Day 29

I have an announcement to make:  I, Miki, completed my first day of C25K training today, and I survived.  I’ve never been able to run before.  Through most of high school I wasn’t even cleared to run because of my back.  First I was taken off swim team, then I was completely restricted in gym class.  All I was allowed to do was walk.  My senior year I got a new orthopedic specialist, and he cleared me for all gym activity.  I survived volleyball, badminton, basketball, and our free month where my best friend and I did Pilates from a tape during class.  I even took archery, and actually was able to hit the target nine times out of ten by the end.  But it was when we started the track unit that I thought I was going to die.  For some reason the teacher thought it would be a brilliant idea to have us run a mile, cross country, right off the bat.  So here I am, all pleased because I’ve been cleared, and there are actually people behind me.  Maybe two minutes in I start wheezing and have to stop.  I walk a ways, fall behind, start running again.  100 feet from the finish line I collapse, in a full blown asthma attack, laying there in the grass struggling for breath, and everyone’s running by me.  No one can leave till we all finish, and at this point everyone else is finished, so everyone starts yelling at me to get a move on.  I manage to stumble over the finish line and pant out to the teacher that I need to go to the nurse for my inhaler.  She just rolled her eyes and told me to go.  The next day I went to the doctor and got myself cleared from the track unit.

So the fact that I actually finished the first day is so huge for me.  Granted, I only ran for a minute at a time, and the last couple times were more difficult, and I really should have brought my inhaler with me, but you know what?  I finished.  That’s all that matters to me.  I’m hoping that by doing the C25K training, I’ll be able to finally run.  I’m hoping it helps strengthen my lungs, because they’ve been getting worse.  I’m hoping to finish this program, then start the Bridge to 10K after I’m finished.  There’s a 10k run/walk in October I’d love to run.

I’ve been looking at the C25K program for a while now, and had decided that I’d try it when I hit my half-way mark (27.5 pounds lost).  Then yesterday I was watching Biggest Loser on Hulu (yes, again), and I saw Michael run 5 miles.  Michael, the guy who started the show weighing in at 526 and at the time he ran was 350 something.  I was thinking, this man weighs more than twice what I do, and he’s running.  What’s my excuse?  So this morning I downloaded the app, the first app I’ve ever paid for, and started my training.  Yay me.

Yesterday I had a squee-worthy moment.  Matt comes up to me right before I leave for work, looks me up and down, and says, “Damn, you’re getting skinny.”  I could have died happy.  Only one other person has ever referred to me as skinny, and he had two 400 pound daughters and thought his 250 daughter was a twig.  So, yeah, big moment for me.