Catch me if you can (and trust me, you can)

I've been doing something lately that I never thought I would do. I've been running. And when I say running, I mean without being chased.

Since the beginning of February I've been doing a program called Couch to 5K. As the name implies, it's designed to get you off the couch and ready to run a 5K. I just completely four weeks of the nine-week program and I'm hoping to run the Bloomin' 5k on May 17.

I haven't told many people about my training, mainly because I was afraid I would quit before I got too far. I'm not the most athletic person and moreover, I've never been a runner, even back in my field hockey days. But, for some reason, I felt this was something I should do. Maybe it had something to do with turning 30.

I'm actually pretty proud of myself for sticking with it. I'm a big fan of being able to check things off a list and this lets me do just that. There's only been one workout I couldn't finish -- the first one of week four -- and I went back and did it a few days later. It was a nice sense of accomplishment.

Unfortunately I haven't seen the same progress on the scale. I started back with Weight Watchers at the beginning of January and while I was able to lose about five pounds that month, I've only lost a pound a half since I started running. It's frustrating because I know I'm doing everything right. I just wish the scale would recognize that.

Still, I know I'm healthier and building my endurance. My legs are definitely stronger. I'll never be a fast runner -- an elephant could lap me -- but I'm okay with that. I don't mind if I don't finish a winner; I just want to finish.

Over the weekend I took Buddy and Snoopy for a walk around my parents' neighborhood. The loop is about a mile and a third around and I was practically dragging the dogs behind me by the time I reached the halfway point. It was nice not being the one dragged for once.