Happy Birthday to Me!

So, my birthday is on Thursday, and my Mom was asking me a while back what I wanted for my birthday.  I gave my usual answer of, "I don't need anything.  Just come up and visit".  Then I got to thinking, what do I really want?  I rarely ever actually want anything, to tell you the truth.  There are plenty of things I NEED, such as new clothes, shoes, to lose these last 15 pounds, etc.  But I never really think about what I just plain want.

Then it hit me.  I would really, really like to have a treadmill.  I have been extremely frustrated recently that I have been unable to get some real exercise in, which is probably part of the reason for my loooong weight plateau (not to mention the fact that I'm just not motivated to track my points for some reason).  My husband works graveyard at a job that is two and a half hours away from where we live.  Not to mention that he also works 10-hour shifts.  Needless to say, we don't really see each other during the week.  As a result, I am pretty much a single parent Monday through Friday.  I am the one who gets the kids up, takes them to daycare, picks them up after work, and puts them to bed at night.  I have basically no time to myself except for after 8pm and before 6:30am (while the kids are sleeping).  Even then, I have to be at home with the kids, of course. 

Running is my favorite form of exercise.  Before having kids, I ran a marathon (never again!) and multiple half marathons.  In between having the two kids, I ran a bunch of 10k races.  I really miss running, and have been trying to figure out a way to be able to run even while being responsible for the kids at all times.  After much thought, I finally gave up on the idea of being able to find time to use my gym membership.  Instead, I told my mom that what I really wanted for my birthday was a treadmill.  If she could at least help me with the cost of purchasing one, I could get a fairly nice one.  She gladly said yes, and my treadmill was delivered yesterday.  Yippee!

The best part about this treadmill is that it comes with an SD card slot to use ifit workout cards.  If you don't know what ifit is, let me explain.  Instead of just jogging along at a set speed until you reach a distance or time goal (which can get boring over time), these cards have pre-set workouts that utilize both speed and incline to make you push yourself.  After the kids went to bed, I decided to try the first workout on the Level 1 card, which is the walking card.  I thought it would be super-easy, but let me tell you, I was actually breathing pretty hard.  This 20-minute workout had me walking at a brisk pace at anywhere from a 5% incline all the way to a 10% incline.  Holy crap!  I knew then that I might be in trouble when I tried the Level 2 (jogging) card the next morning. 

I woke up this morning, got on my running gear, and put in the Level 2 workout card.  OMG!  It was a half hour jogging workout, with an incline the whole time.  Now, walking at an incline is one thing for an out-of-shape mom, but jogging at 6mph at a 7% incline?!  Not going to happen!  I burned out after 15 minutes, and flat-out removed the ifit workout card.  Instead, I finished with another 10 minutes of jogging at no incline, which seemed almost easy compared to the crazy workout card. 

Even though it was super-challenging, I am still excited about the ifit component of the treadmill.  It has given me a fitness goal to strive towards, and once I can complete that entire first jogging workout I will really feel as though I am making progress.  I know it will cause me to workout harder than I normally would, and I am stubborn enough to know that I will keep at it until I can successfully complete all the workouts on that card. 
For now, I will just work on getting back into a regular workout routine.  I feel so good today after getting in a good run in the morning, and I miss the feeling of sore muscles after a hard workout.  I am registered to run a 10k November 13 with a friend, so the countdown has begun for me to get in shape.  The fact that I am running it with a friend is even more motivation for me to stick with it. 

I think this is just what I need to push me to lose those last 10 - 15 pounds.  My plan is to do one of the Level 1 walking workouts each night before bed.  I watch TV for about a half hour before bed anyway, so I might as well be working out instead of sitting there idle.  Then, three days a week, I plan on getting in a running workout in the morning before work.  I am so glad that I finally have a way to get some cardio in on a regular basis.  So exciting!