How to Survive the Black Plague

Nine whole days out of commission and I've learned a thing or two about how to (mostly) survive being knocked on my butt by the flu.

Lesson 1:  Don't freak out that you missed an entire week of running and working out.

Week one of training is a wash.  No getting around it.  Embrace the week of the black plague and put a big ol' X thru week one on the calendar.

Lesson 2:  Rely on your friends!

Obviously I didn't learn lesson one on my own.  These three ladies below have been the lifelines keeping me sane.

Freaking out about missing a hill run?  Text Steph, she'll calm me down.  Going stir crazy because I can't leave the house?  Call Emily, she'll take me to get some fresh air for a few hours.  Having a conniption thinking that missing one week of training sabotages my whole marathon plan?  Speed dial my therapist Becca, she'll bring me back to reality.

Lesson 3:  No mater how old you are, you're never too old for mom's sympathy.

Not as good as homemade soup and mama bringing you meds, but daily phone calls letting me cry and complain somehow makes me feel just a little bit better.

Mama! Obviously sporting a Molly's Miles shirt!

Lesson 4:  Don't let your boredom get the best of you.  

You can only watch SVU marathons and read running blogs so long until your new favorite game Bejeweled starts calling your name.

No big deal, right?  Until you play it for nine days straight, and you start to see the jewels when you close your eyes.  And you are SO bored that you even debate paying real money for extra coins.

Do people actually pay for this junk?
I WAS ALMOST ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE.

Lesson 5: When you start to feel better, EASE back into the physical activity.

This may sound pretty DUH, but it was really tempting today to lace up and go out for a run.  Today was the first day I woke up without feeling like a mack truck was sitting on my chest, so I knew I wanted to get some physical movement in. 

I hit the gym and forced myself to walk -- not run yet -- on the treadmill.  I even brought my iPad so I could watch my new favorite TV show on NBC.

Please disregard my pile of dirty tissues in the cup holder

I set the incline to 1% and the speed to 3mph and I was on my merry way.  The two girls on either side of me were running all speedy and I tried not to give them jealous dirty looks.  I walked my way through 35 minutes and let me tell you... I was tired at the end of it!  My body hadn't walked more than 100 feet in the last week and a half and here I was walking for a half hour.  Yeah, nap time happened when I got home.

1.68 miles on the week!  Woohoo!

SO moral of the story is I am well on my way back to health.  Definitely not 100%, but making enough progress to move off my couch and stop playing Bejeweled everyday.  I may not have logged any running miles my first week of training, but man was it a lesson in my mental toughness!  I've got 18 weeks ahead of me, and enough lessons learned this week thankyouverymuch that these next 18 weeks should be a breeze, right?!