Shape Up, Woman!

It has been almost three months since I last ran. I decided it was not wise to run on icy sidewalks/roads when I slipped on the ice and almost broke my butt at the end of December. I kept telling myself that I would run as soon as the weather warmed up a bit, and the ice melted. So I waited for the temps to rise. And I waited. And then I waited some more. Needless to say it didn't happen. The sidewalks and roads remained ice covered for longer than I'd like to recall. And while I waited in vain the K-Lo bootie got bigger. And bigger. And Bigger. Something had to be done.

To be honest the weather should not have been an excuse. I have a fabulous treadmill just waiting to be used in the basement. The problem? Motivation, of course. The treadmill is in a yucky, dark part of the basement surrounded by storage boxes and facing a wall. It is just not the same as running outside in fresh air with beautiful Lake Michigan as my backdrop. Basically, when I run on the treadmill I am staring at this for 30-40 minutes:
This view does nothing to help me pass the time as I struggle, wheeze, and drag myself to a healthier me. Add this to the fact that I have to squeeze my runs (and shower) into a 1 hour window of time when all of the boys are napping, and you can see why I just happened to miss out on this fun for the past three months.
Now that the weather has been warming up a smidgen I have gotten the push I need to get back on the horse, so to speak. Yesterday I decided enough was enough and I took the first step to getting back in shape. It was not easy. I looked like this after the 25 minute run:

That is me trying to suck some air out of the little fan on the treadmill. Sure the fan was clouded with all the dust from the construction project 2 months ago, but I didn't care. At this point, air is air, and I needed some.

Even though the whole run was a struggle I was proud of myself for doing it. The first step is always the hardest. And it may take a little time, but it will get easier. So I'm telling myself.

Of course, getting out of bed this morning may have been the worst part. My body aches as though I have never exercised a day in my life. I had to roll off of my bed in order to get out. Walking down the stairs holding Ben took enormous amounts of concentration. Even my neck muscles are sore. Who knew you used your neck to run? Hmphf. As sore as I am it feels good. A good kind of sore, if there is a good kind of sore, because I took the first step to getting back to me. And, I've missed me.