About Me

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CA, United States
I have been a stay at home mom for the last 5 years. I love being with my children and feel so blessed and lucky to have the opportunity to do so, but I often get lost in the shuffle of it all. I have tried to lose weight and get in shape many times in my life, with varying degrees of success. It has seemed especially hard since having kids. So, I've decided to sliver out a little piece of time for myself to get back in shape and get back to feeling good about myself. I am hoping that this blog will help me find an outlet to talk about my experiences and find a community of people who have similar goals. I hope you enjoy reading this blog as much as I enjoy writing it!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Week 2, Day 4 - Another close encounter of the canine kind

This morning did not go to plan exactly.  Despite ensuring last night that my alarm was set to the right time, set to a.m. and was turned on, I was not awoken at 6:35.  By some stroke of luck, my husband happened to open his eyes and see that it was almost 6:50 and woke me up.  It seems that the radio station dial had been messed with and the volume turned all the way down.  I have a little 23 pound suspect who gets her hands into everything these days, but since she doesn't speak yet, the questioning will have to wait.

I dressed quickly and dashed out the door, forgoing my usual stretch session and got right to the 5 minute walk.  I stopped once or twice to stretch my calves and shins, but my fourth week 2 run came upon me quickly.  I was not as loose as I normally am, so I wasn't really hitting my stride right away.  I took a new route today to keep it fresh and it did not take me long to regret it.  In the middle of my first run interval, I watched as a huge black do came running out of its yard toward me barking.  It stopped advancing me when it was about 10 feet away, but kept barking and growling.  I was paralyzed with fear and was completely unsure what do do.  I moved slowly along, keeping my eyes on him always.  I was doing kind of a side step trying to keep as much distance from him as I could while still trying to get away from him.  The barking never stopped and I was so afraid that he would lunge at me.  As I reached the corner of the street, I noticed a man who I shall call Cletus standing in his driveway watching the encounter with a sort of stupid grin on his face.  I asked him if he was the dog's owner and he said no, but not to worry, the dog was all bark, no bite.  He actually said he thinks the dog is funny.  "Real $#*#$%ing funny," I said as I kept moving further away from Cujo.  Once I made it to the next corner and was able to get off the street and out of site, I began running again, just trying to get more distance, but looking frequently over my shoulder.  As opposed to my last canine encounter, my confrontation with Cletus and Cujo left little to laugh about. 

I backed up my podcast and went back to run one and continued on my way.  Adrenaline was pumping now and I was beginning to get back into stride.  I will not allow myself to skip the stretching again because I felt tight through most of the run.  And since I wasn't dying at the end of my run today, I will prepare to move on to week 3 on Saturday.  In the meantime, I think I will go ahead and pick up a small can of pepper spray to keep with me on my runs.  I can't be that vulnerable again.  If people can't be responsible animal owners, then I will have to do what it takes to be protected.  I hope I'll never need to use it, but I know I need the peace of mind.

Though I am nervous about keeping up with the next level of the program, I need to keep pushing forward if I am to make progress.  As many of you have shared with me, this program is not the same for everyone.  If it takes me longer to master a week, that's OK.  If I struggle with a workout, it doesn't mean I've failed.  What is important is that I keep up with the routine, I make exercise a part of my life, and I get my body healthy and strong.  C25K isn't a race to a finish line, it is a map to better physical and mental health.  So each day, each morning that I rise to run, I will cling to my new mantra:  I CAN DO IT!

11 comments:

  1. I have been reading your blog, and I LOVE IT. It is the motivation I need to keep going, knowing that someone is in the same boat with me. I am on W2D3 TODAY and am wishing the heat was NOT a factor today. But alas, I will be running.

    Thanks for the support. Keep it coming!!

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  2. Thank you so much Kristin. I am so lucky that heat is not one of my challenges. Make sure you stay hydrated all day before you run...it will make all the difference. Good luck and keep reading and I'll keep it coming!!!

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  3. You can do week 3! I am finishing up week 3 and the first day I totally bombed, but came back the next day to kick it's butt. By day 3 of week 3 I the 3 min runs are MUCH easier. I was so happy!! Keep it up!

