Good morning! I’m back with another guest post. This one is kind of cool because Stephanie and I went to HIGH SCHOOL together… crazy, right?! We hadn’t connected in YEARS, but when she reached out to me to guest post on my blog I was thrilled! I’m always happy to see when people make the switch to start working out and adding in more activity and healthy lifestyle changes to their lives. Stephanie’s story is great because it shows you that if you put your mind to something, you can achieve it!

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Hi Everyone! I’m Stephanie and by day I am a Special Needs Teacher and by evening I blog at Fortnight by Day in which I feature local finds and races near my area of Durham, North Carolina. I am originally from Waterboro, Maine where Monique and I both attended high school together. I am so excited to be sharing my running journey today with you on Burpees to Bubbly.

My Journey

My journey with running started in 2010 when I was at my heaviest weight of 206 lbs. which is very heavy for my 5’4” height. I had just moved into a new roommate’s house and one night over dinner she began talking about her upcoming training plan for a half marathon. I am a big fan of plans and had never done a race before but thought that if I could follow a plan I would be able to accomplish this very lofty goal while also getting into better shape than I was, so  the next day I signed up for the Raleigh City of Oaks Half Marathon and began training.

At first I couldn’t even run a quarter of a mile without walking, so attempting to do 13 miles seemed like a very impossible dream, but I ran almost every day for at least 30 minutes and after the first 2 weeks I was running 3 miles straight. I was able to stick to a very consistent training plan and ended up walking/running the half marathon as well as dropping 40lbs in 4 months. I don’t think I would ever suggest doing this lofty goal to anyone, and that is why I am glad someone was wise enough to start the Couch to 5k program.

Couch to 5K

Fast forward almost five years later and I haven’t run 3 miles straight in many years. Although I have been able to keep most of the weight off, I still can’t just go out and just run. When I run 3 times a week I love it and I know that I love running, but when it starts to taper off is when I lose motivation to get back on track.

I heard about the Couch to 5k program from my mom who was running because she was inspired by the weight that I had lost. (Nothing more awesome than inspiring a person who inspires you.) (<— B2B addition- OMG she is so right! Part of the reason why I love blogging and teaching so much is that I can connect to people that inspire me and hopefully I can in turn inspire others! Great point, Stephanie!) I have been doing the Couch to 5k for a few weeks now and I love the program because you start out running for only a few seconds. And, at first you think phew this is easy I’ve got this and then pretty soon you are running a mile straight and you can’t believe that you got, there but you did.

I also like from previously being able to run many miles at a time, that with the walking and running I am able to use different muscles which tires me out less and less. I enjoy that the program makes you do a warm up/cool down and tells you when you are half way there. It is a great motivational boost that I am almost done.

I am really enjoying the program so far and am looking forward to running my 5 miles at the end of the month. If you would like to check out my progress of Couch to 5k or what I am blogging about please feel free to check out my blog at: fortnightbyday.com.

Questions for you: How have you started back with running? Have you used similar programs to Couch to 5k? How did it go? I would love to hear what you liked/didn’t like about the program!

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Thank you so much for sharing your story, Stephanie, and for letting people know that no matter where you are right now, you can always start something new.