I Did It!!

I have always been a walker. It is one of the great things about living in the town we do. There is not only a sidewalk system that makes it possible to walk to the post office, library and Starbucks. There is a developed path that stretches for miles called Pollyann trail. That trail is less than a quarter mile from my house. For the 11 years we have lived here, I have used the sidewalks and trails many times.

In January, I had decided I would like to lose 10 pounds and started walking for exercise. Dean found a treadmill that someone had put out at the curb with the instruction manual attached that he brought home for me. He had to fix a bracket, but it has worked ever since. I used that treadmill through the winter and this spring and I started bumping the speed up to a jogging/running pace. That made me start to consider entering a 5K this year.

My brother in law, Kris, suggested that I needed to move from the treadmill to running outside. I was forced to a couple of weeks ago when we had no power for three day. I was amazed at how much harder it was to run the trail. It took me about a week to figure out how to pace myself. I did not have a machine electronically telling me how fast I was going. After I figured out what pace was a good one for me, I was able to jog two miles but I was having to stop and alternate walking and jogging for the last mile. Today I was able to jog the entire three miles!! I got to the mile marker in 35 minutes so I had also broken the 12 minute mile. These are huge accomplishments for me.

The bad news is I haven’t actually lost any weight. I cannot deny there is a big difference in my body shape, but the stubborn number on the scale just isn’t budging! I have started a different eating regime. I will keep you posted on the changes that come from that.