What will I do in 2009?

Hmmm... Putting stuff like this out on the web really makes you think.  It will be out in the ether of the internet for years to come.  My grandkids may find it in a digital archive sometime and ask my kids if I got it all done.  I learned from all the coaches I have had over the years that it is better to have a few rules and stick to them than to try to cover every situation with a written rule.  I am going to take that same approach to my goals for 2009.  I have a few goals that I am determined to achieve.  If I reach those, most of the smaller ones I have will be accomplished in the process.  I'm watching David Letterman as I write this, so a 'top 10 goal list' seems appropriate.

So, here is an attempt to list them.  I plan on checking my progress at the end of each quarter so I'll revisit these no matter what the results are.

1. Get my 26.2 sticker.  I have crossed most of the standard distances in races in 2008.  2009 will be the year I get the big one.  I am scheduled to run the Myrtle Beach Marathon on Valentines Day.  I am not setting a time goal for this, just getting the medal will be enough.
   
2. Set a PR in the 5K and 10K distances.  Once the marathon is complete, I hope to recover quickly enough to PR in these two distances before the heat of the summer is upon us.
3. Race every month of the year.  This year I started in March and missed July and December.  With my limited Clemson education, I was able to calculate that I missed 4 months.  
4. Complete 5 events that are 10 miles or longer.
5. Run a race out of the state of South Carolina.
6. Complete the requirements for the Tri-Running Series T-Shirt.
7. Place in my age group in a race.  (I guess I need to find a real small race with no 40-44 year olds)
8. Run 1200 miles during the year.
9. Continue my yoga classes.
10. Maintain my Weight Watchers Lifetime status.

Potential Races:

1/3 - Resolution Run 1/2 Marathon (registered)

2/14 - Myrtle Beach Marathon (registered)

3/7 - Reedy River Run 10K

3/21 - Shamrock Fun Run 5K

3/28 - Race for the Inlet 5K @ Myrtle Beach

3/28 - Milliken Earth Run 5K

4/4 - Cooper River Bridge Run 10K

4/25 - Greer 5 Miler

5/8 - GHS 5K

5/16 - Easley Lions Club 5K

6/13 - Sunrise Run 8K

July - Need help.. I'll be at the beach over the 4th....

August - Midnight Flight 10K

9/18 - BMW 2 Miler (A real fun race)

10/25 - Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC (Don't know if I can handle 2 in one year)

10/31 - Spinx Runfest (1/2 or full..... Hmmmm)

November - Lungs for Life 5K, Taylors Turkey Trot

December - Paris Mountain Road Race

So, if I can fill out July, I should have lots of opportunities to run.  I need to find some 10 Milers or Half Marathons to fit in there to get my 5 distance race goal.

I think it is a pretty aggressive schedule, but one that I should be able to attain.  My guess is that I will focus on the 1/2 marathons and 10 milers after I complete my marathon.  I just can't imagine being able to devote the time needed for training again.

What are your goals for 2009?

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Small addition:  I would like to do another Sprint-Triathlon in 2009, especially if I can score a road bike beforehand....

Blog alert...

2009 goals are being drawn up now...  (Thanks Megan).  Give me any suggestions now or else I'll have to do this on my own....

16 miles yesterday...

Yesterday was a great day for running.  It was overcast with mist/rain during a lot of my run.  I plugged away and got my 16 miles in despite having a less than stellar day of fueling and hydration on Saturday.  The 16 miler was supposed to be next Sunday, but I went ahead and ran it because of the half marathon I am running this coming Saturday.

It was the furthest run of my training cycle so far and it felt pretty good.  I think I could have gone 18 if I had to.  Because of the rain, I wore an older pair of shoes.  I think that I would have felt even better if I had been in my new shoes.  

I tried a Roctane and a regular GU during the run and I seemed to stomach them OK.  I will probably keep experimenting during the next few long runs to see what I like best and how much of it I can tolerate.  

I did 1.25 miles on a track during the run and that was OK.  I also had a loop that I doubled up on.  I didn't mind it as much as I thought I would, although I am going to try and find a route that doesn't have any repeat loops in it for my next long run.  The rest of this week is pretty easy as I go 6 miles tomorrow and 7 miles on Thursday.  I was supposed to do 6 on Friday, but with the half on Saturday I'll probably skip that run.

One other note, I did the long run without my iPod.  I ran for 2 hours and 45 minutes with nothing in my head except for my own thoughts.  For those of you that know me, that is pretty scary!

Christmas day is in the rearview mirror, time to focus on training...

Christmas was really great.  I know Christmas is great with little kids, but as ours get a little older it is a nice change too.  They still love their presents, but they enjoy family a little more too.  They also can handle a day of celebration without naps and tantrums!!

