Thoughts and Observations on a 30 minute run/walk through Downtown Athens

I'm signed up for a 5K run/walk on March 22, which is crazy because I'm not a runner. But hey, I'm working on healthier choices in my life, so why not? And it's made easy (I use that term with extreme looseness) by this handy dandy "Couch to 5K" schedule, which is supposed to get me ready to run a 5K in a mere thirty days. 

Today is day 3 and I'm already behind schedule because I didn't walk yesterday, using rain and darkness as a convenient excuse. But since day 3 is supposed to be a rest day, if I walk today, I catch up. That was my thought this morning (after I finished my Insanity workout for the day). So I packed a quick bag with essentials for walking on my lunch break.

Today is not a hot day-54 degrees and breezy. Good walking weather. So I started off. Turned right out of the bank and with Lady GaGa blaring, briskly walked right to the projects. What?! Ok, I turned around and went a different way. 

Note to self: when walking on the lunch break (before eating lunch, of course) TRY HARD not to get stuck at the light at Wendy's. I had to jog in place for a full minute (to keep my heart rate up) smelling the baconator the whole time before the light changed. It's really a good thing I had no place in my Lycra workout pants for money. The baconator is my weakness and I haven't had one in six weeks.

I learned something else. Working out at home instead of a gym has this one major benefit/drawback. My house has no full length mirrors. Certainly not walls and walls of them. Which is great in that I have no desire to see that much of myself at one time, and also I'm too busy watching the video and working out to be preening in front of a mirror anyway. Consequently, I was surprised to note, as I ran in front of a business with full length reflective windows, that I'm starting to get a really nice butt! It's well ahead of the rest of me in terms of tone and fitness. I'm so very glad that Insanity is paying off, but disappointed that I didn't take my "before" photo of my tush. It's the most improved. Ah, well. I'll take what I can get. 

I ended up jogging for awhile after every light I was stuck at, to make up for lost time and distance. I did make it 1.88 miles in 32 minutes. I was pretty proud of that. I might be able to run in this 5K thing after all. A co-worker asked me if I'm going to make the lunchtime walk/run a regular thing. (I mentioned only 54 degrees, right?) No. Not unless my office installs a shower in the ladies room. I think there's space in the handicapped stall-put in a drain and a shower head and viola! Because I ended up drenched in sweat. Drenched. Thank the lucky stars above that I had the foresight to bring fresh undies and deodorant. I'm sorry, co-workers. I thought a cool, breezy day would keep me from getting gross. Guess not. In the future I'll be doing my 30 minutes on my dirt road at home. 

But it was a nice change of scenery, and if I had a shower at work, I probably would do this every day.