Run - C25K W7D3

I tend to over-research, so back when I was starting this Couch-to-5K journey, I remember reading here that there seems to be a track record of dropping out after about 4-5 weeks.

I can see why. The last time I wrote was three weeks ago, when I was struggling through this very place where most people struggle. I definitely considered quitting and the knowledge that a great percentage of people quit at that point was of initial consolation to me. As my internal monologue and lack of blogging show, I was tired and disheartened and wasn't sure I'd be able to do it.

This morning I ran 2.58 miles. It took longer than the 25 minute alternative proposed by Cool Runnings (probably about 35 plus/minus for warmup/cooldown). It wasn't nonstop - I took a quick break at every red light and sometimes in between. Unfortunately I forgot to turn on my Nike+ at first and didn't realize it till I'd completed the first mile (that one was non-stop!!), so it's hard for me to gauge all my metrics (because my time on this should be ~ double) ... but that's ok.



W7D3 is the fouth day in the program of attempting to run 25 minutes without walking and it was the first days that I really felt like I was able to achieve that. I've been aching through the runs since about week 6 and today felt like a major victory.

I'm not pretending to be some glorious distance runner now that I'm over the hump of the C25K - by no means can I even fake that. However, I think there are some things that I can credit for helping me jump that particular hurdle and set me up for jumping future hurdles, such as:

- the C25K iPhone app - especially for those days of walk5-run5-walk3-run8-walk3-run5-walk5, it was SO helpful to zone out and wait for some to tell me "ding ding, run!"
- a Lenten resolution to run every other day. Aside from the time on the cruise ship when running made me a bit seasick, I've been pretty good at sticking to this. Even if the run sucked, the impetus behind it of making that Lenten sacrifice got me on the road when other things wouldn't have.
- a supplemental Lenten resolution to listen to only Christian music while running. The frequency resolution got me out the door, but this one kept me going ... because there's something about Charlie Hall singing "My dead heart now is beating / my deepest sins now clean / Your breath fills up my lungs / Now I'm free, now I'm free" or Ben Walther's "The soles of my shoes are worn right through / and I've walked the whole world searching for Your Face / I won't be far away."
- Nike+ is great for a metric nerd like me, who wants to know exactly how far I've run and what my pace is. And while I know it sometimes makes me seem faster than I am, it still gives me a fantastic gauge of my progress.

Alright, I'm out ... looking forward to W8D1 on Friday of a 28-minute straight run. Hopefully this time I'll remember to start the clock on my iPod so I don't have to corrupt the results to log my miles!