Couch to 5K Update 3

Well after my last post I had started walking instead of running.  However I had that burning desire to run even while I was walking.  So I dropped off the “official” plan but kept running.  I’ve since committed myself to an actual 5K race so that motivates as well.  I can run almost a full mile without stopping and have once done 3.12 miles in one run.  Granted there was probably more walking than running towards the end of that but I still did it.  It might not sound like much but coming from a place were I was sedentary most of the day and night, being able to run a 5K is a big accomplishment.  Another added bonus of this exercise:  my cholesterol has dropped 30 points and my blood pressure is right where it needs to be.  Will I keep running after this race is done?  Probably but not as frequently, especially with 4-6 months of winter on the horizon.  As cliche as this sounds, if I can do it, anyone can.  The big thing to remember when it comes to exercise of any sort:  start small.  Walk then run.  Baby steps my friends.  You can do it!

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Couch to 5K Update 2

Well it appears as though I’ve lost the battle but not the war.  My body starting giving me fits (my lower back and my knees) at the end of week four.  I’m switching over to walking only until I can shed some weight and get into running shape.  Week four was by far the toughest.  I plan to continue the program but I need to heal up a bit first.    For those of you in the program keep at it!  It gets easier.  And to those who run 5K races and longer, my hats off to you.  I have a new appreciation for those that run.

Couch to 5K update

Well I officially hit the wall.  I’m on day two of week 4 and there’s more running now than there is walking.  I was expecting this but the mountain is getting steeper each week.  It didn’t help that as I walked out the door this morning it was really humid.  It felt like running through a rainforest which slows you down and makes it harder to breathe.  Anyways, I ended up walking more on my running stretches more than running (at least towards the end).  I didn’t stop though.  I always keep moving whether it’s walking or running.  When I got close to finishing this morning my right knee started to hurt which is new.  My left knee has been hurting at the end of every run but I ended up wearing a brace on it today for the first time which helped.  Anyways, I’ll probably redo week 4 next week as I’ve really slowed my pace.  Since the beginning of this plan my goal was to get in shape.  It wasn’t about speed or distance.   I’m still shooting for the goal of running a 5k in the fall but it is definitely an uphill climb.

Dark Skies

So last weekend I rented Dark Skies.  The trailer looked decent enough and I was intrigued enough to rent it.  So the story is basically that of a suburban family and strange things start occurring.  They have two sons, one of whom is entering his teens and getting into trouble and another one who’s in the 5-8 age range.  The mom is played by Keri Russell and the dad is Josh Hamilton.  Every instance that occurs is preceded by this high pitched electronic squealing like some speaker feedback.  There’s one event where birds start flying into the windows of the house and dying on the lawn, another where they get up in the middle of the night to hit up the kitchen and there’s food everywhere or items stacked in precision up to the ceiling.  They go an visit this guy who might have some insight and gives them info they don’t want to hear.  This builds up to the climax.  There is a bit of a twist at the end but nothing major.  Overall it was good enough to keep me interested but got kind of cheesy towards the end.  There were a few jump scares that caught me off guard.  Overall I’d say it’s worth a rent but don’t hold your hopes too high.

Check out the trailer

Major spoiler!!!!!!
This is all I could think during the whole movie.

Making changes

The last few weeks the ‘light bulb’ has gone on and I’ve made a bunch of changes in my life.  Two of them are getting in shape and eating healthier.  This morning I started the Couch-to-5K program.  For someone that’s pretty sedentary in my daily life it was a challenge but I was able to finish it without too much pain.  I’m hoping to be able to run in my first 5K this fall after I complete the 9 week program.

I’ve also started to eat healthier.  One of the nice things about where I work is the closest restaurant within walking distance is Subway.  I know Subway isn’t a very healthy option but in the fast food realm it’s one of the better ones.  Today’s menu was a 6″ turkey breast on 9 grain wheat with lettuce, tomatoes, black olives and lite mayo.  Another change I’ve made is I’ve cut soda completely out of my diet.  Regular soda is just empty calories and diet soda has artificial sweeteners that aren’t very healthy for you.  From here on out it’s water.

I feel really good about where things are going.  I’ve got goals set in place and a sense of motivation, determination and conviction to accomplish them.  All this wouldn’t be possible without Jesus and I’m so thankful for that. Phillipians 4:13

At the risk of sounding cliche, if I can do it, anyone can.  I hope keep posting updates here as it goes.

Gamefly Revisited

I had made a post a while back about how I had struggled finding a good service that provided video games by mail.  I came out against Gamefly in those comparisons.  I had not used the service since I had posted about it.  Since then, Gamefly has opened a new distribution center in Washington state.  I ended up resubbing to Gamefly about three months ago since there were quite a few games that had come out that I wanted to play.  These were games I was interested in trying out but not interested enough to buy.  I will since that since I resubscribed the shipment speed is better.  I tend to get games shipped to me fairly fast and the FastReturn system they use with the Postal Service is applied to almost every game I ship back.  One area that’s still lacking however is inventory of new release games.  If you’re lucky enough in the ship-return equation to have a new release shipped to you on its release week, you’ll get to play the game.  If you miss that small window, be prepared for a long wait until you can get to play it.  Games that have been out of 3 months or more still have Medium to Low availability.  Granted the inventory stock depends on how good the game is (better game, people keep it at home longer) but it still seems too long.

The Pact

I had stumbled across this movie as I was browsing movie trailers online.  The trailer had intrigued me enough to want to watch it.  Unfortunately it wasn’t available on Netflix and I wasn’t intrigued enough to pay to stream it.  Thankfully a few weeks after viewing the trailer it came available on Netflix.  So last night I decided to give it a shot.

The story starts out with one of two sisters in their recently deceased mother’s home.  She’s calling on the other sister to come to the funeral but they’re bickering and it ends unresolved.  She decides to use her laptop to video chat with her daughter who is being watched by a cousin.  During the chat, the sister is walking around to try and get a better signal as she’s using the neighbor’s wi-fi.  She finally is able to talk with her daughter who says to her “Mommy, who is that behind you” (which is also in the trailer).  So starts the first of many paranormal events in the house.

The bulk of the the scares come from “jump scares” but the mood and environments lend it to be a creepy film.  The other sister arrives to find her sister missing which triggers an investigation by her to find out what happened.  In doing so she’s discovers things about the house and her mother that fill out the rest of the plot.

I thought the movie was pretty good for being an indie flick.  There was one scene where a picture fell off the wall and by odd coincidence, a few minutes later the cover of our garbage can fell off in our kitchen.  It was freaky to say the least.  Anyways, check it out it’s a pretty decent movie that has a mostly fulfilling ending.