Each Day, One Mile

A bit more than a year ago, I bought these shoes and started jogging along with the C25K app.  It worked miraculously well.  I was shocked to discover I could run for 20 or 30 minutes straight by late fall, which was something I don't think I'd ever really done before.  I accomplished it for the first time at 32 while pregnant with my third child. I continued to run several times a week through March when I had my famous crash and we all decided that my balance was shot for the remainder of the pregnancy.  Just a day or so past six weeks post-partum, I started again, inside because it was so very hot.  I didn't really love it and was having a hard time remembering why I had kept running last year.  Until that first outside run, and then I began to remember.  So, now I've been running (at my pace it is probably jogging) along off and on since then- starting again with the same ap.

Yesterday, these lovely ladies and I did a 5k.  I'm glad we did it, but I admit I felt pretty miserable at the end and nowhere near where I was last fall or where I want to be.  In the last two weeks since I've returned to work this was exactly my second run, which probably contributed to the not feeling great by the end.  

I have spent a lot of time since E was born being upset/frustrated/overwhelmed by how much weight I need to lose to be back to a healthier lifestyle.  Suffice it to say, more than I've had to face after the last two pregnancies.  I've lost about 8 pounds so far, but have so much more to go.  

October is hear and I've decided to take some steps.  I am/was oh so tempted to keep this secret as a lot of it is uncomfortable, maybe embarrassing, and what if I fail at these new goals?  I've decided instead to share them here for some accountability and to share the tools I'm planning to use in case it might help other people too.

Here we go:

• One mile a day, every day, no matter what.  This could be running, walking, swimming, biking whatever.  One mile, come what may.  That's only 20 minutes even with the required packing and unpacking of children that often accompany my exercise regimes.  On days I can do more, I will. My general plan is that I'll do my normal three days three days a week, but one mile is my minimum threshold
• Read Run Like a Mother: How to Get Moving--and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity.  There are 26 chapters so I'm just doing one chapter per day as I have other time commitments. I also follow the authors blog and newsletter.  Here is a link to today's newsletter which seemed particularly appropriate. 

Inspiration for "the plan":

• Elise Blaha - has blogged about her physical fitness tracking and commitment here.
• Karen Grunberg has just completed two full years of daily exercise and blogs about it, including how hard it still is here
• Follow Run Like a Mother on Facebook and the authors on Twitter - @SBSontherun and @Dimityontherun. 
• Becky Higgin's Challenge to do 43 miles in October in honor her brother that recently died. 
• My favorite marathoners, Able, Stephanie, and Heather who have provided ongoing encouragement for me on my journey so far and always. 

Tools:

• DailyMile - I do not plan to clog people's social media feeds with daily reports, but I do seem to get a lot of psychic satisfaction about logging my runs somewhere vaguely public so I'll be using the DailyMile.  You can follow me there and join in if you'd like.
• RunKeeper Ap - via iTunes - I'm largely done with the C25K ap again and mostly using this ap which give the time and pace every five minutes as well as tracking various things about the run itself.  It also sends me little updates about achievements, which I guess is nice.
• iPhone - I run with my iPhone in its LifeProof case.
• iTunes - I have a running playlist that is not child friendly, but keeps me going.
• Shoes -Brooks PureCadence 
• Heart monitor - my in-laws bought me a polar heart monitor/watch combination that I like to have with me on at least the three mile days sort of as a check as to whether my body is actually working hard or if I'm just being a bit wimpy.  I have a programmed heart rate range I'd like to be in and it beeps if I go above or below that. 

When:  This is the biggest issue as time management isn't so great right now.  The plan is M/TR/Sat or Sun longer runs probably in the early evening. But I know I really need to shift all of this to early morning.  I'm having a hard time doing that with the baby wake ups and my totally spoiled self that likes getting to sleep til 7 or a bit after daily.  Alternatively, I may try to do my miles in down time between drop offs as there is usually a 30 minute window in there that is rarely used efficiently.  That amount of time is more than ample for a mile even with loading and unloading kids and gear wherever we may be.  I kind of like that some of this will be with kids.  B and I will likely do miles with me running and him riding and I'll do some with E or M in the jogging stroller.  It will be good and outside and fall!

So, there's my plan for October.  I am under no illusions that this will solve my fitness or weight issues, but it will help.  It will begin/restart a habit and force me to fix the time in my day, every day.  It is still doable if my costochondritis relapses so it seems like a SMART goal.  Feel free to join in and I'll report back at the end of the month how it all went.  Wish me luck!