From Couch to 5K to Tough Mudder - First Month's Reflections

To be fair, I am not actually starting out from the couch.

I have been committed to a steady circuit workout routine for a good year now along with my Curves Complete program since January as I enter my third week of the diet plan tomorrow. But the running part came about several weeks ago–a tiny but determined seed in my head that wanted to grow.

Tough Mudder certainly played a strong part in that decision. Despite the fact that my orthopedic surgeon once warned me that I needed to stop running if I didn't want to ever see him again, I decided embrace the boredom of pounding the pavement again in preparation for that event.

Not that I was much of a runner to begin with because it was boring activity but I schlepped through it anyways, running about two miles three times a week on my treadmill. I will admit it was a more palatable endeavor when I headed south to Las Vegas where the elevation was a lot kinder to my joints and lungs than where I am now at over 6200'.

Having decided to fire up these leg engines again, it did mean easing back into it if I didn't want to risk hurting myself or quitting out of distaste so I decided to try the C25K plan and found to my pleasant surprise that, hey, there's an app for that. So I downloaded  it and I am now pushing through my fourth week of the program encouraged along by the mellow music on Pandora's "Adele" station as it focused me and tuned everything else out. And when I'm not doing that, I'm walking or riding my bike in sync with those same motivating rythms distracting my mind and my muscles.

I'd like to think I'm making progress. I still have a ways to go but I do feel stronger and the intensity of my workouts seem to be more bearable with each repeated effort. I expect to increase the level of difficulty on my training in the next 6 months and I am really looking forward to it even though a nagging, whining voice inside me is honestly not looking forward to it so I just fight to tamp it down.

In keeping with my all-or-nothing behavior, I chose Tough Mudder as my raison d'être and so far, my madness is apparently something that not too many people I know share. Even my supportive husband has told me that he can think of "better ways to kill himself."

Nevertheless, he, along with all my friends and club rats, are giving me their thumbs up. So I stay the course knowing that I have a wealth of support around me. As of today, I have 180 days to go and it just seems to be that everything is falling into place and my universe is in alignment.

Encouraging indeed.