I recently have decided that I might be becoming a runner. I'm running my very first 10k in two days after a few 5k races with improving times. I have to say that I'm pretty excited about trying the longer distance. I even registered for a ten mile race the first weekend of May and I've looked at adding a half marathon before it gets too hot, too. I may delay that until December, though.
What I love about running is that it offers me a lot of the same competition with myself that I loved about swimming. After tearing both of my shoulders to shit from three years of non-stop swimming in high school, I think I've ruled swimming for a regular exercise out of my domain. They're still really weak from the abuse I put them through. But when I run, I start to feel the same feelings about my athleticism that I felt from being in the pool.
When I run, I just feel pretty good. I feel strong and fit. I love pushing myself to run five minutes longer than last time or push the treadmill a few bumps faster than last time. There are so many ways that I can push myself to excel. The icing on the cake is that unlike swimming, there are plenty of opportunities to race and improve my time in a more official manner.
Overall, my favorite part about running is without a doubt the activity points that I earn when I run. By running three times a week, I'm adding at least one full day's worth of food to my weekly diet and I'm still able to lose weight! I will be hitting the 30 pound mark this weekend at my weigh-in. Wish me luck and think some happy and fast thoughts!
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Saturday, February 18, 2012
My new competitive streak
I feel so proud to report that I've had another successful weigh-in this week. I'm down another two pounds for a total of 28.4 pounds lost. I'm within 18 pouns of my goal weight, and I can't even begin to describe how excited I am. I can't even remember the last time I saw a number below 175 on the scale, and I'm comfortably below that number now. I don't want to see it again unless I get pregnant in the future.
I mentioned in my last blog post that i was going to win my battle. There is a lot that goes into winning for me. It's more than just a number or a dress size for me. For me, it is a battle I've fought since Dad died. It's the battle of taking control over my life and not being a victim of circumstance. Everyone has bad stuff that happens to them. I chose to eat in order to deal with the emotional trauma associated with the loss of my dad and grandfather in the same month. I don't need to do that anymore. Through counseling, I think I've reconciled a lot of the unresolved issues surrounding my dad's death. I'm no longer terrified to drive on highways and I've been able to see the silver lining: we donated Dad's tissues, which have significantly improved the quality of life of other people; Gregg an I turned our relationship around and we're happily married for 2 1/2 years now; and I have my feet firmly planted on the ground with a healthy worldview. The weight is the only thing left for me to conquer in order to feel like I've started my life over again.
I also like to look at my weight loss as a competition, especially when I look at my journey with Weight Watchers. I like to compete with myself to see how much I can eat for the least amount of points plus values. I like to see how many activity points I can earn on a given day or week. Then I like to compete with myself to see how much weight I can loose. This is kind of like my relationship with swimming, where I competed with myself before I competed against other people. I think I'm developing that relationship with running, too. I push myself further in terms of speed or distance on a regular basis. I run my 10k a week from today, and that's a push that I don't think I was ready for even a month ago. But I know that I can run for at least an hour straight, so I can do this!
I mentioned in my last blog post that i was going to win my battle. There is a lot that goes into winning for me. It's more than just a number or a dress size for me. For me, it is a battle I've fought since Dad died. It's the battle of taking control over my life and not being a victim of circumstance. Everyone has bad stuff that happens to them. I chose to eat in order to deal with the emotional trauma associated with the loss of my dad and grandfather in the same month. I don't need to do that anymore. Through counseling, I think I've reconciled a lot of the unresolved issues surrounding my dad's death. I'm no longer terrified to drive on highways and I've been able to see the silver lining: we donated Dad's tissues, which have significantly improved the quality of life of other people; Gregg an I turned our relationship around and we're happily married for 2 1/2 years now; and I have my feet firmly planted on the ground with a healthy worldview. The weight is the only thing left for me to conquer in order to feel like I've started my life over again.
I also like to look at my weight loss as a competition, especially when I look at my journey with Weight Watchers. I like to compete with myself to see how much I can eat for the least amount of points plus values. I like to see how many activity points I can earn on a given day or week. Then I like to compete with myself to see how much weight I can loose. This is kind of like my relationship with swimming, where I competed with myself before I competed against other people. I think I'm developing that relationship with running, too. I push myself further in terms of speed or distance on a regular basis. I run my 10k a week from today, and that's a push that I don't think I was ready for even a month ago. But I know that I can run for at least an hour straight, so I can do this!
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