Sooner, rather than later

If I had known that joining a gym would be such a big motivator, I would have done this a long time ago.

Due to various things at home, I ran out of daylight to get a run in, so I headed over to the gym I joined yesterday. I thought that it would probably be a few days before I felt the urge to go there -- the weather has been gorgeous and there's just enough daylight for another week or so to get in a run or bike ride after work. Anyway, when I was there I started thinking about all the benefits I can get with the ability to control my speeds with the click of a button.

I didn't do anything drastic this evening -- it was more of me getting familiar with the machines and the gym itself. I got in 30 minutes on the elliptical machine for a total of 2.3 miles. I hadn't been on a elliptical since early 2005 when I was in an apartment. It was very different. I was going to head on home after that, but I felt the urge to run since I've only ran once this week. I'd have some nagging knee pain out of nowhere this week, so I've taken it kind of easy. When I got on the treadmill I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked it. Just like the elliptical, I haven't been on a treadmill in a few years and I had really forgotten about that ability to be in control.

I ran 2 miles on the treadmill experimenting with different paces up to 7.5 miles an hour. I had a ton of thoughts running through my head on speed work I can start doing. I also was pleased with how smooth the treadmill felt. Lately I have felt like my body is taking a pounding on the pavement, thus the knee pain I think, so treadmill running will be a welcome break on my joints.

The biggest thing I realized tonight was how important it is to get in good overall shape before I focus on a longer-distance race again. In the past couple of years I have really gotten caught up in just running that I think that it automatically keeps me in shape. Well, 30 minutes on the elliptical machine tonight and a weigh-in on the scale this morning make me realize that I'm not where I want to be. Tonight is a great start on a completely new journey.