No Rest for the Wicked

Maybe just eye-candy but still...

Despite the fact that it's Sunday, a day that people usually take for rest and relaxation, I opted to continue my running today; however, not before having a little Sunday fun myself.  Dan and I went to go see Rum Diary - the adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson's novel by the same name, but unfortunately neither of us felt that the film really came close to the bar set by the novel.  Don't get me wrong, the film was entertaining but it seems that Rum Diary the novel was manipulated to create more of an homage to Thompson than to tell the story that Thompson had intended with the novel.  Regardless I would recommend seeing it for the footage of the ever-amazing Johnny Depp alone (he's definitely on my 'list'!)  It was a bit of a struggle to mentally motivate myself to do so, but I managed to get myself into the gym instead of just parking it on the couch.  I have kind of surprised myself with my ability to self-motivate in respect to my running/blogging project; I know that it has only been 5 days, but getting things started is often the part that I find the most difficult - I find that once I get going with something it actually becomes difficult to stop me.  That's an attribute that is probably largely responsible for me actually completing all my assignments through university, however most of those assignments were started and completed late into the night the day before they were due.  So to have gotten myself up and running (haha, sweet pun, no?) with this project is definitely a really good start for me - hopefully it will be just as difficult for me to stop this as it is for me to stop one of my slightly obsessive compulsive cleaning streaks... If you have ever worked with me, you know how excessive it can get!
Hope you are all enjoying your Sunday!

Running Day 5:
22 min 30 seconds
5.7mph
2.13 miles
+
35 sit-ups

Running Away from a Hangover

I bet right now you are wondering
what the hell this picture could
possibly have to do with anything...

Well, I have just completed my first Saturday morning running, however it kind of moved into the afternoon given my late night of working in addition to the seven beers I downed last night without blinking an eye.  I woke up a little late, and in sub-par condition, but I must exercise really does help kick that hangover to the curb.  Although, I would imagine there is a line drawn somewhere that once passed exercise only manages to make matters much, much worse...  I have an awesome mental image of running on a treadmill and then puking over the side of it (so awesome that I mean gross, and so gross that I felt the need to disgust others).  Fortunately today I had not crossed that line and exercise actually made me feel really awesome.  I have also been following my runs up with a dip in the hot tub, it's a great way to relax afterwards and I am sure it helps with the old achy muscles as well.  I am a bit ashamed of the fact that we have lived in this building for so long and made little use of the amenities available to us.  For example, our building has an outdoor pool, one that is rarely used because a lot of old people live in our building and (thankfully) they don't seem interested in taking a dip, yet I believe I went in the pool just once all summer.  It seems pretty silly considering once we get a house of our own and no longer have a pool readily available I just know there will be multiple instances in which I wish I had a pool to go take a swim.  Speaking of our building's pool, it does seem to attract a lot of people to go and just sit around and bake in the sun...  As an incredibly pale person, I really don't understand this.  You just sit there getting hot, lying either face down staring at pavement or face up with your eyes tightly squeezed shut because the blazing hot and bright sun is baking your body.  I mean, I understand that it feels nice, all that warmth and Vitamin D, but I get it as something you do on a beach, or after you've been in water and now you're a bit chilly...  But to just lie on a lawn chair baking in the sun in the middle of the dessert-like environment of Calgary on a pavement patio next to pool filled with water that you have not and have no intention of going into - well, that really just baffles the hell out of me.  Personally, I prefer to slap on some waterproof SPF 90 and get in the water or just stay indoors and let my paleness slowly turn to translucence.  Wow, I literally almost forgot how I got onto this topic, seriously, I was seconds away from scrolling back to the top to figure out how I got to talking about sunbathing while on the brink of winter...  Anyhow, the point is that I am feeling pretty good about finally making some good use of all the features available to me.  Also, there is a squash court, so if anyone is interested in having me kick their ass in a squash match let me know, I'm undefeated in the two matches Dan and I have ever played (Dan please imagine me looking really cute so that comment does not anger you).

I almost forgot!
Running Day 4:
22mins
2 miles
5.5 mph
+
35 sit-ups

Running Through the Pain

(Seriously, how cool was Zack Morris...?)

