Day 1 of Training

I have never been the athletic type. I was in ballet as a girl and unless you count tap dancing in the high school musical as athletic... I would say that I'm pretty much as non-athletic as they come.

I've always kind of been fascinated with running. I've never really done it myself, as close as it came was walking a couple of miles a day with my Mom on one of her "let's all get healthy" sprees as a teenager. In elementary school when we would run I would get a stitch in my side that I've since found out came from breathing wrong. So I guess you could say that I've had zero real experience with running.

For the last year and a half or so I've been on my own little "let's get healthy" spree, hopefully one that will last my lifetime. I've heard many people talk about their running experiences and words such as "freeing", "stress relieving" and "exhilarating" have come from the mouths of my friends as well as "totally tones your body" or "the fat just melts right off". These are all things that appeal to me and for some crazy reason... I've decided to do it.

I heard about the Ogden Marathon and that's what I decided to train for. 26 miles might seem like a big jump but I've always been one that... well... if I'm going to do something than I'm going to REALLY do it. I want to say that I really accomplished something. My Mom also told me about the Disneyland Half Marathon and I figure... what a better excuse to take the family to Disneyland! While all of this is going through my mind I had a friend on Facebook talk about putting together a team for a wasatch back relay race. I told her to sign me up! I'm going to do this! After all, I have almost a YEAR to train! No problem!

I borrowed a book from my Mom called "The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer". That's me! The non-runner! This would be perfect. I also "chatted" with an old friend on Facebook that said to sprint until you think you might die then walk until you catch your breathe, then do it over. Hmpf! Sounds easy enough!

Day 1 of training:
I started out by getting my cute little exercise outfit and shoes on. Wow! I feel so athletic already! I do some little punches into the air at the mirror. Yep, I'm a strong, independent, beautiful, fit woman. I can do this! I nearly trip on my way down the stairs to the front door and step outside. I take a deep breathe and feel the cool air fill my lungs. What a beautiful day! Not a cloud in the sky, the sun is out and there's a nice breeze. Normal people aren't awake yet and that makes me feel a little bit better that I won't have an audience for my first attempt. Just in case though, I suck in my stomach so I look a little thinner than I am, and I start to stretch out. The stretches I'm doing are amazing! Only a true ballerina could be this flexible. I hope my neighbor across the street is seeing this right now. I'm sure she'll be talking about it to me later. I have a huge grin on my face as I start walking down my driveway, head held high, stomach sucked in and standing pretty tall.

I get to the end of my street and think that I might as well just get started on my sprint already. This is great! So exhilarating! I see why people love this! It's almost like being on a Harley. I feel a rush of adrenaline, I feel the wind blowing my hair back off my neck, I feel the pounding of my heart almost in time with my feet moving across the pavement, I feel... I feel... burning... in my lungs, I feel like I can't breathe. I have a strong determination to make it to the end of the street. Just make it to the corner. When did this street get so long?! The cool air is stinging as I breathe it in. "Breathe through a straw, breathe through a straw" I keep reminding myself. I don't want to feel that stitch in my side like when I was a kid. I need to breathe correctly. After what seemed like an eternity I reached the corner and started walking.

The walking is actually more like a gasping for air, barely shuffling my feet forward, hunched over kind of a walk. Oh! Here comes a car! It takes all my strength to pull myself up straight and smile! OK, Maybe I need to start off a little slower. I'll try to fast-walk it.

I just realized that I had no idea where I was going. Maybe if I went around our huge block it would be about a mile. I think so. I'm coming up on a dead end street and I decide to walk in, around and out of every little dead end or cul-de-sac I come up to. For sure with all that I'll reach a mile. I know my face is red, I'm still trying to catch my breathe from my first attempt to run and now I'm heading uphill on a long road. I feel different muscles working now. Surprisingly the only part that's feeling over-used (besides my lungs) is where my legs hook into my hips. I must not get that part stretched out as much on my elliptical.

I round the corner onto a busier street and I make a mental note to go the opposite way next time so I can see the cars that are coming at me. I think this block is actually more like 3 miles or something. Will this ever end? I think I may have been out here for... at least an hour already! More neighbors walking by. Stomach is NOT sucked in, I'm trying to keep a steady breathe and I don't even attempt a smile but I do lift my hand for a half wave.

I'm almost to the corner to turn to my house. Four houses left, three... I don't want to end it like this! I start to run, just to the end of the corner. At least then if my neighbor across the street was watching me then she would have seen me start off and ending by running. The burn immediately comes back with my breathing. I walk up my driveway, to my porch trying to cool down. It takes all of my will power to not collapse on my porch. I envision myself laying face down kissing the pavement.

I start to stretch everything out. My stretches now resemble something more like a really worn out, old and fat ballerina. I bend over trying to stretch the back of my legs. I wonder if my butt looks smaller? Probably not, I better put the behind towards my house so my neighbors don't see.

I walk in the house and immediately find a clock. Thirty minutes had passed. Thirty minutes? That's all? Well... with three miles or whatever though.... hhhmmm. I get in my car and reset the "trip mileage" to zero. I drive the course that I just did and finally get back to my house. 1.8 miles. 1.8 miles? What? Only 1.8 miles in thirty minutes? I quickly do the math and realize that's not even a fifteen minute mile!

I sit on my steps and recap in my mind what I had just been through. Ever the optimistic one I tell myself that I will not quit. I haven't ran in years, I've never been good at this but this is something that I will master. I will keep doing this. I will accomplish what I have set out to do. If I can do this, I can do anything. I am in control of my own body and it's just going to take time to train my body to do what I want it to.

I walk back up the stairs. My legs are wobbling like jello. Time for a shower. I'm worn out, tired and thirsty. That's good right? Doing it all again tomorrow... maybe minus the overly giddy attitude while starting though.