Run Momma Run!

There was a time where I did not like running at all! I felt like my head was about to explode, my thighs were on fire, my lungs were going to pop out of my chest, and I was running on hot coals. Not my idea of fun. But I always envied those joggers you see running effortlessly and thinking, "It must feel good, because I wouldn't see the same person EVERY day doing it, right?"

One job I had was an office manager for a restaurant and the owner was a triathlete. She competed in the Iron Man in Hawaii and several other races locally. She was very fit and she said she took it up because she loved to eat. Thumbs pointing to myself. I love to eat and trying new and good foods. Since I worked at her restaurant and there were lots of "tester" plates, I asked her how do I get started? Here were some of the tips she told me:

• Get a good pair of running shoes. Not all shoes were meant for running. The fire I feel in my feet is because my shoes were not supporting me. The pain in my knees and ankles was also a result of not having a good pair of shoes. I have flat feet (Thanks Dad) and I need a really good arch support. Once I found shoes that did that, it made a WORLD of difference. I find the Nikes are the best shoes that work for me, and the come in wide width. 
• It takes 12 minutes for your body to regulate, meaning your breathing adjusts to what you are doing. So she told me to keep going but after 10 minutes you will feel good. Believe me, starting out 10 minutes felt like 10 hours of torture. But as soon as I reached 10, I thought hey made it this far what's two more minutes. And I felt good.
• Not to worry about my diet when I first start out. But just to concentrate on my time and then after I got into the distance we would revisit and see if I even needed to change my diet. 

I found out the time was my motivator. Wasn't speed or distance, it was time. I got a good pair of shoes and a digital watch and off I went. As I noticed the speed came and the distance came, but it was the time that kept me going. Pretty soon I was jogging 45 minutes straight.

Fast forward to last year and making a goal to run a 5K (3.1 miles) before the end of the year. I wasn't running for a while and after my son I needed a motivator. The one I wanted to do was in November and I started training in April. My best friend's husband volunteered to train me to run. I was always kind of embarrassed to run around town. But I had to swallow my pride and I put on the thinking, at least I'm out jogging. If anyone has anything negative to say, they don't run. And the people that do, know that it's the best feeling when you finish (endorphin rush) and are cheering you on.  That endorphin rush is the best! I have to say it is addicting. I had some knowledge of how to run, but any time I ran before it was either on a flat track or on a treadmill. Training for a 5K there is various terrain, hills, gravel, asphalt, just depending on the course. He gave me some more tips on how to run that really helped.

• Shoes! Again he emphasized how important shoes are and suggested to go to a place to fit me like Fleet Feet. They are pricey, but they educate you and fit you for free. If you're on a budget like me, I took that knowledge and know what I'm looking for at other stores now. But they do have great shoes for runners and it's a one stop shop. 
• Breathing. Any cramps, any muscle aches, feeling short of breath, you can rectify it with breathing. DUH, right? Well you sometimes forget. One tip he said that really helped is to over exaggerate your breathing. But it gets more oxygen in and helps with any of those pains you feel. It really does work. But DON'T STOP! He wouldn't let me stop jogging, I could slow down, but as soon as my oxygen levels were good, picked the speed back up!  
• Finished harder than you started. We would pick a stop spot and about 200 yards before that stop he would make me sprint to the stopping place. OH MY! So didn't want to, but boy do you feel good when you accomplish it. Those endorphins hit you harder when you finish like that! Believe me when I tell you that I do finish like Rocky with my hands up in the air after a run like that. 
• When you can run with a buddy. This will help you talk while you jog. The running is the aerobic exercise. And the talking helps with the anaerobic exercise. And it makes you breath. Plus running with someone makes it go by fast and you can help push each other.

All his tips really helped me and got me on the right track to jogging. My starting route (1 mile) started to get easy and short. Then I started to run more around town to achieve my 3.1 miles. Funny how you never knew how many hills there are until you start running it. My good friend and I did the 5K run together and it was a great experience. I even got to encourage a young girl and finished the race with her. My time was 41 minutes even. I was just proud I didn't walk once and ran the whole thing. This year my husband wants to run it with me and we're started to train now.

I know that my blog is about saving money and tips and stuff. But when I tell people that I jog for exercise, they seem to always suggest, why don't you join this gym or that gym. Or take this class or join this trend diet, etc. For me, jogging is low cost. I invest in a good pair of shoes, open my door and go! The outside air is great, I get to clear my head, and I get to exercise and feel good. To me jogging is a great money saving exercise.

Hope to see you around town hitting the pavement with me!