Afterward I ached everywhere, which made for slow going as I undressed for my shower, but I think that’s due more to the fact that I’m still recovering from yesterday’s workout. As for the run itself, I don’t feel near as tired as I didn’t after Day1 of last week.

Granted, I’ve built up endurance for over a month at this point, but I think what made today easier was that I didn’t really think about it. I didn’t even have to talk myself into getting started. I just resolved that it was happening and then went and did it. I don’t have any illusion that I’ll be able to skate by from here on out though. I’m in a good place now, but I’m well aware that there will be more plateaus and more walls to come.

Going from two 8-minutes sets with a 5-minute walk between to a solid 20 minutes is definitely a hurdle, but I’ve already cleared it once. After that comes Week6Day1. It defeated me before, but it was also the first time I wasn’t running at the track. I’ve been running hills for over a month and today went smoother than expected, so I don’t think it will be a problem. But still, there’s always that little voice reminding you, “You weren’t able to do this last time.”

It really seems to me that I’m finally falling back into the routine and mindset I was able to cultivate back in the fall. Couple that with how I’m feeling endurance wise and I’m positive that at the end of my second month I’ll be running a half hour every day.

This song has been played at least once a day since the premier of The Walking Dead, so I leave you with a live version of Clutch’s “The Regulator.”

I began Week4 of 100pushups today. In truth, I guess I finished as well, but we’ll get to that. I felt really good after my second set. I had to take a breather before pumping out my last rep, but I did 13. It may seem like a small number, but considering that a short time ago a single rep would prompt a quick, “Fuck that shit,” I felt my pride was earned. Not to mention the fact that I’m still carrying around at least 100 extra lbs, so there’s more to lift. I’ve been taking breathers as needed the whole time, but I’ve always finished the reps. I might have lengthened my rest periods between sets, and I might have broken some sets into three or four smaller ones, but I’ve done every single rep of every set of each of the sessions.

This morning I was checking my email during the five minutes before my final set. When the timer sounded I was in the middle of something, so I probably waited another three or four minutes before starting. I didn’t have the slightest inkling that those 16 reps would be any trouble. In fact, after my second set, I did some math and realized I would have done 63 in all. That filled me with so much false confidence that I cooked up a plan to tag on another four sets of 10 for an even 100. Well, the last one would only be seven, but you get the point. That all went right out the window when I my arms quit working.

Now I’ve hit the deck and then not been able to push back up, but that’s when I take a breather, re-do that rep and keep going. On my first rep, I didn’t even get that far. The second I left plank position I felt my arms begin to fail, and I slammed into the deck. I thought, “Well, that was different,” and got back up. I gave it another three tries, but each time I would feel the area where my biceps and pectorals meet begin to give. The ache and failure would immediately spread out in both directions, and I would hit the floor. I thought I might be able to finish the last set from my knees, but I was still only able to crank out 10, and they weren’t all solid reps. I finally went to the kitchen and leaned against the bar like I was going to do calf stretches. I got all the reps in, but even then It was slow going and I had to really concentrate on each one.

I’m going to give my upper body the rest day I normally do and then repeat today’s session (and keep repeating it) until I can do the full sets. Then I can move on to Week4Day2.

I realize I’m really pushing myself, but I am seeing (and feeling) results. I’m no expert, but still, my thoughts are that this was a good thing. What doesn’t kill you …, right?

I’ve been holding on to a thought for a while now, and I fell like it’s applicable today: “Things are only as hard as you let them be.” I don’t know if that’s something I read somewhere or if it’s just me paraphrasing a lot of what I have read. Either way, it goes right with what I was saying last week about perspective and attitude. I’ve heard Joe Rogan talk about Malcolm Gladwell’s theory that most people need 10,000 hours to master a skill, and in those 10,000 hours, there’s bound to be more than a few that could be looked at a failures. When he talks about it in reference to comedy, he’ll bring up things like having to bomb on stage in order to learn how to react when that happens. That’s what makes “hard work” hard work. If something comes easy to you, you have an advantage, but until you learn how to keep doing your job when everything isn’t going smoothly, you’re no master.

