Lace 'em up...

So to start running I am so glad that I took my sister Mandy's advice and got a good pair of shoes. I've been able to bypass probably several injuries just by doing that. To find a good shoe I went to several different running shoe stores and had them do a test on my running to see what sort of shoe I needed, then we started to try em on. I picked 1 or 2 that I liked the best and ran around in them to make sure they were suitable for me then I did the same thing at other stores. Luckily no matter what store I was at, I always came back to the same brand of shoe, so that made my decision easy. I paid about$75 for my shoes (that was the cheapest-and actually a really good deal, normally they were about $95-$120). Thanks to my sweet husband for trying to understand why it was important to spend that much money on a pair of shoes, and thanks to him for being so supportive.

I began with a really slow program also to help prevent injuries. It was an 8 week program to begin with then you can move on to the training portion. ( I will post the program later) but the program consists of a walk-run training method. Jeff Galloway wrote a book that is called "Marathon-you can do it" and that is the guideline that I have been following. Thanks again to my sister Mandy for introducing me to it all, she uses the same program.

When I first began I remember feeling so excited that I could run a 1/2 a mile, then a mile....I tell you what, that was big for me cuz remember, I've never run. Then 3 miles was huge, I was and still am super slow but when you run at your own pace with no time limits or pressure you can run for fun, that opened a door for me. Running has become a hobby, a stress reliever, a natural and drug free form of antidepressants, it also is a time to get any aggression out, or a time to spiritually reflect. I can see now why those runners in the st. George marathon had smiles on their faces.

Some of the things I have struggled with from the beginning and even now, are side aches, at first they would come and not leave until the next day, but I have gotten to the point where I can keep them under control when they come on. For me I have to breathe every last oz of air that is is me out and do it a few times and that keeps it under control. Another thing i do is (this might sound weird) tell the side aches that they aren't my side aches I think of literally removing them and giving them to a tree or a plant, that helps too. I've notices that running has a lot to do with mind control and kind of an inner talk, so that's been fun to get in touch with my body.
So there's a little background but I'll try to get caught up at least on the more interesting runs and thoughts I've had.