Sunday, January 13, 2013

MAMAVATION MONDAY: Setting myself up for success, running and weigh-ins


I feel like in order for me to reach my goals, I need to create smaller milestones to celebrate and keep myself going.  The goal of losing 2 pounds each month is a great one for me because I don't have to look at the whole picture just yet.  I can (hopefully) lose those two pounds and feel proud and move on to the next goal without worrying about the end result.  Again, it isn't just about numbers, I need to fit into that skirt in July and hopefully have enough room to eat dinner too! ;)

I have been running semi-consistent.  I ran 3 days last week which is pretty good for me considering that I have to do my running outside and it is January in Pennsylvania.  The weather cleared pretty nicely here so I was able to do two days of 3.6 miles and one day of 2 miles.  I am finding that I am doing better at running and I am pacing myself pretty nicely. I thought at first that it was my dog that had me going so well but then when I ran yesterday with my son, I made even better timing, shaving a full minute off my total time.  That is amazing to me and I didn't feel like I was going any faster than the previous time.  Once I got within 3 minutes of my first time, I knew I wanted to beat that time and I picked up the pace lol!

I am enjoying the running though.  I do need to do more training for my breathing.  I am struggling to find the right rhythm of breathing so I do cramp up a bit on my right side and I end up having to walk a bit to calm that down.  I'm not quite sure which breathing method is best just yet but I hope to figure that out soon. I have seen some articles on that very subject so I need to go back and read them.  I find myself trying to do a count to stay on track but then my breathing gets away from that count so that isn't the answer for me.  I also tend to just let it go and try to think about other things and sometimes that works, to just not think about the breathing but instead get into a rhythmic cadence instead.

I hope to continue running on a regular basis.  I made a goal of running a total of 20 miles this month and so far I am at 12.1 so I am off to a great start.  I may even surpass that goal and I won't be purposely stopping at 20 miles, I will keep going if I can. I like the challenge of pushing myself to see how much I can do.  I didn't want to set myself up for failure by putting up a crazy number and 20 seemed reasonable to me. 

My weigh-ins haven't been anything to celebrate as I'm not showing a loss but I know that muscle and fat are very different and my clothes are still fitting nicely so I'm okay with the numbers.  I am noticing the arm measurements going down which is very nice.  The other measurements are staying steady at this point but I anticipate that to change as I continue to run and do my weight training.  I'd like to add in more cardio so I may be adding in some zumba to my daily routine.  Maybe the days I don't run, I can do the zumba instead. 

Anndd...I am going off for a run, today is the last nice day here so I gotta get it in today before we are back to cold and snow!

3 comments:

  1. Wow, sounds like you're off to a great start on that monthly goal! I super love Zumba, so I would totally encourage you to do that on your off days of running. You are awesome Priscilla!!

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    1. thanks Joanna! I am up to 19.1 miles so far and I am planning on running today....although I've been doing the hazing exercises and my legs are TIRED! lol

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  2. Stick with the baby steps and enjoy the process. BTW, smaller, consistent weight losses are shown to stay off in the long-term vs. massive weight losses. Good luck and have fun with C25K.

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