On a roll!

I am so excited. Today my podrunner workout was to run 2o minutes uninterrupted. I saw this as a daunting task. There's no way I would be able to do it. But I did - sorta. After the 5 minute warm-up, I cranked up the speed and started running. As I was approaching the 5 minute mark, I decided that I would take a 1 minute or less break. I figured this would be the only way I would be able to get the 20 minutes of running done. The mini-breaks really helped me a lot and I was able to finish the 2o minutes.

Even though it was supposed to be 2o minutes of non-stop running, I'm still proud of myself. I'm glad I added in the 1 minute break every 5 minutes. I'm hoping soon I will be able to run the 20 minutes without needing the break.

Feeling Good

Today, the treadmill was my bitch. I had a great workout and like Tony the Tiger, I feel g-r-r-r-eat!! I'm on week 5, workout 2 of the Podrunner 5k training. This workout consisted of a 5 minute warm-up, 8 minutes running, 5 minutes walking, 8 min running and 1:45 minute cool down. I pounded the treadmill hard. I was focused like I've never been focused before. I did take a 30 second break during the 8 minute run but that was mainly due to being thirsty not because I was tired. I guess I should hydrate a little before I start training. My concern is that I might drink too much and end up getting a stitch in my side. That would not be fun.

I am proud of myself today. Next training workout is running 20 minutes straight - no breaks. It's daunting and I'm a little nervous but I am determined to do it.

Woo-hoo! I'm still on that runner's high.

Making Progress

I'm baaack!!! I've been keeping a low profile since I've pretty much fallen off the wagon. But now I'm back on - I hope. I ran Saturday dreading it the entire time. But to my surprise, my endurance had kicked up a notch. I just knew I would be huffing and puffing at the one minute mark but I wasn't. I ran for 5 minutes before I slowed down to a walk. (And I only stopped at 5 minutes because my mouth was so dry my tongue was stuck to the roof of it!). I walked for 2 minutes and increased the speed again, thinking that first round was a fluke. Nope! It wasn't! I ran for another 5 minutes. I slowed it down again because now I am getting winded and didn't want to over do it and pass out. But I continued this for 30 minutes. At the 30 minute mark I was winded, sweaty and proud of myself. I think this was the nudge that I needed to get back in the training mode.

Since I felt so great about my workout Saturday, Sunday I went outside and did a 30 minute run/walk with Darrius. Running outside is so much harder than being on a treadmill but I plan on keeping at it.

Today I signed up for a 5 mile race in September. I have a goal in sight. And I plan on staying on track working towards that goal.

Wish me luck!

New Obsession

Darrius is going to summer camp at Yong In Martial Arts Academy. Every day the kids go on a field trip. It's normally the same trips every week. For instance, Mondays is Chuck-E-Cheese, Tuesdays they go to the park. Well one of their trips is a weekly trip to Six Flags in Largo, MD. The kids have to buy a season pass which is $60 bucks. It's a good price considering they go weekly. Darrius has never been a thrill-seeking kid. He's like me - cautious. He doesn't get his kicks doing dangerous stuff. So needless to say, he's not a roller coaster fan - until now. They've gone to Six Flags the last four weeks and each week, Darrius has stepped out of his comfort zone and has gotten a little adventurous.

A couple of weeks ago, Darrius was talking about his Six Flags trip and asked me if I like going on roller coasters. I told him no I don't. I have a fear of heights and roller coasters are not my friend. I then proceeded to tell him that back in the day when I used to go to Kings Dominion, I would get on roller coasters due to peer pressure. I didn't want to be the only one sitting on the bench waiting, while everyone else was standing in line to get on the rides. Little did I know, he would take this to heart and do the exact same thing.

It worked for him. Each week he has gone on more roller coasters, multiple times, and when I would pick him up, he would be so excited, telling me about the rides he went on and how many times. I'm proud of him. He didn't let fear get in his way. He took my ass backwards way of riding roller coasters and used it to conquer his fear. Go Darrius!

But now he's a roller coaster, riding MONSTER! He has become obsessed with riding them. The last two days, he has been on Six Flags' website showing me the roller coasters he's been on, telling me the height of the drop and how fast they go. And now he wants us all to go to Six Flags when his dad is back in town. I told him he could count me out. I still don't like roller coasters to this day! So now I have a 10 year old trying to convince me that roller coasters are not scary and I have nothing to be afraid of.

This make me laugh. He then says "If I can ride a roller coaster, I know you can Mom. There's nothing to scared of."

Boy, the tables have turned.

I'm still not getting on anybody's roller coaster.

Missing Daddy

Darrius on the phone, talking to his Dad.

The last two weeks have been the longest two weeks of my life. Dear hubby is out of town, attending training for his new career adventure. And he has another week to go before he returns home. It's just been me and Darrius and it has been tough. I never realized how much easier life is when you have the second parent around. Hubby is Darrius' entertainment. I don't wrestle. I don't have the sports knowledge to talk about current basketball trades or who should be traded to where. I'm missing the Y chromosome that prevents me from relating to my son like his dad does. I'm the mom. I'm all about making sure he takes a shower, eats his dinner, changes his underwear, cleans his room etc. I'm not the fun parent. Dad is.



