Not quite making the mark, but by no means throwing in the towel

So my plans of moving for thirty minutes a day have not gone so well this week. One may even think that for a few days I actually forgot about my commitment to #OperationMOVE with the ever lovely Kate Says Stuff. The main reason why one may think that is because I pretty much did.

How that happened I am not really sure but it did. After I posted on Friday it was like all thought of exercise just left my mind. Mind you it does appear as if my mind is just a little blank at the moment anyway. Two weeks into it and twice I forget to update Kate on how many minutes I have moved for.

Go me hey?

It is not all doom and gloom though. While I may not have been moving as much as I did in the first week I still have managed to kick to a few goals.

Like on Tuesday when according to my groovy little running app, I had and average pace of 5.18/min/km and a distance of 5.83km for a total of 31 minutes. Run Rhianna Run!

Me after realising the awesomeness of run

Halfway through I started to feel more than just a little buggered let me tell you. I put it down to the run the day before plus all the activity I did in the pool, moments before I embarked on my attempt to break my own personal land speed record.

Did I mention that my app tells me I ran the fourth kilometer with an average pace of 3.53min/km?

There is a part of me that keeps thinking that the app must be wrong. There must be a crossed wire or something. But then there is another part of me that thinks these apps don't get that kind of thing wrong. Do they?

If they do please don't tell me. I am really enjoying the more than awesome that I am currently feeling. Or at least I feel until I remember that I haven't done anything since then. Well I have got a heap of housework and cleaning out the way but not much exercise. Not anything that counts as moving anyway.

So what has been my movement for the week?

Well I went for my amazing 31 minute run on Tuesday. This followed a not so amazing 31 minute run on Monday. As well as 20 minute self guided aqua aerobics on both days. For a grand total of 102 minutes. Adding today/s ten minute bike ride and the week is sitting not so pretty at 112 minutes.  Some thirteen minutes shorter than last week.

So as of today my total movement minutes for the month are 250. Out of 930. Man that seems a lot right now. Best I get going I guess.

What about you? 

Are you part of #OperationMove? 

How did you go this week?

Joining in with

Getting back into action

For the whole month of September I sat on the sidelines watching others participating in #OperationMOVE over at Kate Says Stuff. With the wedding and the road trip and all that I just knew there was no point setting myself ridiculous fitness goals while on holidays.

Having said that though I did take my runners with me and what's more I even used them. I then delighted in telling anyone who would listen that I was a runner. Not a very fast runner but a runner nonetheless and that as all that really matters. Sometimes I wonder how even I manage to fit in my own lunchbox

Needless to say I was over the moon when I saw that #OperationMOVE would be continued in October.

While the first week of the month is school holidays I am still going to commit to thirty minutes a day. Which equates to 900 minutes over the month. One of the things I loved most about this concept when Kate first posted about was the way she explained all the different types of movement you could include.

You know playing wiiFit with the kidlets or dancing to some tunes or a who,e range of other fun stuff. This kind of idea is perfect for a non committed easily distracted kind of gal like me.

So with that in mind here is how I have made up my minutes so far

Monday October 1 - 20 minute run with kids on bikes and scooters, 10 minute walk

Tuesday October 2 - 15 minute self guided water aerobics, 15 minutes Dance Party 3, sadly I am not really a co ordinated mover or groover.

Wednesday October 3 - Rode bike 4.5km to park, walked around park and enjoyed free activities for the kids provided by the local council. Rode home via the supermarket (3.7km but not sure how that works dodgy Runkeeper). I did try and time myself but forgot to check my timer upon arrival. Pretty sure we were longer than 30 minutes but that is all I a going to claim. I also tried my little water aerobics routine as well.

Thursday October 4 - 15 minutes running in pool (water between chest to waist), further 20 minutes playing in pool with kidlets, this included a few championship races iykwim

Not a bad overall I guess but I had hoped for a bit more bike riding or running proper in there. With the onset of school next week, combined with the crack of dawn seeming somewhat earlier, I am hoping to introduce some early morning runs. The sudden increase in the day time temperature is also causing me to rethink when I run.

Above all else though I am excited to have cause to again keep fitness in the forefront of my mind. Till next week folks stay happy and healthy!

Signing up for

I did it!

Yep that's right ladies and gentlemen I did it.  Not once but twice as well.  Go me right?

What's that? You have no idea what I am going on about?  Oh sorry let me stop and explain, in my excitement I might have got a little carried away.

As some of you may be aware over the last ten weeks or so I have been taking part in my own personal Ease into 5km program via an awesome little app by Blue Fin that I got for my phone.  The long and short of it is that it is an interval training program that is designed to get you running 5km in eight short weeks.

When I started going faster than a walk for more than 30 seconds seemed impossible.  I seriously question how on god's green earth I was going to be able to jog let alone run for a whole thirty minutes.  (Which is apparently how long 5km should take you.)

