My boyfriend is a wise man. After feeling discouraged, he pointed out that weighlifters don’t go from 5 to 500 pounds in one week. They push themselves just beyond their comfort zone. So with that in mind, I’m going to continue doing Week 2 until it’s no longer outside of MY comfort zone.
Today’s Week 2 run was still difficult. Still having problems with both lungs and calves. But I did it. And I’m glad I did.
Oh dear.
So I made it through the 1.5 minute jog, and enjoyed the walk afterwards. The 3 minute run? That was problematic. I made it almost two, but then seemingly forgot how to breathe. I’ve been trying to focus a lot on breathing deeply and regularly, but things start to go awry at the two minute mark and I can’t get it back on track. It took more than five minutes to get breathing normally again. And when the next jog cycle came up, I caved. I walked home.
I’m confused what I should do next. I feel like I should start week 2 over again and hopefully gain some lung capacity and stamina in the 1.5/2 cycle, and try again in a week. This is discouraging, to be sure.
I have discovered a magical thing: it is called the tennis ball.
While that sounds ridiculous, after a few days of constant calf pain, I was beginning to think I would never jog again. This was also putting quite a damper on my dancing. Somehow I ended up on reddit’s fitness page, which then led me to a site that helps pick fitness plans, which then led me to THIS.
I have a foam roller but have a really hard time using it on my feet or calves. Using the tennis ball was eye opening. I don’t want to say I instantly felt better, but I was able the next day to get through another interval training session without having to stop due to my legs. Success!
I’m a little apprehensive about the next week, specifically the part where I have to run for three minutes. I’ve been occasionally struggling with the 1.5 intervals this last week. I’m mostly having a problem regulating my breathing near the end of the interval. But I won’t know until I try, right?
Didn’t make it all the way through this one. I got excited and didn’t eat anything, so my energy was low and my calves started aching. I made it past halfway, though, so that’s better than nothing. I can, and hopefully will, try this again very soon.
Ow ow ow. This is the first serious cramp I’ve had in my calf, and it is unpleasant! Luckily it’s already feeling better (now that I’m not running). I suspect I wasn’t warm enough even with a five minute warmup, as it was damn chilly around my neighborhood (welcome to SF). But I made it through, and as suspected, it gets easier every time. The problem is just making the time.
So, like many before me, I downloaded the app. I balked at the $2 price, and then realized that it’s less than a good cup of coffee, so even if I only use it once, I feel okay about it.
Went on my first walk/jog, and it was quite hard, but manageable. Going to have to make time for a second one this week.
