Fit-by-25 Fitness Plan and Finally Being Adopted

Many moons ago, former roomie and good friend Kate and I made a pact: we would get "fit" (by our own definitions) by the time we turned 25. Since her birthday is in January, I said our joint deadline could be my later July birthday. Which, by the way, is now less than 2 months away.

I made a whole scheme of how I was going to get fit, planning on active things I would be able to do in Tsushima, and creating detailed strength-training workout plans. Of course then I actually got to Tsushima, got slammed by the level of heat that makes you sweat even when lying prone and unmoving on the floor, and shelved all exercise intentions until a more accomodating climate came along. When fall came along, I got out a lot more to explore, and that has pretty much kept me moving and busy for 3 years. It's shocking how many hidden-away paths and parks and little scenic resting spots there are around here, and I love finding new ones.

I've flirted with running-- a 5K at the tail end of my first year and a 10K that fall-- and have hiked alot, too. I've fallen off, jumped back on, and again fallen off the strength-training bandwagon. But today I made a bigger commitment to the larger goal of Fit By 25.

I signed up for a half-marathon.

...which, to the unaware, is 13.1 miles, or something like 21 kilometers and change. It's a hellofa distance by any measuring system.

I've actually been training for the half-marathon since February-- quite tentatively at first, but still running. I hadn't completely made up my mind to do it until today, however, mostly because the race (part of the Kokkyo Marathon, probably Kamitsushima's biggest event all year) has a time limit: if you don't complete the half-marathon in 3 hours, then you get picked up by the Bus of Shame. The loser-bus. I so did not want to be on that bus.

...eventually I decided, though, that even if I end up getting picked up by the Bus of Shame, I will still have run for 3 hours, which is a major accomplishment. And given my current running times, if all goes well I should be able to finish on time. The longest I've run so far is 10 miles, which I completed this past Sunday in 2 hours and 3 minutes... not setting any records, certainly, but given the hilly/mountainous terrain around here, I think that's doing pretty good.

Running has helped me to de-stress a bit about my upcoming move (many sad farewells to come) and start of a graduate program this fall. It's also had some other effects.

I'd been wondering lately, during some of those morning fuzzy moments between sleep and full awareness in front of the bathroom mirror, if running was taking some of the weight off my butt. ~I~ think it's gotten a bit smaller. And I wouldn't mention this, really I wouldn't, if someone else hadn't mentioned the same thing earlier today.

By "someone else," I mean a naked obaachan (old woman) at the public bath. She knows that I've been running because everyone knows that I've been running (small town... it only takes a couple of days out running before everyone knows about it), and said that while it seems to have firmed up my bum, other areas of my body could use similar work. Of course she would have had a full opportunity for perusal of my body during my time in the bath, but this conversation happened in the changing room. I was covered in snuggly pjs, trying to fix my hair sans comb which got left at home, when this obaachan came out of the bath. She pinched my back and hip to ensure full understanding of what body parts she meant, then proceeded to walk-- slowly, one foot in front of the other, arms raised to engage shoulders, in a naked old woman runway-show parody-- down a line in the floor, commenting on how walking in that manner would firm up those troublesome areas in no time.

It was kind of funny, kind of cute, kind of.. well, distinctly bossy, I-know-what's-right-for-you-because-I-have-decades-of-experience, Japanese obaachan. (see my "Obaachan Manifesto" blog from way back when for more explanations of obaachan behavior). But perhaps more than all of that, it was endearing. She was so unabashedly unashamed and absolutely adorable. And she really did want to help.

I can only imagine what my mom is thinking reading this; from an America perspective, if a naked old woman who you don't know came up to you, pinched parts of your body, and asked you to walk behind her.. well, you'd think they were mentally deranged.

But within the Japanese small-town onsen context, I think it's kind of acceptable. And her efforts really touched me because it felt like I was finally a part of this crazy community-- here, she seemed to say, I'll help you get in shape because you're already trying so hard. Because you're one of us. Because you should be out there, swinging those hips as you walk and being horribly girlishly cute, not wrapped up in flannel plaid pajamas at 7 PM like us obaachans.

I've been adopted by these insane onsen obaachans, and I love it.