Step by Step

No, those aren't new shoes. In fact, I've had them for many years. These shoes are like an old person's car -- a lot of years, but not a lot of miles. This is because I'm not a runner.... yet.

But two weeks ago I started a six-week training program that ends with running for thirty minutes. I got this program here on the Women's Health website. The program is really gradual -- mostly walking so far -- which is just what I need. In previous attempts to become a runner, I'd go out and try to run twenty or thirty minutes right off the bat. It would kick my butt. This slow build-up will hopefully condition me so that the final thirty minutes isn't such a big deal.

So far, it's been, well, easy. Yesterday I was kind of dreading going to the gym. We had a huge blizzard this weekend, so I wasn't able to get into the gym on Sunday. For me, missing a day or two becomes an excuse to miss a few more days and then stopping my routine altogether. As I was scraping the ice off my car, I thought, "Maybe the end of two weeks is where I always hit a wall." I got to the Y and checked my iPod (where I have the regimen set up in my iCal) and saw that I only had to run in one-minute increments. I could do this! It was as if the Women's Health program knew that I needed an easy day at the beginning of week three so that I wouldn't dread the run/ walk. Lesson of the day: it's mostly psychological.