Well now that I am officially done with Couch to 5K, I thought I'd reflect a little--in case anybody is thinking about trying it.
First, I'm really glad I did it. I would have never, ever thought that I could jog for 30 minutes--or that it wouldn't be completely agonizing. I never thought I would be one of the people who knows about that wonderful high you get after you jog your heart out. I feel like this experience also ushered me into a new club of semi-athletic people who actually enjoy jogging from here to there.
As far as jogging for weight loss... I did lose a few pounds. But nothing drastic, and it really didn't happen until towards the end of the program, when I was jogging way more than walking. Remember that this program is only about thirty minutes, three times a week. So you're not going to shed all your excess weight in these nine weeks. But I do think it is a great place to start if you want to become healthier. And I noticed that I also began to eat healthier while doing the program. I started to listen to the cues from my body more, and to only eat when I was actually hungry. I don't know whether that's because the running sort of inspired me to change my diet and be more healthy all around, because the jogging put me in touch with my body in a new way, or something else... But the change is definitely for the better!
I think one of the things that makes jogging so fun is that you get to set little, achievable goals--and it feels really good to meet them. As an adult, I think there are few areas of your life where you can really do this. You're always working on something big. Getting ahead at the job, raising happy kids, working on your house--things that never really have a conclusion. It feels good to be able to say that you want to do something concrete, like run three miles, and then be able to do it.
Finally, once you start jogging you find out that lots of people you know are also crazy about jogging. Before I started jogging, I'm sure I knew that many of my friends were big time runners. But I guess it wasn't something I thought about much. Now I understand! It's fun to get to share this interest, and to understand for the first time what this passion of theirs is all about.
I'm really excited to run my first 5K next weekend (hopefully not in the snow!), and I definitely plan to keep running!
-Kristin
3 comments:
I can't wait to hear how next weekend's run goes. I'm glad you have friends who will run with you.
I heard that you don't begin to burn fat until after 20 minutes of exercise. You burn something else that has to do with muscles during the first 20. So if you were only running for a short time you wouldn't see much weight loss. Did you ever hear that? I'm sure it made you much stronger, though!
It was an amazing goal to me–especially considering it was something I could never, ever do.
I LOVE that you did this Kris. I think that it is so great that you were able to do it and find something that you like to do. It does seem like the longer you run the more weight you drop but you are headed in the right direction if that is one of your goals. I think the goals you set were really great though. It is nice to have something you can control in this crazy life! Plus get a high doing it that isn't dangerous! Can't wait to hear about your run next week. I hope the weather is much nicer for you! Tori is headed to the parade for the Cardinal's today and it is in the 60's but cloudy and super windy so it is cold. It should be a really great day for the parade though!
Hopefully, today is the day for your run. Can't wait to hear how it went if you go.
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