It's the beginning of week three of the Couch-to-5k program. Supposedly "they" changed the BPM on the Pod Runner tracks, adding two beats per minute. The intention is to increase the heart rate and get the overall speed up. Pffft... Like I even bother to listen to the beat. It's all I can do to get my short, stubby legs moving at all. I don’t listen much to the beats per minute and the mu8sic is simply filler material. I just manage my pace and wait for the tone to change cadence. I find that the BPM is actually too fast to match my stride comfortably. If I start pushing my stride out, I'll be hammering the shins... HARD!
I'm surprised at how improved my cardiovascular & respiratory are after only two weeks of this. I wasn't noticing my breathing much at all this afternoon. I was focusing a lot more on my legs, because even with the extra stretching my shins are still hurting. I noticed the pain the most on the return leg of the trip. I felt it most acutely while walking ad not while running.
I've shortened and adjusted my stride while running, so there's not so much of a shock to the joints. This allows me to keep more erect and also focus on rolling my feet as opposed to slamming down with every step. I noticed the pain the most while walking, not while jogging. When I adjusted my posture it moved to my calves. So… I’m still leaning forward while I walk and possibly when I run as well.
Still, all in all a good run. As I said, I’m really starting to feel a difference. I’ll reiterate; for those who are trying to quit smoking? Start doing something involving HEAVY CARDIO! Trust me, after a few weeks you won’t even want to hear the word “cigarette”. I still get urges at the oddest times, but it's getting easier to ignore them. I think it's necessary to have a goal outside of quitting. It needs to be more than something as generic as "getting in shape". There needs to be a discernable and corporeal ambition to really motivate. It must be something than you actually WANT!
Peer Trainer has started posting smoke quitting info as well. I stumbled onto that today checking e-mail and haven’t had an opportunity to read it yet. Most of their information is very good though. I also found myself wanting new and better shoes today. I’m probably going to have to spend more money next time around which means some place like Foot Locker rather than Big 5. Too bad, because Big 5 has great deals… and I’m getting cheap.
I'm still running down at the McMillin trail head. I think I may be ready to start running over at Celebration in another week or so. I think I can use the extra challenge, provided the legs cooperate. The "hills" on the McMillin trail are barely existant. The Celebration trail is about 90% hills of varying degrees of incline. Some fairly passive and others with multiple cutbacks. I only walked it for about 1 mile, so I didn't get to the more strenuous portions, but I could see them from a distance.
Lastly, the calendar at the Krav Maga site still hasn't been updated. Tonight or tomorrow I'm going to try one last e-mail address. If I don't hear anything, I may just show up on Wednesday night to see if anyone is there.
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