Are You a Boy or a Girl?

Today, I went out and did Day 2 of Week 5 of the Couch to 5k program. I ran for 8 minutes straight. Twice. Woo! I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but, the program started out with me running for 1 minute straight. So I'm doing 8x better, yes?

Anyways, when I was doing my "brisk warmup walk," I passed a bunch of little kids who were playing outside. One of the little boys (who was probably 6 or 7) yelled over at me, "are you a boy or a girl?" I was a bit stunned. But, then I thought about it, and I realized that, with my short hair, no earrings, baggy T-shirt, etc, it could be something a little kid would question.

However, my pride was a bit wounded (I think memories of being teased for having a "boy's name" were triggered). I thought of saying something absurd back like "neither." But, then I decided to say "I'm a girl, what are you?" The little boy seemed pretty stunned that I had to ask him what he was. Point made.

Then, the little boy's little sister (I assume) started repeating, "Are you a boy or a girl? Are you a boy or a girl?" over and over. So, I kept on walking.

I'm not sure why I felt the need to share that. I guess it just shows you how society/parents shape their children's perception of things like gender and sexuality. Short hair= masculine, etc.

I'd like to get to the point where people make ZERO assumptions based on silly things like hair length, personal style, etc. I think we have a really, really long way to go.

Couch to 5k

I haven't been nearly as good about exercise since Chris left for his internship; I think it's just been hard for me to keep my habits of stress-eating and depressed-eating at bay. Plus, I've been quite busy!

Anyways, I think part of it is that I've been in need of a new routine or direction. I thought about doing all 30 days of the Jillian Michaels 30-Day Shred DVD... but, honestly, I have done that workout DVD SO MANY times that I think I'll be too bored to really get through the whole thing. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love that DVD, and I think it's incredibly effective. I just don't want to do it for 30 days straight.

So, I decided that I'm going to try a Couch to 5k program. It's a running/walking program that starts off very slowly and builds up to a 3-mile run. And it's supposed to be done 3 days per week, which is totally doable. I've never really enjoyed running, but I think that has to do with the fact that I always try to run too fast right off the bat. Plus, I have a knee that has some issues, so I just need to take things slowly and build up to running quickly.

I recently did my first day of the program, and I felt AWESOME afterwards. It was 25 minutes total, with a warmup walk, and then alternating between jogging and walking. Of course, when I did it, it was like 90 degrees outside, but I'd like to think that some of the sweat had to do with the hard work :)

So, hopefully the fact that I decided to tell the blogosphere about my plan will keep me accountable. I'm hoping to incorporate some of the Jillian Michaels DVDs into my week on the non-couch-to-5k days, so we'll see how that goes.

What are you all doing to keep fit? Do you have any tips for me to help me get used to running? Has anyone else tried the Couch to 5k program?