Darrius misses his dad terribly. The first week was tough. Darrius moped around. He constantly asked if Dad called. I actually think he was depressed. He went to bed at 8pm without being told! That really shocked me. Any other time I would have to start telling him to go to bed an half hour before his bedtime! And to make things worse, none of his friends could play outside which meant he was really looking pitiful. I felt so bad for him that I felt guilty about leaving for him for an hour to go to the gym! I didn't know what to do. I fired up the Wii and we played Mario Kart - our favorite game. But even Darrius got tired of that after awhile. Saturday we went putt-putting. That seemed to improve his mood. And then when we got back home, he received a text from one of his friends, asking if he could play outside. I was jumping for joy on the inside. Yes! Finally! Maybe this will get him out of his "I miss my dad" funk.



This week went much smoother. Less moping, not going to bed as early as last week. I don't know what to do this weekend. It would be so much easier if he was a toddler or a baby. When Darrius was around 4, Alfred had to go out of town for a week. To entertain Darrius, I bought Candy Land and coloring books and crayons and a couple of toys (a bribe for good behavior). Every evening we would play Candy Land over and over - until it was his bedtime. Even though I was tired of playing Candy Land, it was simple, it kept him happy and it made my life easier. I bet if I busted out that game now, Darrius would look at me like I'd lost my mind.



Darrius has already started the countdown til Alfred comes back home. I'm sure everyday he's going to remind me that it'll be x amount of days until Dad comes home.



One more week. I think I can make it.

Hanging my head in shame

I know in my last post I was all gung-ho and talking smack about how I'm back and track. I'm off the wagon....AGAIN! I haven't trained in two weeks. I have been working out. But I haven't been doing my 5k training. The moment is started getting tough, I sort of gave up. Not totally gave up but I started finding reasons to avoid my 5k training podcast. It varied from I downloaded new music and wanted to workout to that instead to there was a real funny episode of Friends on that I wanted to watch for the 100th time while I walked on the treadmill. I am ashamed of myself. How am I going to be able to run a 5k by September if I don't stick with the training? Do I think that on that day I'm going to magically be able to run 3.2 miles with ease? SMH.

I don't know what to do to get the motivation back. Like I said, I've been in the gym, working out, pounding the treadmill (walking). I dread hitting the up button to increase my speed to 4.6. I think I've psyched myself out of being able to do it. So now I got to psyche myself back into being able to do it.

I will be able to get back on track....eventually. I'm going to start one step at a time.

We shall see. I will keep you up-to-date as my journey continues.

Ta! for now

Gone too soon

Like everyone else yesterday, I was (and still is) in complete and utter shock regarding the passing of Michael Jackson. I was at the gym yesterday when I heard the news. I immediately turned to MSNBC, thinking the media had jumped the gun and there was no way that Michael Jackson had died. Unfortunately, they were right. I was in utter dismay. I continued my workout on the treadmill so that I could watch t.v. and get the latest updates. But that plan soon changed. The moment MJ's death was confirmed, the media started talking about Michael's legal woes, eccentricities and all around weirdness. The man had just died and already they were already trashing him. Regardless of how people feel about Michael, you can not deny the fact that the man was a musical genius. If it weren't for Michael Jackson, there would be no Usher, Chris Brown, Justin Timberlake. He influenced generations of people. That can not be taken away from him.

I will admit that I've always been more of a Prince fan than a Michael fan. But when I look back on my childhood, Thriller was the soundtrack. It was all about that album. I remember waiting for the Thriller video to premiere and being amazed by it once it was over. We then watched it over and over to learn the choreography and then go outside and re-enact it from start to finish. I can still bust out some of those zombie moves now. Ha-ha! When I was in the 5th grade I had a HUGE crush on this 6th grader named Rodney (I can't believe I remember his name). What was so special about him you ask? Well, he looked just like Michael Jackson. He had the gerri curl, red leather jacket from the Beat It video and the sunglasses. You couldn't tell me nothing. I thought that boy was FINE!

My favorite Michael Jackson song is "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing). That song was my jam. I used to think the song was about me. I remember walking in my neighborhood and hearing a boy shout out to me "Hey PYT!" And I'd give a cheesy grin and think I was the ish! I still love that song to this day!

We lost a great artist yesterday. His legacy will continue to live on because he touched so many people with his music. As I'm typing this, I'm listening to Michael Jackson on my iPod. His music never gets old or tired. Whenever I hear a Michael Jackson song on the radio, I start grooving. I heard on the radio this morning a clip of a MJ interview and what he said resonated with me: Great music is immortal.

Yes it is. And because of your great music, you will be with us forever.

R.I.P. Michael