Monday, September 15, 2008, 5:20 PM
Boot Camp
By Kirsten Palladino

Day 22

Today I saw a side of myself that I've never seen before, a determination I didn't know I had within me and an endurance level I didn't know I had gotten to already. I ran more than 5 miles this morning at Operation Boot Camp, and I barely got winded. The two times I walked had to do with muscle cramps in my calves.

When I woke up this morning, I didn't want to go to boot camp. I didn't want to get out of bed. I knew it was going to be a cardio day, as that's been the pattern for Mondays so far. Of course, I didn't even notice that until Melanie pointed it out last week. So this morning, I knew it was going to be rough and I was so incredibly sleepy and unmotivated. But the accountability factor plays very strong with me, and so I reluctantly rolled out of bed like an elderly slug, all the while trying to figure out ways to skip working out. It was no use though; I was going. On the drive there, I gave myself a mental lecture that I was going to do a good job today and that it wasn't going to be anything like last Monday's torturous suicides, but I didn't believe myself. How sad is that?

Once we were all checked in and log books read (and I didn't get in trouble for my two beers over the weekend), Ramsey announced we should stretch now since we'd be doing a "long run" today. That was it. No "we're going to run you ragged for five miles and 53 minutes." Just a "long run." Well, there was no escaping now. I had to do it.

I started out slow and kept up that pace for the entire run. I knew I'd wear myself out if I tried to go fast, so I jogged along at a comfortable pace, usually at the back of the line. Sometimes the front of the pack would circle back to me and I'd be in the lead, but not for long. We ran the outer parameters of the park and some asphalt inlets, too. Street lamps lit our way as we slapped our rubber soles on sidewalks alongside the few folks driving to work at this ungodly hour. We trudged uphill (this is where I walked), but mainly the terrain was flat and doable. I hate to toot my own horn, but I did really well for my fitness level. I couldn't believe how well I was doing except for the fact that I was, indeed, doing well. A far cry from my sad attempt to run a mile on Day 1. And I'm most confident I'll beat my 15:33 time on Friday when we're tested for the second and last time.