Week One, Day One

This day came a lot sooner than I thought it would, and if it were not for the overwhelming emptiness that arose after shipping my computer off to be fixed for 2-4 weeks, I probably would've waited quite some time for Week One, Day One.  So thanks, Best Buy and overheating motherboards - you've brought about more hope and change than any empty campaign promises ever could.

I know that starting a simple interval running program shouldn't be a big deal, but this really was a momentous occasion.  As you know, I was decked out in new shoes so stable not even this guy would stumble and fall in them.  I was wearing my brand new fancy sports bra, and just for good measure, I put another one on top of that one (this turned out to be an amazing idea and I will be doing this every time I work out from now on).  I had on synthetic everything except my t-shirt, which was a BIG mistake.  No matter how soft the t-shirts from American Apparel (and in this case, from my brother's church, which was free, just for showing up!) are, ditch the cotton.

I spent so much time getting ready for this momentous occasion that it was actually too late to run outside.  I haven't gotten any reflective gear for night running or anything to cover my head/ears, so there was no way I was going to pound the pavement as an invisible, freezing car magnet.  This blog would probably end up being really short: Week 1, Day 1: hit by a car. I decided, instead, to head to my beloved Dowd YMCA and do day 1 on the treadmill.

If you have ever been to the Dowd at 5:30 p.m. on a weekday, you are probably laughing at me right now.  I've been going to the Y for 2 months now, and I love it, but it's taken me a while to adjust to how intense it can be.  Everyone is so hard core, so beautiful, so....Bank of America.  At 6am, at least no one looks nice - they've all rolled out of bed to hit the treadmill or go for a swim. I'll save my locker room stories for another blog, but let's just say that at the crack of dawn, nobody cares about anything except getting their cardio in for the day.  AFTER work, however, there is an entirely different crowd.  It's see-and-be-seen at the Dowd, which is exactly why I never work out at this time.  The last place I want to be seen is at the gym, when I am sweaty and in skin-tight clothes and generally looking funky (and not in a cool, hip-hop kind of way).  The few times I've been there in the evening, I feel as though the Y is Paris and I've just wandered in from the provinces.

Knowing that I'd NEVER get a treadmill in the main cardio theater, I headed upstairs to the "quiet" area.  I think they call it this because there are no TVs or radios or whatnot, but it is certainly not quiet.  There are still 50+ people pounding away on cardio machines, rowing on a carpet sea, and the clank-clank of weights going on and off the racks.  Amazingly, there was one treadmill available, so I hopped right on.  I chuckled to myself because dead in front of my face, rather than the view of the Charlotte skyline like every single other person in this area had, was a giant poster that said "POSITIVE ATTITUDE" and some cheesy saying to go along with it.  I could see my own face in the reflection, and I decided that this was a good thing.

With Roy in tow (Roy's my Droid), I turned on my music from DJ Beatsmith that is specially designed for the Couch 2 5k intervals and got started.  A 5 minute warm-up, and then I was running.

I was running.

I have never in my life welled up with tears while exercising, but this was a very emotional moment.  It took me a second to realize what was happening - I was running, and it wasn't a big deal.  I was wearing the right shoes, I'd been working out long enough before this where my heart wasn't about to explode (and I quit smoking on Sept 21, thank goodness), and it was working.  I was running.  I did all of my intervals - 60 seconds running, 90 seconds walking for 25 minutes, and then a 5 minute cool-down.  It was very hard.

My body is so out of line that by the end, my 2nd-from-the-pinky toe felt broken, half of the toes on my right foot were numb.  My heartrate was VERY high for the last few intervals, and I was a hot mess, literally.  I was dripping sweat, breathing like I was in labor, and just barely hanging on. BUT I DID IT.  and I will do it again tomorrow, and 2 days after that.  And then it's on to week 2.

I am excited for this challenge.  I know it will be a challenge, and I know it will be tempting to jump ahead or take a day off or do something that isn't according to plan.  I am COMMITTED to doing it right, though, and I thank all of you who are already being so supportive!  Let's go!