Day 65 - Hygiene & Weather

Showering, to me, is a chore. A chore that often gets procrastinated longer than it should. So if I actually make the effort to shower, I definitely don't feel in the mood to mess it all up by going running. And then if it's been a while since I have showered, I don't feel like going running either because I know that afterwards I definitely SHOULD shower, and I still don't want to. This plight has given me an excuse not to run many a time. Combine that excuse with the weather... (may I kindly remind you I live in a city named HURRICANE for good reason!) and the sum is a lazy bum who hasn't been running very much lately.

After my last run, day 36, I didn't run again until the Saturday after Thanksgiving, day 48. I asked my sister-in-law, who is also preparing for the half marathon, if she wanted to go run with me. I was supposed to be running a full twenty minutes by this time, but due to my lack of training, was not ready for that. I ended up walking 5, running 12, walking 2, running 8 and walking the rest of the way (don't know what it was.) When I was finished I felt sick.

On day 39 I received a text from a friend who is also training with me saying, "so excited! I just registered for the 5K!" If it weren't for her, I am pretty confident I would have fallen off the bandwagon for good at this point. Not having run consistently for the three weeks prior to the 5K, I definitely did not feel prepared. HOWEVER. Thanks to my lovely friend for holding my feet to the fire, I am proud to say that I showed up to that 5K in my little Santa hat at 9am on day 55, ready to cross that finish line.

The Secret Santa 5K was my first official race, and also the first time I had run since day 48. It was a very enjoyable experience that I was so grateful to have shared with a good friend.

We ran for the first mile, walked a quarter mile, ran three quarters of a mile, walked a quarter mile and ran the last three quarter mile to the finish. I have no idea what time I finished in. I forgot to look. But at this point, my goal in all of this has really cemented into simply finishing. For me, this is about dedication, self-discipline, consistency and endurance. It's about every little step I take toward that finish line, not the pace that I am running at.

So although the 5K went well, I didn't quite feel the renewed sense of determination that I was hoping for. In fact, I didn't go running one time the entire next week. Which brings me to this week. I was going to go running yesterday, but it was raining all day. (see, there's another weather excuse.) So I was determined to run today, and thankfully the weather was absolutely beautiful. What really lit the fire under my butt to keep going was the fact that two rooms have been reserved in Bryce Canyon for July 14th thanks to my sister in law. dun dun dun. It's kind of starting to feel official here! I really am going to do this!

According to my schedule, I was supposed to be running 25 minute runs all last week and 20 minute runs for the two weeks prior to that. And up to this point, I hadn't done any 20+ minute runs and I was scared of even trying. But today, with two girlfriends by my side, I determined to just see if I could do it. A full 25 minute run. AND I DID!! I wasn't fast, but I didn't stop one time! I am feeling very proud of myself. I was also proud that I even went on a Tuesday, which is not a normal training day. (they have been Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturdays.) But I was a little let down when I looked at my calendar before blogging today and realized that, oh. This week marks the beginning of five days of running every week and today was my first Tuesday on the schedule.

Well, here's hopin' that I will keep at this and that I will be ready to kill it for that 10K coming up in February!