Day 1

Well, day 1 of my challenge was supposed to be yesterday. But my bed was warm and my apartment was cold and I didn't want to get up. I intended to hit the gym after work instead but then I had an impromptu invitation to hang out with adorable babies and drink champagne so I did that. No running for me on Monday. But this morning I forced myself to get out of bed and put on my sneakers and head down to the gym.

I forgot to mention that my building has a pretty decent, even swanky, gym that is literally one floor below me. All I have to do is walk out my door and down a flight of stairs and I am there. I have NO room for excuses. And yet I make them all the time. I have been living here for 4 months and I have set foot in the gym exactly one time before today.

Luckily, I stopped myself from chickening out and made it downstairs. I decided to start slow by doing a 30 minute flat jog/walk. It should have been easy but within 5 minutes I wanted to die. I wasn't prepared for out of shape I truly am. All that strength and stamina I had built is completely gone and I am starting over from square one.

But I stuck it out and even though I walked most of the 30 minutes and huffed and puffed the whole time (thus getting the stink eye from the girls next to me), I finished. It's a little victory but I'll take it.

So, tomorrow morning I intend to get back on the treadmill and do another 30 minutes. Tomorrow night I fly back to Connecticut for the holidays and I plan on running while I'm there. I won't have gym access and it's supposed to snow at least half of my visit so I will have to do a daily assessment as to whether I can run outside or not. I have a LOT of work to do to prepare for my 5k so here's hoping the weather cooperates.

A Beginning

So, I'm a girl and I have some goals. Hence the title. Creative? Nope. But it gets the job done.

And what are these goals, exactly? Well, once upon a time I started running. I liked it a lot, I was at one of the healthiest weights of my adult life, I could feel my body getting stronger as I slowly and gradually ran just a little bit more. And then...it got hot outside. I live in Washington, DC where it's hot and humid and even after 6 years my poor New England self can not handle the heat. So I stopped running. And the weight slowly came back and I stopped being so strong and healthy. Six months later I feel chubby and tired and slow and I hate it.

So I have decided to start running again. But I know that in order to keep myself motivated I need to have a goal to work for. Most people decide to train for a race, usually a 5K for a beginner (and I consider myself a beginner). But I decided to really push myself this year. So, I am declaring that in the year 2011 I will run a 5K, a 10K, a 10 Miler, a half-marathon and a marathon.

The first one is already coming up. Last week I registered to run the Scope It Out 5K on March 20, 2011. I have three months to get ready and I will be blogging about the whole experience right here. So come back and visit and help me stay motivated!