I Survived! And Enjoyed It!

My first 10K was a success. It was a very well-organized race put on by the South Fairfax Chamber of Commerce. You can see the race pictures slideshow here. I'm in slides 16, 17 and 18. In slide 16, you can get a good look at me doing my deep yogi breathing, the way I begin every run. 

It was actually a great deal of fun. I think I've turned into one of those nutty runner - a person who enjoys pushing my mind and body to the limit with the competitive sport of running. I'm still not much of a competitor, I've said it before and I'll say it again: I compete against no one but myself.  In running my first 10K I made no PR and I certainly broke no records, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. There was a gentleman who ran pretty much the entire race while juggling five red balls. And he lapped me! Gee whiz. Talk about a show off!  I guess he was my entertainment. 

Lucky for me, the Piedmont School of Massage was one of the sponsors and treated the runners to short massages after the run.  That was such a wonderful gift - it was truly priceless.  Thanks to my massage, I had no soreness and no joint stiffness. 

My final time was 1:18. I'm still a turtle, but a soon to be very fit and trim turtle.

Tomorrow I'll be running in Navy Federal's annual 5K. It should be lots of fun and I'll be in good company as there are 400 registered runners.

Week 1 of the 40 Pounds By Christmas Day, So Whatdoya Say Challenge has come and gone. I've lost one pound toward the effort. I met my weekly goal, so I'm feeling good about that.  My total weight loss is now at 51.5 pounds.  At least it was before I ate three slices of pepperoni pizza for dinner! 

Keep on runnin' yall!

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Gratitude Journal
1. Life and love
2. Running and the mental clarity it brings
3. My Flowers and the joy they bring me
4. Healthy food and clean water

New Challenge!

40 pounds by Christmas Day!! Join the fun! You know you want to!!!
I found this challenge on weight watchers community boards. I believe it's the perfect solution to my desire to bake and eat lots of warm comfort foods as the weather begins to change. Not only is my craving for baked goods spinning out of control, but my weight loss has slowed down some. I did manange to finally rid myself of the six pounds I gained celebrating my birthday last month, and I also lost another half pound bringing me to another decade! While I'm not bold enough to advertise my current weight here, I will reveal that I've lost a total of 50.5 pounds since August 29, 2008.

I need to make a plan for this - this challenge is serious business! The challenge officially began yesterday, September 10 and will end on December 26th. That's 15 weeks away.

Here's the description of the challenge:
With the holidays around the corner, we need to get ourselves ready, emotionaly and physically. I want to shout from the roof top, "Hey Ol' man I've stayed on the Plan. I've lost 40 pounds, how does that sound? I'm not hungry and I'm not fat, so what will you put in MY sack?" Sorry, I couldn't resist. I want to have a weekly check in with weekly challenges to keep us accountable for ourselves, the good and the bad. So what do you say...Are you ready to shout?

Who's with me? Keep on runnin' yall!

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Gratitude Journal
1. Savoring the last juicy red strawberries of the season
2. The excitement I feel about my first 10K race tomorrow
3. It's FRIDAY!
4. My Flowers successfully made it through their first week of 4th and 1st grades, respectively.
5. Making decorating plans and daydreaming in Michael's for the perfect autumn touches for our house

Lawd Help Me!

I'll be running my first 10K race (6.2 miles) this Saturday, in the South Fairfax Chamber of Commerce Sponsors Life Without Limits 10K Run to Benefit United Cerebral Palsy.

I've been working hard in preparing my mind and body for the race. I've discovered what lots of runners already know and it a secret no one tells beginner runners: one of the greatest challenge of running is keeping one's mind occupied during the event. Sure, 3 miles goes by in a bit more than a flash, but anything longer than that, and it really helps to have something solid to think on, i.e., world peace or how to be truly satisfied with only 1250 calories per day. All joking aside, it really boils down to quite the mind game or mind trip, however you prefer to call it.

It is truly harder for me to push myself mentally into that sixth mile than it is to convince my cranky hip flexors that they can handle the pressure. For you experienced road runners out there, what tips can you share with me on keeping my mind occupied during longer runs?

Tonight I will run five miles to further prepare myself. My longest run to date is 5.5 miles, so the 6.2 miles on Saturday will be a nice challenge for me. The weather is supposed to be cooperative (no rain please!!), so that should make it pleasant.

My only goal is to run to finish - I'm not out to set any time records, not that I could even if I wanted to.

Keep on runnin' yall!

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Gratitude Journal
1. Running keeps me healthy and happy