Nothing Less! Workout Advice & More

The mind can be the largest inhibitor of growth, both physical and spiritual, and can lead to either a positive or negative form of self-discipline.

The ability to control ourselves is beyond what most of us have ever experienced. This is why I was 70-80 lbs overweight. I lacked the self-discipline to control what I ate, things in life, and essentially - whatever I was given to do. I would not go as far to say that I was a failure because I do not believe that for one bit. I have done many things in which I am proud of and consider successes; it has taken me a while to learn that I must be in control of myself though.

Today, I was reminded of the importance of self-control. This year has, thus far, proven to be a year of expanding my limits and fitting into the body that was made for me. I've stretched this one out for too long.

I attempted a 5k again today and I was very intimidated before I tried it out. That treadmill had me nervous and it's only 3.1 Miles. I do that almost every day walking/running. The thing that made me nervous is that I was trying to run the whole thing. My last attempt for the 5k ended at 2 miles or roughly 3.2k. I procrastinated the run and finally, finally got the focus to do it. I had to be disciplined and I did not want to be. Why so much focus on one silly run? I understand that it's just a silly run, I do -- but I have not been able to conquer it. I will though.

The way I overcame it was through four little pieces of paper with some words written on them. You've seen them already in the picture attached and they really did help. Between the 1 mile and 1.5 mile marker -- I was beat. I'm not sure why but I was so ready to quit. At 1.47 miles I yelled out, "Oh my GOSH!". Here are the thoughts that were going through my head:

"Stop for thirty seconds and walk."
"You just can't beat the 2 mile marker today."
"Ahh."
"Stupid mp3 player" (it died and my iPod didn't have much juice and I was using it for a timer)
"Don't stop - just slow down to a 4.7 mph"
"If you stop now - you might as well quit the attempt b/c you can't say you ran it all at once."
"Give me strength."
"Up the speed - you hit the two mile marker"
"(@2.15 mile) - what will my legs feel like when I stop?"
"2.25 Good job Seth - quarter mile cool down"

Yes - I do talk to myself when I run. Heck, I talk to myself when I don't run. I think it's okay to do!

A friend asked me if I had any advice on working out or running. I am not really in any position to give out any real advice concerning these two aspects of better health. I will do my best to give you some real talk.

1. Visit the people on my blogroll. I check all of them out but two that I specifically look for and have plugged before were Andrew @ Andrew is getting fit and Mac @ getfitslowly. They have been doing this for a long time and can offer some awesome advice. I seriously doubt that they would have me stop plugging them.

2. Make your workouts intentional and with purpose. Get invested in yourself. You do not have to spend lots of money to get fit. Being willing, devoted, and disciplined equals success.

3. Record everything. I would say to count calories in the beginning. Some live by it and some despise it but I think that it has helped in controlling how much I eat and what I eat. Record your workouts and runs. Make a spreadsheet, join a online fitness network - somehow & some way keep track of your successes. This will provide for you to see how much you've grown.

4. Be honest and accept the position you are in. Because this is your journey - there is no one else to blame but yourself for lack of quality decisions (diseases and such are the exception unless they were brought on by us). We all have a past and it has brought us up to this point; the circumstances do not define us but rather how we choose to react to those circumstances does.

5. Push yourself. Know your limits -- and then attack those limits. If you stop at the limits that you have set...you will never exceed them. Do not expect to get big results if you are not giving big effort.

6. Have accountability. My accountability has been this blog. This blog and those who read it go through my head while I'm working out. I need to bring my 'A' game every time. I know that I will inspire people to be better only if I am giving my all. Use your family members, friends, blog, or whatever as an accountability partner. Necessity.


Optional Help: Create a playlist for when you run. Don't worry about time or distance but be active until your playlist is over. It is an easy way to get a workout in and not cut it short for any reason.

I hope this helps!

Thanks all for stopping by!

Calories: 1761

Workout: 2.5 treadmill (w/o 1); 1.52 treadmill (w/o 2)

Weekend Warrior Wannabe

Okay, so I didn't officially sign up to take on the Weekend Warrior Challenge but I was active all weekend! Sundays eating wasn't quite up to par but it was not bad foods - just not enough food. I almost gave up on Saturday with finding a time to workout. Here's my weekend:

On Saturday I woke up early (not typical) and did my regular morning routine. I blogged, read other blogs, and then got off the computer. My plan was to get on the treadmill and do my workout before I left town but for some reason -- I was moving at a frantic pace but was getting no where. My wife was out of town with some friends in Springfield and I decided I would straighten up the place for her for when she got back. That took longer than I thought it would.

We had also been cleaning out some closets and had loads of stuff to donate -- that meant a trip to the local donation place...then the post office...and then Wally world real quick. All of which, was not real quick. Subway was my last stop before leaving town and it was the quickest stop of them all. Did I mention that I failed to workout before I left the house?

My reasoning for not working out is that I knew of a fitness place in the town that I was going too that would probably let me use a treadmill for a small fee. I was okay with that but once I got into town, got my room, and made it to the place - they were closed. This is the point when I would normally just give it up and workout the next day. Saturday's were never my favorites days to work out anyways. That did not happen. As I was driving through town I noticed a couple walking on a high school track. I stopped at a gas station for a water and asked them if it was open to the public - they said yes. That was it, my mind was made up to hit that track.

That's 3 days out of last week that I was able to workout outside! It was nice. I tried to take a picture of the track for you but I didn't get the whole track. On the left of the picture is some of the bleachers that I ran as well. I walked 1/2 lap, ran 4, walked 1, ran 1, walked 1/2, ran 1 1/2, walked 1/2, ran 1. After the running I did two sets of regular push-ups separated by one set of T push-ups which were followed by running the stairs of the bleachers. Ah. Bleachers were not kind to my legs.

Sunday's workout was more normal. I played basketball last night as I normally do.

Workout: Saturday = 2.5 miles; Sunday = 3.14