Day Thirteen!

It is absolutely amazing how much can change in such a short time!  First, let me tell you this....I've never understood people who run.  The ones who actually enjoy running, who think it's fun.  Seriously?  How could anyone think running was fun?  Why would they think it was fun?  But....I think I'm starting to get it.  I'm not up to running yet.  Just walking.  But I'm starting to understand how people can get really into exercising.  I'm starting to enjoy it!  Don't get me wrong, it's still hard to get myself going sometimes.  Especially when it follows a night like tonight, when I'm stuck waiting up until 11:30 for a blood sugar check for Lily (lots of plummeting at night lately!).  Tomorrow is going to be tough.  But, once I get going on a walk with the kids, I start getting excited.  I start to feel better, my muscles loosen up, the soreness all melts away.  In fact, there have been a few days where I've actually intended to "take it a little easier".  Day 10, for example.  There's a free zoo not too far from our home.  Just down the road from the zoo is a small lake.  Lake Como has a walking path that works out to be 1.67 miles all the way around.  I decided that I didn't feel like doing the walk around Lake Calhoun (3.2 miles) and the kids had been so phenomenal on my walks that they deserved a treat.  So, I packed the kids off and we drove off to Como Zoo:

They had a blast!  Leo loves monkeys.  And big cats.  He "oh oh"ed and "roar"ed at the animals.  Lily very animatedly told me about all the things the animals were doing and everything she could see.  She was a bit stumped in coming up with an explanation for this one though:

Yeah, that's what I thought too....Only a mother, right?  Anyway, after they were done looking at the zoo, we went over to Lake Como for our walk.  I bought them ice cream cones to keep them occupied and then planned to do one lap around the lake, 1.67 miles.  I was sore and meant to take it a little easier, remember?  So, I walked.  I got about 3/4 of the way around the lake and decided, you know, rather than finishing the 1.67 miles, I'd turn around and go back the 3/4 of the way that I'd just walked.  So, instead of walking just 1.67 miles, I walked 1.5x that!  Before starting this challenge, I never, and I mean NEVER, would have chosen to make things harder for myself or do more than I had intended to do.  And would you believe, when I was finished with the walk around the lake, I decided that there was no hurry to get home and I might as well walk up the path into the hill so the kids and I could take in this view:

My way of thinking is definitely changing.  Instead of taking the easy way, I'm challenging myself more, I'm pushing myself.  Perfect example: My wonderful husband bought me a new pair of running shoes yesterday.  I was so excited about them that I decided to wear them on my walk today.  Totally forgot about breaking the darn things in.  I have blisters on my heels to show for it.  But you know what?  I have no intention of letting that stop me from walking tomorrow!  It would have stopped me before.  Now, I'm planning on padding my heels with some fantastic bandaids, strapping my old shoes on my feet, and walking just as much as I have been!  I think I'm afraid that if I take it easy, I'll revert back to my old behaviors and habits.  So, I'll just keep going and challenging myself until I'm not afraid anymore, until I know there's no way I'll ever revert back!

Oh, and almost forgot...pictures of Como Lake:

Little side-fact...when I was little, I wanted to get married in that pavilion!  It's gorgeous!  I wish I would have taken some pictures of the houses around the lake though.  Victorian, old, and beautiful!