Flabby Farmwife Trains for 5K: What week am I on?

Hi everyone!

It's me, the Flabby Farmwife. When a friend recently asked me for an update I realized I've been neglecting this series of blog posts so badly that I can't even remember what week of training I'm on...

I started with Week 1:

http://farmeronamission.blogspot.com/2012/08/flabby-farmwife-trains-for-5k-week-1.html

Then blogged about weeks 2 and 3:

http://farmeronamission.blogspot.com/2012/08/flabby-farmwife-trains-for-5k-weeks-2-3.html

And now, I'm so far behind on blogging that I've lost count, so I'm just going to work backwards from the BIG DAY that's coming up.  October 6th is the Beefin it up: Fuel for the finish 5K hosted by the North Dakota Cattlewomen.

There are only four and a half weeks left now!

Here's a little of what I've learned as I've been training:

1. Life happens.  Sometimes A LOT of life happens.  Whatever happens, I will not quit.  I made a promise to my friend, Mrs. D, who has been losing sleep and working hard to prepare for this race as well, and I intend to keep it.

2. It hurts much worse to skip a few days then it does to drag myself out of bed and be consistent with running. Mixing things up helps too. Sometimes I run. Sometimes I bike. Sometimes I have "help" :)

 

 Sometimes I attempt to awkwardly run while pushing a double-stroller, in case my middle "helper" gets tired and needs me to haul her and the princess bike home :)

3. Here in Jamestown, North Dakota we have a wonderful paved path along the reservoir. It has breathtaking views.

 

4. I don't listen to music when I'm running. I use my running time to pray and ask God for strength. More times than not, after a half an hour of pouring all my worries out to the Lord, I end up praying something like "Okay God, you know all that I need and you know all the people that need you, just please be with them all", so consider yourself prayed for.

5. Sometimes, if you just focus on putting one foot in front of the other, you'll go faster and farther than you had expected.  THAT is a nice surprise :)

6. I discovered that my joints ache after I run for a while on the paved path, so I like to run in the grass along the path.

7. Some people let their dogs "do their business" on the grass along the paved path and do not pick it up. This is NOT COOL.

8. My husband knows every inch of our farm. I knew the farm I grew up on like this too, but I didn't grow up here, so I was delighted to find a field road between our place and the neighbor's that is a long, straight road that is currently protected from the wind by corn. It is one of the most peaceful places to run on earth.  Sometimes "Oakley", our official farm mascot comes along.

9. I bought one pair of new running shoes.  Then I realized they'd get wrecked if I wore them to run on the farm. So I had to buy another pair to preserve my good ones I wear to the gym. Two new pairs of shoes in the same month. This is a personal record.

 

10.  After training while pushing a stroller containing my hunk of a baby boy, running all by my myself seems easy.

11. I am still alive.  I have walked/run many miles now and I have not keeled over. This will probably continue to surprise me :)

12. I'm not quite as flabby as when I started this thing. Slowly but surely, my body is beginning to transform.  Still can't fit in the pre-third-baby pants, but I'm not nearly as Jello-like as I was a few months ago!

Hope to see many who read this in Mandan on October 6th!

Thanks for stopping by and remember to fuel up with dairy and beef products!
Sarah :)

Flabby Farmwife Trains For 5K: Weeks 2 & 3: Getting Back On The Horse That Threw Me!

Weeks two and three went by like a flash!

Time is ticking away and October 6th is fast-approaching! That's when women from across the state, including this flabby farmwife, will be taking part in the North Dakota Cattlewomen's Beefin' It Up; Fuel for the Finish 5K at Fort Lincoln State Park in Mandan, North Dakota!

To see how my first week of training went, click here:

http://www.farmeronamission.blogspot.com/2012/08/flabby-farmwife-trains-for-5k-week-1.html

Week two began with some MOTIVATION!

What motivates me to do this?

1. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 states "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."   Jesus suffered and died so I could live, and I'm going to live this life to the fullest and run to honor God!

2. This is MY body. Like the verse above states, it is my own personal temple and it is the ONLY ONE I get.  If I don't take care of it, no one else will. I need to take care of myself, so I can take care of them...

Easter 2012.

3. I am at a high risk for diabetes and blood clots.  My Dad is a severe diabetic and is disabled from the effects of that awful disease.  We love him and we all try to make the best of the challenges that diabetes presents, but I don't want my future grandchildren to draw this sort of picture of me for a very, very long time, if ever.

CW (age 5) drew this for my Dad for Father's Day 2012.

To focus all that motivation, I downloaded a free "Couch to 5K" App for my i(love you)Phone.  In case you're wondering, the i(love you)Phone was my Anniversary present from Jeremy :)

I got serious about this thing and went to, of all places, the gym! There is something you need to know about our local YMCA.  It is a wonderful place that provides childcare from 9 to 11 every morning, so I can drop off the Wee Wilson's and have a little time all to myself, however, it is a facility that is also shared with Jamestown College.

Yes, I strode in there amongst those wrinkle/cellulite-free, slender college girls that look like gazelles on the machines and got myself all set up on a treadmill.

And I ran!

That's right, this Mama, who formerly only ran if a) something was on fire or b) if one of my children was about to be hit by an oncoming automobile, actually RAN for FUN.

It actually felt good!

Much to my relief after thirty minutes of walking/jogging, the material of my running pants between my thighs had not burst into flames and I had not keeled over!

Although, curiously, two random people stopped and asked if I would like a fan facing my way. I realized once I sat down in the driver's seat of my pickup and looked in the rear view mirror that I was BEET RED :)

No big deal, I was officially a runner!

No sooner had I gotten into a groove, then I had to go on two business trips and those were followed immediately by a HORRIBLE virus.  Four of the five Wilson's went down with high fevers, including me. I hit a lifetime record high of 104.5 degrees and then spent the next day in bed with a migraine and the days after that caring for wee Wilson's and my ailing husband.

However, as I begin week four, I'm getting right back on that horse that threw me!

This time I'm armed with new RUNNING SHOES!

Now Grandma B. is a fine gal, but nothing says cool like "Hey Mama, you've got the same shoes as Great-Grandma!" :) So I figured it was about time to retire my old JC Penney specials and get myself an updated look :)

My little farmer got NEW BOOTS too!

Handsome little fella, dontcha think !? All ready to help his Dad on the farm! Thanks to daycare for sending along this pic!

I had no idea how worn out my old shoes were until I tried the new ones and now I'm feeling a little more gazelle-like every day :)

Here's to WEEK FOUR being a success!

What motivates YOU?
- Sarah :)