The Bowden Family Blog: Team Bowden and our first 5K!

I've always wanted to be runner. Mostly for the physical benefits, but for the mind and soul benefits as well. My first attempt at becoming a runner was back in 2002, after I gave birth to Austin. I had gained almost 40 lbs with him and wanted to get rid of it, but what motivated me more was that our family was going on a cruise and I needed to be bathing suit ready in just four months. So, I parked a treadmill in our living room and ran 5 days a week until not only did I lose all of my baby weight, but I was toned and feeling good as well. We went on the cruise, I rocked my swimsuit, and afterwards, no longer motivated, I found every excuse not to run. My treadmill became a coat rack, and I eventually sold it.

A few times I tried to get back into it. I would strap on shoes, head out the door and ran as far as I could until I felt like puking. It was painful, I sucked at it, and I questioned why any human would want to do that to themselves. The truth was, I envied all the seemingly fit people I would see running through the neighborhood every day. Having recently turned 35, my sedentary lifestyle and almost daily Starbucks habit was taking it's toll on my body and energy level. I've also been having some funky things going on with my heart, and I knew I had to start taking better care of myself. But getting in shape takes discipline. If there is something this girl has always lacked, it's discipline.

Until April 2010.

Motivated by friends who were runners, I decided I needed to get serious about it. A girlfriend told me about an iPhone app that was helping her become a runner. I did some searching and came across this C25K app. It's a really cool app that uses the popular nine week Couch to 5 K running plan, and was designed for people who are just getting into running - like me - and need a tool to help them stay disciplined. I can't say enough good things about it - definitely the best $2.99 I've ever spent!

I bought some good running shoes, downloaded the app to my phone on April 10th, and started that day. The first day (W1D1) consisted of intervals of running 60 seconds and walking 90. Easy stuff, right?Yeah...no. I finished the workout, but I huffed and puffed and it was evident that even though I weigh less than 100 lbs, I was clearly VERY much out of shape. I was determined to stick with the plan though, and I pressed on for 8 more weeks. By week four I was actually looking forward to my runs. By week 7, I was able to run for 3.5 miles. On May 30th, I ran my first 5k with a time of 32:22!

The race was held in Vista, and Chris, Hayley and her (boy)friend Dakota ran it with me. My friend and running partner Lindsay ran too. Hayley did really well - she finished 6th in her division with a time of 25:05! She recently got into running and is really enjoying it. Chris got to the finish line around 28 minutes, but he stopped and waited so that he could cross it with me. Seriously, do husbands get any better than that? I was the slug, which frustrated me because I'd done that distance a handful of times in 30 minutes or less. A sick tummy got the best of me around the 2 mile mark and slowed my pace, but I finished! And the most important part - I'm a runner!

It's really cool to think that a month and half ago, I couldn't run a block without feeling winded. I'm feeling good health wise, my insomnia hasn't been as bad as it usually is, and I've lost a pound (weight loss is not one of my goals, so I'll have to be careful about this). I'm now training for the Long Beach half-marathon in October (13.1 miles). Hayley has decided to train with me and run it too! Chris has discovered that running isn't so bad - considering he ran a 5k without ANY training - and he's decided to train for a mini-triathlon later this year. The boys want to start running with us as well, maybe it'll burn off some of that extra energy they seem to always have.

Now if I could just develop those "runner legs" I so long for....