A Year of Gratitude #123

 

A Year of Gratitude #123: Will Power and Determination

 

Gus and the boys running on the greenway after our cool-down period

I wasn't sure what to expect from today's walk/jog/walk. I was sore yesterday, and mainly it was my abs that hurt more than anything else. I had decided that if I wasn't feeling up to it, I would just walk and not do any jogging.

I have to say... today was GREAT! Christy and the boys joined us and we had a great time walking and talking. My stroller has this speaker system that you can use, and for whatever reason, I wasn't able to hear much and so I kept trying to figure out why I wasn't hearing my iPhone with the voice commands. I think being distracted with that, actually helped.

Or... maybe mentally I knew what to expect and I wasn't as nervous. I don't know. Whatever the reason, today was not awful and I didn't say, "I hate this" or "This is effing hard" at all. Now, don't get me wrong, my shins still burned and my thighs were burning a bit too, but it wasn't a bad thing. I felt like I was really working parts of me that haven't been worked in quite some time, and as a result, I felt great.

Because of the sound issues, I did skip one jog cycle... and it was interesting to be walking and have a thought in my head of, "I'm ready to start jogging now... why is this walk taking so long?" Then I noticed that I had skipped the jog and it made sense. It was still so odd to have the thought in my head that I was ready to jog. That's so totally NOT the Cathy from two weeks ago.

I packed a banana to eat on the drive home and I shared it with Gus. I had a salad for lunch and I have been drinking a lot of water. I just feel better about my choices and there's no doubt in my mind that if I keep this up, I WILL be successful.

I can't even being to say how much the love and support of family and friends means. My dad called at noon to see how my morning was and he wanted to know if I just walked (as I had said I would do in my blog post), or if I jogged. He was quite proud of me that I actually jogged. I asked him if he'd be willing to walk/jog/walk with me during the week that we're in MI. He said he would love to. Then my mom said she wants to walk with me too... so maybe on MWF I'll do my C25K with my dad and then T/TH I'll walk with my mom. I'm excited that I can stay on track while on vacation.

I just hope Steve stays supportive. His ex-wife was a crazy runner and COULDN'T do anything if she didn't have her run in. When I met Steve's dad for the first time, he said, "You're not a runner are you???" I jokingly said, "Look at me... do I look like a runner?? I don't run unless something is trying to eat me." 

All joking aside, I just want to feel better about myself. I want to look in the mirror and actually see the payoff for my hard work. I know it'll come... and after talking to Jessica yesterday, she said in a month I'll be amazed at how far I'll have come in the C25K training. 

So... Week 1 Day 2 is complete. We're meeting on Friday morning before the Busy Bag Swap that I'm hosting here at my house... and we're going to walk at the greenway that's closer to me. Hopefully I can get back here and be ready for the swap by 10:15/10:30 (it starts at 10:30).

I'm officially on the books for a MWF training cycle. Christy and Pilar said they're on board and hopefully Leslie can join us too. It's incredible how being accountable changes your views on things. Having people to do this with has made it all possible and I'm so thankful for the role that so many people have played in my motivation and determination.

I hope I'm not too sore tomorrow and that the section of the greenway that we're doing on Friday is as flat as the one we've been going to!! I HATE HILLS!!!

A Year of Gratitude #122

 

A Year of Gratitude #122: Jessica

I just adore my cousin Jessica. I've written about her before, but she really is such a wonderful friend. 

I'm thankful that she was able to take time out of her day to chat with me... had I known she was still at work, I probably wouldn't have been such a chatter box... but I didn't know. I'm thankful for the words of wisdom she gave me this afternoon, as well as sharing some insights on running. 

There's nothing better than talking to someone and having them tell you about their thoughts and feelings and you have the EXACT SAME thoughts about the subject. Jessica told me about when she first started running/jogging and it was like she was in my head sharing her thoughts about the pain and agony while running. Shins burning and calves on fire... she said she ALWAYS gets that for the first five minutes of her running/jogging and then it goes away. So good to know.

I'm thankful that I've been able to inspire her to start walking/jogging/running again. She did it for eight months and had to stop... and has now been inspired to start again... all because of me. It made me feel so good. I'm not alone in this... not by a long stretch and it feels AMAZING to know that I have so many people who are cheering for me and believe in me.

The power of positive thoughts is incredible.

I usually HATE (and I seriously hate) talking on the phone. I have a few people in my life that I really make exceptions for when it comes to phone calls. I enjoyed my time on the phone with Jes today and look forward to seeing her in a few short weeks.

:-)

A Year of Gratitude #109

 

A Year of Gratitude #109: Support

I'm so thankful to have friends and family who are so incredibly supportive of my goals. I posted my blog about running and have been overwhelmed by the support coming from my family and friends.

I'm so blessed to be surrounded by love and support!!!