DAY 15

Well,after a about 4 day's worth of resting my knee I finally went to Southern Bone and Joint and Doctor Dews informed me that my left knee is just plain eat up with arthritis or Bersitus....he just can't tell. So I have combined the two and made up my own diagnosis of Birthritis!!!! I left for the gym early this morning to "pick up where I left off" in my training, but sweet baby Birthritis had other plans for me. After a lenghthy warm-up, which i was sure was going cure my birthritis, i hit treadmill 4 for a trailblazing 1/2 mile run which ended in me literally stopping the treadmill, riding it to the floor and falling on to it while clutching my left knee. I didn't understand because my doc assured me yesterday that runners train with this type problem all the time....he must have been unaware that I'm not REALLY a runner. I think the new special running shoes must have thrown him off. Anyway, my heart truly goes out to you athletes out there who train with this kind of pain. I mean holy nike''' after I got up off the floor I hit the spa area and soaked my knee in the hottub followed by an ice pack. As I was relaxing in the locker room, women were coming in and hot, and because I was so convincingly dressed (new shoes, nike zoom lookalike running shorts, under armour....you get the picture) they all gave me the "you go girl" head nod. They may have been under the impression that I had just ran 26 miles and just need an ice down. I felt like a poser cuz I said nothing and just let them go on believing I was one of those "tough marathon/triathalon chix". I didn't have the stomach to enter into a conversation about my Birthritis with anyone....especially since it had come on after only training to a staggering distance of 1.5 miles.....But anyway....thinking positive. This birsitis sets the stage for a comback. I'm gonna run the practice 5k on March 19 if I have to be airlifted to the finish.....birsitis and all. Please give me any suggestions you have about where to find guts at.....I'm lookin for mine!

DAY FOURTEEN

So I've officially been training for 2 weeks. I have experienced alot of highs and lows (mostly middles though) while trying to reach my goal. I certainly don't proport to know ANY good information about running, however yesterday, I gave my Aunt Tammy some very BAD advice which today has come back to bite me in the you know! I told her to "GET MAD-THEN RUN"...yuck!
I ran mad yesterday. In fact, I did more than run mad yesterday. I ellipticalled mad, I biked mad, I sit-upped mad (don't know if sit-upped is a word...in fact I KNOW it's not), I weight lifted mad....you get the picture. At the end of the workout, I left the gym mad. Now why I was mad is not the issue. The real issue is
What do you get out of training mad???????????
Does envisioning the faces of ALL of your wrongdoers on the belt of the treadmill help propel a person to reach their ultimate goal? Hmmm...don't know. But I sure didn't like the way I felt yesterday....even after accomplishing my daily goal. I was mad. And to put the cherry on top, I woke up with a whopper of a swollen knee and pain.....which made me.......(theme song to jeopardy playing........you guessed it...... MAD!!!!!
So, I postponed my training for today to rest my knee, bought some new shoes (or should I say my husband bought me some new shoes) and went to lunch. Ate too much went to Target to buy some OsteoBiFLEX, icy hot patches, gel inserts and some omega three fish oil. Oh Yeah....and some HAPPY VITAMINS.....supposedly for women who are MAD!!!!!!!!! I will start making fun of myself again tomorrow. :) That's the only cure for "mad melissa" that has ever worked. Laughter and comedy can be great medicine and motivation. So, although I will not dole out anymore unsolicited advice to anyone about running, I must say that I've now tried two ways.....funny and mad. Me thinks I prefer funny. It's.......funnier!

DAY THIRTEEN

He's turned his life around. He used to be depressed and miserable. Now he's miserable and depressed. - Harry Kalas
That quote sums up my day at the gym. I was reminded of it when the super muscle woman on the treadmill next to me asked what I was training for. I let her know about my goal to run a 5k...blah blah blah....out of shape....yada yada. She motivated me by letting me know how good I would feel about "turning my life around". HMMM....I started to think about this while I ran (and I made 1.5 miles again) Do I really want to "turn my life around"? I kinda liked it when I was couching it! maybe "re-prioritize" but totally turn my life around, that is a huge committment. My "free spirit" "hippie slacker" "easy going" persona is kinda the only thing I DIG about me.....REALLY!!! DO I WANT TO CHANGE THAT??????
Some would say ....PLEASE CHANGE THAT.... (mom, dad, family members etc...) But still don't think I want to! Sorry...So today, turning my life around could mean instead of being Lazy and Happy I'll be Happy and Lazy....while running a 5k! Yeah, a happy, lazy, 5k runner. Oh yeah, and I finally had enough air in my lungs while I was running to sing the words to one of my favorite songs....."I'll never be your Beast of Burden....Your a pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty girl...." love me some Mick Jagger. I hope the other treadmillers love the stones as much as I do!!!!

