Pointing our compass to wholeness

This morning was definitely one of those when you felt some warm and cozy in your bed and argued with yourself to just keep snoozing. When my alarm went off at 5 am, all I could think about was pulling the covers over my head and resuming the fetal position.

But, thats why it is so good to have friends that push you out of bed and keep you accountable.

I knew that I would be meeting Stacia and Val this morning for our couch potato to  5k training. I later found out that Jenny and Tina would also be meeting us for about a mile after their 3 mile run.

Today, was a big day marking a HUGE step for both Stacia and Val. We would be running for 1/2 mile, then walking 1/4 of a mile. This is a big jump for them both! I knew going into it that I would have to stay on Stacia to sloooow down. This girl is pretty fast to be starting out and keeps ME winded.

But, I must say I was so proud of her as she followed my lead and kept in check. And not only was this the furthest they had gone running, it is also the first time we didn’t have to stop at 2 miles, walk for a while then resume the run. It was a cool morning with lots of head wind and I think it actually helped. But this is seriously mostly due to their hard work and dedication and it is paying off in a big way. I am seriously so proud of them both and so happy to get to work with them!

Oh and did I mention they have both lost over 40 pounds since January? They both trained and completed the Indy Mini 1/2 marathon in May walking the entire race!

Seriously, I need their determination!!

A recent article in Runner’s World suggests running easy 70% of the time. Last year when I was full marathon training, I ran each run as hard as I could on top of Yasso’s every Wednesday. And it worked perfectly….until the day before the marathon when I found out that I had a hip stress fracture.

I thought I had learned my lesson but after just recently having surgery, I realized that I had not. So, here’s wishing me luck that I can continue to run slow and only fast on speedwork days. It may mean that I become a baby elephant like my sister, Freeing Sisyphus but I would rather be that than an injured gazelle.

Who’s with me?

Cheer Stacia and Val on by leaving them a comment of encouragement! I don’t know what I would’ve done without my encouraging friend, Summer when I was doing this same program 2 years ago. I know that I would NOT be where I am today. So, join me bloggers in pushing our friends on and showing them that just like us, they can accomplish anything they put their mind to! Maybe this time next year, they will be training one of you!