week one

Week one is done! It was a good week. I have logged all of my food everyday and eaten really well. I even went out to dinner twice once for Mexican (anyone who knows me will tell you that is a huge weakness!)  and once to Brickstone (another place I love.) While out for Mexican I only had 7 chips with salsa and ate chicken fajitas with corn tortillas and no Margaritas....with Sharon as my witness :-) Then at Brickstone I restrained from the stormy nights!! These are huge steps for me in the right direction. I have stayed under my calories and worked out my 5 days a week.

Last week I ran with the Kankakee Running Club for their Tuesday night Indian run- let me tell you that this was the hardest run of my life. I felt like I was in high school again, nothing like having to sprint to the front of the line. It was a killer workout and I ran almost all of it with the group. The running club is such a great group of people who are so supportive and make running so much fun.

I lost one pound this week :-) I hope it is two next week!

On another great note a teacher today gave me a great compliment and told me how wonderful I looked. It made me feel great!

The next 30 days!!

Now that the half marathon is over it is time for the next phase! I have agreed to allow my trainer to take over my life for the next 30 days :-) I can do this.....I keep telling myself this! What he has me doing is nothing that I am not aware of but things that I need be reminded of. I am doing 4 sessions a week with him, one of the sessions is an hour long so this takes 3 days of my week- these sessions are all weight training and sometimes abs. I am really starting to see how much stronger I am becoming- I love getting to see results! I do 10 minutes of cardio before my sessions then 30 minutes after. I get two days a week of free choice cardio- I usually run...hopefully one of those nights a will be running with the running club  and the other will be either elliptical or treadmill. Then I must take 2 days off a week. Who knew that doing too much cardio is not good! I know that now and am living by these rules. 

Then there is the the food. I am not really on a diet but have a few restrictions and must haves everyday. I must get plenty of protein- people this is much easier said than done!! I am also going lower carb and lower fat. I get one cheat meal a week- I am going to be very selective with this meal!! I am drinking tons of water and almost no pop! I am not on a calorie restriction but I am staying at my 1600 a day! I am also logging everything everyday! I totally love the my fitness pal app! I can scan the barcode on foods I eat and it pulls all the nutritional info for me! 

As far as weight I have been in between 182 and 187 for almost two months. I just weighed in and am at 187. My goal is to be down 10 pounds in a month!  I think this will give me the next jump start I am in need of. 

I have seen awesome results in my clothes. I am wearing between a size 12 and 14- just typing that makes me so freaking happy :-) But I would like to see my stomach shrink a lot more!!! The muffin top thing has got to go!! So here is to the next 30 days and lots of progress!! 

Chicago 1/2 Marathon 2011

What an amazing day today was. All of my hard work was well worth it. I was very ready for today! It was great to run with over  10,000 other people in the city. I was able to run the entire race-well not while at water stations...I walked through them so I could actually drink. It was a little warm today so I drank at every station both water and gatorade...I also used energy blocks today and I felt great. I ran my first mile a little too fast- ok way to fast but after that I was able to hit my usual pace and keep it until mile 10. The first 10 miles were wonderful and I was in my zone and able to keep my emotions and nerves in check. Running is such a mental sport so this is usually a struggle for me. When I hit mile 10 it was like I hit a brick wall....mile 10 and 11 were the hardest two miles I have ever run....When I hit mile 11 I realized that it had been a 15 minute mile....totally not me!! When I got to mile 12 I was able to pull my self back together and rocked my last mile. My time was  2:42:57 (12:27 per mile) which was awesome. I am so proud of myself and can not believe that a year ago I would not have been able to do it!!!  I am in much less pain than I was in after the soldier field 10 mile and my knee is sore but not even close to the way it was feeling before doing physical therapy.

 My next goal is to make my 5k time a bit fast and be able to easily run about 8-9 miles with out much trouble. I think that these are both very attainable goals. I will also be starting personal training 4 days a week and will be following a stricter workout and diet for 30 days...SO I will keep everyone posted. I need to loose some more weight so this will be a good help to kick that in HIGH gear!  

Jitters

The race is tomorrow morning....AHHHHHHH! I am getting a little nervous. Not sure why but am. My knee is feeling better and I hope I can get through the race with no problem. Today I go pick up my packet from the expo hopefully that will make me excited and not more nervous. I have trained for this and  am ready just have to get rid of these nerves!! 

HERE GOES NOTHING!!! 

8 months later

Wow it has been 8 months and 22 days since I started officially running. My first race was the Jingle Bell run in Kanakee I ran this race in 40:37 with a pace time of 13.04. In this time I have lost about 30lbs and increased my time and endurance! On my last 5k The Terrapin I ran this race in 32:01 with a pace time of 10:18! When I see that in writing it is almost unbelievable!

Here is my picture from that time

In one week from today I will be blogging about my first half marathon....holy crap I can not believe that! I was the girl that hated running and I thought that it was so stupid. Now I....me...Stephanie Rogers...am going to run 13.1 miles for fun- that just sounds plan nuts :-) I am nervous and excited all in one. I need to keep my emotions in check, I can be my own worst enemy!! I have been doing really well with my diet and seeing huge changes in what I can do at the gym. I am very excited to see what my times will be and how I will feel after this race! I have been going to 2 days a week of Physical Therapy for my knee and it feels great! 

I will blog more this week as I get closer!