Friends With The Monsters...

Wow! Ten whole days have passed since I posted last! It's great because that means I've been otherwise occupied. (Sorry, if anyone missed me!) I'm anxious for my evening run right now and need to let off some steam anyhow. 

It's so awesome how I can now eat in peace and know that it's not going to stick to my hips! Honestly, for the first time in my life, I undertook something as intense as running and DID NOT do it for weight loss. I can barely believe that myself but it's true. For as long as I can remember my whole life revolved around weight and now, at 31 years of age, I finally feel free! God is GREAT! The bonus on top of that now is getting the body in the best shape (inside and out) of its life! Jarrod bought some Chinese food the other day and I took out my share. He said, "Here take some more." I was like, "No, I'm good. That's enough for me." Then he goes, "Don't forget you run now!" Woo Hoo! That's true isn't it??? Well I still watch my intake because I'm loving the progress I'm seeing and feeling. Can't imagine doing all that in vain. My used-to-be skinny jeans are now saggy and shapeless. I haven't been on a scale in nearly 6 months now and I couldn't care less. The numbers mean nothing at this point. It's all about how I feel. 

When I started to run, I did it to prove to myself that I could. It's something I avoided my whole life and told myself I was no good at. I am all about breaking through barriers we put up for ourselves now. Life is too short and too sweet to be putting limitations on ourselves. It's been nearly four months now and I must say, I am very proud of myself thus far! There's always room for improvement but I'm a work in progress (yea Jessica Simpson, aren't we all?). I decided to run not only to break out of my own self-captivity but to get out there and into the world of the living. I want to see the people, hear the sounds, feel the breeze, watch the birds flock near the shore. I also want to represent the people who wish they could. Of course it gives me that hour or hour and a half to breathe and think. It's like I'm in a world of my own that's floating inside of this one. It's a great feeling!

I constructed a DIY armband for my phone the other day and it fits well. It was so irritating having to hang on to a sweaty phone the entire time and that also forced me to keep changing songs. Now it stays on the "Workout" playlist and I stay focused. I wonder why my USB cord is freaking out all of a sudden. Behave you! 
I love do-it-yourself'ing! I will try doing some cool torn tops next.

This is what I alternately ended up making so that it had enough stretch.

What I realize is that just like everything else does, we evolve over time. Watching "Naked Castaway" a few months ago shows a good example of this. At first the guy (Ed Stafford) started off lost, lonely, frustrated, starving and afraid. He had no food, no shelter and was totally bare-bottomed in the forest. By the end of the series, this guy was like one with his surroundings. (Okay, well not ONE with but was way more relaxed.)

Between having faith that things would work out and being patient enough to see things through, he started to adapt to his surroundings. Similarly, I am adapting to my routine quite well. I know that soon I'll be running straight out the door and all the way back! I can hardly wait! 

The problem with my phone is solved, that's one down now I need a new headset, and some new running shoes, which I know will come at the right time.  It's all about believing and knowing you will get there. It's about making friends with the monsters that's inside of your head, under your bed and that are holding down your legs. Speaking of monsters... I edited my playlist yesterday and here are some of my favs while on the road: 

Monsters Under My Bed - Eminem/Rihanna
The Devil Is a Lie - Rick Ross
Rich as Fuck - Lil' Wayne 
Tapout - Lil' Wayne/Birdman/Nicki Minaj
Radioactive - Imagine Dragons 
They Call Me Trinity - Franco Micalizzi
Stronger - Kanye West
Road To Zion - Damian Marley/Bobby Brown
Happy - Pharrell Williams 
Royals - Lorde
Now - Paramore
OMG - Usher/Will.I.Am
Shove It - Santigold
Locked Outta Heaven - Bruno Mars

I try to change up songs at least every other week and so these will bore me incredibly by next month. I tend to have a mixture because certain tunes help me to control my speed and rhythm. I am obviously always in need of suggestions so please let me know what music pumps you into action. I wonder why as hard as I try with these blogs, I get no replies or feedback. It can be very discouraging. Although I write mainly to express myself, that's not the only reason. I do it also to share in my experiences as well as to get ideas, suggestions and motivation from others in the same niche (definitely not for money because AdSense is not worth it).  I try to be as consistent as possible but I figure I must not stop on the account of others. As a new runner, I have only my family (household) supporting me, which is great, but I don't need a blog for that now do I? I know that these days plenty people avoiding reading (and I write a lot) and plenty people hate exercise so that's a double-edged sword. There's that voice again saying, "Do it anyway!!!" and so I will!