I got a great pair of running tights that I was not expecting.  That was a great surprise, I hope it actually gets cold enough to need them.  Although, I must admit that an early spring wouldn't bother me either.  Another great surprise was that the tights were actually too big!  I loved that and didn't mind going downtown to exchange them today.  In fact, we spent a good portion of the day out running errands.  We avoided going into the mall even though we had to circle it to get to some stores on the perimeter.  

I got Lee a cool Timex Ironman watch that also controls you iPod.  She wants a Garmin eventually, but wanted a watch with interval timing for now.  I priced it at two stores for $100 to $130, so I was about to just buy her the Garmin.  Then I went to Costco and they had the exact same watch for $29.  That left enough in the budget to get her a new pair of Nikes that she wanted.

Now it is time for me to really focus on training.  I got in 6.5 today, though I didn't do speedwork.  I am skipping tomorrow and and running 16 on Sunday.  I am switching this week and next week so that I can get the Resolution Run 1/2 Marathon in next Saturday.  I am going to run it at a comfortable 9:30 pace (hopefully) and use it as a workout.  My coach/buddy Allan is going to pace me on it.  That will be a nice slow run for him as he gets ready to try and BQ at the Houston marathon 2 weeks later.

One other thing, my Nike Air Zoom Structure Triax +11's are still the bomb.  I can't believe how great they feel and I am having a hard time rotating them.

Great day for a run and oh yeah, Merry Christmas!!....

Today was perfect running weather, at least until the rain started.  I got out early for some last minute shopping and got home in time for a 7 miler before lunch.  The weather was perfect and I felt great.  I started to run with a Santa hat on, but then I decided that getting a Santa hat all wet and sweaty wouldn't make the rest of my family very happy!

Traffic was pretty light, so the section of E. North St. that I run on was a breeze.  I was supposed to run at a 10:06 pace according to my training schedule, but I ended up at about 9:30.  9:30 is the pace I am planning on running for the half next Saturday (1/3), so it was good getting 7 in at that pace today.  I think I can sustain it for a half and still have a good recovery to keep on my marathon training.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!  I won't be running tomorrow, but you can bet I'll be back out on Friday....  

Rest Day....

Today was a rest day after a long run yesterday.  I am off a day, but should be OK with this schedule for the rest of the week.  I'll run tomorrow and get Christmas off.  Then Have runs on Friday and Saturday.

I stopped by Fleet Feet today and feel confident in saying that there will be lots of runners getting goodies for Christmas this year.  I had a hard time focusing on others instead of looking at goodies for myself!  Of course, 45 minutes after I walked out of the store I got a call that the pouch for my fuel belt had arrived.  I think I'll wait until after Christmas to pick it up.  I have had enough of the traffic for this year!

I did pick up a GU and a Rocktane to try on my upcoming long races.  I want to make sure my stomach handles them well.  I also need to start doing a better job hydrating before and after my long runs.  I have noticed a huge difference when I hydrate properly.  After Christmas, I am going to really work on my overall nutrition plan for the rest of my training.  I want to make sure I adequately fuel without adding in unnecessary calories.  

We had some family over tonight and it was fun.  It really starts to feel like Christmas when you have family around.

Star Trek Running...

My inner geek (ok, maybe it isn't only 'inner') was thinking about how cool it would be to have access to a holodeck like they have in Star Trek The Next Generation.  Being able to set the location and conditions (and running partners for that matter) for every run would be pretty cool....

Narcissism....

If I told you I stared at myself in a mirror for two hours, you would think I was narcissistic.  If I told you that I was actually running on a treadmill that happened to be in front of a mirror for two hours, you would think I was just crazy.  I would tend to agree with you.  It was just too cold for me to consider a 12 mile run outside today.  I don't have the proper gear for my legs yet and I couldn't imagine two hours out in sub-freezing temps.  

I got the 12 miles in on the treadmill, but even with the TV and staring at myself in the mirror it was miserable.  I did kind of enjoy seeing people come in, struggle through their workout and leave while I was only 1/3 of the way through my run.  It was a little of an ego boost, but after a while I just felt like an idiot.  I really missed being outside and noticing little things about the neighborhood while I was running.  I missed seeing friends and some of the dogs that greet me along my route...  I'll definitely be happy when my running tights get here so I don't have to go through that again.

At least I was able to keep a perfect pace up for the entire run....

How far can you run on a treadmill?

Wow, it is more than a little cold outside.  Yesterday was windy and I was kind of glad that I was too busy with party preparations to run, but now I am regretting it.  I finally ordered a pair of running tights from SierraTradingPost.com.  They got down to $10 and I figured that even if they don't fit, I can't go wrong trying them at that price.

