Week 18 -- I Did It!!!

Max Distance: 2.25

Weight loss this week: +2

Weight loss so far: -4

Well, I did it! I finished my first race. I didn't do as well as I had hoped, but I did finish. My goal was to run more than I walked. I think I did about half and half. But as my sister says, I'm a completer, not a competer.

I learned a couple of things from my first race. I learned that it's not a good idea for me to run during allergy season. The race was at the BMW Performance Center race track, which is meant for cars. So, it has a "rough" area for when the cars go off the track. The rough is weeds and grass, of which I am highly allergic to. I was almost done with my first mile when my allergies really started bothering me. It took me over 17 minutes to do the first mile, and I was almost ready to give up.

But I came up over the hill and my son came running, cheering me on, saying, "Go Mommy! I love you!" I had told him I was going to run a race, and by God, I started running again. I still didn't run all the rest; I had to walk about half too. My second mile, though, went a lot better. I did that one in about 13 minutes.

The other thing I learned was that I don't need to be at the front of the pack when we line up to start. I also don't need to start out too fast. I actually did pretty well with that. But it is really hard to not want to try to keep up when every one is zooming past you!

Overall, I am proud of myself for making it through. I have one under my belt. I'll keep trying. My next goal is to do a 5k in the spring. Someone told me about a Nike slogan that says, "The only way to finish is to start." So true!

Week 17 -- Almost there, kind of

Max distance: 2.38

Weight loss this week: -1

Weight loss so far: -6

I only got to work out once this week again, but it was a really good work out. I was on the treadmill for 40 minutes, and I jogged 22 minutes of that. Unfortunately, I am still having to break up the jogging a lot. I'll do 5 minutes jogging, 3 walking, 8 minutes jogging, 3 walking, and so on. I can do that for a long time. I just have a really hard time doing a straight set of jogging all in a row.

I really wanted to jog the whole 2 mile race this week, but I don't think it's going to happen. I'll be really happy if I get jog 1 mile in a row. I am sure that I can jog most of it. And I know that no matter how much I walk, I will jog over the finish line! A friend will be doing it with me. She's very in shape, but she's never done a race either, so that will help me. I won't feel so much like a fish out of water.

I feel kind of silly making a big deal out of a 2 mile race, especially since my goal was a 3 mile race, and I probably won't even jog the whole thing. But it's a big deal to me. I've put a lot of work into this. I'm pumped! Six days to go!

Week 16

Max Distance: 1.8 miles

Weight loss this week: -1

Weight loss so far: -5

I missed a week of working out because the kids were sick, again. But I wasn't totally inactive. We went for walks and played. This week, I only got to work out once. And it was terrible.

I felt fine when I went to the gym, but I should have known by how swollen my eyelids where that my allergies where acting up. I guess I figured I would be ok in the gym though. I have been able to run 10-12 minutes in a row before walking, but I was five minutes into running when I started gasping. It was scary. I started walking for 3 minutes and tried jogging again. I jogged for 5 minutes but felt like I was going to throw up. So, I walked for another 3 minutes. Then, I tried to jog a final 5 minutes. I got to 3 minutes and just felt terrible. I gave up and walked. I didn't even do my toning exercises afterward, just a few stretches. Then, I sat in the locker room until I felt like I could get in the shower. I had to do my inhaler first, though.

I guess during allergy season, I am going to have to do my inhaler or my son's nebulizer before I try to exercise. It's a scary feeling to feel your chest tightening up and not be able to breath well. And my asthma is mild. I just got a touch of what my poor son feels like all the time. I hope I am able to make it through my race without getting an episode! Less than two weeks now!