Chubby

Today celebrates my two-week anniversary of being in South Africa. In these two weeks, I have found it incredibly frustrating to be female traveler-- not only can I not go out after it starts getting dark [limiting my human interaction to the hours of 8am-4pm while I am at work], but I also can never go on a run. Ever. Not even during the day is it safe for a female to go on a run [I have seen many men running, but I have yet to see a woman engage in physical exercise]. I guess I could find a running partner, except I can't seem to convince anyone that running could be an enjoyable thing. This is actually quite frustrating. I really want to work out. I even am walking distance from a park and a river, but I guess I would rather get fat than raped/mugged/killed... all which has happened at this park in the last few months. :::sigh:::
Another reason I want to work out is due to my incredibly unhealthy cuisine. I live down the street from a grocery store, except everything that I know how to make with my limited cooking facilities [a toaster oven and a portable stovetop that take 20 minutes to boil water] seems to not exist. Like spaghetti sauce. They don't have it. So do I make it out of one of their two options-- tomato paste, or tomato relish? I could make it from scratch, but at the time I was sitting in the grocery store pondering this I had no idea how to off the top of my head, and no way to call my life-line [my mother]. After spending half an hour in the grocery store earlier this week realizing that mutton was in fact lamb meat and not something I could find in the spice aisle, I have given up. I tend to eat potato chips [they have amazing flavors], porridge that claims to be very healthy, lots of yogurt and granola, and plenty of pasta/soup disasters [which I blame on the faulty stovetop]. Oh, and of course candy and the occasional Indian food from Therusha. So... I would argue that the eating habits of these last two weeks have not been the best, especially as I "taste test" the potato chips and candy.
Is it possible to feel plump/chubby/tubby/fatty in just two weeks? Yes. It is. I don't have a scale, so I don't actually know how much I weigh [I would have to convert from kg to pounds, anyway], but I am sure a little bit of it is mental. I just hate being caged in and forced into laziness. Sometimes I do sit-ups on my floor, but now that I am chunky they become increasingly harder, haha.
So, I thought I would fix this issue. On a whim, I have entered myself in a 5K race for this Sunday. Not only have I not exercised in weeks, I have not run this distance in years [since high school-- fall of my senior year which you see pictured]. I am going in nearly cold turkey. I am sure I will not be able to walk the week after, but it will be worth it. It will make up for weeks of lost fitness... and it will be like have 900 other running partners!

I am going to be in the Spar Weekend Witness Ladies Race, which is for women and "confused men." Haha.Although the "confused males" are not eligible for the free t-shirt, the site says, "there is a special prize sponsored by Castle Lager, for the best cross-dressed confused male entrant." So there you go, we are both winners.
From the races I have seen in the US, there is usually a 5K race, and a 2K "fun run." But everything that I have seen here has a 10K race, and a 5K fun run for the children. So I will be running with the children and old people, but I do not mind. It just goes to show how much more distance-oriented Africa is than the US.
Considering my current physical condition, I will be lucky if I finish the race in under 30 minutes. No really people, I am not joking. I started stretching last night in preparation for this race... and that is all. Now, I am going to aim for under 26 minutes, but I am not shoot for the sub-21-minute races that I used to have in high school. I am not a teenager anymore. Wish me luck. :)