DAYS ELEVEN AND TWELVE (THURS AND SAT)

Day Eleven (thursday)reminded me just how much i DO NOT know or understand about running yet. I met my seriously determined and highly "in shape" friend Christie for a run on the campus of USM. Now, in my defense, "trail running" is not what I'm training for....however I did not fear that it would be much different than the runs I do at the GYM on treadmill number 4!!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! After song #1 finished on my ipod "Imma Be by the Black eyed Peas" I felt like I had inhaled an entire cuban cigar! I felt dizzy. The earth was spinning (well I know the earth spins, but I mean like fast) I walked another half mile in torture (why sweet lord did you create the hill) and I just had to stop. Tortured...Defeated...on the verge of vomiting. I walked back to my car. Unbelievable

Day Twelve
After a one day hiatus (again spell check me on this one) I felt that I should probably go back the site of some success me..You know build myself back up.
BACK TO TREADMILL 4!!! Old Friend! You make me feel so good about myself. if only you could talk, we would be friends, you know invest more in our relationship. But for now, I will continue just to run all over you, use you up and walk away. And boy did I light up today....woo hoo!!! A triumphant 1.5 mile run and I might add that my play list did not hurt. My song choice was really motivating except for the song "gold digger" by the cast of glee!!! kind of a let down....but all in all...great day. Thank you TREADMILL NUMBER 4!!! YOU DA MAN

DAY TEN

Another mile in the books at a blazing fast time of 13:42......I know it's LUDICROUS SPEED. You can call me alot, but you can't call me quick....LOL I feel great because I am getting faster. Slow going but it's going.
My biggest obstacle today (besides my sore left calf muscle and my shins) was deciding whether or not to leave "FERGALICIOUS" on my ipod "running playlist" That song used to get me fired up but it's just not cutting the mustard anymore!! I could replace her with a black eyed peas song, you know let her down easy, but which one of those. Today is filled with intense decisions. What to listen to, What to wear, What Davis should wear tomorrow, What should I eat next....You know...Real tough life choices.....
Wow, I love the clarity that working out brings. I'm gonna stick with Fergalicious....She has stuck with me!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DAY NINE

Well, I finally have some battle scars to prove I'm an athlete darnitt....that's right...an athlete. (ok i'm chuckling). I didn't even know what "shin splints" were and I was told today by a REAL athlete that I had them. Not only that, but possibly a strained right calf muscle....WOOO HOOO!!! I was sent home to a hot bath and icy hot patches (not the cream for goodness sakes) on my calf. So no running today. I started and finished 1/2 mile and just couldn't continue however I noticed I did have the stamina to finish. My hurtin just prevented it.....So I guess that is a step in the right direction.

DAY EIGHT

INSPIRATION! It can come from many places and oddly enough for me it came in the form of my long suffering SAINTS! Watching the Saints win the SuperBowl was....I don't even think I know the word for it....it just WAS! As Tracy Porter ran into the endzone after picking off P.Manning I knew that today (the official Who DAT holiday)I would push myself to finish my mile. I knew that because as the Saints won the Superbowl I poured out my full glass of wine and started to think about what kind of dedication and self belief it must have taken for these "free agents" guys that nobody wanted, to make it to this level. I'm quite positive it wasn't always confetti and trophies. and neither was my mile today. There was no crown or a trophy but I laughed the last 1/10 of a mile knowing that I had done something that I never thought I had the will power to do (yes I'm talking about the pouring out the full glass of wine.......lol and the run). as I walked through mile 2, I saw the replay of Drew Brees holding his young son and kissing his cheek. Although his son is WAY to YOUNG to "get it" it inpired me to start running again. I closed my eyes and thought of seeing Davis at the end of my finish line. Ok it's not the superbowl, but to accomplish a goal and share it with your child is the ultimate thrill. Almost as good as watching your child accomplish a goal. So I ran till there was only 1/2 mile to go, and I walked to my finish line. I gave myself a victory lap..... I'm not kidding and it felt great. I sang "when the saints go marching in" (in my head of course) and smiled all the way to the locker room.....TODAY IS A GREAT DAY!!!!
GEAUX SAINTS>>>>WHO DAT

