Five miles looks good on you

For those of you coming into the game a little late, I've been on a get your big butt back to the gym and start running again track (no pun intended) since April. A few pictures from the beginning of the year turned up causing me to wonder how in the hell I had let myself get so out of shape. Nothing like a bad picture to motivate.

That and someone finally said something that clicked in my brain. TBD of all people was talking a about his recent weight loss (he's dropped 80lbs and I'm sure it's even more now) one night. He made a comment about it was time he was finally healthy. That's it. He just wanted to be healthy, no high blood pressure or high cholesterol. No worrying about the state of his heart or diabetes. He wanted to feel good and be healthy so he could enjoy life. And for some reason, even though I've heard it all before, it clicked.

Yeah, that's right. How can I enjoy my life if I'm not taking care of myself?

So I got back on the wagon. There was a point in my life about three years ago where I was running on a regular basis, doing 5ks and actually exercising as often as I could. Not to make excuses but life started getting in the way, my jobs and money stress demanded more of my time and I stopped. No more gym. No more running. My days became work-home-sleep-work. With regular pitstops at McDonalds or Wendy's along the way. Not good.

Now though, now I'm getting back on track. And like my friend Deb said (referencing her friend Jill) "It's a life change, not just a diet. Anything like this has to be done under the premise that you're changing for the rest of your life."

I'm running again. My knees protest a little bit more, this morning was hell what with all of the popping and cracking, but it feels good. I've slowly been working my way back up to 5k (3.1 or 3.2 miles depending on the course) and have even started going longer when I feel up to it. Yesterday I hit 5 miles. Me. Running 5 miles.

Somewhere my old gym teachers are falling over in disbelief.

To top it off I weighed in today...down 15lbs total AND I'm wearing a skirt I haven't worn in two years. I'm not going to lie, it feels damn good. Yeah, I have setbacks. I'm sure I'll be up a little bit tomorrow from the beer J and I drank while playing pool last night, but that's o.k. Because I'll just get back out there and move a little more.

It is my life, after all.