So tomorrow came and went, I apologise, and I ended up going to hospital with excruciating pains up and down my left leg that only seemed to get worse on a daily basis. After finding out that I had Lactic Acid on my muscle caused by not walking let alone running for some time before I stupidly decided to run up that hill, I broke down a wept for what felt like forever.
What is wrong with me? I should just quit. I am a failure. I am pathetic. I have let myself down and embarrassed myself in front of the world. I was ready to delete this blog and just pretend the whole thing had never happened. But then I would be a quitter.
The truth is I did this to myself. It is what I always do. I push too hard knowing in the back of my mind it will be my downfall and then I beat myself up about it for weeks after. My eagerness to actually reach my goal is stopping me from getting there and although I have only myself to blame, it is blaming myself all the time that seems to keep getting me in this position.
So what now? Now, as a wise man said, I have to walk before I can run. I go back to the drawing board. I walk walk walk and maybe after another ten kilos have been shed I will be able to run again. And when I do I will take it slow. I will start from the beginning, because as I said from the beginning of this blog, It is a marathon not a sprint.
Do I feel down? Of course I do. But this is real I guess. For those people who are still reading this tragic blog, it is the reality of a hard situation. Not everyone can simply wake up one morning, decide to run a marathon and then six months later cross the finish line and move onto the next challenge. For some of us it takes much much longer and involves a lot more inner strength to keep going.
And what gives me strength? Well the fact that since I began writing this blog a handful of people I know have started running and have either run or will be running a marathon next year. And for that I am proud. And I hope that one day, sooner that imagine I will be running again too!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Getting up that hill
So it has really been 7 months since I plucked up the courage to even look at this blog, never mind contribute anything towards it. Despite the fact that in the last 7 months (ok the last 3 months have been a total bust due to personal issues) I have been working my little butt off to shrink my butt further, I have still been so ashamed of the fact that I have not been running. The Marathon that we had been planning to run came and went and my admiration for my brother-in-law who completed it in 3.45 hours was marred by my self loathing for not being there running by his side… ok running far behind him, but still running!
And then there have been the awkward meetings. The bumping into people I met a year ago whose first question is, “So how is the running going?” to which my response is an er… erm… er… followed by a red blushed shamefaced face and then the line which sounds more and more false the more I say it, “I was having problems with my knees so I have put running on hold until I get to the right weight for my frame so that I do not damage my knees further.” Oh the shame. I mean seriously who buys that shit! I am the one having problems with my knees and even I don’t believe it. Seriously girl if you want to quit then quit!
The problem is that; call it stubbornness, call it tenacity, I just do not want to quit. I want to run that race. I want to cross the finish line and feel that feeling I felt when I finished the 3k and the 5k runs… Yes relief, but also a serious sense of pride. I did it! I can do it! And as you are all my witnesses, I will do it!
Today I decided to put all my urges to stay in and swaddle myself in my duvet to the side and go for a morning workout. My workouts nowadays consist of one hour speed walking, followed by squats, lunges and weights (on alternate days). As this was the first day I have done any exercise in a while I decided to stick to the walk with my wrist weights and at 6.30am I was out of the house, pounding the pavement. I could definitely feel in my legs the difference between this morning’s workout and the last time I worked out. My thighs were aching, but I was enjoying the pain, like the first stretch in the morning… it feels good!
Three quarters of the way around and I began my walk up the hill towards the last stretch home. I could run that. I mean not sprint it or anything, but I could jog up that hill. But what about my knees? Well they have had a good old rest. I could just test them out a little. See what their reaction is. So I jogged up that hill and you know what? Yes I felt tired and breathless afterwards, but for the first time in a year I felt that feeling that I felt when I crossed the finish line. I felt proud of myself.
I’ll tell you how my knees are feeling tomorrow… I am back in the game!
And then there have been the awkward meetings. The bumping into people I met a year ago whose first question is, “So how is the running going?” to which my response is an er… erm… er… followed by a red blushed shamefaced face and then the line which sounds more and more false the more I say it, “I was having problems with my knees so I have put running on hold until I get to the right weight for my frame so that I do not damage my knees further.” Oh the shame. I mean seriously who buys that shit! I am the one having problems with my knees and even I don’t believe it. Seriously girl if you want to quit then quit!
The problem is that; call it stubbornness, call it tenacity, I just do not want to quit. I want to run that race. I want to cross the finish line and feel that feeling I felt when I finished the 3k and the 5k runs… Yes relief, but also a serious sense of pride. I did it! I can do it! And as you are all my witnesses, I will do it!
Today I decided to put all my urges to stay in and swaddle myself in my duvet to the side and go for a morning workout. My workouts nowadays consist of one hour speed walking, followed by squats, lunges and weights (on alternate days). As this was the first day I have done any exercise in a while I decided to stick to the walk with my wrist weights and at 6.30am I was out of the house, pounding the pavement. I could definitely feel in my legs the difference between this morning’s workout and the last time I worked out. My thighs were aching, but I was enjoying the pain, like the first stretch in the morning… it feels good!
Three quarters of the way around and I began my walk up the hill towards the last stretch home. I could run that. I mean not sprint it or anything, but I could jog up that hill. But what about my knees? Well they have had a good old rest. I could just test them out a little. See what their reaction is. So I jogged up that hill and you know what? Yes I felt tired and breathless afterwards, but for the first time in a year I felt that feeling that I felt when I crossed the finish line. I felt proud of myself.
I’ll tell you how my knees are feeling tomorrow… I am back in the game!
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