Day 1 - I feel my legs! I have legs?

Being a computer nerdy-type, I usually start counting at zero. Force of habit, you see, from 6 (yea, 6!!) years of undergraduate schooling. I didn't start yesterday because I felt like it was too hot. Right off the bat, I started wrong. All wrong, wrong, wrong! I was hoping to find inspiration, some drive, motivation, oomph, or whatever may get me going. I didn't let it happen yesterday, and I'm kind of ashamed.

However, I did let it happen today! My legs hate me now. I just got done doing an interval (more on that later) 30 minutes in length. Lets see...60 sec. jogging, 90 sec. walking, that's 2 and a half minutes. Divided into 30 is (yes I need a calculator...I need to brush up on my mental math too!) 12 (I did that in my head, for real, and checked it!) I just ran for 12 minutes - and not even consecutively. On the down side, that's a ridiculously small amount. I know friends my age who can run many times that. On the plus side I haven' run 12 minutes straight in 5 years (I did it once, once). Its a start, to be sure, but an auspicious start indeed!

I feel great. Amazing. Stupendous! If I feel so good after a workout, why does it take such a monumental effort to get me to one in the first place? That's a puzzle for another day. My legs burn with the great fever of effort, and I've sweat a great amount, being the shape that I am in. I enjoy this feeling. I also enjoy the feeling of entering the house after a hard run like this, and feeling the wash of cool conditioned air washing over my body like a pool of cool water. That's an amazing feeling too.

How did I accomplish this all? I used a system called 'intervals', which are exactly what they are named. They are intervals of running and walking over a period of time, with you running more and more as you progress through the overall workout. Normally you'd require a stopwatch or other time-keeping device to assist, but I have the power of the almighty podcast! If you have iTunes, a desire to run at a good pace (I loved it!), and an MP3 player, search for 'C25K'. Then download the PODRUNNER: INTERVALS podcast. I started with First Day to 5k.

What these podcasts are is a sick collection of techno tunes that are engineered to set a pace for your feet. They thump with a certain BPM (beats per minute) to tell you whether to walk or to run. You are give audio cues when to increase or decrease pace. The music in these in most excellent - I love techno myself. When it is telling you what pace to run, you find your feet carrying you along at that pace with few cares in the world (except the desire for sidewalks!).

I will carry on Thursday, Day 2 (or 3. Not sure how they number the days).

Day -1: I've made up my mind.

Hello. My name is Stephen. I am 24 years old, recently graduated from college, and am working as a computer programmer for an awesome company in PA. I'm loving my work, where I live, and who I live with (a great friend of mine). Life's pretty damn good. There are a few things I'd like to change about myself: I'd like to stop buying songs off iTunes all the time, I'd like to learn to appreciate the outdoors more, and I'd like to drop this extra midget I'm carrying around my midriff.

I used to be rail-thin (long time ago) - so much so that a few pictures of my younger self are lovingly-titled Ethiopian-Steve (not very sensitive). I was small for much of my life. Genetics and choice had a lot to say during high school. Genetics, because both my grandfathers were over 6' tall in their primes (my dad's dad was 6'5"!). My shoulders widened, my legs lengthened, and before I knew it I was over 6' fall. However, at the same time, my diet worsened, my athletic habits and commitments were atrocious, and my appearance was no priority for me. I began to grow in many directions - up and out. I sprouted a belly around the time I sprouted facial hair, but it didn't concern me. I continued to play sports (and I did quite well in a few of them), but my eating habits weren't doing me any favors (as was working at a fast-food joint where I could acquire leftovers to my hearts content).

So I entered college slightly overweight and didn't improve. Constantly-accessible food, poor sleeping habits, and no gym drive kept my weight at an upward climb. When I graduated (in May) I weighed over 300 lbs. I'm not short (I'm 6'2"), but what weight I do carry is not muscle. Most of it is fat. Since I've started my job, I've noticed my strength being sapped as well. Climbing and descending stairs leaves a funny feeling in my legs - muscles that once propelled me to new floors now are exhausted from simple stair-climbing. I've decided to do something about that.

There's a program called Couch to 5k. It is a short 8-week program that starts you on the path to good running and an appreciation for exercise. I've decided to start it.

http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml