OHR

Week 1/Run 28

2.90 miles (5K according to my Nike+)

41 mins

Now that I am a C25K grad, I needed something to keep me going. Running 13 miles isn't just going to happen without me being able to push myself.

I came up with my own program to slowly increase my time. I added 3 minutes to every week and by week 10 I would be able to run 1 hour non stop and every Sunday I would run a 5K as fast as I could. That was the plan at least....

When I got to the gym I started chugging along. Everything was doing good, but after 15 minutes my legs turned to lead. I felt myself struggling with every step. I was exhausted and had to stop jogging at 20 minutes! 20 minutes! Are you kidding me?! That was so training 4 weeks ago! I somehow managed to walk/jog the entire 5K it took 42 minutes just to finish. Which wouldn't be so bad if on Thursday I finished the 5K in 39 minutes!!! I felt like I was going backwards.

After that I went home to try to find another program. A continuation from the C25K program. I found exactly what I was looking for! There is a program called OHR (One hour runner) program. Its a cont. from the C25K program. For the first 3 weeks all I need to do is run 30 minutes non-stop. Seems easy enough!

Wish me luck!! 10K here comes Laurie!

Im a C25K Grad!!!

Week 9/Run 27

5K (according to my Nike+)

39 minutes (30 mins jogging non-stop)

This last run of my C25K training was NOT easy. First all the treadmills that I usually use were busy and so I had to use a treadmill right in the line of everyone who walked by. I just knew that I couldn't quit and that I needed to keep going. I wasn't able to stop on my graduation day! I managed to push myself to jog the 30 minutes non-stop and then I walked (and jogged some) the rest of the way to get to the 5K. I left the gym happy, proud, dripping with sweat, and my face looking like a tomato.

If you told me a year ago that I would be able to run 30 minutes non-stop and complete a 5K, I probably would have laughed at you. I couldn’t even run 1 minute non-stop without feeling like I got hit in the stomach. I could never say that I could jog a mile non-stop in my life. It was something that has always plagued me throughout high school and my adult life. It was the reason I got benched in field hockey and the reason why I barely played. I was always in decent shape, but never in good shape.

For some reason, in December 2009 I decided that jogging was a good idea. Maybe it was because I saw there was a Disney Half Marathon or maybe it was because I wanted to conquer that darn mile. But for whatever reason, I said goodbye to sitting on my couch all day and hit the gym.

I started the Couch to 5K program and fell in love. I loved increasing my time and distance, I looked forward to going to the gym and I started feeling better about myself. Even though the program looked scary toward the last few weeks, I still pushed on. It surprised me every week and built my confidence. Somehow I was turning into a jogger for the first time in my life.

The first mile I jogged non-stop was surreal. I couldn’t believe I ever had an issue running it. It wasn’t that hard at all. Today, I can run a mile non-stop every time I hit the gym with no problems at all, it became easy for me. Every time I hit that first mile I think of how long it has taken me to get there. It’s a feeling that I can’t even explain.

I would like to thank the following for my achievement:

My ipod
For keeping me going

My Nike+ Shoes
For being comfortable and tracking my progress

My Blog
For listening to me vent

Sparkpeople.com
For keeping me going and encouraging me on

Coach McGivney
For benching me in field hockey for not jogging an entire mile, thank you for putting the goal in my head

Couch to 5K program
For creating a program that pushes me to the max

Cute guy on the treadmill
There is always this cute guy who works out near the same treadmills that I use. I push myself harder thinking that he may be watching me.

Can I do this?

Week 9/Run 26
1.96 miles
30 minute jog

All that stress from Sunday has melted away! Today I was able to push through all that and did my 30 minutes non-stop at a speed of 3.9mph which I pushed up to 4mph with 5 minutes left. It turns out my car only cost $300 dollars to fix which is much less then what I expected.

I am so nervous for Thursday. Can I jog 30 minutes non-stop again? Will I be able to push longer and do a full 5K? I have a hard time believing that I can jog the full 3.1miles but I know that I can at least walk the rest of the way. I would love to finish the whole thing in less then 45 minutes, but I don’t want to go crazy about it. I just want to say that I finished.

A run with my ex

Week 8/Run 24
Miles
28 minutes

Okay. Seriously??!! WTF!!

Life has been going pretty good for me lately. I have lost some weight, I am gaining more energy, starting to feel like I really am moving on and bettering myself. I can feel myself getting stronger both mentally and physically. True I go home alone every night, but I am working on myself first.

Yesterday, my co-worker brought me to her jewelry to see how much I could sell my wedding band and engagement ring. I was thinking I would be offered $600 for it. But I almost burst into tears when he said that he could only give me $400 for the set. $400!!! My beautiful engagement ring that I wore every day since the time I got it in 2004. My beautiful engagement ring that glittered in the light and had the more diamonds then I ever had on my finger. My beautiful engagement ring that has little hears carved in the metal where the diamonds are set. Just $400.

Some people have told me I should keep it and wear it anyways, but I never will. To me that ring is cursed. I want nothing more to do with it. But the jeweler was very nice to me and told me to head over to Kays or Zales and see if I could trade it in. So this Saturday I will make a trip over there to see what they can do for me. This is a very big step for me.

Then last night I was lying in bed reading and just when I was about to set my phone’s alarm I noticed it. My ex had tried to call me. What could he possible want from me? He took everything away from me, what else could he want? So I texted him back to see if he might have called me by accident. Since it was almost midnight and he called at 10:30pm I figured he must have went to bed (sleeping in the bed I helped pay for). So I tossed and turned almost all night. Why did he call me?

In the morning while I was getting ready he texted me back. This is how it went:

Ex: Yeah I did

Me: Why??

Ex: Nevermind…sorry if I woke u up or something

Me: I don’t go to bed at 10:30

Ex: Well u didn’t pick up so I figured you where either or busy…I guess it was busy then

Me: I was in the middle of something.

That was it. It is killing me not knowing what he wanted. My mind is swimming with different thoughts. Could he have known that I was trying to sell the ring and was now p-off at me? I doubt it. What I really think it is, is that the Superbowl is coming up this weekend. For the 8 years I have known him, we have had a Superbowl party. The last one I threw together was awesome/horrible all at the same time.

I always went all out for the Superbowl. I feel like I lost alittle bit of myself last year because I didn’t get to do what I normally do. This year I am invited to a party which makes me happy. But I am wondering if my ex has no one to watch the game with. I am pretty sure his cousin who he hangs around, doesn’t watch it. Maybe he will have to watch it all alone on that 52’ inch flatscreen (which I helped pay for) alone.

But I guess I may never know. I am not going to beg him to tell me. Curosity killed the cat. I don’t want to be sucked into thinking that he cares anymore. Sometimes I have thoughts of him calling me up and begging me to come back to him. I imagine myself saying “No” and leaving him in tears. But sometimes I imagine myself saying “Yes” and having him back in my life again.

I would be an idiot if I went back to him. How am I supposed to heal this broken heart if he keeps calling and ripping it open? Thank god I have this jogging program. It’s the only thing that keeps me focused and motivated. I would be home eating McDonald's and ice cream. GRRRRR!!!

28 mins non-stop!! CRAZY!

Week 8/Run 22
1.81 miles
28 Minutes

Today’s run was awesome! I ran for 28 minutes non-stop without feeling like I needed to quit. I went at a speed of 3.9mph which was perfect for me! I think by Thursday I will be able to bump it up to 4mph. I think I just try to advance myself too fast, I need to let my body adjust to the run before I start increasing speed.


I should have no problem running 30 minutes next week! I am just bummed that I won’t be able to jog a 5K on graduation day. But this isn’t called the “Couch to 30 Minute” now is it. So no matter if I have to walk after 30 minutes. I am graduating with a 5K under my belt.


I figured I could jog the 30 minutes which will be probably about 2 miles for me (I am so slow) then I could walk for another .75 miles and finish big by jogging the last .25 mile. It is going to take me FOREVER to run that 5K but I am going to do it.


Its so funny to me that at the beginning of this program I was unable to even peak at the last few weeks training. I was so scared to see it say “Jog 28 minutes Non-stop”. Now I am getting through and looking at weeks ahead! I am so proud of myself!

