Exercise is my medicine for stress.

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Hello once again. It's Brad H. writing once again. Hope all is good and well with everyone. It's been a couple of weeks since I've updated my blog, so now is the perfect time to do so. You may wonder why is not a perfect time? Well it's simple, I've been dealing with some stressful things as of late. As a matter of fact, I'm still dealing with a few of them. I've been doing a lot of praying and thinking about certain things in my life. I know that certain elements are out of my control, so I know that I must take care of the things that I'm able to. That's all a part of being a responsible individual, which is something that I strive to be.

So since I've been had stressful things going on in my life, you may wonder how have I been coping besides prayer etc. I've been coping with stress by doing what I already do on a regular basis; working out, and exercising. I've mentioned this before, but exercise and fitness has become my medicine for stress in my life. It's something about going for a jog when I have a lot on my mind that makes me feel free. It's one of those explainable feelings I guess. Before today I hadn't been running since last Saturday. I made it a priority to go out and do some running this evening. Usually my first jog of the week is a light run but since I had things on my mind, I went a bit harder. The only bad thing that came out of it was that I wasn't able to clock my time. My timer on my phone went out around the 14 minute mark.

I challenge anyone who reads this post to do some form of exercise when you are feeling down about life. I guarantee that you will feel better afterwards. I know I did after I finished up my run. It was cold outside, but my face was dripping with sweat by the time I made it back home. We as a people cope with our problems in different ways. As long as it's a constructive and positive things we're doing, I'm all for it. We don't have to drink and drug our problems away. Exercise will continue to be my medicine when I'm stressed or having things going on in my life. It's gives me the confidence to face my problems head on. Well that's it for this time. I'll be writing soon again. Till then peace, love and blessings to all.

Top Five Hip Hop Albums I've Heard for 2011

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Top Five Hip Hop Albums I've Heard for 2011

This is an article I wrote on my top five hip hop albums from this year. Hope you enjoy.

I'm a "Couch to 5k Graduate". Week 9 review.

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Hello once again. It's your boy Brad H. coming back at you once again. Well we have finally reached the end of my journey to finish the Couch to 5k running program. After 9 weeks of doing the program, I am happy to say that I am officially a graduate of the C25K running program. My final run of the program took place yesterday on 12/3/2011. Now that I think about it, I completed the program on the day of my ex-girlfriend's birthday. Isn't that something lol? I am going to give a brief review of how the final week went.

My day 1 run took place on Tuesday at the park. I knew that I had a 5 minute warm-up walk followed by 30 minutes straight of running. I kept telling myself that I only had two extra minutes to run, since week 8 were 28 minute runs. Day 1 was challenging, but as I progressed into the run I felt stronger. When the podcast told me that I had about a minute left, I picked up the pace to reach the 3 mile marker at the park. It was hard, but I was able to do it. I felt a great sense of accomplishment. The last time I ran three miles straight was in 2008. I was so excited, that I thought I had graduated already. The way the podcast was talking, I thought I was completely done with the program. However, when I got back home and looked on the website, I found out that I had two more days left. I definitely got ahead of myself lol.

Day 2 took place on a Thursday. Instead of running at the park, I decided to run the streets around where I live. This is always challenging because the terrain changes. There are a few small hills involved, which is a good thing since it makes it harder. Now day 2 was a special day. This was the day that I knew for a fact that I was going to graduate. For some reason I felt really good running this day. I didn't feel as winded as day one, my legs felt stronger, and as corny as this may sound; I felt like a superhero. I finished up day 2 strong, and even ran about 30 seconds extra. I was excited knowing that I only had one day left before becoming a graduate of the program.

Now onto the third and final day. Like I mentioned earlier in this post, I done this run yesterday. This day was a bit different since I decided to record various points of my run. If any of you have been following my Youtube channel, you know that I have been documenting my progress on the program. I recorded the beginning of my run, the 15 minute mark, and the final minute. Day 3 was more challenging than day 2, but I finished up, and thus I officially became a graduate of the Couch to 5k running program. There were no words to express the joy that I felt inside. I knew that I could complete the program, but I didn't think that I would be able to do 3 miles in just two months. This program definitely works.

For anyone interested in doing the C25K running program, trust the program. There will be times where you may feel like you can't run the required distance, but you can do it. This program will not put more on you than your body can handle. It's been a journey that I almost hate to see end. However, there was a nice lady on the Couch to 5k Facebook page who told me that graduating from the program is just the beginning of more challenges. I'm definitely going to keep those words in mind. As of right now, I am going to continue running. I don't know if I will be doing three miles on a regular, but I am thinking about writing out my own program. I plan on participating in my first 5k race in March, so I have a few months to get ready for that. The C25K program definitely helped me. It has given me the confidence that I had lost in running. It allowed me to know that I am capable of anything if I push myself. Anything can be overcome with a strong will and mind. That can be applied to life in general.

