Directions, Schmections

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go." -Dr. Seuss

I've never had a problem following rules. In fact, I enjoyed following the rules laid out for me throughout my childhood and adolescence; I wasn't one of these rebellious teenagers. However, when it comes to following directions and I typically don't. For example, I recently purchased one of those stand-up remote controlled tower fans because apparently Virginia apartments don't believe in ceiling fans like those of Florida and so instead of sweating my a** off each night, I decided in addition to the thermostat set at 72 degrees, I'd also require a fan. I don't typically get a lot of sleep so the few that I do get better be good. But I digress... the purpose of my mentioning the fan was due to the fact that the pieces seemed simple enough that I should have been able to put it together without much issues, right? Wrong. I ended up having to take the whole thing apart and finally utilize the printed directions that came in the box. You would think that I could have saved myself the 15-20 minutes, had I only taken the time to look at those directions the first time around but nooooo, I decided that I didn't need them and tossed them aside; only to have to come back them a little later.

I have a habit of doing this... if something seems simple enough, I assume I can just do it (like Nike ::wink:: ok, bad joke) without issue. Like running... the only thing that I need to do is throw on a part of workout clothes, running shoes and grab a bottle of water, right? Wrong....

I haven't been running for all that long and the majority of running that I've done has been indoors. Hellooooo cardio cinema! I can count one hand how many times I've run outside. I found that I'm kinda doing this by the seat of my pants. Up until recently, I haven't read anything about proper stretching techniques or even the basics for running. Most of the information that I have has come from my friend, Amy and a WHOLE lot of trial and some error.

Looking back, I'm pretty sure it would be more beneficial to actually try to go about things the right way to avoid making the mistake. I say this like I've made a ton of costly mistakes and thankfully, I haven't. I did however almost spend a good chunk of money on a pair of customized Nike running shoes before I even tried them on. I didn't even know if they were the right kind for my foot. I assumed they were. They were made by Nike, super light and listed under the "women's running" category, so wouldn't you think that they would be the right shoe? Wrong. First of all my dumb behind almost purchased these customized shoes online before I even tried them on in the store and they weren't going to be cheap. Thankfully, a friend just happened to ask if I'd tried them on yet, when I showed her a picture of the shoes that I was planning on a purchasing and it made me stop and think... I had not. And what's scarier is that it never occurred to me to. I'm pretty sure Nike isn't going to let me return a customize fluorescent colored pair of shoes that have "Amy Kay" stitched on them... so, basically I would have been stuck like chuck with a pair of shoes that I couldn't really use for their intended purpose.

Although, I normally like do things without direction/instruction, this is one activity that I can't afford to do that with. So, I've started reading some running blogs, met with my personal trainer at the gym and actually went to a running store to get fitted for the proper running shoes for my feet. Apparently, I overpronate... who knew?!

The shoe that almost was... pretty, yes. Functional, hell no!

"Can't?" That's not in my vocabulary.

“If you want me to do something… tell me I can’t do it.”

-Maya Angelou

I've heard this quote before and I believe it to be VERY true but I was reminded of it after reading another blog that was suggested by my friend, Gail (a fellow runner). Apparently, some people have read my blog which is surprising, because I didn't expect anyone to actually read it... I guess I'll try not ramble too much in my future posts (can't make the same promise for this one though... Sorry). 

Anyway, I decided to open with that quote because the whole reason that I got really immersed in the gym; making Gold's my second home was in large part due to someone doubting me. Several months ago, I was talking with a (former) friend about working out. I mentioned that I wanted to start working out 5-6 days a week so that it would pretty much become a part of my a daily routine. From what I recall, it takes approx 21-28 days to create a habit so I suggested that I would work out for 4 weeks straight without interruption. And if I remember correctly, that particular "friend" scoffed at the idea. 

Not only did I do the 28 days, I actually ended up doing 31. It was during those 31 days that I really got 'jazzed' about running. Since I was going to workout everyday, I had to mix it up and keep it interesting. There would be cardio days, strength training, a class or two and then a mix of several things. If there was a good movie showing in the CC, I would hang out in there for a while. Each time I went into the CC, I tried to improve upon my previous time and distance. For awhile I was stuck around 3 miles and then the day of "The King's Speech," things changed and from there on I just kinda ran with it (no pun intended).

Anywho, I guess I should actually thank that "friend" for underestimating me because I honestly don't know if I would where I am today. I found that if you put everything out there and let everyone know your fitness goals (and goals in general), your friends and others will hold you accountable. I've pretty much told the whole world that I'm running this half-marathon on November 12th, so I kinda have to do it OR.... come up with a pretty solid excuse as to why I didn't (ex- bad food poisoning or a knee injury perhaps). Hmmm... I'll reserve either of those for Plan B even though I fully intend to ride out with Plan A which includes finishing the d*mn thing and slapping one of those "13.1" magnets on the G. :-)

Need a distraction?

