It's Starting to get Tougher...

I went to work yesterday and received two (count em' - 2!!!) compliments.

"Wow... you look so thin!"

"Holy cow! You've lost more weight!"

Maybe that's what a sunburn can do to a person - make them look a tad thinner.

Sunday's run was great... it was good to be outdoors, it was good to stretch the legs at The Lake, and it was good to push myself to see what 7 miles would be like.

7 miles... lapping the 9-mile lake... while that still seems a bit foreign to me, it feels oddly good... and familiar.

In to 2007, I ran and ran and ran. For those that remember, I would get up during the summer at 4:30 to be at the lake at 5:30 to run it. Most of the time, it was for crazy distances like 13, 14, or 15 miles.

Since then, I haven't pushed myself to achieve such a mark. And Sunday, I did just that. It's a great feeling... getting around that body of water like that. It's crazy at times to be on the other side of the lake and know that you are parked "over there" and you've got to get back to that point...

Which brings me to this: It's starting to get a lot tougher.

Typically, the weeks have called for going up 10%. That has always been an increase in 1 mile per week. However, it has now changed to 2 miles. That's a big difference... and it makes me wonder, "Am I ready for this?"

Tonight I had to run 3 miles. No biggee, right? Well... it's nutty to me, but I am running a lot faster than I did 2 years ago. 3 miles was a piece of cake. I ran it in exactly 30 minutes. That's a 10-minute pace. I didn't do that when I was 29 and running the marathon! I'm now approaching 39 and I'm stronger/faster! Where is all of this strength/energy coming from???

And what was even crazier tonight was the rainstorm - I actually ran in rain! Living in North Texas, we haven't had rain in a long time... it felt great!

However... tomorrow night I have a 5-mile run. And after that, I have a 4-miler. By the end of the week, I will have run 22 miles.

So am I losing weight? Maybe I need to get on the scale... but yes, I'm pretty sure I am. The program now has me running 5 days out of the week. And given that I'm continuing to add 2 more miles at this point, that only leads to more pounds being lost to the increased burned calories.

It's all about being on a program... and sticking to it. Only time will tell... but I can honestly say I'm enjoying the results regardless of the added miles/pain/etc. Maybe that's my message to each of you as you strive for your own personal goals this year. "Hang in there and try and push yourselves!"

When I was in college, I was introduced to a quote that I have never forgotten:

"If it doesn't kill me, it will only make me stronger."

I hope that is inspirational to each of you, no matter what you are striving for in life. Good luck with your goal(s)!