Summer Nights (and days)

Once again I've fallen down on the blogging. No real reason, except that it's a lot easier to update Twitter in less than 140 characters than write an actual blog post. :)

Since my last post, I've had a few things happen:

1. Ran/walked my first 5K on June 13, at the Watermelon Festival in Cordele, Georgia. My sister and I ended up walking most of the course, and we finished last, but we FINISHED, and that's what matters. My unofficial time was 52:20. Something to work on bringing down.

2. I've had a terrible cold most of the month that I'm still recovering from. Part of the reason I couldn't run more during the 5K was that I was in the midst of the cold. It's still lingering weeks later, with some sneezing, stuffiness, and a scratchy throat. Summer colds are the pits. I've been off running for a couple of weeks but plan to get back on the training schedule next week.

3. My parents moved into their new (rental) house in early June. I wasn't able to be there because the move date had to be switched, but I was there for the aftermath and some unpacking. I've been back one more weekend since then and will be back again this weekend. Progress is being made! :)

4. My great-uncle Hardy died last week, and the funeral was this past weekend. He had Alzheimer's and had been in a nursing home for years, so it really felt like he left us long ago, but it was still difficult. Always good to see the family, but it's too often been for sad occasions recently, our third family funeral since last fall. At least this weekend it'll be for a celebration, since we have a family cookout for the Fourth of July every year. The watermelon goes in the pool to chill!

5. On a happier note, I had a great dinner with several old college friends a few weeks ago, and we're planning to get together again soon. Two of them I hadn't seen in nearly 20 years, but we picked right back up where we left off. I'm back in touch with several other college friends, too. I have Facebook to thank for finding them all again!

Little Runaway

Ran twice this weekend, a major milestone. Saturday morning was supposed to be a 50-minute walk/run, but we ended up just walking about half the time, beginning and end.

I'm behind on the running program, so I'm trying to play a little catchup the next couple of weeks to prepare for the 5k we're doing on June 13. Accordingly, I went to the fitness center Sunday night and ran/walked about 25 minutes total, counting warmup and cooldown time.

Today's been draining at work, unfortunately, so I don't know if I'll make it back to the fitness center tonight. If not, then tomorrow!

Ain't Nothin' Gonna Break My Stride

For as long as I can remember, I've had a latent desire to be a runner. It hasn't been something I've pursued or even actively thought that much about, but it's just been there in the back of my mind. My unconscious mind must have it going, too. You know how most people dream of flying at some time? Almost every time I have, I've been running and just gradually lifted off the ground. Not to full flight, usually, but just running and/or floating in the air above the ground. That may also have something to do with my fear of heights. ;)

The thing my brain never manages to process is that before you can be a runner, you have to become a runner. And with apologies to Tom Petty, with most things, it's the becoming that's the hardest part. (See also: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Becoming I&II.)

It took me until last month to commit to running. I've tried it a couple of times before, but I never stuck with it. This time, I signed up for a weekly running program, along with my sister and some friends, so I have people to cajole me into running and cheer for me when I do it. I usually work best alone, but when it comes to exercise, I need all the help I can get. Shelling out fifty bucks for the session and a hundred for the shoes is pretty good incentive, too.

So far, things are going well. I've been running at least twice a week; it should be three times, so I have that as a goal. I've packed my running gear to take to my parents' house this weekend and will make myself get up and run Saturday morning. I found a 5K to run next month, once I've worked up to that distance, which will give me another goal. I'm already thinking about how I'll work running into my Dragon*Con schedule, which doesn't have much breathing room. Er, so to speak. ;)

That's probably enough goal-setting and planning for now. The other hard part of becoming is not getting ahead of yourself. One step at a time, preferably in well-fitted shoes. :)

And I Ran

Sister and I started a Jeff Galloway running course this morning. It's an interval training plan, where you alternate brief runs with walks, gradually increasing your time. The course we're on is 12 weeks; today we did 15 minutes of 30-second runs and 1-minute walks. Things went pretty well. I ended up with a sore left Achilles tendon and knee weakness, but not too bad.

Later in the morning, we went to get fitted for running shoes, which should help with the achiness. At least, I hope so!