New Balance 10
Six months ago my friend Lauren told me she had taken up running using an app called Couch 2 5k. I immediately purchased it for my shiny new iPhone, and then ignored it.
So about two weeks ago I finally decided to start using this app. Just for the record, I don’t believe in exercising for the sake of looking good in a bikini. I might have in the past, but I don’t now. I believe that sit-ups are really bad for your back, and I believe that it’s more important to eat all your fruits and veggies than it is to count your calories. One of my primary reasons for exercising is that I want to survive at least a week after an apocalyptic event, which I joke about, but also sort of believe will happen in my lifetime.
I ran cross country in high school. I was never particularly good at it, but it kept me in decent shape for three years, and I could regularly run 3-6 miles. This history of being able to run distance got into my head, and it made it difficult for me to get back into running. Every time I got winded running half a mile, I felt pathetic. I would keep at it for a few days, but I was comparing myself to a person ten years younger (writing that makes me feel really old), and this unfair comparison was holding me back, and it served as a good enough excuse to give up. Before I could really start training, I needed to to accept that I was no longer than person who could run 3 miles like it was nothing, and that I needed to be easier on myself. I basically decided that I needed to re-learn how to run. So I can out-run the zombies one day.
C25k slowly builds you from doing no exercise to running 5k. Every day you start with a five minute walking warm-up, and then a pleasant voice tells you to run. Each day you run in spurts, with walking breaks in between. You end with a five minute cool-down. The app also allows you to play your own music from within the app (no switching to the iTunes app necessary), or you can use it with Pandora. Sometimes I like to switch over to my Indie Dance station in Pandora; the beat really helps you find a good stride. At the end of each workout you can fill out a little journal to describe what the weather was like and how you felt on your run. I usually choose the not smiling face, because I am winded and my face is all pink and my calves are tight. You can publish your run to Facebook and Twitter, and the app tracks your training progress on an impressive looking chart.
So far I feel pretty good about it, and I would definitely recommend this app to anyone who wants to start running. I am only in Week 2, but already in 30 minutes I can travel over two miles. That is pretty amazing, considering that walking up to the third floor of the library gets me winded. I like the British lady talking in my ear, and I like bragging on Facebook about how far I have run each day. Plus, my husband has bought me an armband to hold my iPhone while I run, as a reward for my dedication, so now I look like a Serious Runner like all the shirtless undergraduates I pass on the bike path.
My goal is to be able to run in a 5k event by Christmas. Interestingly, I just read a great article in the New York Times about how everybody runs wrong, “The Once and Future Way to Run“, so I am considering incorporating 100-ups into my work-outs. I’ll be honest: my goal is to be able to improve my running posture primarily so I can get away with buying Chuck Taylors for running instead of super-cushioned, and super expensive, New Balance shoes, which have been my shoe of choice since high school (although the 10 pictured is GORGEOUS) . That is a bad goal, right?
What are your exercise routines like?