Well that's it everyone. This will probably be my last post on the Couch to 5k running program. I thank the people who took the time read read and follow my journey. I will keep you all updated on my running ventures, and if I participate in the race that I'm aiming for. I also want to thank everyone on the Couch to 5k Facebook page. There are a lot of inspiring and kind people who gave me much encouragement. Also thanks to anyone on Youtube who posted their journey on the program. That inspired me as well. Well till next time, peace, love and blessings to everyone. I'm out!

Couch to 5k, Week 8 review.

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Hey what's up everyone? It's Brad H. coming back at you again. I hope that everyone had a wonderful and grateful Thanksgiving Day. No matter what is going on in our lives, I'm sure we all have something to be thankful for. Tonight's blog post is another C25K post. If you read my last post, you know that last week was the 8th week of the program. You also know that I went out of town for Thanksgiving, and I was wondering if I would be able to find somewhere to run at while away. After all, I've come too far along on this journey to fall short now. Here is my review of week 8 of the Couch to 5k.

Week 8 of C25K had three days of the same length of runs. Like everyday of the program, it had a 5 minute warm-up walk. A 28 minute run followed, followed by a 5 minute cool down walk. Day 1 of Week 8 began for me on Wednesday morning, the day before Thanksgiving. I meant to run that Tuesday before, but I had to go get my sister from college. I was tired from the drive, not to mention it was dark by the time I made it back. Since I was leaving for Thanksgiving Wednesday, I woke up at 6:15 to run. My sister was supposed to go run with me, but she decided to sleep in. I knew that she would sell me out lol. I went to the track and put in my run. This was the first day of the program where I ran in the morning. It was another challenging run, but I was able to complete it. There was a guy out there running as well, so that gave me even more motivation. I came back home, finished packing, ate breakfast, showered up, and then got the highway with the family.

Day 2 took place on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. I was out of town for Thanksgiving for 3 days total. I knew that if I wanted to stay on track with the program, I would have to run at least one day out of the three. I asked my godmother and her husband where there any local tracks or parks. To my delight, they informed me that there was one a few miles from them. The night before I went, my godmother's husband rode with me and showed me where it was. The next morning, my sister and I went to the park he showed me the previous night. The name of the park was Veteran's Park. It's located in Ft. Worth, Texas. There were a few people out there walking, which is always encouraging. My sister did a bit of running, but she walked most of the track. The track was about a mile long in total. I got started on my 28 minute run. It was a cold morning, but the running quickly turned it hot for me. I tried to resist looking at my timer on the podcast, but with about 5 minutes left I did. The reason I don't like to look at the timer is because I feel I will slow down on purpose to make the time go faster. After 28 minutes, I was done. It was a great feeling for me to be able to run even while I'm out of town. It let me know that I am truly dedicated to this program.

The third and final day of week 8 took place yesterday evening. I left the house around 5 p.m., and got my run in. On this day I didn't look down at the timer at all. It seemed to make the run go faster also. Out of the three days of week 8, this felt like the easiest day. After finishing, I felt a great sense of accomplishment. I am officially on the 9th and final week of the Couch to 5k running program. Three more days, and I will become a graduate. The final week is 30 minute runs, which means that I'll be running an extra 2 minutes. After posting my accomplishment on the Couch to 5k Facebook page, a fellow member replied saying; "Week 9 isn't much different than week 8". As much as I'm ready to be done with this program, I almost hate to see it end.

Well that's it for this post everyone. Hopefully next time I write, I will officially be a C25K graduate. I know that I'm capable, and I won't allow myself not to finish, especially after coming this far. Till next time take care everyone, and stay up and stay healthy. Peace, love and blessings to all.

The Foreign Exchange: Connected (2004) Album Review

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The Foreign Exchange: Connected (2004) Album Review

Review of week 7 of Couch to 5k.

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Hello once again world. It's ya boy Brad H. coming back at you again. As always I hope this reaches everyone in great health and spirits. This blog post is another review of the "Couch to 5k" running program that I'm currently doing. If you read my last post, you know that I finished up week 6. I'm happy to report that I finished week 7 of the program yesterday. I am officially on week 8 now, and after this week, I only have one more week to go. It has definitely been a journey so far. It's a journey that I'm loving also.

