Training is easier than asking people for money.

Week... what? 3? Yeah, I think week 3. ;) So far, so good. I haven't missed any of the training walks and when you consider how crazy busy my life is in general, that is a serious accomplishment. I know that there will be times when I have to modify or miss some of the training but I'm trying to put that off for as long as possible. Right now, when the walks are shorter, it's easier for me to adjust my schedule around them. That will become progressively more difficult.

Last weekend, in order to stay on track, I dragged myself out of bed at 6:45 on Saturday morning (I repeat: ON SATURDAY MORNING!) and was out walking by 7:00. I dragged John out for those 4 miles and while he may not have been the most enthusiastic participant, he plodded along without much complaint. As we were making our way up the last hill, he said "I'm only doing this so I can scuba-dive when I'm 70." I love him for comments like that - makes me think 70 won't feel so old after all.

I will say that walking with John can be an exercise in frustration for me. I huff and puff and am all kinds of noisy when we're hoofing along. John is silent, no wheezing or gasping or heaving for breath as we draw near the top of the GI-NORMOUS hill in our neighborhood. I work out waaaaayyyyy more often than John, on the treadmill, on the elliptical, running, jogging, walking, stair-stepping... you name it. That man might grace the gym 2x week if he's lucky. He maintains that he's an "efficient oxygen machine." *roll eyes*

It's worse when I walk with Jenn. At least John has the good grace to remain silent while we trudge up the hill. Jenn can chatter all the way up that damn hill, never sounding the least bit winded, while I'm walking along side her sounding like I haven't gotten off the couch in the last decade. I am not, it appears, an efficient oxygen machine.

So fundraising... yeah. Last week I drafted my letter, printed out copies and then left them sitting on my desk. There they are, sitting right next to me - hard to miss since they're PINK! Well, actually the letters are white, only the donation form is pink. Nonetheless, they are still in my house, which isn't going to raise me any sort of money. Training is way easier than asking people for money. Any yet, today I received another donation, kind of out of the blue. The feeling of excitement and gratitude haven't worn off. I still feel both when I get that email announcing another generous gift.

Newbie Blogger

Somehow, I managed to sign up to follow my own blog. *roll eyes here* I have no idea how I did that, when I did that, or how to undo that so it will remain until I figure out this blog site. I wonder how many other public errors I will commit? Thankfully, my public is small. :) And kind.

I received a surprise donation yesterday as a direct result of the 3-day widget I added to my email signature. Those donations are incredibly motivating. You feel such a sense of gratitude each time you get a new email announcing a donation. I wasn't feeling particularly motivated to walk my 3 miles yesterday. Then I recieved the notification and that spurred me on. (well, that and I also read a friend's post about how she training for a friggin' triathalon!) I had an amazing workout last night. I felt GREAT - strong, healthy. I walked at faster pace than I have since I started training and wasn't so spent after so I lifted while I was there too. My flexiblity has increased.

They (nameless they) say that in order to build a habit, you have to repeat a behavior for 30 days. Well I have something like 155 days until the 3-day walk and I'll be walking 4 out of every 7 days in each of the weeks leading up to the walk. That should give me ample time to build the habit of dedicating time for working out into my daily routine. I'm so busy, as we all are, and working out is the easiest thing for me to cut from my day. This walk is forcing me to think ahead and plan for how I'm going to accomodate that 4-mile walk on Saturday, before I leave for the Cities, before I go to the play with my friends, before I meet my family obligations. If I take nothing else away from this, I hope that I at least take the habit of learning to incorporate workouts as a regular part my schedule.

Welcome to My 360 or "The World As I See It"

I'm taking the name for my blog from the very reason I'm blogging in the first place, my 3 day/60 mile walk (my 360). I'm participating in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure walk this August. I'm trying, sporadically, to keep track of my experiences so I'll have more than a passing memory of what it was like to train for, fundraise for, and actually walk 60 miles in 3 days.

Last week was the 1st week of training. We were scheduled to walk 12 miles for the week and I managed to do just that. Not necessarily on the days they recommend, but 12 miles nonetheless. I also downloaded the coolest app for my phone: Runmeter. It uses the GPS on my phone to track my mileage, mark my route and then kicks out some handy graphs detailing my elevation, my average speed, the splits, etc. I can save routes and it has a ghost feature so I can race my best times. Handy-dandy. Props to Jenn for already having one on her phone, which prompted me to search for my own. She's only had her phone for like a week... how did I not know about this app before?

I also crafted my initial fundraising letter today (I may or may not have spent some time at work writing said letter). I fine tuned it tonight and sent off my first batch. I kind of feel like Elle Woods - I bought pink paper and fought the urge to spritz the envelopes with perfume. I'm not going to lie - it is uncomfortable sending a letter asking for money to every person you know. I'm hopeful that I'll grow accustomed to the feeling. I've got months to go. Yes, I fundraise at work but I'm not asking for money for me. At work I'm asking corporations and faceless strangers. It's another matter altogether when you're hitting up people you went to college or high school with.

I also downloaded and added (thanks to Kevin) a 3-day for the Cure widget to my email signature. Again, I felt a moment of hesitation before hitting the send button a few times today because that icon was attached. Again, hoping that gets easier. But the more people who know that I'm doing this, the more likely it will be that I make it the $2300 goal.

I attended a Getting Started meeting on Saturday and, while the speaker sounded rehearsed in general and painfully trite at times, she did show a video that moved me to tears and reminded me again that I'm not just walking. I'm walking for a cause. Wish me luck on Week 2!