Week 2, complete

This program sure does work! I finished the run today feeling really good. I got out earlier in the afternoon than I've been doing my runs, and I definitely prefer running on an emptyish stomach. So, at the end of week 2, the run is a brisk 5 minute walk, then alternating 90 seconds running with 2 minutes walking, until you get to 20 minutes, and then cool down with a 5 minute walk. I took a different route than yesterday, and signs of spring are everywhere. Tulips, crocuses, hostas - they're all bravely sprouting up. And its just going to get better: by the end of the week, we're predicted to be mid-70's. Yay crazy Wisconsin weather!

I am going to spend tomorrow prepping veggies and cooking chicken so that dinners can go together more smoothly next week. Dinner is my main excuse for not working out, which is why I'm blogging about dinner in my exercise blog. There are a couple of meals that are not a colossal pain to make, and I can delegate those, but I am trying to eat more meals with fresh vegetables. Which take chopping, peeling, etc. But, I can take Sunday and get the big stuff - broccoli, fennel, carrots, celery - washed, chopped, peeled and labeled. That should cut down on the chaos in the kitchen after I pick up the little guy at school. I also found one crockpot meal which should give me time after work one day for a run.

That said, I've looked at my schedule every way possible, and I have concluded that the morning is going to have to work for at least one workout each week. I came to this conclusion after looking at the meal schedule I wrote out, balancing it with what seems reasonable to ask my husband to cook for dinner, and not wanting to load 2 workouts into the weekend. So then I started trying to brainstorm solutions and changes I could make to get out of the box I've thought myself into.

I was listening to a podcast that included an interview with a woman who's doing something called "The Hapiness Project." When asked for one nugget that guarantees happiness, she said "Get enough sleep." Ugh. I am really not up for this change. But the more she talked, the more sense it made. Maybe if I give up facebook? Just kidding. Maybe. I'm not sure how realistic it is to change everything all at once. But this exercise piece has to get put into the puzzle some time. So, I'm considering heading to sleep by 9:30 on the nights before morning workouts. I can't imagine doing that every day, but maybe it'll feel so good I'll start doing it every day.

So, along with the veg prep, tomorrow I'll be plotting out a tentative training schedule for the tri. As I recall, weather became a real factor last time for my training, so it'll have to be flexible. I also need to scope out some pool access - my swim is clearly my weakest leg, and I'd really like to improve my performance there.