Beau Jackson

I’ve been planning on writing a weekly post to give a training update.  I think of this as “The Sunday Morning Post”.  I was going to do this on Saturday evenings, but the name was already taken. :)

So one week down.  I’m feeling good about this decision, I definitely think it’s the right thing to do.  I’ve lost 1.5lbs this week too, which is a good sign, and is great positive reinforcement.  I posted the training schedule last week, but there are (unfortunately) going to have to be some delays in that because I have to wait on getting my tax return to buy running shoes that are good enough to survive the beating my 282.5lb self will be inflicting on them as I train.  So, the plan for the next week(s) is to just keep walking, and ramp up the walking time.  25 minutes/day this week, then I’ll add another 5min/day each week until I get the shoes, and then normal training will resume.

I’ve been walking on the Frisco Highline Trail which runs through Bolivar (and all the way to Springfield).  I’m also planning on doing some walking at one of the parks here in Bolivar – it has a road that makes a loop through the park that is right at one mile long – very handy for keeping track of how far I’ve gone.

This week looks to be sunny and dry (no freak snow storms!) so training should go nicely.

Have a great week!

Wordle is a site I visit occasionally to waste time.  I did so tonight, and like the results, so I thought I’d share:

I know I said in my previous post that I was going to start training on my birthday, but as my birthday is tomorrow (on Tuesday) and my training schedule starts on a Monday, I decided to start a day early.  So today I walked for twenty minutes.  It’s not much, but it’s a start.

In other news, I weighed in on the ol’ scale today.  The depakote is really playing havoc with my weight.  I’m 284 this morning – up nearly 25 lbs since the seizures started.  And my scale tends to be off by 10 lbs or so, it’s probably more like 295.  Sigh.

I’ll be posting training updates at the end of each training week, so keep me in your prayers and check back each week to see how it’s going.  If anybody has training tips…don’t hesitate to chime in.

In my last post, I linked to an article about changing habits, and I have a habit I want to change.  The habit is that I am a sloth that never exercises!  So, couple that with the crazy marathon idea I’ve been having, and I have decided to come up with a plan to change this slothful habit and to begin marathon training all at once.  The article recommends many things, that I’m going to spell out here.  It will help keep me focused and accountable (a couple of the things it recommends).

1. Write it (your plan) down.  Check! :)
2. Identify your triggers and replacement habits:  I know I have several triggers that keep me from exercising. One of them is being tired, another is feeling like there just isn’t enough time.  So I will be endeavoring to go to bed earlier.  If I feel like there isn’t enough time, then I may do less, but I *will* do some kind of training!
3. Identify why you’re doing this.  I’ve thought about that quite a bit.  I want to get in shape, and I want to feel better, but my primary motivation is to do something “big”, something that’s way outside my comfort zone, something I’ll really have to work at achieving.
4. What kind of obstacles will I face?  I can think of quite a few.  Mental barriers for one (I can already feel myself thinking, ‘how will I ever have time for this’).  Weather could play a factor.  Family support or tolerance for this training, or lack thereof.  Cost – good running shoes aren’t cheep.
5. Who are my support buddies?  Well, I’m counting on my loyal readers to cheer me on (both of you! ha!).  I’ll be posting regularly (at least once a week), about this so hopefully I’ll get feedback.  Allena is supportive, but maybe a bit skeptical – I can’t blame her, I’m a bit skeptical myself as yet, but I’m going for it anyway! :).  I think there will be co-workers that are supportive as well.
6. Write down a start date.  My start date will be March 23rd, which is my birthday so it seemed like a good day to start.

There are more suggestions on how to form a successful habit change plan – but the above were the key ones.  The others are more for along the way, to keep you focused and staying on track.  Here’s a rough training schedule that I found online that I’ll be trying to stick to:

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. – Aristotle

I saw this quote today, and it struck me as particularly relevant right now. I need to strive for excellence – that’s one of the reasons I’m having the crazy marathon idea, to prove to myself I can set a lofty goal and stick with it.

I saw the quote as the lead-off to this article.  I like the picture of the nuns too :)