Seriously? Will my shins ever quit hurting?

So 4 weeks later and my damn shins still hurt when I walk fast. Seriously, how out of shape does one need to be that WALKING FAST gives you shin splints? Grr!!!

But I AM happy to report that I've been doing fairly well....walking at least 2x a week and hitting the gym at least 2x a week. So, I'm not exactly on schedule with my new couch to 5K plan, but I can say this, when I do start running I'll be in significantly better overall shape than I was 4 weeks ago.

I'll keep it up and keep you posted!

I'm back!

Well, its been awhile since I blogged. I’d love to say I’ve been working out, faithfully working towards the Small Goals to Running Goal. But no, I’ve done more days of sitting on my bum than exercise, sadly.

However, I am happy to report a mini-success. About 3 weeks ago I decided I really must, no really must, get back on it. I’ve totally out of shape, I’m fat, and my dog is so frickin annoying when she doesn’t get exercise. So that’s 3 good reasons to get on it. So, I came up with a new (and more realistic considering my fitness level) couch to 5K plan. Its actually a 25 week plan that starts with 5 weeks of walking and ends with my original 5K goal, which is the one in April. (yes, I know, a year later, so sad) I’m starting out slow partly just to get in the habit and partly because my knee can’t take the stress of trying to run (well, nor can the rest of my body). And walking is easy enough and won’t make me hurt the next day, thus allowing me to keep it up.

Why am I writing about this 3 weeks later? Because I wanted to wait until I did it for 10% of the time so I could report a success, not just a “I’m gonna do this”. (which I've been doing it for 2.5 week) So, my plan is walk T, Th and one other day (probably during the weekend but open.) I’m hoping to go to gym M W with the hubby and ideally, also one day during the weekend. Yes, I know, that’s six days of activity, which is a big huge step from zero days of activity. But note I said “hoping”…. I figure lets plan for 6 and get in 4 for sure.

Of course, at some point once I’m actually running (versus walking or even running 1-2 minutes) I’ll have to swap things around because I know going to the gym M/W and running T/TH will be too much. But, I’ll cross the bridge when I get to it. In the meantime, I’m trying this and we’ll see how it works.

This morning’s walk was a little rough – a bit stiff from last night’s workout + the cold weather wasn’t great, but I made it. Still have that tightness in my outer calf/shin area. Hoping it will get better with more activity……

Update

Ok, so I'm still not walking the frequency I really want to be, but I'm consistently getting up and taking Layla for a walk 3+ times a week for 1.25+ miles. Today we went 2 miles.

At least its becoming a habit.....

10,000 truths

Ok, so I've been walking in the morning, just not quite as often as I want. (closer to a few times a week than 6) Not great, but I'm getting into the habit and that's the important thing. Now, with Nat's walking campaign I've also been tracking my steps and I gotta say, its HARD to get to 10,000 steps a day. Aside from Europe, I think I've only made it a couple times and that was on long walk and high errand days. Lets talk about Tuesday. I got up, went on a 2 mile walk with Layla (4,000 steps) then went to work. At lunch I ran a couple errands- I went to Lowe's and Petsmart. After work I pretty much sat on my bum for the evening and watched TV. Total steps: 8294. Yeah. A 2 mile walk and I still didn't make it. (and yes, that means on a regular day I'm lucky to get 5,000 steps)

So the truth is I'll never get to 10,000 steps every day. Perhaps when I am in shape and can do more I might AVERAGE 10,000 steps a day, but I guess my average day just doesn't afford enough stepping opportunity. Sure, I did in Europe with ease....but I also didn't spend 8 hours of my day at a desk. (I suppose if I ever get one of those Walkstations I could do it on a regular basis)

In the interim, I'm going to strive for 7,500 steps a day on average - 52,500 steps a week. If I really can get in some good and regular walks like I have in my goals, I have a shot. I'll keep you posted.

Walking my patootie off

Well, I wish I was anyway. More like walking 3 pounds off......

In Europe we walked an average of 9 miles a day...it was rough. The caluses on my feet will probably need a power sander to remove! However, I'm going to keep it up. I took Sunday and Monday off - my shins and calves were hurting pretty bad, but this morning I got up and took Layla for a walk. It was miserable this morning - so humid!! But, we walked 1.3 miles and after a cool shower I felt great!

GOAL CHECK:
My goal after Europe was:

Goal 5: Walk 1 and 1/2 mile 6 days a week until the end of July.

I didn't quite make it that today, but hey, walking. I also have probably missed my "get as close to a 15 or 16 minute mile as possible"....but I'll keep it up. One day I WILL RUN A MILE. (EASILY)