Where it's at (Two Fit Chicks and a Microphooooone)

I don't seem to have a lot of time these days, or at least that's how I feel. Everywhere I turn in my house, I see something else that I need to clean up, something else that I'm behind on, or a reminder of something else I need to do.

And yet I can't seem to find the time to do it.

At yesterday's Weight Watchers meeting the topic was exercise and it was probably a timely one for me. I've decided that I'm not a big fan of running on the treadmill. I never thought that it was that bad, but when I run on the treadmill I think I get bored and I end up psyching myself out of running the full distance that I want to. Case in point, last week (while in Houston) I ran three times. I never topped 2 miles and I felt like I couldn't go another step. I barely made it 22 minutes (and that was with walking during times). Where was the powerful runner that I was at the end of 2009?

Running outside, on the other hand, is delightful. I run and forget how far I've ran. I run for me, for fun, for pure pleasure when I run outside. Inside, it feels like prison.

But it's been cold enough here that running outside is kind of only feasible in the middle of the day - that's when the temps top out at 40. It fits with my lifestyle to run at lunch...and so on days that are over 40 degrees, I'm promising to run at lunch.

Today, however, I strapped on my iPhone (set to the Nike+ function) and found that my sensor wasn't synching with my iPhone. This meant that my run wouldn't be captured on Nike. I meant that it wouldn't count towards my year end goals. It meant that I couldn't pause at any point and check my pace, my distance, or my time elapsed. And I was BUMMED. I mean, here I was, in my running gear, all ready to go. I had stress, I had a goal to try to run at least 30 minutes without stopping. But how in the world was I supposed to run without being able to track it??!?

And then reality set in. I mentally slapped myself and remembered that I know a route that is a little under 3 miles. And I selected a podcast that I've been meaning to sample that was at least 30 minutes long.

And armed with that podcast "Two Fit Chicks & A Microphone," I began to run.

I am so glad I did.

The podcast episode that I listened to (#7) was all about starting over or starting again. They interviewed several bloggers and asked them how they started their fitness journey. Over and over again, I heard success stories about how people all over the world were losing weight. Some of them had a lot of weight to lose - some didn't even have a plan on how to get started - and yet, they were and are successful. It brought home the issue that everyone - every one of us - has to start from somewhere.

So I still don't have tons of time to exercise. I still can't borrow any piece of MizFit's wardrobe (well, maybe her head hankerchief/bandana thing). But I can start changing what needs to be changed. And you know what? Simply starting doesn't mean you have to have the end already figured out.

I stumbled across this quote yesterday by Martin Luther King, Jr. and found it pretty appropriate: "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."

I ran for a little over 30 minutes of the episode which was time it took me to complete the almost 3 mile lap. I couldn't believe that I had run as far as I did when I jogged up to the door of our building - the time just flew. I was so excited to learn of others successes (especially those at the end in "Blogger News!"). The episode got me thinking of my goals and my accomplishments and how far I had come in my own journey. I felt good listening to it. I (gasp!) enjoyed running to them.

I can't wait to listen to the next episode and I hope that you'll support these two chicks as they support fellow weight loss bloggers.

P.S. Podcasts are super easy to listen to - you can download them to your iPod or mp3 player (or you can listen to it while sitting in front of your computer). Personally, I got it (and their previous episodes) from iTunes, but you can also download it from their website, Two Fit Chicks. Plus, the best part is each episode is FREE!