Ok, so it's been a few days now, but last week on thursday, I finally got back on the road.  I went out there thinking... ok, self...you can do it.  Just jog for 5 minutes at a time...take as many rests as you need... it's been a while so it's ok if you lost it.  And guess what... I jogged for a full 12 minutes before taking a 2 minute break, then for 8 minutes!  After about 3 weeks off of jogging at all.  So I felt a lot better about things, and hopefully it will help me to get back into the jogging until the 5k...

I have found out a few things about myself during this training.  First of all... 4 and a half months is WAY too long of a time to train for a 5K, because it's not terribly long so once you get up to jogging that much you don't feel like you need to do much more.

Secondly, I HATE to jog or run.  In the beginning I had planned to do some swimming instead of some of my workouts, but it was suggested that I do that in addition to my workouts.  Well, there's just no way that I'm going to spend that kind of time working out.  I already have to get all changed into my jogging gear 3 times a week, do a very uncomfortable jog, then shower and not plan to do anything else for the evening... I was not about to add one more time per week.  Some people are passionate about being active and they love it... but then there are the rest of us who only do it because we don't want to keel over early in life. 

Well, anyways, I should have just thrown out one jog per week to do a workout I might actually enjoy.  I love aerobic workouts like swimming, or aerobic videos... or turbo kick boxing at the gym, but I guess I felt like training for this didn't give me any chance to do any workout I actually liked.  I can't even eat the same lunch two days in a row, let alone do the same boring workout two days in a row, but I guess I feel pushed into just doing the same thing over and over again...which meant that at some point I pretty much gave up.  I have learned that I just won't do that in the future. 

There is no specific plan that will work for me... if I am going to be successful I need to do the workout that I want to do...otherwise I get super frustrated and bored and I give up.  Not to mention, Jogging is very uncomfortable for some people because of the way we are built and it's definitely just not my thing. That's why I like to swim.  I don't come home with deep cutting red marks from the bra that I have to wear to keep anything in place during a run.  I don't have to worry about ogglers.  I don't have to be so uncomfortable.  I don't have to be so hot.  I don't need a bunch of different workout clothes because they get all sweaty every day.  It's just more my style.

So, even if this program hasn't made a jogger out of me, I think at least it has made me reflect on what might actually work for me.  

In the end, I consider that a success.

Oh, and can I add... freaking weird.  I've lost 5 pounds since I STOPPED jogging.  Why is the world such a weird place?  (I know...I know...metabolism...fat to muscle ratios..etc... but really... lost no poundage while jogging and now 5 pounds?  Doesn't seem right) 

I was out running a few days ago with my husband and a young woman (mid-20s) ran by us (blew by us, actually).  She looked totally at ease running, while I think I may look a bit scary.  Anyway, my husband noted how women's fitness has changed since I was young and how I didn't grow up with any focus on fitness - that's just the way it was.

My high school had over 3000 students in three grades.  Because of its size, there were tons of options for classes.  However, the only women's sports teams were tennis and cheerleading - and cheerleading was not gymnastics-focused like it is today.  I had the same gym teacher for two out of the three years - and she taught us dance.  She had been a Rockette in her very early years, and that's what we did every day for phys ed.  Tap, tap, tap, turn... can you imagine??  In three years of high school PE, my heart rate probably never rose higher than normal resting rate.  Cardio was not a concept.  Even ‘jogging' wasn't in the dictionary.  Proof?  "Veronica and I are trying this new fad called uh, jogging. I believe it's jogging or yogging. It might be a soft j. I'm not sure but apparently you just run for an extended period of time. It's supposed to be wild."  (And if you haven't seen Anchorman with Will Ferrell, you need to stop working out and rent the DVD!).

There was no such thing as sports teams for young kids.  I'm sure there was Pop Warner Football and Little League, but nothing for girls.  Now, we start our children - boys and girls - in sports almost as soon as they can walk.  We know the value of an active lifestyle.  We encourage our children to try all the sports and keep active - and most of the recreational sports make sure that each child gets equal playing time.  By the time the teenage years arrive, even with some less-than-healthy choices, we hope the fitness habit has been ingrained. 

So, here I am trying to make up for growing up in a time where ‘strong' and ‘girl' were mutually exclusive.  The ‘good old days' were not always.  And it's never too late to have a happy (and active) childhood!     

So, I've been here in west africa for about 10 days, and as anyone knows it's hard to fit in a workout sometimes.  Right now I'm on a "vacation" with my mom to Senegal, and this morning we woke up at a hotel with a pool, and then our flight left at 3. 

So we were hanging out poolside for about 2 or 3 hours, and I thought...well..I'm not working out today.  Then I realized that I had a workout right in front of me.   I got up and did laps for about 10 minutes.  It's been a while since I've done laps, so I tired out pretty quickly, but it it felt good to get my blood pumping.  It's the perfect way to fit in a workout when you're on the road.

