40 Days of Fitness

03 Jul 2014 Leave a comment

by Joyce Stath in Exercise, Family, Fitness, Inspirational, Self-Confidence, Women's Running Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

I can’t believe it’s been almost a month since I have blogged! I am not sure where June went, but I do know summer is going much too quickly. We will be back in school in no time. I love my job, but I have so many projects left to complete this summer that I need more time.

As many of you know, on Memorial Day I began the Runner’s World 40-Day Running Streak, and have run every day for the past 39 days. Tomorrow I will run a 5K with my daughter and husband, wrapping up the running streak. I hadn’t planned to run any races this summer, but my oldest daughter is just getting back to running after the birth of her second son, and wanted to run this race before she moves next week. I haven’t run a 5k in a year and a half. Last year I was plagued with injury all year, and the only race I’ve done this year was a half marathon. I plan to run the race with Morgan to help her get through since she hasn’t run three miles yet. I thought it would be a great way to end my running streak.

I have found this streak to be very motivating and empowering. I had never run more than maybe seven days in a row, and that was maybe once or twice. I had been running three or four days a week, and cross-training with Tabata and HIIT three days. I wasn’t really certain if I would even be able to run 40 days in a row, but I wanted to try it because I wanted to challenge myself. The challenge only required that we run at least a mile a day, and on busy days or days that I normally wouldn’t run, I would only run one mile, but I ran. I tried to run fast (old-lady fast) on those days so that I could improve my speed. I didn’t have many days that I dreaded the run; most of the time I looked forward to it. Even on those few days I dreaded it, once I finished I was so glad I had gone.

Yesterday morning, while on a three-miler, I started thinking about how much I’ve enjoyed this challenge, and how proud I felt because I had stuck with it. In the end, I will get nothing – not even a shirt or a pat on the back. I did this just for my own satisfaction, and it has been well-worth the effort. I wanted to challenge others to step out of their comfort zones; I wanted my friends to feel the same sense of accomplishment I was feeling. My mind started spinning…We could do a Perry County 40-day running challenge…but a lot of my friends can’t run everyday…and what about those who don’t run?…We could do a walk/run challenge….(By this point I was home and in the shower) Or…We’ll just do a fitness challenge so people can do any type of exercise they choose…Yes!!…And they can challenge their friends…and why limit it to Perry County when most of the communication will be online?…I can post the challenge on Facebook and see if anyone is interested. By the time I got out of the shower, I had a plan, and within 30 minutes it was online and a few friends had signed up. Since this is a big commitment, I decided participants should have the opportunity to get a super-cool shirt for their efforts, so I began looking and designs. Then I thought it would be fun to have a celebration at the end, so we will meet at our new establishment, The Pour Haus, following the completion of the challenge. And in case you are wondering, my mind usually works like this (Can you imagine how my husband feels!); sometimes my ideas work out well; sometimes they suck.

As of this writing, 100 people have signed up for commit to 40 Days of Fitness. This is a three-part challenge: 1) Commit to exercise every day for 40 days. 2) Challenge a friend to also commit. 3) During the 40 days, try something you’ve never tried before (Zumba, yoga, Spinning, Pilates, running, cycling, kayaking, etc). I plan to try kayaking. One never knows where this can lead. Ideally, by exercising every day for 40 days, we will create healthier habits. Some parents have signed up their children, which is awesome. Because I work with kids, I see the evidence of unhealthy habits that are negatively impacting our kids. We have to get our kids moving again, and tear them away from the video games. When I was a kid, we played outside all summer. When my girls were young, the neighborhood kids rode bikes, played baseball, swam, and just played. When I am out running or walking, I don’t see many kids outside, and that makes me sad. What are they doing? We need to challenge our children. Childhood obesity is a serious problem, so we need to model healthy habits, make fitness fun, and let kids know that their health matters.

