C25K W8D2

Whew! I made it.

It's not that I doubt myself, I just sometimes have to see it to believe it. Before each run I am a bit eager, looking forward to crossing new hurdles. At the start of of each run, I just go. . . not knowing what the next couple of yards will mean for me, hoping that I can finish the prescribed workout. I've learned in the last couple of months or so that some runs will be invigorating, some will be fun, some will be HARD.

I started off feeling great today and spent the first half mile praying for the marriages of a couple of my friends because although marriage can be hard, marriage is GOOD. After that, I can remember thanking God for a strong husband. Here's why:

While I've never had too much of a problem with being active, I've never really played any sport formally. And I've never been a runner (though secretly I've always wanted to). Running is hard for me. I don't know if I have exercise induced asthma, but I've had difficulty with my breathing from the start. Now, I no longer have the sensation of burning lungs, but I still breathe rather hard. By mile one today, I was praying for God to give me the strength to endure. By mile one and a half I was a yard or so behind Fred. When I find myself more than a few feet behind him (which is often), I remind myself of how far I've come and that I don't want to quit. I match his steps - right, left, right, left - concentrating on anything other than my own tired body. He looks like the run is a breeze to him, but he always says it's not.

I am a quitter though. If I didn't go with Fred everyday, I know I'd stop as soon as I felt tired. With strength training, it's different: I'll keep going, pushing through 'til the end even if I workout solo. With this C25K, I wish I could tie a rope to Fred and myself so he could pull me. I know I'm making progress though no matter how slow I am. And Fred will not let me quit. Today he said, "You need to pick it baby," and I sped up. If I tell myself to speed up, I just might slow down! It never fails though when he announces, "One minute left," I dig deep and speed up to try and pass him. Sometimes I catch up; sometimes I keep going after he's stopped so I can make it to where he stopped or to a point past where he stopped. Other times I can only say, "Thank you, Jesus!"

I usually end my run with a "Hallelujah," because I know there's no way I made it x amount of minutes without stopping except by the grace of God. Yes, I contribute my success to God. It definitely isn't me by myself. I'm looking forward to my last week so I can say "By the grace of God, I made it!"

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT)