Motivation

Motivation is fading again.
Weight loss is nice. You feel healthy. People compliment you. You get complacent.
One rest day between workouts becomes one week between workouts and then it stops altogether.
Part of my problem is that I don’t have an immediate fitness goal on the horizon. Races are great motivators because you have a schedule to meet your goal. My next half-marathon in in November and I start an early training for that in mid-June. I am having a hard time completing my maintenance runs.
I have decided to add some more cross-training in the mix to keep me interested, but even that is tough to get motivated for.
Last weekend I had the house to myself (and the cats). I was able to get some work done, some studying done (technical certification may be in the future) and some housework done. However it was impossible to accomplish any kind of aerobic activity.
I had a simple plan, do a run one day and maybe a body pump class.
Saturday it rained in the morning. I was unwilling to do a rainy run (plus I had to carry my work pager with me) so bodypump it was. I went to the website of my gym to confirm the time of class and the website was completely down. I had no idea when the class started that morning. A motivated person would go to the gym anyway and take advantage of the treadmill or elliptical to get in their exercise. I decided to sit on the couch and watch movies during that rainy morning. The rest of the day was spent doing the activities I listed above (but I did go trim the bushes outside for a while when the rain stopped – that is sort of like exercise?).
Sunday a similar situation was unfolding. I woke up. I knew it was time for a run but I didn’t feel prepared for it (It has been 3-4 weeks since my last long run). I was on the verge of bailing out again but I couldn’t. The weight seems to be creeping back on and I desperately crave the energy I get from exercise. I set out to do only 4 miles and I was going to let myself walk the whole thing if I needed to. Anything to just get started.
We had another one of our perfect Florida weather days. It was sunny and around 70 degrees. It was perfect running weather. It is very odd for this time of year but I soak it in. The run feels mostly effortless. I not only run 6 miles, I add in a bridge to do some hill training.
The next day I attend that bodypump class. Usually I leave around the lunge time (because lunges are invented by Satan). I actually stay throughout the class and don’t do bad considering my last class was months ago.
Am I back on the exercise train? Time will only tell. I am planning the rest of the week of activities. I hope my motivation shows up as well.

What I have learned from running

My first half-marathon is a little over a week away. Everytime I run I get little tidbits of information in my head that I wish others would have shared with me; I feel the excessive need to share it with others. So here you go.

The first time I tried running with music it didn’t work. It wasn’t until I became a runner that music helped me run. It clears the chatter in my head that tells me to quit.

I never thought I would get this far, nor did I ever want to; but I am here and it feels great.

Most discomfort felt when running is actually just discomfort and not actual pain. To succeed you must push through it. You should listen to signs for severe discomfort but most of the time it is just part of running.

The first few miles will be the hardest. It wasn’t until I was reaching my long runs of 8-10 miles did I actually run most of it. There was much less walking at that point and more true running.

For the first time in a long time I don’t feel like a quitter. I am pretty much at my goal and it feels great.

Running does not make you lose weight alone. First you have to run frequently and many miles. Second you must consume less calories at the same time (but not so much that you are under-fueled). You cannot splurge and expect running to save you.

Owning It

Today I happily arrived at my followup appointment at the doctor; the appointment where the doctor is to tell me that my blood work showed some abnormalities that were making it difficult for me to lose weight. The doctor enters the room looks down the results and says “Everything is normal.” Apparently there is absolutely nothing wrong with me. Oh Shit! I have run out of excuses. It is time for me to own my weight problem. It is time to recognize that I am the sole cause of my weight issues.
I feel like I am in a transition period right now. This blog started as a way for me to document my gardening, photography and cooking but I feel at least one or more of those activities could be counterproductive to my weight loss goals. I only desire to cook things that are either high in carbohydrates or high in fat. For me to carry on and still work on my health, I would have to transition to somewhat a healthy cooking blog. As for gardening, it is getting in the way of my running (running is a big time suck); and getting in the way of my life in general. I am already way behind for the spring gardening. Photography on the other hand is easy to continue, as long as I make time to work on my skills (see running is a time suck). And then there are the reviews I do on Yelp – which center on eating. How do I continue that activity? Some priorities will be set. Some changes will be coming. The details of those changes are not even known to me at this time. I only have to say “Hold on tight and enjoy the ride.”

Running with Bricks

Today is one of those days. A day when you want to call it quits.
After a two full day break from Saturday long run I ran this morning. As soon as I got out there I wanted to quit. I felt like I was carrying a ton of bricks with me the entire run. I pushed through as my mind raced through negative thoughts. Why the hell did I sign up for a half marathon when I have never even completed a 5k entirely by running? Defeat and quit were all that were on my mind this morning. The run was completed and I am dealing with all that is left of my motivation. “It does get easier each time. Be patient, you have a long journey ahead of you. You can accomplish it.”