My Journey With Weight Loss – Picking Up The Pace

When I started out this morning for my workout I realized that I see many of the same people each morning if I start out at 6:00am. However, it really isn’t the people I remember, it is their dogs. There are so many of them going out for an early morning walk (we just toss our dogs into the backyard first thing in the morning and then do walks after breakfast). I know which ones are friendly and those I shouldn’t talk to as their behavior may not be the best. I also chuckle to myself when I see the owners taking their dogs out for a walk wearing the pj’s and slippers. To me it just shows how important those dogs are to them.

Yesterday was my long run and I opted for 16k. Remember in my last post I talked about going back to the concept of no excuses and that I just need to get ‘er done. Well, I am 2 weeks away for my 1/2 marathon and while I am confident in the endurance, I still need to be at a better pace. I realized that the only way I can get there is to get out of my comfort zone and push things more than I like to do.

I set off on my run at about 5:00am. I knew what route I wanted to take and decided I would run as much as possible in the parking lane as opposed to the sidewalk (I hate all the ups, downs and dips in the sidewalk). I also decided that I would run at my normal pace for 1 block and then really push the pace for the next block. By that I don’t mean sprinting as I wanted to be able to do this for as much of my run as possible but rather do a pace that has me working hard. Every time I thought I wouldn’t be able to do another set I reminded myself, no excuses anymore, you have to be able to do this. I managed to do about 12k using this type of training so was pretty proud of myself especially when I ran at the best pace I have in months.

The end result was when I got home I was drenched with sweat. Really, I looked like I had be running in a down pour. Even my socks were soaked! But you know what, I was extremely proud of myself for pushing that hard. I admit this morning my leg muscles were protesting a bit but not what I would say was too sore, just enough to tell me I had worked hard. I think even that made me happy.

Next week I am going to keep pushing my pace so that I can see it improving after each run. When I try to talk myself out of it I will remember that I can do this!