Day 8 (Week 2, day 1)

Well, we didn't roll out of bed at 5 AM this morning as we had planned. We didn't get out of bed until after 5:30 AM. Before, I would have used that as a convenient excuse for skipping today (and by the end of the first set, I wished I had), but I didn't. We got out late, but we got out.

Here's the routing for this week:

Week 2 Routine

• 5 minute brisk walk (warm-up)

Then, this pattern repeated 6 times:

• 90 seconds jogging/running
• 2 minutes walking

Comparing Week 1 to Week 2, the first week had us running/jogging a total of 8 minutes in one minute chunks. This week has us running only one minute more (9 minutes), but 90 seconds at a time.

Our warmup walk seemed to go by before we even realized it. That, in and of itself, was a good thing. Mentally, I was not ready, but was surprised that my body didn't show any signs of resistance to that which was ahead. I noticed the extra 30 seconds during the first set. As I approached the 60 second mark, I could feel my body get ready to slow down. Pushing on at that point was where I started to feel the resistance in my body. At the end of the 90 seconds, I found myself saying aloud, "I wanna stay home and be a couch potato." Yet I continued on.

The two minutes of walking were barely enough for me to catch my breath and get ready for the next running segment. The only consolation I had this morning was that there were only six sets, rather than eight. Even though they would each be longer, in my mind it seemed like there was less ahead of me.

My cadence, at least, was about the same for 90 seconds as it was for 60. Counting my footfalls, I added half again the amount and found myself about at the 90 second mark. I didn't care how well I kept up with Mrs. F today. I was too busy concentrating on just finishing the current set.

I should note that I made a change to my shoe laces this weekend. While in the city to get my son some running shoes, I picked up a set of elastic laces. At first, they felt a little more snug when I slipped my shoes on in the morning, but I didn't have any problems with some of the laces feeling too tight on the top of my instep today. Overall, I think it was a good change.

We finished our third run just as we came to the crossroad, and then walked our two minutes beyond it. We definately went further again today. I felt beat--breathing was hard and my legs felt heavy. I was nowhere near ready to run again when we turned around, and I whimpered, "I don't want to." Yet on I went.

Mentally, I knew we were about 2/3 of the way through when we finished that run (technically, the 2/3 mark was at the end of the walk we started at that moment), so I told myself that I'd be able to finish it. The next jog was really hard, though, I could tell my pace was slowing a bit, and I just wanted to stop running and walk the rest of the way to the car. I kept seeing Mrs. F. at it though. I definately was not going to stop if she was still running.

The last segment was about the same as all but the first as far as feel, but I was ready to collapse into the driver's seat of our car. As I ran my pathetic little jog, I thought about my son who runs cross country and the way he needs to sprint the final leg of each of his races. Looking at my watch, which was held tightly in my left hand, I decided I would try to sprint the last 10-15 seconds of the final run. When the second had swung over the appointed mark, I pushed myself ahead with everything I could muster. My head was looking down, so I could see how much longer my stride was. Moving at that pace felt good--it was different than my regular plodding jog--but I definately felt each impact more. The end of the set included a bit of discomfort along my right shinbone, and some soreness in my left knee. I probably won't do much running at that pace for a while (and until I lose at least 50 lbs.), but I had to try it.

Ending with our two minute walk felt really good. I was beat and winded, but glad that we did it--we survived the first workout of the week. We covered the same amount of ground going and coming again--a good sign that our pace each was was consistant. We sat in the car and drank water for a few moments before taking a slow drive home. On the way, we decided we'd celebrate our little victory by sharing a breakfast at a local cafe. As it turns out, however, none of the area cafes were open because of the Labor Day holiday. That's probably a good thing.

When we got home, I made breakfast for the rest of the family, then sat down to write this post. It should be a good day, and I look forward to being able to say that we completed Week 2 on Friday.