1/27/09

Old habits die hard

Okay, I always said that being registered for a race made me run more consistently (okay, pretty much everyone says that). I have discovered that this pregnancy is as motivating as have a race number assigned. I've been more consistent with the miles in the last few weeks than I have been since this summer when I had a 10K on the calendar. As previously mentioned,my doc recommended keeping up with the fitness, and since I know that running will be not-so-comfortable in a few months, I am getting in what I can now.

The job is wicked busy, so I have discovered the joy of the mid-day workout. It's a good stress reliever, and it is nice to not have to worry about it when I get home at the end of the day. My hair looks like ass for the second half of my work day, but my office-ish space is in an area that doesn't have many visitors or passers by. And the people that do stop in are coaches, athletes, trainers, lost students, or our maintenance crew - none of them seem to notice. Also, a new weight room for student-athletes opened up a few weeks ago across the street (paid for with private donations, before anyone gets upset about all the tons of extra cash that college athletic departments have**). I've made friends with the strenght and conditioning coach and he said I can come hop on a treadmill anytime I want. Today I ran my 3 miles while watching some winter condtioning drills with the football team.

I haven't kept any kind of journal up to this point about my pregnancy. I haven't even bought a "what to expect" type book. For one, it's still pretty early and my body is doing all the work, and secondly, I am still having a hard time believing I am knocked up. I have the bloodwork and have even seen the above-posted ultrasound pic. But I have felt (thankfully) so good up to this point and pretty much exactly the same as I did 12 weeks ago. Last night we did notice what I would guess is the first visibly physical indication of this pregnancy. I have always had a freakishly deep belly button. Seriously, it's like an inch deep. My husband calls it the Abyss and makes sound effects of a tiny person falling to his or her death in the never ending depths. Well, it's more shallow now! It actually looks normal. I am thinking of taking a weekly belly button progression picture instead of the weekly full belly progression picture.

So you might be asking what old habit is dying hard. The habit of a training schedule. I can't help but think of actually having a baby as anything but race day. So the only way I can think of handling the next 29 or so weeks is the same way I thought of the marathon training. Perhaps that is naive, but it's how I feel grounded these days.

**If you believe this, you clearly have no clue what things are really like in athletic departments.

2 comments:

My Life said...

Very cute thoughts... love the belly button. It's making me so envious... ;)

I think if I ever get preggo I will be just as OCD about the pregnancy as I am about marathon training. I never thought to equate the two, but I can definitely see where you're coming from... everything from diet, to needed rest, to cross-training, to easy and hard days. The whole, "it's about the journey, not just the destination" can even be put towards pregnancy as well!

Congrats again!

Before I'm 35 said...

Thanks:)

Today I realized I am basically marathon training, but without adding any miles. My schedule just has a bajillion 3 - 4 mile runs on it!