Cara's Weightloss Journal

Well, I did it, I ran my first 10K this morning! And I did great.

Well, my finish was fairly bad, but I, myself, did great! I finished 1,878th out of 1,911 runners. I was 33rd from the last. But I consider this a win because I finished strong and ran very confidently throughout the entire race. I actually had a great run. (I told you guys I ran slow and I now you have proof.) :)

It was actually a little intimidating at the start. I got there and lined up around the back of the bunch because my pace is 15 minutes per mile and the highest pace marker was 10 minutes. I knew there was no way I could run a 10 minute mile. But as I was standing there, I looked around and everyone looked fit and skinny. I saw just a few people that looked like they might be 10 or 15 pounds overweight, but they all looked young and fit. I wondered what I’d gotten myself into. Maybe I had bitten off more than I could chew!

But then the race started and I was off running side by side with these skinny fit people.

Now, it wasn’t long before they all passed me, but that was okay. I just got into my steady stride and steady breathe and ran confidently.

I usually get winded my first 2 miles, but this time I didn’t. I was such a rock. I surprised myself, actually. I brought my iPod this time and put on a CD I hadn’t listened to in quite a while. Used to be my favorite. It’s Private Nation by Train. Listening to it helped keep me focused and helped me concentrate on my stride and my breathing. I didn’t get caught up in seeing all those people passing me and freak out that maybe I should be going faster.

I Twittered again and that helped me. Kind of like everyone was going through this with me. A friend from work texted me and said she was following me on Twitter. That was cool!

I ran the whole way. I never felt like walking or slowing down. I’m so proud of how I did.

It was actually kind of funny because as I passed the 6 mile mark, these two old people—and by old, I mean really old, like late 70′s or maybe even 80!—came walking past me. Yes, walking! They were walking pretty fast, but still they were walking. Was so bad.

I couldn’t have them finish before me so I kicked it in gear the last 2/10th of a mile and finished ahead of the old people.

Then to celebrate my finish, we went for hot Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Oh my goodness, those things are like a little piece of heaven.

You know, I’ve been giving alot of thought to the shoes that I run in and I think they’re just fine. I could go get fitted at a running store and buy $80-$100 shoes, but my $30 shoes from Sports Authority are doing just fine for me. They’re the most comfortable sneakers I’ve ever had and I feel wonderful when I run.

Maybe when (if) I get to be more of a competitor, I can invest in better shoes, but for now, these are doing me just fine. That’s all I was trying to say to begin with about getting a good pair of shoes to run in. I know I’m still just starting out, too. I’ve only been running since mid-December. And I’m just barely running, too.

By the way, I gained 8/10ths of a pound at yesterday’s weigh in. I actually did great all week, drank my water every day, ate within my points (not like last week) and I exercised great this week (ran 12 miles altogether). After all, I did lose 4.6 pounds last week so a little gain this week isn’t all that bad. I’m not upset with it at all.

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Well, I splurged a little last night and woke up this morning to a 3-pound gain. I had a small plate of fries with my turkey and fruit. I think it was the salt, though. I really poured it on. Hopefully all the water I drank today will flush the extra sodium out of my system.

I went running tonight. Yea! I only ran our regular 5K route and got it done in 45 minutes. My pace was great. And I felt great throughout the whole run. I even burned 948 calories! I think I really love running at night. I felt strong and confident and the scenery was beautiful with the sun just setting. The sky was blazing red and everything just glowed.

I even went past a small lake (was probably a sink whole or a man-made retention pond) that was absolutely spectacular. There were even a couple of men fishing from the shore. And the sky was red reflecting off the water and it was just beautiful.

I don’t feel any aches or soreness from Sunday’s 10K. My knees feel great. My legs feel great. I’m so glad I went running tonight.

You know, over the past few months, I’ve heard some of you say how you can’t wait until y0u can run like I do or you wish you could or something like that. I’d just like to say that running isn’t as hard as you might think it is. I know when I first started, it freaked me out. I thought I was going to die or break something or pull something when I first started running. I was so out of breath and I actually think I would hyperventilate sometimes. That’s how panicked I was about it.

I’m here as living proof that if you just take it slow, you can do it. Run just enough to call it running to start out with. Run just enough to lift your feet off the ground. Almost like a speed walk but with a little hop in your skip. But then only run for maybe 30 seconds the first time. Then walk until you’re totally rested and try it again. The first time you try it, you might only run twice. But just take it slow. There’s no rush. You’ve got the rest of your life to run farther and faster. Rushing it will only prevent you from doing that.

The reason I breath through my nose is because if I breath through my mouth, I’ll hyperventilate from too much air and it’ll exhaust me. I’ve heard of other runners doing the same thing, breathing through their noses, so I tried it and it’s really the only way I can run any length of distance. Once I start breathing through my mouth, I just get too much air and start wearing out. But breath however you feel most comfortable.

Make sure you have a good pair of shoes, too. I bought a very inexpensive pair of sneakers from Sports Authority made by ASICS (I think they were like $30 or something like that). I bought them because they were cheap but it ends up they’re so comfortable to run in. So they don’t have to be the most expensive shoes, just ones that have good support and are made for running.

Don’t let running intimidate you. You can do it. It’s alot easier than you might think. Try it, you might just end up loving it like I do.

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Well, being as I have less than a week to my FIRST EVER 10K, I decided to run 10K (6.3 miles) this morning. I have only tried this one time before and it went pretty good.

Well, this morning was a different story. I mapped out a different route. I get bored doing the same routes over and over. And though the route was okay, it was so hot out there. I didn’t start running until almost 8:30. I wanted to get started around 7, but with the time change, it didn’t get light until 8. Through my whole schedule off. And the sun was HOT.

I’m learning that the first 2 miles are my hardest. Up until I reach the 2-mile mark, I feel like I won’t be able to go on. I think I get a little over zealous that I start running a little harder and it wares me out faster. My heart rate stayed in the mid- to upper-170s for those first 2 miles. I had to stop and walk at the 1st mile marker for about a half a minute. Then again at the 2nd mile marker.

But after the 2nd mile, I started doing just fine. I settled into my pace and didn’t want to stop. That is, until the 5 mile marker. That’s when I hit a brick wall. All of the sudden, without warning, my legs started knotting up. You know when you get a toe cramp or a calf cramp when your muscle just locks up and won’t let you move it? That’s how my thighs and calves started feeling. They felt solid as a rock. I almost couldn’t continue. So I stopped running and when I did, my left knee started hurting. Just below my knee cap where the tendon connects to the cap to the shin. I thought I was done.

I didn’t even think I was pushing myself too hard at all. I had felt fine up until then. I didn’t want to injure myself, so I decided to walk for the last 2 miles (my route actually took me 7 miles rather than 6.3). I walked for about 15 minutes and started feeling refreshed and no aches or stiff muscles at all, so I started running again. I was able to run, comfortably, until I got to my cool down lap around my community.

All day long, my legs have been so tight. My knee didn’t give me any trouble until the evening. Now it’s sore again. I’m definitely taking it easy this week. An injury is the LAST thing I want. That’s the main reason why I run so slow. I want to be able to run for years to come. Speed is not my goal. Slow and steady is. Heck, I’ve only been running since the middle of December. I’m not ready to push hard yet.

On the flip side, I burned over 2,000 calories! Wow! I don’t know if I’ve ever burned 2,000 calories before. I figured I could have a little heavier breakfast once I got home so I fixed real bacon with real eggs, obrian potatoes and toast. Was a GREAT breakfast.

I still stayed within my points for the day, though. I had a very light but thoroughly satisfying dinner and popcorn for my evening snack.

On a somber note, one of my childhood icons (and I’m sure alot of yours too) dies last week. Paul Harvey was 90. Wow! 90! How amazing is that! I sure hope I live to 90. Paul Harvey meant so much to me growing up and listening to his show. I seriously looked forward to his show every week. “And that’s… the rest of the story.” Those words are so precious to me. I’ll never forget him. His son still tells the rest of the story on radios across the world. I wish he had a podcast, I’d love to be able to listen to him while I was running. But I still listen to him on the internet on his website when I can.

UPDATE: Monday @ lunch time: My legs don’t hurt at all today. Whew! I was so afraid they would be aching. My knee’s fine too. No soreness at all. I’m going to go running again tonight, but only 3 miles. I don’t want to take it too fast. Slow is better for me. :)

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We couldn’t stay for the WW meeting this morning because hubby was sick. But we did both weigh in.

I lost 4.6 pounds!

Wow, huh?!!

My new mind set is really paying off. I’m totally looking at food differently. It’s really an attitude change. I don’t feel guilty for eating something I shouldn’t. Or feel like I have to sneak to indulge. I feel really good about myself whether I eat good or bad.

I tracked everything I ate last week. You’ll be shocked to learn that I went over my points each day. Check this out… Here was my daily points for last week:

Sat: 43
Sun: 32
Mon: 24
Tues: 29
Wed: 33.5
Thurs: 24
Fri: 23

I’m only supposed to have 21 points a day.

