First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do. -Epictetus

Spartan Shape Up, Day 538:

Alright, BlogLand. I'm back. Hardcore, in the game. It's been a crazy stressful and chaotic few months, I've been feeling really down on myself and my progress, and I've just felt crappy. I've felt crappy because I wasn't eating like I should, I felt crappy because I was not exercising like I should, and I felt crappier, because I KNEW it was my own fault that all this was happening; I got discouraged and off track because of the injuries, and just never got back on.

No longer! No more excuses, no more skipping workouts, no more "it's cold" bullshit (pardon me)... It's on. I watched Biggest Loser last night and saw the Old Me in many of those people. People used to no prioritizing themselves, to accepting the status quo, to not feeling good enough, not pushing themselves... and as a result, were on the Biggest Loser. It was an excellent reminder of where I started.

SO. Today, me, my new Garmin (ooo!) and my faithful running buddy, Stacey, set forth on the road. It was 11 degrees and all kinds of wintery, so I laced up my new Inov-8 Orocs (review on those here!), donned my UA extreme cold gear and set the excuses aside.

It was cold. There's no getting around that. BUT... I was properly geared (this is key), and today's schedule was at least bust out an "easy 3".

I won't lie, I can feel with every step, how much I need to get back to consistent training. An "easy 3" is no where NEAR as easy as it was, or should be. But. It is merely what it is, not a sign that I have failed (reminder to self).

We trudged through the snowy sidewalks (it's a bit like running through sand at some points!), down the streets, and its true, after a couple of miles, I started to have fun again. I remembered that I DO , in fact, (mostly) enjoy this, I have a great running buddy, and running training helps me to do all the things that I REALLY like doing.
So, while the last half a mile was a bit of a push (my body was all like WTF?!), it was mind over matter, with the classic words of my GT in my head: Your lungs will not explode, your heart will slow down, your legs will not fall off....

He has assured me that my conditioning will come back faster this time, as I haven't been "off" that long, and I had built up a really good base. So, I'm reassured and following directions. I have a training program, reset by the GT and I'm doing it. Following Directions of your Trainer = Success. Why don't we all learn that the first time?

On another note, I'm also getting my eating in check. I found a website that provides a Paleo dinner menu, complete with shopping list. My current plan, to provide myself a lot more structure with my eating, is to follow said dinner plan like it is the law. Breakfast is pretty easy for me to keep in check and lunch will be leftovers, etc. I CAN (and WILL) do this. One of my big goals for this year is to get down to my goal weight (maybe 40-50 more pounds?) and I'm not going to do it if I don't seriously think about what I'm putting in my face. By taking some of the thinking off for a while, I'm hoping to a) cut my food bill a bit by having a concerted plan and b) eat healthy, portioned things, that someone else has already had the pain in the butt of thinking of.

Subsequently, I made a lovely dinner, post-run, from said "plan." I made a tasty crustless quiche, with fresh chive, thyme and parsley, with a bit of Feta, and accompanied it with a fresh tomato salad with ripped up basil leaves and a homemade red-wine vinaigrette. Too bad I didn't save any of the Paleo brownie from last night (literally: 1 whole avocado, 1/3 cup honey, 1/2 cup cocoa power, 3 eggs. Bake. Decidedly not bad!)

It appears, BlogLand, that I've got 2013 handled. It's all about consistency as the road to success........ One foot in front of the other, one step at a time. I can do this.