I think my main point is (as always) to just keep going. No matter what happens or how hard things get, it will get easier as long as you don’t stop. I came across the above picture on /r/GetMotivated this morning, and I think it’s applicable as well.

I guess the most appropriate thing to leave you with this morning would be a track off “Winners Never Quit.”

The longer run times coupled with manipulating my route in a more downhill fashion is beginning to make new muscles ache. I’m kind of psyched on it, but I wasn’t as enthusiastic about the extra uphill portion of my walk home today.

Eight minutes is going to be challenge (again), and 20 seems even more so. But neither one of those is happening right now (or even later today) so I’m just going to concentrate on the glass of coconut water next to my laptop and 50 pages or so in “A Feast For Crows.”

I had the first episode of Duncan Trussell‘s new solo podcast on the iPod, but you all can enjoy some Josie Charlwood. Check out some more of her stuff.

The weather was conspiring against me today though. It was cold and wet when I got up, and then once I finally decided to get out there, the bottom dropped out.

F a bunch of that!

So now I’m busy with the rest of today’s tasks, but I will get out there at some point today.

I promise.

On Your Mom’s House, Christina Pazsitzky was talking about the new M.I.A.’s new video, “Bad Girls.” Let me say, there’s nothing about this video that I don’t like. And if you’ve never seen Saudi drifting, Stop actively ruining your life and watch the video.

Another strong contender was “Kinect the Dots.” Reggie Watts is one of the most creative people I’ve ever seen or heard, and hacking the infrared camera on the Xbox Kinect to film a music video is an idea I wish I had come up with. While this video sent my nerd spidey sense into overdrive, it wasn’t the best thing I’ve seen this week.

That honor goes to an article on Wired.com about photographer Terry Border and his blog, Bent Objects. I could take the time to tell you why this was the best thing I’ve seen this week, but I’ll let one of Border’s images speak for itself.

————

I just re-read my post about the last time I ran tonight’s workout, and I’ve got to say that I’m smiling. Even though Day1 of this week was brutal, after tonight, I’m no worse for wear than I was at the end of last week. After taking a look at where I was in September, I can honestly say that I’m doing better than I was on my previous attempt. That makes the sneak peek of next week’s workouts not so daunting. So for that second time, I’m staring at 8 minutes and saying, “Bring it on.”

I’m not about to win any races, and in fact, I’d have to walk if I entered a 5K. But I’m moving. I’ll stay off the soapbox tonight. I’ve said pretty much all I feel like saying on the subject this week. Plus, I’ve got a delicious burger waiting for me to devour it, and since I’ve been going through boxes I’ve had in storage this week, I’ve got to convert this disaster area back into a useable workstation.

I, as well as a few friends I’ve known who shall remain nameless, have been extremely averse to what I thought of as unnecessary physical activity. It wasn’t enjoyable, and why would you willingly do something you don’t enjoy in your free time?

My perspective only really began to change because of disc golf. I began playing over a year ago, and as much as I loved playing, I didn’t enjoy certain courses if they had any kind of real elevation. Not because of how it affected my throw, but because I had to walk up and down those hills. Ball golf was my sport of choice for a long time for two reasons: One, you ride around in a cart, so walking is kept to a minimum, and Two, I don’t believe you should get winded during any activity where you also drink beer.

I’ve had a few lulls in my progress, but overall I feel like I’ve been steadily moving forward. Now, I really don’t think you could pay me to go back to my old way of thinking. My former opinions about exercise and the food I choose to put in my body seem asinine to me now. It’s taken me over a year to get to my current perspective (which is still shifting), but I’m happier than I was before.

The message I really want to convey is this: No matter where your current attitude toward exercise sits on the “awesome-to-fuck that” scale, give it an honest 30 days of real effort. It’s going to suck. BIG TIME. You’re going to have to literally talk yourself into doing it some days. Yes, I’m saying you will have to say out loud, “You need to go running today” (or lift weights or whatever you choose to do). But if you’ll just keep punishing yourself every day, by the end of that month your attitude will be different.

