The wall... and then a gift!

March 28th

Run 5 minutes, walk 1 minute (4 times), 10 minute walk, run 3 minutes, Walk 1 minute (2 times)

So much for the famed warm spring days of Lotusland. We have had mixed rain, snow, sleet, hail, and slush falling from the sky. And sun five minutes later! Anyway, I missed yesterday's run because I had a job interview and then Tom and I went for lunch and a short (but strenuous!) hike.

Today I started out very sluggishly. Nothing felt right. Although I've managed much better endurance over long periods in my last few sessions, I seem to be stuck at not being able to put together longer running stretches. For the first time, I felt ready to give up. Maybe it IS unrealistic to expect my rather rotund body to respond.

Then I remembered all the stuff I've learned working out, both from weights and from interval training on the bike. No sense paying a trainer for 18 months if you don't learn something from it! I dropped my shoulders from where they were riding up around my ears, pushed my shoulders back a bit to open my chest, was more conscious of my breathing, relaxed my hips to make my stride a bit easier, and used my arms to pump a bit. And it worked!!!! I stretched out my running to two minutes, then three, then five. It felt just fine. I had my sister's dog Maggie with me, and I'm sure she really appreciated the opportunity for a bit of a workout. I know I appreciated it when she had to stop for a sniff or a pee!

I managed to do that four times, then walked for a bit, then did two three minute running sessions. At the end of the second one, I could feel my calf and Achilles grab a bit, so walked it out and did a good stretch at home.

Today was a great affirmation to me that this is working. And I did it all before the snow hit.

Tomorrow.... I tackle hills