It's That Most Blah and Funky Time of Year.

Funky as in predisposed to bring on a funk.

It's also the time of year to start a new exercise program, right?  Unless of course you are a responsible type and exercise all year long.  I suppose you can read, too, but, well, forgive me if I don't offer you much.  My post is for the regular sort of us.  Those of us who struggle to stay motivated.

I've tried tickers and they worked until the novelty wore off.  Actually they worked very well for me for quite awhile.  But at some point, the inertia holding me in place outweighed (yes a pun) the desire to move that ticker.   So I've been considering since Christmas time a variety of motivational options.  I tend to hibernate during these long northern Minnesota winters if I don't have some sort of motivation.  Hibernation may be good for bears and skunks, and a variety of other mammals.  And I do think winter is a good time to slow down and refocus.  However,for me, too much of it can easily become a rut from which it is hard to climb out come spring.

Two of Joe's cousins are considering running a 5Ktogether.  I've always wanted to do one.  I ran cross-country during one of my college stints, but I've never run an "official" 5K..  During a facebook interchange on exercise, Joe's cousin, Steph, mentioned the possibility of me joining them.  When I answered with some amount of interest, my sister, Sara, recommended the Couch to 5K program.

The claim of the program: "to get just about anyone from the couch to running 5 kilometers or 30 minutes in just 9 weeks

Basically, it's a training program that is mapped out for you using the idea of alternating in small intervals, between brisk and slow movement, and sustaining this pattern for the duration of the workout.  The rate of fast to slow intervals gradually increases over a period of weeks.

But here's what I really like about this.  Many people have done this.  And because the internet is such an amazing place to share all sorts of information, these people have created all sorts of downloadable materials to which you can listen while you work out.  Many will tell you or indicate by a change in music style, when to slow down and when to speed up.  There are apps for phones and Christian themed podcasts; there are blank ones that just tell you when to switch your pace, and to which a more technologically inclined person than I can apparently add his or her own choice of listening material.

I like the look of this Podrunner: Intervals site.  It apparently includes musical cues to tell when to change pace.  The author has several varieties of plans depending upon whether you want to work toward a 5k, an 8K, a 10k or just bump up your pace. The accompaniments are based upon a certain number of beats per minute.

Now all I need is an mp3 player.  I did finally splurge and buy one when Louisa went to Hawaii.  She was supposed to read Great Expectations for school and was afraid she would not be able to muddle through it.  Since I am such an indulgent parent, (I'd get a major eye-roll at at that one) I allowed her to download it to listen to on the plane.  But since her mp3 player had been confiscated awhile ago, I bought one (for myself, with the winter exercise season in mind) and allowed her to borrow it. 

Unfortunately, it seems to have disappeared into the heaps of stuff I have waiting fro me to get to.  She says she gave it back and I have no reason to doubt her word...

Maybe if I just get up and start sorting all my heaps, I wouldn't need a training g program.  I'd probably get a pretty good workout, just dong that.