Stop The Insanity, Bring On The Miles

I no longer hate Shaun T. but I did have to stop the Insanity program, for a few reasons. About two weeks ago, I started to feel a dull pain in my right leg, from my ankle to my knee, similar to shin splints. I pressed on anyway. A few days later, I felt sharp pain in my ankle and had to bench myself for a week. Of course, it probably wasn't smart to workout on the concrete floors in my apartment. Then, I looked at my countdown calendar and realized I had 5 months and 3 days until the LA Marathon. My path was clear. I had to ditch the last two weeks of Insanity in order to establish a run base of at least a month before beginning my marathon training program.

On Monday, I officially began training for my first marathon! Everything I've read, all my research suggests a first time marathoner should have at least one year of running three or four times a week under their belt. I'll have 4 or 5 weeks. So...my goal (for the time being) is simply to finish the race. I'm going to train smart, eat well, and avoid injury so I can show up bright and obnoxiously early on March 20th at the starting line at Dodger Stadium. I'm going to listen to my body and let it guide me. If I feel strong during a run and want to go faster, I will. If a joint or muscle starts acting up, I'll back off. I'm going to treat this whole experience with the patience and planning that a first time event requires.

Which also means getting good advice. Don't be stingy, runners. If you have pointers on anything from rest days to race day, please let me know! I'm like a sponge sucking up all the information I can to be the best runner I can be. I've subscribed to Runner's World magazine. I purchased my first two beginning pairs of running shoes so I can alternate and make them last. I'm cross training my core and upper body to build a strong form, as well as doing plenty of stretching and yoga. I still need to gather a hydration belt for long runs, moisture-wicking socks so my feet don't get nasty, gels and fuel for long runs, sport sunglasses to protect my sensitive eyes, and a bucket for ice baths in case of injury.

I'm so excited to test myself physically and see what I'm made of, not only on race day but every day. Every time I speed up, I'll be running faster than ever. Every long run will be my longest run ever. Every time I keep going, I'll be pushing myself just a bit further than I ever have before. I have months of "firsts" ahead of me, hundreds of baby steps until the day I take home my first finisher's medal, and of course, the coveted race day t-shirt. With every run I can feel myself becoming the person I want to be; strong, grounded, successful, and happy. And very, very sweaty.

To Do and Die

It's been a month since I blogged and I realize now it's been exactly one month since I started the Insanity program. I'm so beat after these workouts that I can't even think about writing about it. I don't want to do anything but drink a protein shake and hop in the shower to get back to neutral. It's brutal. BUT...an hour later I feel amazing and when I don't workout, I feel like crap. There's only one problem; I hate Shaun T.

It's not personal. I've never even met him. It's just that his Insanity workouts are consistently more difficult than anything I've ever physically done in my life. Ever. It's the kind of non-stop cardiovascular workout that forces you to stop periodically, just so you can catch your breath and not die. Sweat seeps onto my skin from every pore. EVERY PORE! The back of my neck, my forehead, my upper lip, my arms, my legs! MY LEGS! When was the last time you ran your finger across your shin and it was covered in sweat? That has happened to me during every single workout in the Insanity program, and that's just the warmup.

I do miss Tony Horton. When I did P90X, I really felt like I was working my entire body each week. Also, it was harder for my brain to get bored because every day was a different workout. I've definitely skipped some Insanity workouts simply because I couldn't bare to do another day of cardio. I miss fun workouts like Kenpo, or the grounded, balanced feeling I get after doing Yoga. Six days a week of cardio? Ugh. What I will say for Insanity is it works, and fast. I sat down yesterday to figure out exactly how many workouts I skipped during the first month of Insanity, and which workouts I actually completed. It turns out I did just over half of the workouts and I still lost about 5 lbs. Imagine the shape I'd be in if I'd done all the workouts?

So my new goal is to complete all of the workouts in the second half. No excuses, except injury, of course. If I need a minute to get some water or catch my breath, I'll pause, but no skipping. The lesson I'm learning is that these workouts are too hard to give up or do the program half-assed. I'm wasting my time if I don't give it all I've got. Just one more month! 24 more workouts and then, if I still hate Shaun T., I'll never do Insanity again. Though I have a feeling that if I commit to working harder each time, I'm gonna end up loving my body...and then I'll love Shaun T.