I just got finished Day 3's run, and it was painful. My legs felt like jelly last night, and that feeling had only compounded over night. However, I am quite proud to say that I got up and continued on with my running routine regardless. There was a lot of self-motivation both in my head, and at times out loud... luckily, no one else seems to ever use the gym so only I was aware of how completely insane I sounded. I must say though, that running on that treadmill while watching House Hunters International and coercing myself to keep going oddly reminded me of when I used to do cross country and track - oddly because when I did those things there was no t.v. to watch and if there was I would have been watching Saved by the Bell rather than Home and Garden Television. But I remembered the little mind games that I used to play with myself when I would be competing; sometimes I would lie to myself, I would fully convince myself that the lap I was on was the last lap, and then when I was almost across the finish line I would somehow surprise myself with the fact that there was still another lap to go. Or when I used to do cross country running, I swear I would make up in my head that there was a girl right on my heels so I had better kick into the next gear or I was going to get passed - then I would kick it into that gear, cross the finish line and turn around to see that no one was close to me at all. That's what I was doing to myself today, playing little mind games to keep myself from hopping off the treadmill prematurely. The television was actually a big help, it distracted me from staring at the clock on the treadmill watching every second click by. This was the first day I had the t.v. (I couldn't figure out how to use it the first two days... don't I live with a guy in the audio/visual industry??), now if only it had a dvd player hooked up to it and I could watch really entrancing movies so that I could run for hours and have no idea that I had - or I could get so distracted I forget that I am running and fall off the back of the treadmill; honestly, that`s much more likely to happen. Anyhow, the point I was making somewhere along the line was that I was playing those head games with myself, at first I told myself I would only run for ten minutes today because I have a sweet 8 hours shift on my feet ahead of me... and then I decided, well I`ll just go until this couple finishes over-critically viewing this gorgeous home that most people would give their right arm to live in. By that time, I figured I may as well go the commercial break and then I could do my sit-ups doing the commercial. Well, I ended up doing my sit-ups while they viewed the next house (which again they appreciate about as much as dog poop on their front step), so it seems I am simultaneously very smart and very stupid and gullible.

Running Day 3:
20 min
5.5 mph
1.83 miles
+30 sit-ups

Blogging Day 1, Running Day 2

(I did not draw this, I stole it from the internet)

I have never felt fat, never once my whole life.  Despite having gone from being a size 4 in high school to my current 8-12 range depending on the clothes, I never really noticed - I still always felt comfortable with my body.  I think I was always very lucky that way, I mean sure I had my little things that bothered me (like my giant feet, or spider-esque fingers) but overall I was blessed with a pretty healthy body image.  That is, until Tuesday night when I plopped myself down on my couch to the appalling sound of my jeans ripping - I seriously thought I had sat on something.  After realising that this was not the case, I discovered the massive rip in the derriere of my jeans which a CSI might determine was the result of an ass exploding out of forced confinement desperate for air.  I went to bed feeling fat, and thought "Oh, this is why women always talk about this" - it feels shitty!  I laid in bed unable to sleep, tossing and turning as I thought about how much I have changed from my former super athletic and fit self.  I used to win cross-country races, and I enjoyed it - now I get tired from a ten minute hike.  I used to play rugby competitively, now I couldn't explain half the rules to my fiancee (I f-ing hate that word and I will never use it again, I only said it so people would know who he is if they don't already) Dan while he watched the rugby world cup.  I used to play soccer, a sport I started probably the same year that I started to walk thanks to my soccer-passionate Scottish father - even that I gave up playing recreationally just this summer.  Sports and athleticism used to be such a dominate part of my identity, so sitting there realising how all that has fallen away over time, I was left wondering who I was now.  If I had not already quit smoking a month and a half ago this would have definitely been the night that I would have finally decided to do it.  Thankfully, I had already taken that plunge, and I had taken it with the mindset that I would regain some of my former athletic identity.  However, in true procrastinator nature I managed to put that off as well.
I awoke in the morning determined, the most determined that I have felt in a really long time.  I knew that morning that I was going to do this, I was going to get back to feeling healthy and regaining that feeling that feeling I had always underestimated of feeling comfortable in my own skin.  I hope that keeping this blog will help keep me on track and maybe it can help motivate others to finally do that thing they've been putting off with excuse after excuse.

Running Day 1:
21min
5.0-5.5 mph
1.71 miles
+
25 sit-ups

Running Day 2:
22min
5.5mph
2.0 miles
+
30 sit-ups