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  4. I have also been considering pepper spray. I saw they have special ones at Bass Pro shops that are for joggers/runners and have a wrist band and everything. An ex-cop someone in my family knows recommended them. You definitely need to protect yourself!

    SO nice to be able to read about others who are in the same "week" as me! Its encouraging and I feel a sense of camaraderie, haha. We can totally do this! Keep it up!

    @Kristin - we are in Texas and the heat here has become horrible. I run tomorrow, so I am praying for a miraculous cool down.

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  5. Dogs scare the heck out of me - hate dogs. Like individual dogs - but for the most part I hate dogs. I had to laugh at "Cletus"! We live in Northern Michigan (hickville) and I can just see that happening!

    I had a terrible day last night and started W2D1 a day early. I went out after dark - alone - and pretty much just did 20 minutes of walk/jogging in my driveway. I skipped the 5 minutes walk even - just started jogging when I stepped out the door (mistake). I saw the creep neighbor teenager watching me the entire time - then later on (midnight at this time) I still see him in his bedroom watching us in the house. CREEPY - love this jogging thing (needed it last night) but it is scare to be so vulnerable.

    Keep up the good work. I love reading your blogs!

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  6. @ Danielle - thanks for the encouragement. I hope that it goes well for me but will keep in mind that it can only get better if it is a tough go!

    @Angel - I am not a huge pet person in general, but I like good dogs. I hate bad pet owners. Seems to be so many of them too! Really CREEPY about the neighbor kid. If you continue to ntice him watching you, you should go speak with his parents. Be careful though and be protected!

    @all- thank you so much for reading and responding. It is such a huge source of inspiration and motivation for me.

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  7. Theresa, this is so wierd!! I just got finished posting on the C25K's fb page that I had an encounter with dogs today too! I have been running on the stupid treadmill for the past two weeks and today was finally the day that I was going to get outside and run. I had a baby sitter, I got off work early and I even went and treated myself to some new running shorts. Then when we got to a local walking track that is usually full of families watching baseball and such, there was no one! and I mean not one person. So that was kind of creepy to start out with but I kept on going. My husband was with me so I felt pretty safe. We made it thru the warm up and the first run. Then all of these vicious sounding dogs started coming towards us. We just happened to be next to our car when they got closer so we jumped in and left.
    And the dog mase is a great idea. I bought some at a local cycle store and I think it is called Hault. I have only had to use it one time on a bike ride and let me tell you, IT WORKS! I have a dog and I deffinitely dont want to hurt another dog but some need to be taught a lesson. And the next time you see that dog, he may remember and not mess with you.
    But needless to say, I did not get to do todays run outside. I came home and did it on the treadmill....again. But this weekend, I am going to run outside if it is the last thing I do!!!
    (And I will have my mase with me)

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  8. Kim, I think I just responded to you on FB...didn't realize you already were reading this, so I shamelessly plugged my blog to you again!

    I just hate when people are so irresponsible with their animals. It is too bad that animals have to pay the price for their bad owners. I don't want to hurt a dog either, but if it them or me...well, 'nuff said. Good luck this weekend.

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  9. Hey Theresa! I'm actually on the exact same day as you in C25K, so reading your blog right after my own run really makes me feel like I was less alone up there on that treadmill. You've actually encouraged me to make my own self-motivational blog! So thanks. I'll see you around on the C25K FB page. :D

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  10. I enjoy reading your blog, I just started this week, today will be W1D3, should've got out this morning but evenings have been better for me, but since we have plans this evening I will have to do it before it cools down. Thanks again for the updates as it encourages me to continue on.....Looking forward to a new me!!

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  11. I totally agree that you should carry some pepper spray or some sort of deterant(sp?) when you're out by yourself. I have a pink container of pepper spray that has a belt clip. I have it clipped to my knee brace. That way it's always within easy reach.

    On a side note, one of my co-workers was reading an article online that said that wasp spray is as good as or better than pepper spray. It works well and usually sprays a greater distance (25 feet or more). Obviously this isn't a good choice while you're out/active, but it talked about having it by your bedside or your door in case you have an intruder.

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