By the end of those 30 days, you will have done things that you didn’t believe were possible. Your body will begin to thank you for working it so hard as well, but the mental shift you will experience is far more important. There are some things that you will never really understand until you actually experience them, and this is a strong example of such a situation.

So if you’re a person who gotten on a health kick before, only to give up after a week or two, because it sucked, or if you’re a person who actively convinces yourself that you don’t want to be in shape because you think that exercise is too hard, I know where you’re coming from because I’ve been there. Permanently eject the phrase “I can’t” from your vocabulary, and stop being a pussy. Go as slow as you have to, but just get moving … and just keep going. If your excuse is that running is too hard on your knees, then get on an elliptical machine or a stationary bicycle. If at the end that month your attitude hasn’t shifted at all, then you’ve got bigger issues to deal with, but give it another month and see what happens.

Most of the time we tend to quit or call things “too hard” whenever any real effort is required on our part. Stop being that shitty version of the person who you could be. Push yourself as hard as you can for 30 days. What have you got to lose?

Not much else to say though. Today was a bit easier than last time. I slowed down my pace and didn’t feel quite as exhausted as I did on Monday. The fog was thick again as well, but on the upside, it was t-shirt weather.

I guess the one thing that stuck out was my pre-run pep talk/debate (which has unfortunately become a ritual). The thing made it different from the rest of my last-ditch efforts to remain a lazy ass sounded way more poetically impressive when I crafted it in my head 20 minutes ago. However, I’ve since showered, made breakfast and eaten said breakfast. At this point, my mind would rather look forward to reading a book and passing out than accurately remember the clever way I worded something about making a routine and doing things even though you might not feel like doing them.

At the end of the day (literally, for me) some of the things that originally got me past the “running sucks” phase are beginning to click again. Today’s run (W4D2) was the same one where I began to lose enthusiasm back in September. I seem to be doing better this time around.

I’ve been listening to podcasts this week so I don’t have any music in mind at the moment. What I will leave you with this morning is one of my favorite Youtube musicians, Kiersten Holine,  playing one of my favorite songs.

Before, with each session I was either running longer than I had before or running the same distance at a faster time. Even though there have been other times in my life when I have been in better shape, I’ve never been a runner. In fact, the most I’ve ever run before starting C25K was in the sixth grade. So in essence, every day I went running last time, I was a better version of myself than I’d ever been before. Right now, I’m a lesser version who’s just playing catchup.

The fog this morning kept one thought bouncing around in the back of my mind — “Keep off the moors, stick to the roads.” However, werewolves weren’t near as big a threat as my 5-minutes sets.

I was doing fine at first, even going uphill during my first 3-minute set. I had to let off the gass for the second half of the workout though. There was a brief uphill section during my second 3-minutes, but I was still feeling OK. It wasn’t until the sadistic cunt in my phone announced that I had a second 5-minutes set I was expecting that I began to abandon hope.

It wasn’t pretty by any means, but I did it. I thought about pausing the workout and then restarting that section after a rest, but then I heard those magical words, “One minutes left.”

On the way home I reconsidered the whole “not knowing how long I have to run each time” thing. I was back and forth between repeating last week and skipping the rest of this week to repeat today’s workout a few times. Apparently, Week4 is the same workout each day. So, I’ll soldier on through the normal schedule. Today was rough, but I’ve got two more times to try and keep it from killing me.

I’ve been listening to Ghostly Swim a lot this week, but I’m leaving you with I Am Robot and Proud playing with a Tenorion. I’m selling one if anybody’s interested.

I’ve been slacking on the exercise posts for the past few days, but I’ve been more musically occupied than normal. I’m also on some other sleep schedule than the 24-hour one than most of you humans operate on. Regardless, I’m going to make a real effort to put these up at the end of each week.

It brings me great joy to present this inaugural post. Not only is it one of the greatest funk/jam bands I’ve ever had the privilege of hearing, and not only does it feature the vocal stylings of Living Colour’s Corey Glover … but it all takes place just an hour and a half from where I rest my head.

The best thing I’ve seen this week is Galactic featuring Corey Glover, performing “Going Down Slowly” at Blade Studios in Shreveport, La.