6 months from now

We all have regrets. Maybe you broke up with a boyfriend/girlfriend and regret it. Maybe you quit a job and regret it. Maybe you regret marrying your husband/wife. You get the idea. I regret all of the times that I have given up on my weight loss goals. I regret all of the times that I let stress get the best of me (especially in 2012 when Joey was so sick) and get me off track. I regret all of the times that I decided my health isn't important. I don't give up easily in other areas of my life so why have I given up on being healthy so many times? I know that some people say they don't live their life by regrets. But I think when we regret something, we really learn from it. Today, I weighed myself since I've been running and eating fairly well again. I went down 1.2 lbs since last Monday, but I'm still not down to the weight that I was in March. So I had to "start over" again. It sucks. So while I am happy to see a 1.2 lb loss, I know that I have a long way to go.

6 months from now, I don't want to have to add a new "starting" weight to MFP. I want to be proud of myself for staying on track. I want to be proud of myself for running races, competing, and continuing to push myself to work harder. 6 months from now, I don't want to look back and regret the previous 6 months...like I do now. I don't want to have to restart a workout regimen. I don't want to go backward. I want to continue to move forward. In 6 months, I want to be proud that I've accomplished multiple goals. I want to be proud of how I feel. I want to be happy with the strength of my body and how far I have come in 6 months. I will get there!

Last night, I started Week 2 Day 1 of C25K. I'm not going to lie: I was nervous. I posted yesterday that Week 1 is alternating run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds for 8 sessions plus a 5 minute warm up and 5 minute cool down. Week 2 changes to run 90 seconds and walk 2 minutes. I was nervous about the 90 seconds because I'll be honest here, during Week 1 there were times that that 60 seconds seemed like for-ev-er. But...I did it. :) I pushed myself and I ran every time, the whole time, when I was supposed to. I actually ended up running/walking 2.07 miles so I am slowly getting better. During Week 1, I got up to 1.81 miles so I am slowly improving. Don't get me wrong, I am slow. Very slow. But I will just continue to improve. On the last run session, I was seriously talking out loud and telling myself to run. No one was near me so nobody could hear me (not like I would care anyway), but it really helped me. 90 seconds of running doesn't sound like a lot, but it seems hard when I am doing it. I cannot wait to get back to running 3+ miles at a time.

C25K Week 2 Day 1, 6.18.13

 

See, I am slow. But I did it. Last week, I would just complete the 30 minute workout and then go home. At the hospital that I like to go to, the path is about 1 mile around. So I typically park, go around, and then stay on the path near the car to complete the rest of the workout. So that I am not far from the car when I complete the C25K. But last night, I didn't do that! :) I got back to the car and I think I was a little over halfway finished. So instead of backtracking and staying near the car, I went for another round around the hospital. I knew that it would put me over the 30 minute workout, but I didn't care. I honestly really wanted to see 2 miles on my watch! I love having my Forerunner. It really motivates me. At any point in my run, I can look down and see those 4 things on the screen (you can also customize two different screens if you want to see other things). I customized mine to see those 4 because they are all important to me. I like seeing my calorie burn, my pace (when running), my distance, and my total time. All 4 of those things motivate me in their own little way.

If you don't have a heart rate monitor watch, I definitely recommend one. I would list it on my "must have" list for runners. If you don't run or walk, but do other forms of exercise such as classes like Zumba or something then I would recommend a PolarFt. I have the PolarFt4 and I like it, but since I mostly run outdoors, I just use the Forerunner. I got mine used on Amazon and it was totally worth the price! I also bought the Foot Pod for indoor running on either a track or a treadmill. When I went to Planet Fitness, I always used the foot pod while running on the treadmill. It is WAY more accurate than the guesstimate on the treadmill. Sure, it's probably right on the distance and pace, but it's not very accurate on the calorie burn.

So my point is this....6 months from now, you WILL see my improvements. You will NOT see a post saying that I am starting over!

What are you doing for exercise today?