Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Joggermom Marathon: Week 2-- Beginning as on "Older" Mom


Progress: I've been working on increasing my speed on shorter runs (1.5-3 miles), but I also fit in a long run (5 miles) on Sunday when Brian was off.  I logged 12 miles for Week 2, bringing my total to 21 miles for the month.  I'm only 5.2 miles away from completing my marathon. 

Joggermom Marathon | 42DaystoFit.com


Beginning as an Older Mom: I don't think of myself as old, but I started running a couple months after my 32nd birthday.  In a world where sports players retire in their thirties, it seemed a little late to begin a strenuous physical activity.  I was worried that it might be too hard, having never been an athletic person.  I thought running could possibly be too much stress on my out-of-shape body. 

Only a few weeks in, I considered stopping.  I had told myself I would not quit, but both of my knees were aching, one ankle was sore, and my lungs felt like they were going to burst if I ran more than a few minutes at a time.  Brian suggested that maybe running wasn't for me and I could try walking instead.  I wanted the challenge of running, though, so I slowed it down, taking the pressure off myself to move quickly.  I switched programs from the more intense Couch of 5K to a gentler Walk-Run Program.  That gave me the confidence to run a 2-mile race. The race, in turn, gave me the confidence to attempt the Couch to 5K again and finally complete it! 

I have gained a few unexpected benefits from running.  Before I started running, I had "creaky" knees.  When I squatted down, they would crack and make a yucky scraping sound!  When I started having more pain after I started running, it made me nervous.  I figured my knees would continue to be a problem and force me to give up running altogether, but when I slowed it down and the initial soreness cleared up (about a week after it started), my knees have continually gotten stronger so that now I have little to no creaking or cracking. I  feel noticeably more strength in my legs when I go from squatting to standing.

I've also noticed a big change in my metabolism.  After Alaine was born, I held onto 5-10 pounds despite adopting healthier eating habits.  I figured it was natural part of getting older and a result of having 5 babies in 8 years.  Just when I had accepted that the weight was meant to stick around, I started running and it came off with no extra effort. 




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