COUCH to BRICK?

Ok so most of my readers know (or should know and if'n you don't know by now, NOW you know) that I have been running since June and am well into 9 weeks of training.

I suck. I have been trying and trying to get past the shin splints (YES I ice daily and YES I stretch and YES I still need new shoes! BUT any other suggestions are welcome) and get past the breathing issues (I was a half to pack a day smoker 11 weeks ago and I think this is definately a lung capacity/health issue and any suggestions are welcome).

At the end of the day it is endurance that is making my mind upset. I think, it would have been easier to sit and suck on my Pall Mall's all day and eat whatever I wanted...It would have been easier to just forget this whole thing, call myself a quitter and move on....I could...but I am just stingy so I keep running and keep feeling like a failure.

I am down (for those of you wondering if my body has changed since I still look like I belong at fat camp) to 207 from 219 in 9 weeks, I am also down about 10" overall as well. (The wii fit says I am down to 200 but I think it is lying, so I am going with 207 from my actual scale).

Yes I have changed my eatting. I do eat about 6 nature valley bars a day (the plain ones or peanut butter or the decadent hard to find cinnamon...yum) but I am also eating less carbs but the right carbs too, and drinking more water than I thought I could possibly consume.

SO, over the period of time a lot has happened to make me healthier, but I want to run. I want to run, I WANT TO RUN! I want to GO to that 5K in December and RUN the WHOLE THING...but right now that seems like a stupid thought.

The point of the story is, Friday morning I decided to garagesale with Ma (thats short for Grandma and Mom, we are efficent around her we use one name for all like Buy one Get one Free), and found at the FIRST garage sale a bike, cool red, 12 speed, mountain bike! I was STOKED, got a good deal on it (20$) and started riding today after watching EXTENSIVE YouTube videos on how to use the gears and why I would want to use them etc.

I rode, I was SO proud, I rode and rode and just had a blast (until my tukas started to ache from the hard seat) and then I went home, texted my triathelete brother who ROCKS (check out his blog, Michael Head) I am a follower of it) and is also a triathelete (just wanted you to know twice) tells me to BIKE then RUN then BIKE.

THIS is the brick. Sounds hard, it is. BUT I did it. I went BACK out there after feeding my kiddos and I did it. I BIKED, I RAN, I BIKED and I went further than I thought I could or would. I was having a great time getting to know my bike and the gears etc. (I told another blogger that I think I ran so well because I was afraid my bike would get stolen...LOL) I could FEEL my heart pumping my blood, I could FEEL my lungs filling up with air...it was great.

So I say to you, you person who was me 9 weeks ago. You have 2 choices...sit there and sacrifice your body, your life, your children's legacy...OR come with me on this mind bending adventure and instead sacrifice your time, your shins, and when we are 60 we can be healthy enough to continue working until we are 80 then retire and spend 25 years (yes I said it) 25 years traveling the world and enjoing our great great great grand children!!

Just a thought!!!

Get off your couch and do a brick! (or just start walking, that is what I did every day about a mile just to say I told you so to the enemy and give GOD the glory for helping me SEE the LIGHT!) This is an amazing feeling, like knowing that you know that YOU are covered that YOU are loved that YOU are beating the darkness out of your life....totally a lot of work but good...

JR