Blog Comes to Life and C25k Begins

I am Phillip Green and this is my blog. This all began tonight after work when I was perusing the web. I found out about a program called C25k (Couch to 5k) that helps you start running. Having battled with my weight for the past few years and finally growing tired of being overweight, I decided to start it.

Right after returning from my very first run ever, I bought a domain and started this blog. Hopefully this will give me motivation to continue running and meet my weight loss goals. Maybe I'll continue to blog about other things alongside C25k or after it. We'll have to see how it goes. This first post is pretty long, so bear with me. I predict that future posts will be much shorter.

I'm not trying to write eloquently. I'm writing as things come to my mind. I'll use contractions. I might favor certain words on specific days. It'll be free flowing.

I'll go in a little further detail about the whole situation for you. About two years ago, June 2009 to be exact, I was a Junior at UofL studying Computer Engineering, I had an awesome relationship with the girl of my dreams, and awesome family, and I was really enjoying life except for one thing...I was severely overweight.

I was unhappy with myself and the way I felt, physically and mentally. My clothes were tighter than I liked. I had trouble breathing. I was always hot. I just never felt good physically. I went through high school hearing the occasional fat joke and was able to brush it off fairly well. I knew I was fat and people were just inconsiderate. The jokes never really bothered me. What I had problems with was being shirtless. I didn't think I looked THAT fat with a shirt on, but when I took it off, I hated the way I looked. When I got to this point, I knew it was time for a change.

My wonderful mother had previously done the Nutrisystem diet with some success, so I looked it up. They send you monthly shipments of food that you simply microwave and eat. You're responsible for some veggies, fruit, and other edible accessories, but the main meals are provided. The cost wasn't outrageous when considering how much my meal plan at UofL was (I was able to get my meal plan waived once I started) and this would be a better substitute in more ways than one. I placed my first order.

I began the diet on July 7th, 2009. On that day, I weighed 318lbs. I stuck to the diet pretty well for a long time. I was losing weight quite rapidly with minimal exercise outside of the occasional round of golf with my dad. Over the course of the next nearly 11 months I had lost over 60lbs. I was feeling good. My belt was on the last hole before I had to buy a new one. I had new shorts that were no longer baggy. My shirts fit comfortably. I could breathe freely. I actually got cold a few times. I was happy with myself.

Then disaster struck. My girlfriend of almost two years ended our relationship in June 2010. It boarded me onto the biggest emotional roller coaster of my life. I hate roller coasters. I wasn't taking this very well. I didn't eat a thing for literally 6 days. When I finally ate something, I ate, and I ate, and I ate. The comfort the food provided me was unreal. I didn't know what to do with myself, so I ate. All the time.

I began to gain weight back, but I didn't care. The food "felt" good. Once I finally got over the whole girlfriend thing, I didn't really stop. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted. I knew I had lost over 60lbs. I didn't notice the pounds packing back on. Then my new clothes didn't fit anymore. I was back to wearing my old clothes and they were tighter than I remembered. I put up with this for a few weeks once I realized I had gained almost all of my weight back, continually telling myself that I had to do something about it.

I got back on Nutrisystem, but it somehow seemed much harder to stick to than before. I found myself deviating for a nice dessert, indulging in sweets I knew I wasn't supposed to eat. I kept telling myself I would work out that night to make up for it. Well, guess what...I didn't.

That all changed tonight after work. I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed, catching up on the events of the past few hours. A friend of mine posted a status: "Just did week 1, day 5 of #c25k with @couch5k!" I googled it. That's the best thing I've done for myself in over a year. It seemed perfect. The plan was good for beginning runners and you could go at your own pace. Then, I watched this video:

It was the inspiration I needed. Ben Davis had already done what I wanted to do. He was heavier than I've ever been. After following this program and losing 120 lbs, he looked like a new man. I want to know what I look like minus 100 lbs. I found out there is an iPhone app for C25k. I bought it with no second thoughts. I added 100 songs to its playlist. I went to the gym.

I got on the treadmill and started Week 1 Day 1. It consists of a 5 minute walking warm-up, then alternating between a 1 minute run and 1.5 minute walk, concluding with a 5 minute walking cool-down. This makes for an approximate 30 minute session in total. Through the first 10 minutes, I was worried. I hadn't run since Mr. Sandifer made us run for 12 minutes in high school. It felt hard at first. My shins hurt. Then I got the the 90 second walk and by the time I had to run again the pain was mostly gone. This cycle continued eight times in total.

All of the sudden, Week 1 Day 1 was complete. I was still alive. I did it. It wasn't that bad, although I did still feel like I was running after the treadmill stopped, and that was pretty weird.

I came back to my apartment and started this blog. I spent an hour or so registering a domain and doing administrative stuff, but after that I just began typing. Here we are. I weigh 315lbs today. That number is about to start dropping.

I feel good. Better than I have felt in awhile. It feels good knowing that I just ran. I hate running. I hope that will change after this. I'm happy. I'm doing something for myself. I want to feel better, in the long run.

This is the start of my journey. I'm not backing down. All it took was a little inspiration.