about before. She (a lovely-voiced English woman) told me that I was doing a great job and to "just think, you just ran 3x more than you did just 2 weeks ago!". It was just the motivation I needed. :)

Week 3

(Week 3- 5 minute warm up walk, jog 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, jog 3 MINUTES *GASP*, walk 3 minutes, jog 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, jog ANOTHER 3 MINUTES, walk 3 minutes)

Instead of doing an extra day of week 2's workouts, I decided to go ahead and try week 3. I wanted to push myself (especially after last week- I felt like giving up).

I went into today's workout just KNOWING that I could not run 3 minutes. I mean, come on. That is over 400 yards. I can't do that! But I wanted to try. So, I stretched extra good (some of my joints are super sore, so I was hoping that would help), and began my warm up walk. I did the 90 seconds, walked the 90 seconds, and then it was time. I actually made it the WHOLE 3 minutes. I was shocked. I felt like I was going to croak, but I DID IT! I walked 3 minutes, did the last 90 second jog then walk. And I just couldn't do the last 3 minute jog. No way. I decided to walk an extra minute to see if I could catch up enough to try it. I decided to give it a shot. I made it about 2 minutes, stopped for a minute to catch my breath, then ran for about 30 more seconds. I walked a bit more to cool down.

It wasn't a COMPLETE failure. I was happy I made it through the first 3 minutes, and I really did come close on the second set. Hopefully in the next workout or two I can get 'er done.

Week 2/Day 6

I hate the cold weather. I mean, REALLY hate it. It's supposed to get down to -4 degrees tonight. With a wind chill of NEGATIVE 15 to 20. That's really freaking cold. And I can feel it in my bones.

Bone-wise, I am probably the equivalent of a 70 year-old woman. Its bad. And since it is so freaking cold outside my bones HURT. They ache and crunch and scrape and groan. And I limp, and creak and hobble along. Tonight, it was my knees that were the worst. Usually it is anything that has been previously broken (i.e., my ankle, my heel, my cheek, my finger, etc.). I guess it decided to mix it up a bit.

Anyway, I still exercised. It hurt. A lot.

I also need to find the best time for me to jog. I have been doing it at about 8pm when mom gets home from work and can watch the 2 kiddos. But after watching the 2 kiddos alone all day, I am pretty much pooped by that time. And since little miss Kinsley really doesnt like to be put down, I dont have much choice. I will have to try to come up with something.

Also, I think I will do one more day of Week 2 even though I should be starting week 3.

Week 2- Day 5

(Day 5 is walk 5 min for warm up, jog 90 sec, walk 2 min and repeat that for 20 minutes)

Today was day number 2 of the new week of exercises. Last time, I felt like I was going to die before the 90 seconds of jogging were up. Tonight, I felt like I was going to die, but maybe a little less painfully. It wasn't too bad. But I was thinking about how last week I was about to die during the 60 second jogs. I would give my right leg to go back to that! (Ok, not really). So, its funny how now 60 is nothing anymore. I know one day I will think about how 90 seconds was nothing, and then how the 3 minute jog was nothing (thats next week and I am nervous!), etc.

Anyway

, things are going good- I've lost 10 lbs since I had Kinsley. That puts me about 6 lbs under my normal weight. I am very happy with that and only 4 lbs from my SUPER-ULTIMATE goal. I have a feeling I am going to pass that like its nothing :)

Oh, and I was still alive at the end of the workout tonight, so I walked an extra 5 minutes to see how far I could get in the 30 minutes. By May my goal will be to run the whole 3 miles in 30 minutes.

P.S. I have tried SEVERAL times to edit and post this so it isn't all squished together like it is. And for some reason it won't work. So, sorry.

Week 2

(Day 4- first day of week 2. The exercises are: 5 min warm-up walk, jog 90 seconds, walk 2 minutes, jog 90 seconds, walk 2 minutes, repeat until 25 minutes is up)

(and my new hair)

Today was the first day of Week 2. Ugh. My legs are TIRED! I really didnt think I was going to make it. And I cheated on the last set- I gave up about 10 seconds early to prevent myself from having a heart attack.

Anyway, I went and got my hair done today. Back to blonde again! Love it. And we added a few dabs of pink in the back just for some spice!

Day 3 (repeated....)

(Insert boring treadmill picture HERE but since I dont have one today I will insert a cute baby picture THERE)

I don't have a treadmill picture today. I was jogging like a maniac and accidentaly hit the emergency stop thingy on the treadmill. So, I had to start again and so it looked like I only worked out for 5 minutes. Whoops.

Todays exercise was ok. I feel like I'm going to croak while I am doing it and then as soon as I am done and my breath is caught again I feel great. Like right now for example. I finished about an hour ago and feel like I would be able to go again. Maybe I should go for longer?

Anyway, tomorrow will be my "off" day and then I think I will attempt to start the next week. Week 2's exercises are: Brisk 5 minute warm up walk, then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes. I am kind of nervous about this because I am pooped after 60 seconds of jogging. This will be the time when I need someone like they have on TV yelling at me that I can do it and dont stop, etc. But I am not a bagillionaire so I do not have a personal trainer. Let's hope the Black Eyed Peas will be an ok substitute.

Tonight I experimented with going a bit faster than I had been going. It was a bit easier, so maybe I was going too slow. I think I will go the slower speed for my 90 second jog and see how it goes.

Also, I really don't like having an off day. This program suggests it so that way your muscles have a chance to rest and heal. And I agree that this is necessary, I just feel weird not doing anything on my off days. So, I think I am going to walk on the treadmill on those days. Nothing major, just a slow steady walk to make me happy.

More updates to follow :)

Day 3

(Day 3 is the same exercises as day 1. It is supposed to be the last of that exercise routine)

I learned a very valuable lesson during yesterdays workout. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT exercise right before lunch time.


I tend to have problems with my blood sugar dropping if I don't eat at the same time each day or if I skip a meal. I get sick or light headed and just feel like poop. And for some reason I had decided that right before lunch yesterday would be the perfect time to exercise. Wrongo.


Even from the very beginning I felt tired and that the time was passing too slow when I wanted it to go fast (during the jog part) and much too fast when I wanted it to go slow (during the walk time). I was pretty sure I was either going to pass out or just give up before I made it very far. But I kept going and made it through the workout. Just barely. I didnt do any extra, I gave right up as soon as I was done.


So, I think tomorrow when I should be moving on to the next week's exercises I will actually repeat day 3.


And I won't be exercising before any mealtimes again.


OH! And as you can see above, I got an iPod finally! I LOVE IT! I got an iPod touch and let me tell you, it is amazing. It makes it much more fun to run now that I can listen to music!