I did it!!!!

So, my friend Diana has been working on losing weight and getting fit since about the same time I started and she is SO much more awesome than I. She didn't really need to lose any weight in the first place, but she has gotten in great shape! She started the Couch to 5K program much earlier in the year and has been encouraging me since I started.

I casually mentioned that we should run a 5k sometime...meaning like, next year. I certainly can't run 3 miles unless a hungry pitbull is chasing me with raw meat strapped to my ass. She, on the other hand, wanted to run a race that Saturday. She promised me she would stay with me and walk however much of it I needed to.

We got there around 7am to register and hung out for a bit. A lot of the runners were pretty competitive looking and I was slightly terrified. There were a lot of walkers though, so I felt good about at least attempting to run some of it.

We started running at 9. Diana's boyfriend took off ahead of us and ran the whole thing like a pro. I started running around people and moving my way to the middle of the crowd. I passed the first mile marker at 12 minutes. Then I did a double take and had to make sure I just ran a whole mile without stopping. I have NEVER done that in my life. I was disqualified with an F in gym class in high school by walking the mile and refusing to push myself to run. After that, I felt content to walk for a few minutes since my shoulder was starting to ache a little. We walked at a fast pace until I decided I had enough and wanted to run again! We ran the next half mile, stopped for 30 seconds or so to walk and took off again, stopping only when I ran through a puddle and my shoes got slippery and I had to stop so I didn't fall and for about 15 seconds to walk to the final corner before sprinting to the finish line. Altogether, I ran about 2 and 3/4 miles out of 3.1. I am SO PROUD of myself. I finished at 38 minutes and 45 seconds with Diana right behind me (she didn't sprint to the finish) at 39 minutes. I'm so proud of us!

We left before the medals (which is a good thing, saving me unnecessary embarrassment) since we knew none of us placed. She sent me a text yesterday saying that "Jerry" with my last name won the female 20-29 age group. I thought she was joking. I checked tonight and in fact, my name is now Jerry and I supposedly ran a 24 minute 5k. In my dreams. I feel awful that something got messed up and I took a medal from someone (even though I wasn't there to take it). I've already e-mailed them to let them know it's wrong, but part of me wishes it was true!

However, I've already set my goal to become a runner. Diana and her boyfriend and I are going to run more 5ks (about one a month) and work at running a half marathon next year! I'm hooked on something I NEVER thought would have any appeal to me. Maybe next year I actually WILL come in first in my age group!

Mood: so excited
Weight: actually...I don't know. Weigh in tomorrow.

Life Changes

It's been about a year since I first started working out (I didn't go hardcore until January, but I started walking and biking at my apartment gym last November). I can't believe how much better I look and feel! I almost have something resembling confidence (let's not get carried away here) and I can walk up stairs without getting winded.

Today I finished Week 3 Day 1 of the Couch to 5K Running Program. I had tried several times to get past week 2 and was never able to! I can't believe how easy today seemed in comparison to my previous running attempts. I had this vision of myself crossing the finish line of a marathon and it just inspired me to keep going! It's totally cheesy but it worked. I can't wait to be able to call myself a runner (Who the hell is typing this? Certainly not me).

I also got two new apps for my phone. One is ExerTime, which times cardio and has a loadable C25K timer which yells at me when it's time to run or walk. It's awesome. The other is MyFitnessPal, which is a calorie counter. It's helped me get past my two month plateau and lose another pound. I also can see how bad my weekend drinking is impacting my weight loss. No wonder it's going so slow when I down beer on the weekend!

Mood: excited
Weight: 168