Kathy Week 33: Still Learning to Run...

Kathy's Week 33 Stats:

Today's Weight: 128

Last Week's Weight: 131

Starting Weight: 151

Total Weight Loss: 23 pounds!!

Skinny friends, I am so excited to tell you about the progress I am making as a runner! Since I started my 6-week training program, I am seeing some real differences in my weight, endurance, and body shape.

First of all, a disclaimer: I can't run. I can do a slow huffy-puffy jog thing. It's faster than walking, at least most of the time. But you have to start somewhere, so I just want to be very clear that when I mention "running" in this post, I really mean something along the lines of a middle-aged nonrunner trying her best to imitate a runner on the track. Woot woot! Go Kathy! Atta girl!

I have to tell you that I was really discouraged about running on Monday this week. I ran about 1/4 of a lap, and then my right knee did this jabby-feeling click thing, and I couldn't run any more. I walked. And walked. Then I would try to sneak in just a little itty bit of running, but no dice. The knee figured out immediately what I was up to and did the jabby-clicky thing again.

I almost wrote a whiny I-can't-run post Monday afternoon, but I managed to restrain myself.

And then something amazing and wonderful and maybe miraculous happened on Wednesday morning! 

I ran a mile!!! 

I ran 4 laps without stopping!!! Then I walked a lap, then I ran a little more, walked a little more, finished up with running the last lap.

Yesterday morning it was even better...I ran a mile and a half!!! And then I walked one lap and ran the last lap. I never thought I could do this! I am really, truly, majorly excited about this. (Which you can probably guess, because I am already waaaaay over my exclamation point quota in this post.)

Here's something else I'm excited about:

I swam across Sparks Lake!!!

And then...I swam back to the other side. All together, I was swimming for 30 minutes straight, just under 1/2 mile. This was one of my 43 Things, and I was excited to accomplish one more of my summer goals.

Now, you have to understand that Sparks Lake is a relatively small lake. And a shallow lake. My husband was paddling the canoe right alongside in case I had a cramp and decided to drown, but it wasn't all that necessary, because to tell the truth, if I had had a problem, all I would have had to do is stand up!! The lake is really that shallow. Hahaha!! But I didn't stand up; I really did swim over and back. Yay Kathy! Atta girl!!

I am only one pound away from goal weight - what an amazing 7 months of healthier living here on The Skinny.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend - see you next Saturday!