DAY SEVEN

WHOOOOOO DAT!!!!! NO RUNNING JUST WATCHING AND PRAYING!

DAY SIX

Since day four was a disaster workout and day five I was OFF...I was eagerly anticipating the arrival of training day six. My training schedule states that I should run until I tripped or puked (ok....it just said "as long as runner can tolerate) and then finish 2 miles ( and I'm not talkin bout the bar) with a mix of walking briskly and running. I knew today would be a great day because my hubs blessed me with an early val's day gift. It's a new ipod...GOD BLESS MACINTOSH! I loaded that bad boy up with every "up beat" song I could think of. Among some of my faves were "fergalicious" "ice ice baby" "gonna make you sweat" -yes the c n c music factory one "c'mon ride that train"....blah blah blah....you get the picture. I found that everytime a new song would come on it renewed my spirit....some may call that the "spirit of bad 90's rap music" but it got me through 3/4 of a mile. MY BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT SO FAR!!!! I was so excited I patted treadmill 4 on the back and alerted the lady on treadmill 5 of my talents in running. She was on mile 4 and was less that enthused. She was hatin!!! LOL I am so pumped and can't wait till day eight....Yes. I'm takin a who dat holiday. Till then :) GEAUX SAINTS!!!!!
and btw. anyone who is interested in running a 5k go to runnersworld.com and print out a training schedule designed just for you!!! :)

DAY FOUR

Today I truly sucked wind!!! or should I said literally sucked wind. First, when I woke up this morning I felt like a sumo wrestler had hibernated on top of me all night. My body was so heavy and riddled with pain and I truly needed help getting out of bed.....thanks husband! I ran straight to the bathroom and covered myself with walmart brand icy hot....Oh the thrill. The pain was gone. The smell refreshing and helpful for my sinuses. I quickly dressed in my workout gear did some light housework and hopped to the car for what I thought would be another AWESOME workout. Well, as I turned onto hwy 98 from lake serene road the icy hot began to be less comfortable. AS I entered the parking lot of ANATOMIES, the icy hot was downright painful. It had managed to creep into areas where I don't think icy hot was meant to be. So, I ran into the gym, immediately stripped off my workout clothes and jumped in the shower....Yes, I showered before my workout. I think that was the beginning of the end of my AWESOME workout day.
After my shower, which I can say was very refreshing, very mentholly (is that a word) I willed myself to treadmill 4 and began my workout. Today was a 30 minute run/walk. I warmed up for 5 minutes with a brisk walk, then ran 4 minutes (that's all my jello legs could choke out) and walked 4 followed by 25 more minutes of a little bit of running and mostly walking. I was sweating and felt a little defeated. Fates final blow came on minute 27 second 32 when I tripped over my own feet while listening to REO SPEEDWAGON's "i'm gonna keep on lovin'YOU". I gathered my pride and finished the 3o minutes.
Dragging myself to the locker room, I felt dissappointed. The first day that the treadmill had gotten the best of me. Tomorrow is my off day. Thank the dear sweet lord. Maybe by Saturday I will be ready to better my 1/2 mile constant running record. LOOKOUT USSAIN BOLT!! I think that's how you spell it.

WHY I'M BLOGGIN ABOUT THIS????

