The New Me - Month Five

The 13th was the official day that I had been working out consistently for 5 months. My devotional that night was very fitting. It said, "If we throw away our hopes and dreams because the situation looks grim or change takes too long, we may miss what God is about to do. When we continue to trust, God works faithfully to accomplish good."

Working out, running, eating healthy ... those things take time. Change takes time. My measurements at the end of month five are exactly the same as they were at the end of month four. I'll be honest, I wanted to see a change, but maybe my measurements are what they are going to be from now on, and maybe they'll change again next month. Only time will tell. I do know that I won't allow myself to become discouraged when I don't see a change ... because, as I said before, change takes time. Galatians 6:7 - "...a man reaps what he sows." If I continue to do what I need to do, then in time, I am confident that I will see the changes that I want to see.

That being said, I would like to announce that my biceps are starting to show some progress. OK, they're not the big guns that I'm working for, but they're at least a nice pellet gun for now. Wait for them ... they'll be back (said in my best Arnold voice).

Workout Routine / Accountability: In month five, I committed to Boot Camp M, W, and F. I ran on T, Th, and Sat. I played soccer on Sunday.

Day 124: Ran two miles with Hatch. 14 burpee's (continuing the burpee challenge started last month)

Day 125: Boot camp. 15 burpee's

Day 126: Ran two miles. 16 burpee's

Day 127: 17 Burpee's

Day 128: Boot camp. 18 burpee's

Day 129: Ran 3.56 miles with Dawn and Hatch. 19 burpee's

Day 130: Boot camp. 20 burpee's

Day 131: Sick with fever

Day 132: Sick. Missed boot camp

Day 133: Sick

Day 134: Still sick, but played 2 soccer games. I also had to catch up on some burpee's so I did 21, then 22, then 23, then 24. Whew!

Day 135: Sick. Missed boot camp

Day 136: Sick. Catching up on burpee's again so I did 25 and then 26

Day 137: Boot camp. 27 burpee's

Day 138: 28 burpee's - The burpee challenge is over! Still trying to get well so I'm not running yet

Day 139 (March 1st): Our challenge for March is push ups. We will do push ups every day of the month so the 1st is 1, the 2nd is 2, and so on. Boot camp. Still sick. 1 push up

Day 140: 2 Push ups

Day 141: Soccer. 3 push ups

Day 142: Boot camp. 4 push ups. Walked 3/4 mile after work with the family and our two dogs. I started full time work today for the next 4 months. I will continue to do boot camp 3 days a week, but I've cut down my running from 3 days to 2 days. I don't want to overdo it, and I'm also not willing to take time away from my family to run so I'm no longer going to run on Saturday mornings with my boot camp girls.

Day 143: Finally running again! Ran 2.62 miles with Dawn and Hatch. 5 push ups

Day 144: Boot camp. 6 push ups. 60 crunches

Day 145: 7 push ups. 50 crunches

Day 146: Boot camp. I ran my fastest mile at boot camp with a time of 8 mins 31 secs!
8 push ups. I decided that I cannot do push ups any longer. Push ups made my left shoulder sore in January and the push up challenge this month has brought back the same pain. Last time it took two weeks of rest to be pain free so I'm back to resting it.

Day 147: Instead of push ups, I'm switching to leg throw downs. 9 leg throw downs

Day 148: Soccer. 10 leg throw downs

Day 149: Boot camp. 11 leg throw downs

Day 150: Ran 2 miles with Hatch. 12 leg throw downs

Day 151: Boot camp. 13 leg throw downs. Five months down!


Five Month Results:

• Like I said before, my measurements stayed the same as last month. No loss, but no gain either!
• I lost 2 pounds this month!
• Since I was sick, I missed two days of boot camp and I didn't run for two weeks straight. I only ran one day on the third week. Sometimes rest is the best medicine.
• In month six I've committed to a slightly different schedule. I will attend Boot camp on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I will run on Tuesday and Thursday. I will keep playing soccer on Sunday.
• This next month I will be preparing for my first marathon relay. I will run this in Fayetteville, AR, with my husband, brother, sister in law, two best friends, and both of my girls preschool teachers (we will be entered as two teams). My leg of the race is 5.75 miles. I'm so excited!
• One of my running partners suggested that I total up the miles that I've run over the last 5 months. I was amazed to find out that I've run a total of 49 miles. Wow! And that's coming from someone who used to hate running. Change is good!

Like I said before, I've given myself 6 months as long as it takes to get back in the shape that I want to be in so I'll update you again at the end of month six.