Week 7 was another challenging week. However, unlike the last few weeks, all the runs were the same for each day of the week. Each day started out with a five minute warm-up walk as always. A 25 minute run followed. Again there was no walking during the run. The first day of week 7 was extremely challenging. This was the day that I ran in the neighborhood. The main difference between the neighborhood and the park is that there slight hills in the neighborhood. As you may know, running up hills make running more challenging. I struggled on this day, but I was able to finish and get it done. Upon finishing, I felt very confident that I could complete the rest of the week. My day 2 run took place at the local park. After doing my five minute warm-up walk, I got into the run. It was hard starting out, but I would say 10 minutes into the run I was good. It was also encouraging seeing other people running while I was there running also. I finished up strong, and I was surprised at how good I was feeling following my run.

I done day 3 of week 7 on yesterday, which was a Sunday. It was again another tough day. It took me a few minutes to get started up and into my groove. It was also a bit warmer this day than previous days, so that definitely played a factor. Again I was able to push through it and get it done. I felt a lot of relief when the guy on the podcast said I only had a minute left to go. I dug deep and continued to push. My face was covered in sweat afterwards, but once again it was a great feeling finishing. We are officially on week 8 now. I don't know what this week will include since I have yet to download the podcast. I know it's going to be tough, but I'm ready for the challenge. The only issue this week for me will be that I'm going out of town for Thanksgiving. I will be gone 3 days, so I will need to find somewhere to run on one of those days. Hopefully I will be able to find somewhere to do that. Well that's it for tonight's post. If you don't hear back from me before Thanksgiving, I want to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you all enjoy, and I hope to be writing you again soon. Till then peace love and blessings to all.

Couch to 5k. Review of week 6.

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Hello once again. It's Brad H. writing again, and this is Brad H's Perspective. Hope everyone is doing great and enjoying life. I had been meaning to write this blog post several day ago, but we all know how life sometimes gets in the way of us doing things. However, I'm back again, and this is another C25K blog post. The last time I wrote regarding my progress on C25K was on November 7th. I had officially finished up week 5 of the program. Week 6 for me took place last week. First there was day 1 of week 6. This day had a 5 minute warm-up walk, followed by 5 minutes of running. Then there was a 3 minute walk, followed up by 8 minutes of running. Finally there was another 3 minute walk, which was followed by a final 5 minute run. Then of course there was the 5 minute cool down period. Day one was another challenging day. However, it was a bit more easier than day 3 of week 5. With that said, we got it done and went onto day 2 of week 6.

Day 2 of week 6 was another cold and challenging day of running. It consisted of a 5 minute warm-up walk. Then there were two 10 minute runs with a 3 minute walk in between them. Those were followed up by a 5 minute cool down. After putting in the work and effort, I was able to finish this day up strong. One thing I want to point out is that I like running in the cool compared to the heat. However, the cool air always gives me a running nose while I'm running. I never had that problem when I was breathing entirely through my mouth back in the day. When I run now, I breathe entirely through my nose. I'm going to have to do some research on breathing techniques that would suit me.

Finally, there was day 3 of week 6. I knew for a fact that this was going to be the most challenging day of all the weeks up to this point. This day had the usual 5 minute warm-up walk, followed by a 25 minute run. NO WALKING! I almost didn't go running on this day. I left the house and started my warm-up walk, but I noticed dark clouds in the sky. I figured I could beat the rain, but I started feeling sprinkles coming down. I decided to head back to the house. While heading back, the guy on the podcast announced it was time to run. I said to myself I might as well go for it. I mean what's the worst that can happen other than getting a bit of rain on me? So I got into the run, and a few minutes into it I knew that it was going to be tough. I had to reach deep inside of my spirit and soul to continue going. When the guy announced that I 4 minutes left, I was relieved. I kept pushing forward at a comfortable pace, and I was able to finish the 25 minutes of nonstop running. Definitely a great feeling afterwards.

So now that I'm done with week 6, we are onto week 7 now. I'm going to do day 1 of week 7 later on today. I believe that week 7 is 25 minute runs the entire week. I haven't downloaded the podcast yet, so I'll know for sure then. I know it's going to be challenging, but I'm up for the challenge. Another thing I want to mention. If you are interested in following my journey, check out my Youtube channel. I can be found at http://www.youtube.com/user/prospectboy?feature=mhee. I've been making videos on my progress, so that's another way to see my journey. Well that's it for now. I will definitely be writing soon on my C25K journey. Hope you all keep staying tuned. Till then, peace love and blessings.