A silver lining

Week 7/Run 21

1.68 miles

25 mins

So this week pretty much stunk. It reminded me of that book Grover's Bad, Awful Day". Everything just seemed to happen to me. Notice that I didn't even blog about Tuesday run. It was such a crappy week and its not even over!! Its only Thursday. What was so bad about my week, you ask? Please let me tell you:

- I forgot my Nike+ tracker at home during Sundays run, so for the first time this year I couldn't track my run

- Both Sunday and Tuesday I could not finished my 25 minute run and had to walk with only 5 minutes remaining.

- I was really trying hard to be on time for work this year (I was late 33 times last year!!) but today my car wouldn't start and I was 8 minutes late for work

- Due to being late AGAIN my boss told me if I was late one more time I would receive a warning. I almost started to cry. I guess it doesn't matter that in 9 years at that place I only called in sick maybe 5 times or have never taken advantage of my sick time like other people do.

- My ex's cousin IMed me to tell me how sorry she was with the divorce. This was nice until she told me that my ex told her all about his new girlfriends. This p- me off a bit to know that he can find a girlfriend and I'm still single.

- My work has blocked almost every website I visit. So now I can't keep up with my blog at work.

So that was the highlights of my bad week. I thought it was all going to carry over to my run tonight. But I got on that stupid treadmill and I pushed myself. I ran all 25 minutes at a pace of 4mph. I was so happy to end the run week with myself pushing through.

Before I went to the gym, I tried to break it down why I couldn't finish the last two runs. I really wanted to get down to the problem and fix it. I know I could do 25 minutes, I did it for week 6/run 17. So what was the problem. I came up with the following conclusions:

Sunday: I woke up with a horrible headache and slight hangover. I really was not in the mood to go running at all. The icing on the cake was forgetting my Nike+ tracker. It was as if it popped my running balloon. Oh and I running with TOM which is never a good time.

Tuesday: I didn't have a very good weight loss and that bothered me. I also got on the treadmill thinking I was going to really push myself and was jogging at a pace of 4.1 which doesn't sound like too much but I think I was going too fast too soon. I should have not tried to push myself. I could barely finish this run, it was way too much for me.

So with this in mind, I jogged tonight with a steady pace of 4mph and refused to go any faster (even though the last minute I did race the pace up to 4.1) and I just let the run happen. When I was done I was feeling pretty darn tired. But I did it. Now I figured that as long as I can finish the week without walking, then I can advance in this program. I am starting Week 8 Sunday!! Only 6 more runs till I graduate!!

TOM came to visit

Week 7/Run 19
1.68 miles
25 Minutes

Dear TOM,

Thank you for coming to visit me on Friday night. I would like to say that it’s a pleasure to have you around, but I just can’t. Not only do you make me feel bloated but whenever you come to visit I seem to gain weight. I was happy to see Friday morning that I lost 5lbs and proudly walked around with my head held high. But then when I checked again on Saturday and Monday it seems I have gained back 4 of those pounds. I am not saying that it was you, but it was just a strange coincidence.

So because the scale did not drop like I thought it did, I was really grouchy on Saturday. I mopped around and was happy to be invited to a bar to celebrate my friend’s birthday. Despite you wanting to stay home and eat ice cream all night. My friend even said I looked really nice last night even though you were right there with me. It made me feel a lot better. Why don’t you even make me feel nice like that?

I woke up today with a small hangover which I do not blame you for. I do blame you for discouraging me to go to the gym today. Because of you my run is much more difficult and I actually had to walk with only 5 minutes left! I was so mad at myself. You didn’t help. You always make me feel sad and depressed. I am always on the verge of tears when you come to visit. When I left the gym, I was so mad at myself. I can not believe I
quit jogging with just 5 minutes left.

So my run was disappointing and my weight loss was small. I know that you come to visit me every month, but the next time you visit can you please just be a little nicer to me. I am trying to lose weight and feel better about myself. I can’t have you coming and bringing me down. Its just not nice.

See you in February. Remind me to buy some aspirin before you come if you don’t mind. You have a way of making me get cramps when your here. It also makes going to with you more bearable.

Love,
laurie