Missing running

I got a wild hair up my you know where and decided since I could get it for dirt cheap I would try this famous "weight loss cure" in the form of daily HCG injections. My main thought was to quickly shed some extra weight in order to make my new running obsession easier on my body. As with most things, I just jumped in and committed. Without reading all the fine print... Like the part that said no strenuous exercise and specifically no running while undergoing the treatment. WTF? Oh well, it is only for 23 days and I can still walk as much as I want everyday. Maybe by then my naughty dog will be trained to stay by my side instead of sniffing and stopping every 2 seconds. In the meantime, 5 days into daily shots and a crazy diet of protein and veggies I have dropped 11.5 pounds. Here comes the svelte super runner!
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Notice anything?

It is amazing to me how many things I am noticing about my improved fitness. I can walk faster than I used to without getting winded. I went walking outside and while my pace was sufficient to give me a good workout it wasn't like I was out of breath or even panting. Of couse I would rather have been running but that is on hold while I am doing HCG treatments for the next 3 weeks. I can walk up a flight of stairs and not even feel an increase in my heart rate where befor it would skyrocket with just a single flight. It must be the year for us to get fit since the hubby just joined a gym, too.
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A ban I can support

I was struck today on the drive home that enough has not been said about the horrors of plastic bags... at least not from my own soapbox. Why aren't the rest of the cities of the world taking a queue from San Francisco and supporting a ban on plastic shopping bags? My opposition includes all the normal issues about how they are not biodegradable and most of them end up in the oceans where they either literally choke living things or break down into smaller pieces that totally mess with the DNA of those unlucky enough to ingest them. However, I have a much bigger beef than even that - the laziness of the average American. At this point in our history you would think we had learned SOME lessons from our recent history about re-using. During the early 19th century they had "rag and paper men" who's job it was to go to individual houses and collect rags from sewing and paper and take them away to be reused. Why, then, a century later, are we having to reinvent this and find ways to make recycling hip again? Every other developed nation in the world (well, OK, at least in Europe where I have personal experience) expects their citizens to bring their own bags when they do their shopping. So why is it a novelty that I get bitchy looks about from folks unlucky enough to be behind me at the grocery store checkout when my bagger is struggling to load my reusable bags with my purchases? I'm sorry my efforts at saving the planet interfere with your rush to be wherever you are heading. Several years ago when Ikea first appeared in my city, I thought it novel I was charged for the plastic bags I used to carry my purchases away and it was the first time it got me really thinking about the issue. Today, I get a credit for every bag I return to the store to reuse which is a nice incentive to get people to purchase the reusable bags but I think we should go farther. It should be a requirement that you go to the store with your own bags and if you don't you should be charged for the plastic ones you take away. Maybe if it hurt people in the only place most of us care about - the pocketbook - more people would be interested in making a difference that takes such little effort. Call me a hippie or a tree-hugger, call me a liberal fascist, just do it while you are reusing your own bags, please! I would rather see them banned altogether!

Spoke too soon

What is it with me?  I swear I have been invaded by the body snatchers where they left only the shell and screwed with the programming circuits of my entire being.  It is the only explanation for me dealing with the issues I currently have.  What are these issues and what are they caused from, you ask?  I have used my painfully acquired “Cause Mapping” skills to ascertain that I like to run more than my body can handle at this point.  Anyone who knows me will attest this is insane!  Even my brother asked me last week who I was and what I had done with his sister while I was gushing about running.  This week I cut back to only running 3 times a week and still doing some cardio daily when I can squeeze it in.  So, I walked the equivalent of a 5K on Monday night, felt good last night when I got done with all the other crap going on and got to squeeze in a late evening 1-mile run.  Immediately and promptly afterwards I had painful muscles which persist today.  So, apparently I am STILL – even with my efforts to cut back on specifically the running impact to my body – doing too much exercise.  The insanity is that we are talking about the girl who got winded going up a flight of stairs when I started the new job in October.  The girl who got winded walking to her car even!  It just occurred to me I should feel embarrassed about my poor health 6 months ago and not talk about it but then I think about the progress I have made with what seems like very little effort and want to shout it to the world.  I walked up the 6 flights of stairs today after lunch without getting even slightly winded.  It felt amazing!  Perhaps with the big 4-0 birthday looming around the proverbial corner I can consider this my midlife crisis?  All I know is that I will be 40 and Fabulous by the time it hits at this rate and couldn’t be happier!

Spoiled by nice weather

I am so happy for nice weather... There is nothing better than being outside instead of banished to indoor cardio! Training continues and yesterday's run was invigorating and only mildly cold from the wind. I am slowly making measured improvements and still feel confident I will be running a full mile within the month. Amazing to think... I walked a 5K tonight with a friend and felt great doing it. I thought I would be sore but I wasn't and even the few knots in my legs are beginning to subside as my body grows accustomed to its new lifestyle. I have even talked enough about running that I have a couple of non-runners who would like to join in. I am telling you, it is contagious! The best thing I heard all day was when the hubby told me he got winded and couldn't even run a half mile after his workout at the gym. I know he is still rehabing from a new ACL a year ago but seriously I have never been in better physical shape than he has and never thought I would be. I am taking the satisfaction (and accompanying glee) where I may!
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Long day

Sat on the bleachers at a local high school watching dance competition all day long. Yes, a glutton for punishment and a devoted dance mom! Can't wait to fall into bed and hope the kinks in my neck and back fall out while I sleep. The best part is that when I wake up it will be time to run. I love knowing that and will have sweet dreams because of it!
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Tweaked is better

I got to try the tweaked run today and man did it feel good to run again after a couple of days off. I am officially only running every other day for now to ease my body into it better. I also warmed up on my exercise bike and hit the neighborhood running. I liked it much better and was able to keep a steady run for a while. A new baseline for measurement. It was pretty windy and that made it cold and almost unpleasant but still better than the treadmill indoors. Can't wait for Sunday!!
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