I am really excited to see how this works out (If you haven’t done the math, since I am starting this challenge the same day I finish the previous challenge, I will be running 79 days in a row! I hope I can complete this second challenge). If you are interested in joining the 40 Days of Fitness, here is the link:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1h_yf6tW5vohlWzEUq2FqwnBHaXrtjo7uTGoUBSzOdf4/edit

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40-Day Running Streak

04 Jun 2014 Leave a comment

by Joyce Stath in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , ,

Just before Memorial Day, Runner’s World, via Facebook feed, issued a challenge. I was at a point that I felt like I needed a challenge; since running a half marathon in April, my running had been lacking. I had little endurance; the humidity had already set in; and we were crazy busy with end-of-school-year activities. It was so frustrating that after running 13.1 miles the month before, I could hardly eek out three miles in May. 

The challenge was a 40-day Running Streak: participants run at least one mile every single hot, humid, busy, exhausting day from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July. I signed up (which only required that I ‘like’ their running streak Facebook page). Today is day ten. I have been a runner for five years now, and have never run ten days in a row, so that in itself is an accomplishment.

No one really cares that I am doing this. No one on the Facebook page knows if I really run or not, nor do they care. This is a challenge I embarked upon for my own satisfaction. I want to prove to myself that I can do it. Some days I only run a mile, particularly if it is typically my day off from exercise, or if I have taught two Tabata classes and busted out a bunch of squats. I like that I am pushing myself to do something I’ve never attempted. Will anyone care if I complete the 40 days? I will, and that’s all that matters. 

We, as runners, are often asked why we run. Why would we suffer through injuries, give up our time, trudge through snow, battle through rain and wind, and tolerate the heat and humidity? If you are not a runner, you probably should avoid asking that question unless you have a large chunk of time to kill. The reasons are endless, and most of them very personal. I’ll give you my short list:

  • It’s healthy. My dad and his brothers died of heart disease in their forties. With that family history, wouldn’t you run?
  • It makes me feel strong and accomplished. I feel good about myself after a run, no matter how bad that run was. I did something most people can’t, and that feels darned good.
  • It helps me control my weight. I try to have decent eating habits, but it’s a daily struggle. If I want to eat sweets or burgers, I have to run. 
  • It makes me happy. I can be so stressed out or upset, and running just makes things better. It gives me time to think and process my feelings, and it gives me time to chat with God. I have survived some of my worst days by going for a run.
  • Running makes me a better wife, mom, nana, friend, and teacher. See above. 
  • I want to set a good example for our kids and grandkids. I want my grandkids to tell their friends that their nana runs races. I want to be able to keep up with them. I want to be a cool nana!
  • It gives me a connection with my students. Seriously, most teens think English teachers are pretty geeky (shocking, I know). When I tell them I run and teach bootcamp classes, they seem to rank me a little higher on the cool scale. I want them to see that one is never too old to set goals and work toward them. 
  • There is nothing like running with friends. I could (and have) write a whole blog on running friends. I’ll give one example. Monday night Jackie and I decided to run sprints at the track. We used to do that pretty regularly, but hadn’t for a long time – like a year or two. We arrived at the track, and it started raining. Hard. We decided we were tough, and a little rain wouldn’t stop us. We’d run in rain before, and in the summer it can be quite refreshing. We ran our sprints in the rain, and it was awesome. Jackie is 50 and I am 47, and we were out in the rain running sprints. We felt like rock star runners. Athletes.
  • I run because I can. There are so many people who can’t run, or walk for that matter, and I run for them. I am so blessed to have a body that will allow me to run, and as long as I am able, I will continue. It’s hard, and sometimes it completely sucks, but there is always another run. 

I have 30 more days to complete my streak. Because my legs are tired from running every day, I haven’t been able to run more than three miles, but I will continue on. There is a 5k on July 4 that my daughter wants to run, and I think it’d be the perfect way to end my streak. But then will I wonder how many days I could run if I just keep it up? Will I feel guilty if I don’t run? That’s the way my mind works. 

When was the last time you challenged yourself? It doesn’t have to be running; it can be anything that pushes you. I believe if one wants to totally embrace life and live with no regrets, he or she has to face challenges and try new adventures. Come up with a summer challenge and go for it. If you want to be held accountable, put it in the comments or message me. I’ll help!