I mentioned previously in my very first post that never in a 'bah-gillion' (yes 'bah-gillion) years would you ever caught me running... This is not an exaggeration. Let me try to set this up for you...

I never excelled in phys ed. In fact, I tried to find ways to get out of it. And although I was a dancer from the early age of 5 throughout high school, I still wasn't much into any other physical activity. I have abnormally long legs and I decided that they were best suited for dancing; not running. The ONLY time that I ever ran was when I was forced to during that God-awful class otherwise known as "physical education."

I worked out a little in high school; only because I had workout partner who was very much in LOVE with it; mi Madre. Once I got to University of Florida my freshmen year, all bets were off on that workout nonsense. Looking back, it's a shame though because UF had a pretty impressive gym. A gym that I maybe visited it a total of 4 times in those 4 years. And shameful enough of those 4 times, 2 of them were to watch friends play basketball.

Post-graduation, while still living in Titletown ::ahem:: I mean Gainesville, I maybe tried less than 5 times to workout. Mind you, I lived in G'ville for about 2.5 years after graduation. It wasn't until a year after moved to Virginia that I decided to get serious about this fitness stuff. So in May 2010, I joined the local Gold's Gym; mainly for the class offerings. I figured if I was stuck in a class for an hour, I would have to finish it and couldn't just walk out when I got bored. It was choice between Gold's and American Family Fitness. Gold's won me over because it was newer; as in a didn't smell like a foot and it had (drum roll please...) the cardio cinema (CC). The CC was pretty much the best thing that could happen to me in terms of this running thang (yes, 'thang').

Although I had the membership and every EFT on the 1st of the month reminded me of the investment I was making in my physical health, I still wasn't working out regularly. Then 2011 came and for some reason, I decided although not a direct result of a New Year's resolution, that I was going to get serious about this.

I first discovered that in order to be able to run distance on a treadmill, I was going to need a good distraction ::insert the CC:: One evening while watching "The King's Speech," I had a breakthrough of sorts... I ran for 60 minutes and completed 5.26 miles. A year before that, I'd be lucky if I ran for a measly 8 minutes. And 2-3 months before that, I would run for about 15-20 minutes while listening to the iPod and hop off to find something else to do because I got bored. I found that I was able to do the 60 minutes for 2 reasons... 1) The movie was a great distraction; I actually somewhat forgot that I was running and 2) When I did realize that was running... I was in the 'zone' and got a taste of that runner's high and d*mn it is addicting! Before I experienced the "high," I thought it was a myth. After patting myself on the back post-run (my personal best at the time) I couldn't help but wonder "Was this a fluke? Could I do this again?"

Hmmm...

So yesterday, I celebrated my 27th birthday... I swear that each year that I get older (post turning 21) the better the birthdays get. I think it's probably because the things that you value tend to change. I've always valued my family and friends but now with each birthday, it's not about how much I get (presents-wise) or how much fun I have during a night out on the town during the birthday celebration. This year, I just wanted to be home with my bestie... mi Madre...

Sorry for the random opening but I was trying ever so unsmoothly explain how I came to create this blog... who knows if anyone will even read it but I'm going to consider it like an open diary. I've always tried to keep one but it neeeever seemed to stick; I was over the d*mn thing after a couple of days... but anyways... I digress...

Back to the birthday! So on the day of the anniversary of my birth, I received numerous tweets, calls, wall posts, texts and etc. I swear if it's one thing that social networking has done, it has made it uber easy to keep up with birthdays... again digressing... I promise, I'll get better with this... I hope.

OK, focus Amy... ::skips to the end of the story:: I was speaking with one of my favorite people, my beautiful Izzy, Latia. During our brief but great convo, I was catching her up with my life and she was giving me the Reader's Digest of hers. I was telling her about how I've become low-key obsessed with working out and running. If you know me, then you know that you could have bet a bah-gillion dollars that I'd never be runner; much less actually enjoy doing it. I told Latia, how I was planning on running a half-marathon this Fall and about all of the running I've done thus far and she simply replied, "that's great, you should blog about it." I honestly, NEVER thought about doing a blog. A friend of mine, NikkiNav has an excellent blog that I really enjoy reading "Little Girl, Big City." She has a way with words and is raw, honest, ridiculous and hilarious all the same time. Me? Ummm... when it comes to having a way with words; not so much. But shoot! I figured this would be an excellent release AND great way to chronicle my running experience. So, I'm doing it... On your mark, get set, GO!

This is me suuuuper excited to start blogging. Can you tell?