Last Day of Swim Class!!

As of this morning, I finished up my four weeks of swim classes.  I started the class four weeks ago absolutely dreading it, but now, I can say that I really learned a lot about swimming and even kind of enjoyed it.  Swimming is by far the hardest workout that I have attempted.  First of all, getting into a pool (even indoors) is hard to do when it is 25-30 degrees outside.  Then, after the cold wears off, you have to learn to breathe (in through the mouth, out through the nose) the exact opposite of how you are taught to breathe when running.  For someone of my low-skill level, this is extremely difficult. And after all of that, then you have to learn how to kick, turn, and increase your endurance all at once.  I must say that I have a new found respect for anyone that is a competitive swimmer.  It is just hard, but guess what?  I will be right back in the pool early tomorrow morning!

However, looking back, I do remember when I had to push myself to walk/run just one mile or I could only make it through part of a spinning class because my butt hurt so bad.  I was always sore from something and would wonder what the hell I was doing to myself.  I guess what I am saying that it goes to show that first impressions aren't always the most accurate.  I can't imagine where I would be today if I had just quit running because my knees and feet hurt after a short walk.  Or what I would be doing with my life if I hadn't pushed myself to finish a full spinning class no matter how bad my butt hurt from that "tiny" seat.

My dad always told me that it was better to just finish what you started and not be a "quitter," and I guess that type of mentality has always helped push me a little further than I thought I could go.  There are even times when I am exhausted and running up a big hill toward the end of a long run and I say in my head, "don't walk, don't stop until until you reach the top, then decide if it is time to walk."  Every time I say that to myself, I never stop running.  It just goes to show that decisions to quit shouldn't be made in haste or when it "gets tough." I have learned if you can push yourself through the hard, then it makes you a stronger person. It strengthens your will to do better and be better.

This is just a little of my 34 year-young wisdom that I thought I would share this evening. Again, this is just my opinion, but there are times that I really don't want to run, bike, swim, or workout, but I say to myself "just start it, just get dressed and start it."  Inevitably, if I do that, I always end up pushing myself harder than I thought, just because I want to get the "I don't want to" thought out of my head.  Maybe it's just me or who I have become, but it works, and works every time.

Anyway, it is the last weekend before Christmas so I hope that everyone has finalized their shopping! If not, good luck at the malls!  Haha. Until next time.

As always, trying not to quit, and running...