7-Mile Saturday/30-Day Challenge

What a great day for a run. That was my attitude when I woke up this morning.

The early autumn Saturday greeted us with blues skies and a brilliant sunshine. I laced up, dressed in my new winter workout gear, stretched and ran from the house with Matt pacing us.

When I run in cold weather, it generally takes about 1.5 miles or so for my lungs to settle in. However, for this path, the first 3 miles is a steady incline and we ran against the wind, both of which exasperated my breathing so it took a bit longer. Once the path leveled off and the wind was behind us, my lungs adjusted and the run felt good ... real good.

We finished the back 3.5 much stronger than the front. Total time was 70 minutes … so exactly a 10:00 mile. Not too shabby.

Tomorrow is my seventh consecutive day of working out. I thought I’d have some fun with my “streak” and set a 30-day challenge. This means I'll commit to engaging in a cardiovascular or strength training activity (or both) everyday until Dec. 11 … no days off.

Daily workouts aren't foreign to me. I worked out steadily in 2010 and 2011. I need to get back into that groove. I’m not one who excels when I’m “half-in.” I’m a "full throttle" kinda girl and I desperately need and want to get back there. Setting fun goals like this is one way to help me do just that.

Here's to Sunday's sweat!

Matt loves to buy me running sneakers & gear.

This outfit is his most recent purchase.

Lucky for me he has good taste.