I only earned 16 activity points throughout the week. I ran on Sunday and Monday but that was it. So overall, I went WAY over on my points.

I did drink all my water. I had 3 bottles each day and two days in there I drank 4 bottles (72 to 96 ounces).

I think the biggest change, though, was my attitude. I felt confident in what I was eating. I ONLY ate when I was hungry. When I ate, I made extremely smart choices. When I indulged, I compensated by eating very low calorie meal(s) afterwards.

Most importantly, your comments on my last two blog posts were so encouraging. I am so happy that I can play even a small part in anyone else’s weight loss journey. That was the main reason I started this blog, by the way, was to try and help someone else to do what I’ve done. More often, though, this blog becomes about you guys helping me stay motivated and inspired to keep going.

By the way, this is my 200 blog post!! :]

I had two tough days last week. Tuesday we had a birthday lunch at work and they all voted to go to a Chinese buffet. And of course, the one they chose to go to was my absolute FAVORITE Chinese restaurant. Which, by the way, I have not gone to since before I started WW. I’ve intentionally stayed away from it because it’s a HUGE red flag restaurant for me. I did great, though. I filled up on fruit and salad and sushi (which is very low in calories and fat). I only had 3 pieces of Rangoon (fried pieces of won ton wrappers filled with crab and cream cheese), which is my total weakness. I used to have maybe 20 or sometimes 30 pieces of Rangoon when I went there. I decided to eat some while I was there, though, just to see how I can eat my red flag food and still be in total control. I thoroughly enjoyed it and didn’t want more.

Then yesterday was scripted to be a bad day for me–I went to the local prayer breakfast and it didn’t even hit me until the night before that I wouldn’t be able to eat anything they served. I was supposed to eat breakfast before I left, so I wouldn’t eat anything there, but I overslept and had to eat what they served, which was scrambled eggs, 2 sausage links, roasted potatoes and fruit with OJ. I asked for water to drink instead and I ate the fruit as well as the fruit from the empty seat next to me and one bite of eggs and both of the roasted potatoes (no oil or butter on them). Then at lunch time was a wedding shower at work which was pot luck. Ugh!! The dreaded pot luck. Well, luckily someone (thank you) brought roasted chicken breasts and there was also spinach salad (yes!). I had one deviled egg and maybe 10-15 Tostito’s chips. I did great the whole day!

So all in all, I had a very successful week. From my “discovering” what my weight loss “problems” have been, to making great food choices, to drinking all my water.

I’m now below 170!

Check out my new Healthy You Challenge badge over to the right. It says 95 pounds again. I’ve now lost a total of 96 pounds (again). I don’t ever want to see the 170s again. I’m now only 4 pounds away from 100 pounds. I think I actually might do it this time.

Oh, and next Saturday is my first 10K. I’m getting very excited. I’m not nervous. I know I can do it. I’m so excited though. I’m going to run 10K tomorrow morning around the neighborhood just to make sure I can do it. Then throughout the week, I’ll stick to 5K routes with hubby.

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I did something crazy Friday morning… I signed up for my first 10K.

Here’s the real crazy part… It’s in 2 weeks.

I know I can run a 10K, that shouldn’t be the problem. I mean, I’ve done it before. Once.

But this is a competition. I don’t know if it’s a run/walk.

The race starts at 7:30am and they have the awards ceremony at 9:30am. I hope I’m done running by then. I hope they don’t have a clean up bus that comes by and picks you up with they pick up the cones. :D

David started a 5K challenge (you’ll see the badge on the right side) and I think I got carried away with it. I’m still doing a 5K with him in April.

So I went running this morning. It was tough. I think I run much better at night. I’ve been running with David. Funny thing is that his stride is so long that while he’s walking (very fast) I have to jog to keep up with him. Then when he does his interval running, I have to step it up into high gear to keep up with him.

It’s so cool, actually. I’ve been wanting to do some interval training to start increasing my pace and this will just do the trick. So when it’s just me running, I’ll run at my normal slow pace and go for longer runs. And when I run with him, I’ll do shorter runs with mostly shorter speeds but then with bursts of fast paced running. Absolutely perfect!

I did great with tracking my points this weekend. And I went running this morning, so my exercise is going great. And I drank all my water both days. So the beginning of the week is going great, so far.

I did actually go over my points both days, but I gained an extra 8 points for running this morning so its okay.

Mind over matter. I can do this. I just need to stay focused.

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