Learning to be a runner, weeks 2-3

Week 2 was a bit of a setback – with a chest cold, I couldn't get my lungs to carry me past three-quarters of a mile.

But this week so far is much better. I eked out a mile and a quarter last Friday, but yesterday I did 1.56 miles (that's half of a 5K; it's not just some weird number I picked), and today was the first day I tried to run two days in a row. I extended another tenth of a mile, for no good reason, really.

I'm mixing the running in with other physical activity, for several reasons.

» The easiest reason is I play tennis and softball in organized leagues, and I frequently ride my bike to get places. I'm not going to plan my life around running a couple of miles, making myself drive five blocks to the grocery store if I got on the treadmill at lunch.

» I want my body to understand running as part of group of exercises. If I was going to the gym to do some cardio, I'd hit three, four, five machines, but not the treadmill. Right now, I'm hitting the treadmill, and then doing a sprint on a bike (I've got five miles down to about 11 minutes on about 40% tension over a given pre-programmed course).

» I don't want to get bored, which I do pretty easily.

The local Corporate Challenge is June 24 this year, and I'm hoping to be able to handle it without (a) walking any of it, or (b) having to crawl into the office the next morning.