It has been a long tough slog.  One that has seen me repeat days on more than one occasion.  In fact there was one particular day that saw me repeat it three times before I felt I could honestly say I completed it.

Despite what ever doubts I may have had at the start I can now say that if you stick with it this kind of training really does pay off.  Just yesterday I went 5.15km in around 39 minutes.  Twenty nine of those minutes were jogging with the other ten consisting of a five minute warm up and the same again cooling down.  This follows a 5km run in around the same time last Friday.

Technically I am not sure what I am doing is really running.  If it is, it is a slow run, not that it really matters because at least I am moving more than what I was three months ago.  Which is all that matters.

Of course what matters even more is that I now actually feel fitter.  In fact I am quite proud of the fact that I can go at above walking pace for quite some time.  After the first ten to fifteen minutes I struggle a little and may or may not reduce my pace to walking for no more than thirty seconds mind you.  I am confident though that in another week or so it will be more like twenty minutes before I need a little breather.

Oh and did I mention how some of my shorts are now a little baggier than they once were?

There is still one more run before I officially graduate from the program which I am quite looking forward to.  Only then I need to work out what will be next.  I am torn between starting the Bridge to 10km or just focusing on improving my 5km time.  Really though all that matters is I keep going.

One thing that I have noticed about all this activity though is that I really am starting to feel quite great about myself.  The days that I run I feel happier and less stressed.  Mind you I only really noticed how good it made me feel when there was a week that saw no running.  By the end of the week I was grouchy and easily irritated.  A couple of runs though and all of that is gone and I am left feeling strong and awesome.

Joining in

Running Thanks to Twitter

While I was scrolling through Twitter this morning.  You know, as you do to prolong the moment when you actually have to swing your feet over the edge of the bed, when I came across this tweet from Nee.

For a very long time I didn't get the whole exercise thing either.  I played lots of sports as a early teen and then led a rather active life in later youth.  After all dancing on tables all night long is no easy feat, even when it is alcohol fuelled.  Along came children and breastfeeding and the dancing stopped as did lots of other activities.  It didn't bother me too much though because for the most part my body seemed to take care of itself and I never felt fat.

Eventually that changed though and I was suddenly hiding from cameras and cringing if I saw myself in a photo.  There was a part of me still trying to convince me I wasn't fat but a louder part cried even if you are not fat you sure have some excess weight and are really unfit.

The real clincher for me was the Wii Fit.  Apparently that stupid little machine thinks I am obese.  I am 165cm tall and weigh a comfortable 76kg.  Is that really obese?  Regardless of whether it is or not it was enough to see me start thinking about doing something.

October year before last, saw me pay for a gym membership.  I went for the first two months.  Well I went a couple of times in the first two months.  I was supposed to get a free session with a personal trainer.  They could never find one that had time for me.  I took that as a sign I wasn't meant to be there.  I then made up a thousand other excuses why I couldn't go.

Since then I have half heartily tried to get out there and be active.  For the most part it was all hit and miss and made no difference to my lifestyle at all.  Then about three months ago something happened.

Once again I was trawling through tweets and killing time while I waited for the housework to take care of itself (which by the way it didn't) when I came across conversations between some fellow bloggers and their adventures with a fitness app.  They would post their times on Twitter after a workout and I suddenly found myself thinking I wonder if I could do that.  Before long I had the app and was on my way.

The first few weeks were hard but rewarding.  Oh so rewarding.  I could literally feel myself getting stronger and fitter and even faster each and every time I got out there.  I loved it.  For the first time in my life I could see why so many people made time to go running.  I felt rather special to be joining the club.  I had always looked at runners with some form of admiration.  Being rather uncoordinated it was rather exciting to think that with a bit more time I too could be running.

Running along here is one of my favourite routes
I live in a capital city and I love the fact I can still run alongside a creek

Today I completed Day 3 of Week 7 of my running program.  Even though it says week 7 I probably started more like 10 weeks ago.  I had a week off when I was sick and then repeated week 6 for a while because I was starting to really struggle with completing each workout.

As I type there is a part of me that still doubts whether I will ever really be a 'runner' as such.  Next week is the last week of the program.  Which means in three runs time I should be able to run for 5kms.  Or for 30 minutes straight.  To be quite honest I am not sure I will do either.

Today was a 27 minute run.  Or rather it was supposed to be.  After about 12 minutes I wanted to stop.  I just wasn't feeling it.  At all.  I kept going though.  Albeit very very slowly.  That is what the last week and a half has been like.  Super slow going.  In 38 minutes I traveled around 4.5km.  Ten minutes of this is for warming up/cooling down with the left meant for running.  Today I ran as much as I could then walked for 20 seconds or so to catch my breath and start again.

I should feel proud of that effort, but I don't really.  I know that twelve weeks ago there is no way I would have been able to do that, however for some reason there is a part of me that feels like a failure.  Which is just plain stupid.