I don't know if anyone missed me - it's been over a week since I last blogged. No, I'm not hiding out, I have not given up, I am not injured. I was just on a short vacation - spring break in Punta Cana. Yeah, I know I'm too old for spring break, but never too old to head to a nice beach and relax for a few days. And, no, I did not run while I was in Punta Cana. My trainer told me to get my exercise in ‘different ways' - so I did. We walked MILES on the beach and back. We walked all day around the very large complex, plus we were on the third floor with no elevators. I swam - even more than just to the pool bar and back. I even took a bike tour from our resort into town - a few miles out and back. Here is a picture of me on the bike ride to prove I just didn't lounge by the pool all day, every day. Hair sticking out, funny helmet, but the bike ride was fun.

So now I'm back at home and back into the swing of things. I've downloaded our new training plan and am starting it tomorrow, a bit later than I should. I did do some weight training today to loosen up. But I'm refreshed and invigorated and psyched because we have less than 8 weeks until our 5K. Crunch time!

Oh, and the place we stayed at was an all-inclusive. I haven't gotten on the scale yet to see what damage I did. I think I'll wait until the end of the week, with a few runs under my belt, before I take a look. I'll be running tomorrow, I'll probably be able to FEEL if I gained weight. Updates will be coming at the end of the week.

I just wanted to thank everyone who left me suggestions for "music to motivate" me during my runs.  It's now almost midnight and I'm teaching myself how to download mp3 so I can run tomorrow with my music.  Thankfully, I have a lot of friends who are iPod savvy and have given me some advice.  This will take a while, and tonight we lose an hour of sleep.  But I'm determined to run outside tomorrow fueled by some upbeat tunes.  I'll let you know if it helps.  I'm thinking I was "Born to Run"......

Sup Gang?!?!

So...some big news in my life, after growing my hair for 12 months straight I got it all chopped off on Friday.  It was affectionately known as "The Salad" and I must say, I'm glad it's gone.  I had a lot less sweat dripping in my eyes this past weekend during my 5K run.  This week (weather permitting) I am going to hit the streets for my first run outside.  To this point, I have really enjoyed running the treadmill because I can distract myself with a good hockey/sporting event on TV.  Watching a good game seems to make the 5K just fly by. 

Anyways, I have mapped out a couple 5K runs around my neighborhood using http://www.mapmyrun.com/.  I think Active Trainer may have this functionality, but I am not 100% sure of this.  I hope to find a couple runs I like, but realistically, there aren't that many 'scenic' areas where I live (mostly urban). 

I figure I need to get outside and running, after all, our race isn't on a treadmill!

An update for Dave.

Last Sunday: - Core Exercises (http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthandfitness.sympatico.msn.ca%2Fdietfitness%2Ffitness%2FContentPosting_RW%3Fnewsitemid%3D259788%26feedname%3DRODALE-RUNNERWORLD%26show%3DFalse%26number%3D0%26showbyline%3DTrue%26subtitle%3D%26detect%3D%26abc%3Dabc%26date%3DFalse&h=9fe97227266d4a82b6ec9a6a7bd06d61)

Monday - 5K run, 28.45 + Core

Tuesday - Core + Weight Lifting (Arms only)

Wednesday - 5K 29.05 + Core

Thursday - Core + Arms

Friday - Went Drinking

Saturday - Was Hungover

Sunday - 5K 30.20 + Core

I also referee'd 12 games this past week.

So, things are going pretty well.  I've been trying to fit in my 3 jogs per week, and now I'm up to a 5 minute warm up, a 25 minute jog and a bit of a cool down.  I'm still not terribly fast, but I'm ok with that for now.  I'm also bummed because I'm not losing any weight, but I think I'm gaining muscle and I know that weighs more than fat.  I'm able to cinch my belt a little tighter so that's a good thing.  This week I was really sore in my thighs... but it might have to do with the fact that I went up a few hills and my muscles might not quite be ready for that.

Thanks!

Hey everyone,

We are going to spice up the Who Wants to Get Active program with a blogging contest. Starting today we will be monitoring the blogs for volume, inspiration and creativity. The contest runs through March 15 and awards will be handed out for:

• Most creative blog from Feb 18 to march 15

• Most inspirational blog from Feb 18 to march 15

• Most comments on other participants' blogs from Feb 18 to march 15

• Most blog posts (from start of program to March 15)

Prizes include:

• A one-hour massage at a place near you

• $100 to a sporting goods store of their choice

• A Flip Video Camera

• And the last one is a surprise!

Be sure to check out the other team blogs and comment on those too as the contest includes all 16 participants from First Triathlon, First Marathon, Bye Bye Baby Weight and your team, Rookie Runners.

Way to go in your training so far and keep up the great work!