So, my hubs came home tonight with some tough news about my blog...He said it was "presumptious". We talked for a bit about why I'm blogging and after my explanation, he prompted me to write this "addendum" to my daily posting.
I am blogging because I need help staying motivated. Intrinsic motivation has NEVER been my strong suit and I need ALL THE HELP I CAN GET sticking with this goal. Countless goals have slipped through my lazy fingers and I just want to finish this! As I write this I feel sad that I have to say that I am lazy, but this is my opportunity to move past the feeling of complacency that I have felt in my life in the last 10 years and FINISH SOMETHING that doesn't come easy. I want to be proud and myself and blogging about the small goals that I reach keeps me extremely motivated to continue. and btw....I am proud of me......so far!
And that's the "rest of the story".

picures of core exercise

DAY THREE

As the words to a great George Michael song filled my IPOD NANO...I reached the second jogging goal I had set for myself....I ran 1/2 MILE!!!!! The time on the tread was 7:32!! Not blazing fast but that's not my goal..I finished and honestly think I could have run farther but today was an OFF day in my training. So I focused on Weight Training and working my core. It is fair to say that today was excrutiating!!I have no idea just how out of shape I actually am. But everything hurts. As I type this blog, even my fingers hurt. But it is a good hurt. One that reminds me that I am not dead yet. I feel a sense of pride in myself today that has not been there for a very long time.
Now, Core exercises are not what they used to be and a sense of "athleticism" that I DON'T have is now necessary to lean back with the ball, sit up and throw it into the goal. Another personal fave is grab the oversized ball with your feet, lift it up with your legs and grab it with your hands and down....Got the pics for that one! Could only finish 4 of those before I had to stop....Ugh. Core day stinks.

DAY TWO

Well, today was a HUGE day for reaching my goal. I actually felt what it's like to walk/run 3.1 miles. It was just as hard as I thought it would be. I trained on a treadmill today and while watching regis and kelly I actually ran 3 minutes, walked 2, ran 3, walked 2 for a full 3.1 miles. I wanted to stop more times than I can recall and actually did take a small walk break break for 6 minutes in the middle of mile 2! I met a great girl named "anna the trainer" today, who gave me great insight as to why I SHOULD NOT have eaten that cheesecake that I ate last night....REALLY!!! or the cookie. She said that it just "slows you down". In my mind I truly didn't think I could have moved any slower than I did today. The lady beside me, on treadmill six, was watching a less than motivating lifetime movie and was "cooking with gas" on 5.1 speed and literally had the incline up so far I couldn't put my hand on her....and she was my mother's age....SORRY MOM! Goes to show you it's not about your age, but how "in shape" you actually are. Tomorrow I go back to the gym to work on my "core" which I have not seen in about a year.....seriously. So wish me luck. As I finished my run, the cute young girl next to me on treadmill 4 asked me "WHAT do you think about while you run"? HMMMM. I answered a polite answer "OH just what I need to do today" because I didn't have the heart to tell her that while running my mind was as blank as Jake the Bachelor's and I was just worried about holding in my vomit....seriously. Wish me luck on DAy 3

DAY ONE

On day one of my "JOURNEY TO RUN" (LOL) I was filled with motivation! I'm sure this will quickly fade. As an adult with ADHD or ADD or whatever it is when you rarely finish something you start, I am not surprised that I am so excited to begin working towards my goal of running a 5k! The true test will come in 30 days....if I'm still excited and motivated to run a 5k. Most everything I do I end up quitting. HMMM>>> I guess I'm a Master of Quitting!!! But that is not a title I am extremely proud of and hope that this goal of running a 5k (no matter how much I want to quit) I will see thru till the end. OH BY THE WAY, I do have decent grammatical skills, however for time's sake, I will not use them while I blog....just sayin!!!
DAY ONE-I arrived at ANATOMIES and went inside. Had cup of coffee and thought about what it was I was there for. I decided to hit the outdoor track and attempt what I knew would be a painstaking process of getting around it!!! I started off with a bang and I swear I thought I looked pretty peppy until the end of lap one, 1/4mile...I lost it. I hobbled around the track for the next 3 laps, finally completing 1 mile.
As I was swallowing the vomit that had welled up in my mouth, a sweet young girl approached me and offered me some truly good advice. What a kind stranger! She shared with me a very personal story about why she began running and challenged me to dig deep and find out the REAL reason I was running. I'm still wondering about that??? However, she volunteered to meet me again and have a run with me! I have a friend!!! YAY I'll be back out there tomorrow! and so will she. Praise the lord!!!!