Run Laurie! RUN!

Once upon a time... I joined Women Run/Walk Memphis. It's a 10-week training program to get us Memphis ladies running and ready for our final race, which is in less than 3 weeks (Sept. 25th!) I was able to convince my fabulous friend and running newbie, Amanda, to join with.

Wew! I'm a hot mess, thank heavens for a good cool down!

We both opted to join the Beginning Runners Group. After our "Week 1 Training," which consisted of running 1 minute and walking 2 minutes for a total of 20 minutes, I decided "Ok, this was a cake walk. I can totally switch up to the Intermediate Runners Group."

And then...
Week 2 was canceled due to lightening.
Week 3 was canceled due to the ridiculous Memphis heat.
Week 4 was "come at your own risk due to the ridiculous Memphis heat." Mmmmk... I'll pass.

... and so as a result of my own laziness and excuses (hey, I promised full disclosure here people,) I didn't attend the next 3 training sessions. In my defense, I was out of town during the Week 6 training session. I should probably add that I wasn't exactly doing "my part" by running on my own two more times during the week.

So when yesterday came along (Week 8, in case you're lost,) my running buddy asked if I was planning to go. I had already gotten quite comfy on my couch with an episode of Nip/Tuck (my recent addiction, thank you Netflix Instant Play) and totally wasn't planning to go. Alas, I realized... this girl (meaning me) needs to get her run on! I threw on my running shoes and agreed to meet Amanda thirty minutes later. In case your wondering, I went back to my roots and joined the other "beginners" for a run. I guess I jumped the gun on getting too ambitious with my running skills. I think the the intermediate running group was going to be running 8 minutes, and walking 2 minutes. I figured I better stick with the run 4, walk 2. So I did.

Girl power, right?

There was quite a group of women that were there, although it looked as if more than half had dropped out of the training program since week 1. After a few short announcements, we set off on our 45 minute run/walk. I was feeling pretty good up until we run uphill which was the 4th interval (we did 7.) I would be lying if I didn't say that this song was playing in my head. Go ahead, laugh all you want. However, this song is a must-add to the running mix on that iPod of yours.

I'll be the first to admit, that I have probably taken a good 3 weeks off from running. Eeek! From what I understand running is very much a "use it or lose it" form of exercise. My legs were hurting, I guess I could be embarrassed by that, but I've never claimed myself to be a "runner," ever. You gotta start somewhere, right?

Look at that trail of ladies running in the sun!

Alright... to my friends in the accountability corner: I'm planning to do 2 more runs on my own this week (probably Wednesday and Friday.) The race is SEPTEMBER 18th y'all! Time to get my run on!

For those of you looking for a bit of motivation to hit the gym and/or pavement... check out the one, the only... Jillian Michaels!

After our run in the evening sun, Amanda and I decided to pay a visit to THE best new yogurt place in town, YoLo! Perfect way to cool off, and refuel.

It's a self-serve yogurt place with lots o' toppings to choose from, including local fruit and bakery items! Yummers! This place is so great, I can pretty much guarantee that I'll  be devoting a whole post to them in the near future. In the meantime, here's a teaser:

How do I like my YoLo? Birthday Cake/Strawberry swirl, topped with strawberries, locally grown blueberries... and a lil' cookie from La Chica Bakerita

Nothing wrong with a little cookie to go with your cardio, right? ;)