JessPDX - This time, it's happening.

Change is good, right? It’s nerve-racking, exciting, terrifying, and has a big ol’ question mark on it. But sometimes you have to take a leap of faith (while you still have the option to) and see what happens. And that’s what I’m doing. I’m excited for the future, but extremely nervous. Will I cut it? Will I be happy? Will I be a good fit? Ah, I sort of love not knowing though.

All in all, I’ve been in a good mood this morning. It’s foggy and cold. I had to scrap off ice from my car this morning. I ate a lot over this weekend and I don’t regret it. I also did major shopping at Trader Joes yesterday, so hopefully that will help me from NOT eating out for lunches every day!

But today is definitely a stay at home with your snuggie on while you drink hot chocolate kind of day. I wish I was in my bed still…

I’ve learned people LOVE to talk about themselves. I mean LOVE to.

It is my favorite time of the year! I love Christmas time, decorating, looking at the Christmas lights, baking, and the cold weather. I have been thinking a lot about what I want to do in the present that’s going to make me happy for the future. I spend so much time focusing on the future or the past that I really don’t take the time to do something in the now that’s going to benefit me now and perhaps towards the future. So I’m going to try and only focus on the short-term, and hopefully it will add up to good in the long-term.

So a lot of people set goals on the first of the month for the whole month, so I think I’ll start doing that and reevaluating at the end.

December Goals

Fitness/Nutrition Related

·         Not eat at any drive-thrus

·         Lose 10lbs (I believe this is a very attainable goal if I stick with it!)

·         Continue my running 3 days a week with couch to 5K

·         Attend a gym class (I miss boxing! I even have my own gloves! But I really wanted to try a cycle or total body workout)

Life

·         Do a thorough cleaning of my apartment and get it ready for the holidays! (First year I can fit an actual tree in my place!)

·         Try to stay positive with all the “Negative Nancies” around

·         Spend more time reading my Kindle than watching TV in the evenings

·         Start wearing warmer clothing (I need a winter coat)

I think that’s a good list of goals to start out with for my first time.

I’m hoping to go running on my break today with my mom, if she can’t squeeze it in between appointments, then I’ll just hit the gym for 40 mins of ellipticaling!  

Things I’m excited about -

• Gym at lunch (nice getaway from work)
• Surprise lunch from mom
• Couch to 5k training
• New exercise goal (workout an hour a day! EEK!)
• Grocery store trip
• Tonight FINALLY cooking up some meals, so I’m not eating out so much
• Christmas tree hunting this weekend

Things I’m not excited about -

• My new workout watch (I still don’t understand how to work it. I want to use it so badly today, but that’s not happening)
• Folding and putting away laundry

Remember some of my last posts where I kept debating whether or not to go home from work due to being sick? Well It finally caught up to me. I am now sick and have been home for 3 days. I am BORED out of my mind, but I’ve been sleeping a lot and lazing around, which is what I’m told you are supposed to do. This is really putting a damper on my 5k training. Also my birthday is this Saturday so… 

I’m hoping these 3 days of rest is enough! I think I’ll go take a nap…

Because Mondays can be okay.

So as posted last night, I finished week 4 of couch to 5k! I’m super proud of myself, even though my running is a very slow jog. I haven’t stopped on the run parts even when my legs were killing me and my pace was getting slower. :) So I’m very happy about that. Back at work this morning with a 5:50pm appointment tonight. I won’t be back home until around 6:50 which I’m not looking forward to, but hey it’s Halloween and I don’t have any plans, so I can pretend my appointment is Halloween related.

Below is this week’s running plan! I’m super scared of day 3! Running 20 minutes without stopping? In all honesty, I can’t remember the last time I ran 20 minutes without stopping. I’ve run off and on for two miles with a mix of jogging and walking.

Week 5

Day 1 - Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then:

·         Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

·         Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)

·         Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

·         Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)

·         Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

Day 2 - Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then:

·         Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)

·         Walk 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

·         Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)

Day 3 - Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then jog two miles (or 20 minutes) with no walking.

I know my pace isn’t at a 10 minute mile, so I’ve been focused on the time portion. I think I stated this before, but my goal for the race isn’t a certain time (I think this will change the more advance I get), it’s to not stop and walk the whole 5k. I want to keep moving the whole time and finish with my mom if possible! I think that’s a positive and attainable goal to have for my first race!

I was really tempted to bring my workout clothes and go to the gym at lunch today and work on upper body or something, but I know I need to rest and I have some free weights at home if I change my mind later this evening. I will say my legs are in this weird spot where I’m not sure if they are sore because I’m weak or because they are getting stronger. Either way, I think it’s a good thing.  

I know how important good nutrition is just to anyone, but I’m realizing if I want my body to take me on a 20 minute run without stopping, I really need to be watching what I’m eating. I need to fuel with the foods that will energize me and get me through the run, not fuel with the food that will slow me down. I think that was one of my problems with yesterday’s run. I’m making a conscious effort to eat well this week and stay on track.

And I’m exhausted! Knees hurt and right thigh is super tight, but I did it. 

zzzz…

So I got pretty great sleep last night compared to the nights before.  A lot of it probably had to do with the fact I fell asleep between 9:30-10 rather than at 8:30-9. I’ve been so tired lately that’s when I’ve been falling out. But last night I forced myself to stay up and the sleep was much better. When I woke up this morning I didn’t feel sick, my nose wasn’t stuffy and I didn’t feel like I was going to die if I got out of bed. So I did my normal routine… showered, made breakfast, watched last night’s TV shows, sat in my snuggie, etc. So 20 mins before I leave for work I started feeling terrible. Headache, constant running nose, exhausted. So now I’m at work feeling sick facing the same problems. Also, I have day 1 training of week 4 for couch to 5k! It’s really stepping up the running time this week to 16 mins!

Thankfully one of my coworkers made me a little goodie bag of zinc medicines and vitamin C pack to help fight off my cold.

Things that are making me happy despite over negative/frustrating things going on:

• My mom is training with me today and is bringing me lunch
• I washed a BUNCH of laundry last night, so clean clothes
• My coworker gave me some goodies to make me feel better… I think they are helping
• I get to train and get so tired I forget the frustrations

Now I’m off to train, eek!

a not happy person aka me right about now…

I’m not feeling the best today. I went to lay in bed about 8:45 last night and was completely exhausted. From training for my first 5k to being stressed out at work, I was ready for sleep. I woke up multiple times during the night. I tossed and turned and was up for a straight hour and a half. I’m having major neck pain due to the whiplash I got from a car accident from the beginning of the summer this year. So I was all around uncomfortable. I woke up with a stuffy nose and a little headache. Now I’m at work feeling like I’m sick and need rest. I’m drinking peppermint tea and just took some headache pain pills.

So I do all that complaining because being sick really puts a damper on my training schedule! And I would take a day or two away from work, but in my position I’m not allowed to work from home so therefore all sick days eat away at the little amount of PTO I have or I don’t get paid. So I’m mainly SOL.

I finished day 3 of week 3 for training couch to 5k. My goal while training isn’t distance. My goal is not to stop running (even if slowly) when it’s the running part. So I can say all 3 weeks I’ve never stopped. And that is a tiny goal, but I’m proud of it. I’m really proud of it. I really wanted to track my weight through all of this, but I forgot to weigh-in in the beginning, so I’ll weigh in now and keep tracking it throughout the 9 week training! Maybe I’ll get the courage to even post it!

Is it 5 o’clock yet?