Tonight was Day 1 of my preparation for the half-marathon. Not sure quite what to do, I thought I’d consult with fitness guru and the spawn of Satan, Jillian Michaels. Several years ago I picked up a book of hers called “Making the Cut”  (not to be confused with the Canadian reality TV show)- despite her fierce delivery, Michaels book is a phenomenal source for everything fitness-related from her designer daily meals to a 30-day gruelling workout routine. When I originally bought the book, I completed the entire workout twice over. Then, as usual, I grew bored of it and it landed in a box. But after two years, it finally made its way back to my Calgary bookshelf and then my gym bag.

The first workout was a mixture of weights, resistance training, yoga (I added this in), jump rope and biking. I was cursing Jillian by circuit 2, but by the last circuit (5) I felt fantastic – knowing full-well that I’ll most likely be sore tomorrow for my 4 mile run. There is something totally satisfying about being able to complete the workout without throwing up – so I must pat myself on the back! I also committed a gym faux pas – I wore grey! I know, I know… you’re not supposed to wear grey because it shows sweat marks, but I’ll let you in on a secret: I was so excited to get this show on the road I didn’t care if people knew I was sweating! I finished the night with a 1o minute bike ride. It was boring. However, I did manage to find someone at the gym who was wearing the Vibram shoes I had recently posted on Facebook. He said they were great and I was happy to hear that you can buy them at Mountain Equipment Coop downtown, so I’ll be making a pit stop down there later this week. But I’m still curious to hear how women like them? I’ve read that if you’re a heel runner it’s extremely hard to adapt. I don’t know much about my running technique other than I’m usually slow and probably not meant to be a runner…

So tomorrow is my first run day. To run with or without the stroller … what should I do?

If you have any training suggestions for me, please share!!