Someone told me today that my blog should be titled eat.eat.eat. LOL! OK, I guess I need to write about something other than food, huh?
So I’m going to say a few words about running today. I LOVE to run! Maybe it’s the endorphins, I don’t know. But when I run I feel really happy.
It wasn’t always this way. When I was in my young twenties, I strongly disliked running! When I ran it felt like my backside weighed about five thousands pounds and was hanging below my knees. I’ve always had strong lungs thanks to my swimming background, so breathing while running was never an issue. I just found running to be extremely uncomfortable and BORING!
So I dabbled in running on and off for many years. At one point I even ran a marathon! But I never really loved it. Then I injured my ankle and I dropped running like a hot potato. And I never looked back 
Then last spring I was staring at age 40 head on and decided it was time to get serious about losing weight. I was at my second all time high weight and hoped to drop about 10 pounds. So THAT’S what motivated me back into running.
I started off VERY SLOWLY. For my first “run” I alternated walking one minute with running one minute (at 10 minute / mile) for about 10 minutes total. I did this every other day and then after a week I increased it to 15 minutes total. Each week I added an additional 5 minutes until I was up to 1/2 hour. Then I worked on running 2 minutes and walking 1 minute.
During this process I often felt like I could go further but I made myself stick to this schedule. I know that runners develop injuries gradually – I mean, have you ever heard of a runner just all of a sudden falling down in pain? Probably not – usually it’s something that develops over time. And often times we push ourselves past what our bodies are ready for – that’s how we get shin splints! Maybe it’s the endorphins? So take it slow and gradually increase your distance, time, and speed.
Today I run about 6-7 miles, every other day. I average about a 8.5 minute mile, and I’ve avoided running injuries. And combined with good eating habits I’ve been able to drop over 20 pounds and maintin it for a year. Not bad for a 40 year old!
Related posts:
- Six Lessons From Running Six lessons I’ve learned from running: It’s always better to...
- Some Observations on Running Ahhhh….Sunday. Lately D and I have been taking it easy...
- A Big Running Day IT. IS. SO. HOT. OUT. SIDE. When I drove to...
- Seven More Thoughts on Running and Exercise Exercise has always been a huge part of my life....
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
but food is fun! write about whatever you want, we enjoy reading no matter what.
kudos on everything you do and for doing it wisely. there’s nothing better than to work out reasonably and treat yourself (reasonably too) after that. I personally like fast-walking and biking, it’s so relaxing and pleasing.