You see the problem is it is getting harder to actually see any difference.   I was never really doing this for the weight.  I really just wanted to be fitter.  I wanted to be able to run.  The first month however saw kilos fall and muscles tighten.  This motivated me to keep on going.

Now however the weight seems to be floating around the same numbers and whatever muscle tone I thought I had gained seems to have disappeared.  This is by no means motivating.  Today I went the same distance as last time I ran only this time I know I walked more than I did the time before.  I keep trying to tell myself that all that means is when I did run I was running faster but it is a hard one to buy.

So where to from here?

Well I am going to keep on going I guess.  I need to remind myself that this is something that I want to do.  And it is.

I WANT TO BE FIT.

As nice and encouraging as numbers and stats are they are not the be all and end all.  The fact that I am out in the fresh air three times a week, being active and pushing my body, needs to be reward enough.  I am sure that if I just keep going it won't be too much longer till the feeling of being a running fraud (based on how slow I am) gets left behind and I start to feeling like a running champion.

One step at a time.

Joining in with Fitness Friday over at Kate Says Stuff and Team Friday at BBeingCool

Getting Back in the Groove

Last week when I joined in Kate's Fitness Friday, I spoke of how I thought I had learnt the importance of making regular matter.  After the build up to Easter, birthday parties and putting children on a plane. exercising, which at the moment is running, had failed to place on the things that gone done list.  When I finally got round to it, it hurt.

Like really hurt.

Thankfully I had the good sense to push through and am now happy to say that my lost week has been recovered.  Sadly it was not replaced by fitter and faster but at least I am now feel at the level I was before I stupidly stopped making time to run.

You see when that happens it is not just my fitness levels that suffer.  Everything about everything seemed to make me feel crappy.  I felt like I was stuck in funk.  I was moody and grumpy and easily irritated.  The children drove me up the wall and I had the patience of lion with a sore paw.  The worst part was I didn't even know why.

One of the things I have discovered while running is that I really enjoy it.  Even though it is hard and takes a lot of effort, I still love it.  To the point that if I don't run I start to miss it.

The reason why I think I enjoy it is because it makes me feel so good about myself, and in so many different ways.
It makes me stronger and fitter, which then makes me feel like I am able to take on so much more.  
I feel a new confidence in my appearance .  For the first time in I don't know how long I actually looked at a photo of myself without cringing.

Not only that but I have also found one I like to look at.

Ok so maybe I cringe a little be at the winking eye...but only a little ;)

It is not just a confidence in my appearance that has grown either.  When I think about what I have achieved in these few short weeks I have the confidence to think I can take on a whole range of new challenges.  I know that it won't be long till I know I'll be able to successfully tackle the BootCamp App I got a while back.

I also love that it gets me out in the fresh air.  I love being out in the fresh air.  Feeling the wind on my face reminds me that I am alive.  Feeling the sweat drip down and sting my eyes reminds me that I am alive and living somewhere hot and sticky.  I like that.  It makes the running even tougher.  Which it turn makes me tougher for pushing through it and getting out there.

Only having said that today was a running day and I didn't run.  I slept in and then decided the afternoon was too hot!  Weak excuse I know.  Deep down though I think my body will be more thankful for the extra rest day this time round.  I will make up for it tomorrow though, I promise.  

Which sort of works out quite well because then my next running day will be Wednesday.  If I had of run today my next running day would have been Tuesday which just would not have worked as Miss Soon to be Eleven will actually be eleven.

With the return of school I would like to think we might be able to not need to rely on the car to get about all the time.  School is anywhere from 3.6 - 4.2km's away (depending on the route), which is roughly only a 35 min journey at my current fitness levels.  I haven't actually run that far yet, but that is not to say I haven't done the distance.  I just haven't run the entire way.  I am thinking of this option more in terms of bike riding on one of my non running days.  Ideally though one day I would love to run while they ride!

There is only one problem to all of this though.  Miss Nearly Six is still on training wheels.  Prior experience has taught me such distances are no good with training wheels.

While Miss Nearly Six has scooted such distances before I am not sure that doing this with her school bag is really such a great idea.  Especially on the way home.  School wears her out as it is.  Chucking the two little ones in the bike trailer is always an option I guess but that is a fair bit of weight for me to drag around (all the more workout I guess).

As soon as Miss Nearly Six can conquer the two wheeler (which is any day now I hope) she should be right to pedal her way which is my preferred option  Children are never to young to learn how great it feels to be fit.  It is all on bike paths and very safe.  There are a few large roads but they are generally not too much of an issue.  The girls know where to stop and wait if they are in the lead.  This way it provides a nice drinks break as well.

All in good time though.

Now I know once again it is not Friday any more but I am still going to be joining in Fitness Friday Blog Hop over at Kate Says Stuff, who just happens to be giving away some very cool Blackmores Packs.  All the more reason to check her out.