Decatur: Hello Monday, Meet the March of Death.

Wow, that weekend off sure went by fast. Two days off and here I am back for more on a Monday. Week four. I can't believe it. I can't believe I made it this far.

So, Monday - week four. March of Death. You know it's bad when they give it a somber name. Everything else is named after campers and after some of those, I thought I was going to curl into a ball and just cease to exist. So, when something has the moniker March of Death, you know it's going to be hardcore.

(By the way, during warm-up I jogged two thirds of the track. Yay me! Not very fast, but it was a jog nonetheless. I'm hoping by the end of this six weeks I can jog once all the way around without being sidelined by the shin splints.)

Here's what I read on the blog that morning.
Partner ladders (1-5) of pushup, situp, squat, pushup burpees
March of death – 30 min.
Lunge half of track
Bear crawl or crab walk 1/4 of track
Then, run the rest of the way
Repeat.

Alright, let's go! Partner ladders, I got this. I got an awesome partner in Vanessa who cheered me on all the way. (Who also got major brownie points when she pointed out I looked like I lost some major inches. But more on that later.) Partner ladders are our time to really practice form and a great way to stretch out. I found that my pushups are coming along nicely and much easier than when I first started. My situps could still use some work, but I'm able to do much more of them each session. My squats are getting nice and low and I'm starting to really feel the pull in my legs. I can feel the strength when I push upwards. It's a truly rewarding feelings. I still cant' do a regular pushup burpee, but I do my step back ones and I still feel a great stretch in my arms and the back of my legs. I think my little goal by the end of this session is to be able to do one real pushup burpee. And maybe a regular pushup, no knees down.

Now, it's time for the March of Death. Michelle grins evilly as she explains our path and why the cones looks so far away. She tells me instead of bear/crab walk, I'll do high knee marches. I'm a little disappointed until one of the campers so ably demonstrates both. Yeah, high knee marches, I'll take 'em!

So, we begin. First lap of lunges, and I'm ok. A little tired and I have to stop to stretch that stinking shin splint I discovered, but I make it to the cones okay. High knee marching, I go. Nice and high, I get though it. Now, I jog. That's right. I JOG. Those of you that know me, know I only run if someone's chasing me or there's a zombie attack. Well, there was neither and I jogged. Back to the beginning.

Here comes the lunges again. Wow. Okay, those are kind of starting to hurt. Halfway through the lunges again, I'm hurting again. That shin splint has me on the side stretching and almost crying. Back to the lunges. Michelle is starting to see me struggle and she comes over to talk me through. And she says the one sentence that keeps me going all through the night. "Look at where you were four weeks ago, and look at where you are now. Just getting off the couch and coming here, you've made a huge difference. Everything else is just icing on the cake." Four weeks ago, you'd have never seen me do lunges. Much less jog. So she's right. In four weeks, everything has changed. I'm out DOING something for my body, my brain... for me. And it's making a huge difference in everything I do. That alone keeps me pushing through the rest of the track. I get through the high knee march and I jog AGAIN.

Back to the lunges. Right there I say, I'm going to get through at least three laps if it kills me. Three. I can do three. So, I keep going. I'm faltering left and right on my lunges, I'm so tired and my legs are screaming audibly at me. But I keep going. I slow down to get the form right. Michelle always tells us that this is the most important time to do it right, when you're tired always keep your form. It's not about speed, it's about doing it correctly. I'm thinking if I go any slower, I'm going to be a damn statue. But I keep going. I get to high knee march and I start to go and almost fall over. Okay, baby steps. I'm going to go until the pillar and then rest, then go again. Michele's shouting out time and I see my goal of three just slipping away. I'm not ready to give up. I have to GO. I tell my legs, we have go to go, just get it together. So, I go to each pillar and rest. And I'm THROUGH! Yay! I start to jog and can only get halfway before I break into speed walking. So. Very. Close.

And I made it! There's still time left! Vanessa is by my side. "C'mon, you can do it, I'll do it with you. We'll go until Michelle calls time," she says. Alright, I can do it. I can keep going. But it's slow. I just follow the line on the floor. Just follow that and keep going. So, I do. And I get halfway down the lunge part of the track. And I almost don't hear the sweetest sound I've heard all night. "Aaaaand time, people!" shouts Michelle.

I made it. I did it. I did three laps and a little extra. I competed against myself and I did it. I set my goal and I went further than my goal. Four weeks ago, I would've given up halfway and said I couldn't do it. Today, I KNOW I can do it.

Next time, let's try for five.