I’m surprised how going back to work has worked to my advantage in ways that I didn’t see coming.  For instance, while lots of people manage to run and train with jogging strollers, I really don’t think I’d be able to pull off my training schedule for my first 10k if I wasn’t back to work and fitting in the weekday training runs during my lunch hour.  I truly need to have that time to focus on my form, my breathing and not worry about pushing a stroller and keeping Cameron contented all at the same time.  Right now I’m really just building up my base training and it feels wonderful that I’m doing it. Maybe when I feel like my base training is more solid, I’ll invest in a jogging stroller, but for now, this is working out great! I do my Saturday LSD (long slow distance) run during his morning nap so I don’t even miss any extra time with him.

I am loving it so much so that I can honestly say that I don’t think I have EVER committed to any form of exercise or exercise program for this long before EVER and the reason why it is sticking is because…

I have been bitten by the running bug so hard that I actually look FORWARD to my next run and am all bubbling and beaming inside just thinking about it. It didn’t happen right away, but sometime in the first few weeks and now that I have five weeks of consistent training under my belt, I feel like I don’t ever want to stop.

All the cool runners know this.

Exercise was never part of the deal that I ever fully embraced or accepted for any significant consistent period of time and I’ve always done it begrudgingly.  I hated nearly every minute of it in the past and I think it stems from how difficult it is to exercise when you are morbidly obese.  Sure, it’s difficult to exercise in general in the sense that it causes you “discomfort” but doing it carrying about 150 lbs of excess weight is another thing all together.  I watch those Biggest Loser contestants giving it every single thing they have and listen to them groan and screech and cry at how hard they are pushing and while I’ve never had anyone pushing me to that extent, it makes me cringe because I feel like I remember what it was like trying to run one telephone pole to the next when I was 270lbs.  I don’t even have to think hard to remember how it felt and how far that telephone poll seemed in front of me.

Not.anymore.

I have run at times in the past and have loved the entire racing experience, but there was never a point in time that I “trained” and followed through with a program to prepare me like I am now. Before I just tried to make sure I could keep up for 5k.  I am respecting my body, not pushing it beyond the “gradual build” plan because the truth is, my body is damaged goods and I need to be extra careful. I have a pretty extensive list of previous injuries that involve every major joint there is in the body and are enough to scare you off from even trying (ACL/meniscus tear & repair, dislocated/broken hip, broken foot in multiple places and a bum shoulder).  The way I see it is I’m going to get arthritis as a result of these injuries some day eventually and exercise is GOOD for your joints too and I’d rather enjoy my life and get myself in good physical shape and enjoy the process and enjoy my chosen form of physical activity and truly BE a physically active Mommy for my son. I want him to see and remember me crossing many finish lines as he grows up 🙂

P.S.  I feel all giddy because Heather Armstrong is now friends with me on Daily Mile – DOOCE and I are now BFF, right? I mean she only has 24 friends on Daily Mile and yet has a million and a half twitter followers yet I’m only 1 of 24 elite people who get to follow her runs on Daily Mile – now THAT, my friends says it all right there, doesn’t it?! lol

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/HaZZ/~3/TePcAB9MZH0/bitten.html