So, until I get my tights I am not sure I want to run outside in this kind of cold.  That leaves me with the treadmill option.  I need to get in a 12 mile run, so I wonder if I will go insane on a treadmill for two hours.  They do have a TV on each treadmill at my gym, so maybe I can find a good Christmas movie to watch if I decide to go that route.  I am going to see what the temperature is at 11:00 and make my decision, but I am pretty sure I will be on the treadmill...

Not exactly a rest day....

Well, I didn't run but I was on my feet most of the day. I am going to pay for it tomorrow because it will be right around freezing in the middle of the day when I run tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to the run, even if it is cold. I need to burn off some party calories from this weekend!

Does shopping count as cross training?

I mean it definitely gets my heart rate up.......

Just it case it doesn't count, Lee and I hit the gym at about 9:00 tonight to get 30 minutes of cardio in...

I'm supposed to get 12 miles in tomorrow.  I hope to get out and get moving in the morning.  If not, I may have to do it on Monday morning....

Easy Run Today....

I was scheduled for a 6 mile easy run at 10:02 per mile.  I wanted to run a little faster, so I went out around 9:28 per mile.  It felt pretty good outside, except when I was going head first into the wind.  It also got a little warm when the sun came out and I was out of the wind.  Still, for a mid December day, it was great weather.  

Roadkill report:  The dead squirrel on the sidewalk on E. North Street is still there after 5 days...  I guess I am not the only one too lazy to move it.  To quote Clark Griswold in Christmas vacation, "Where is Eddie, he usually eats these **** things."

My coach Allan is going to run the 'Resolution Run' half marathon with me on January 3rd and we are targeting a 9:30 pace.  That will be about 45 seconds per mile slower than the half I ran in October.  It will be a whole lot slower than Allan normally runs, but he has the Houston Marathon two weeks later so he will be in his taper and not looking to run fast.

With my marathon coming up in February, I didn't want to run this half all out.  I am glad Allan is pacing me.  That way I won't start out too fast.  I still haven't mastered the skill of running the race for my own goals and not against everyone else in the field.  

Tempo run today....

I had a 6 mile tempo run today.  It went pretty well, I was a little quicker than planned on the first mile but got my 4 tempo miles in on pace.  I enjoyed letting up for the last mile, that is a good feeling.

It was so nice to be running in warm, humid conditions again....  NOT.  Actually, it wasn't too bad but I am still looking forward to cool weather through the marathon anyway.  

I ran in the new shoes today and they felt awesome.  The heel is a tad higher and it took about a mile for my calf muscles to adjust, but the cushioning is great.  

When I got to the six mile point, I was about 1/4 of a mile from the house and decided to walk in for a cool down (ok, I was being lazy!).  It's funny how while I'm running, I won't see anyone I know but when I am walking everyone that has ever met me drives by....  I guess it just an ego test for me!  I passed today, I just kept on walking.....

Brief rant....

I don't mind sharing my email address with race directors.  I appreciate the fact that they confirm my registration by email and that they send me reminders about future races and such.  However, I do think that in exchange for me giving them my email address they could at least put a blank on the registration form that is big enough to hold this information!  It ticks me off to try and squeeze in an email address on a blank that is about 3/4 of an inch long.....

Cross training today...

Today was a scheduled cross training day.  I went to the gym and did 45 minutes on the bike.  I broke a good sweat and really worked the opposing muscles in my legs.  I like the new schedule I am on that will give me 3 days of rest/cross training.  I plan to spend at least one on the bike.

My coach, Allan, has talked me into running the 1/2 marathon in T.R. on January 3rd.  He will be tapering for his Boston Qualifying shot in Houston on 1/18, so hopefully he won't smoke me too bad.  He also is considering running MB with me to help me set my pace...  I don't know if he can run that slow for 26.2 miles though.

They have a 5K at the same time of the 1/2 marathon on January 3rd, so come on out and run or walk.  It's great way to break in the new year!

Biggest Winner...

I often think about all the times I told myself that I hated running.  It's kind of like when my son says he 'hates' some kind of food that he has never tried.....

I think the tipping point for my decision to lose weight was when I started watching the Biggest Loser.  Early on, I really enjoyed sitting down with a bowl or three of ice cream and watching the show.  I wrote it off as being unrealistic because of the fact that the contestants had all day with a trainer and no other obligations.  Sometime during the fall season in 2007 though, I took it as a challenge.  

After watching the show for a while, it became evident why I had failed in the past.  I had never looked at the challenge as being a lifelong one.  I always had the mentality that if I lost the weight and started exercising, my metabolism would speed up and I could eat 'normally' again.  The problem was my definition of normal... Those of you that know me are not surprised that my view of 'normal' was off kilter a little bit!

When I started Weight Watchers, I paid a lot of attention to those that were close to their goal or were already at their goal.  I quickly found out that they never considered themselves 'finished'.  I accepted the reality that I was going to have to look at this as a way of life and not a 'program' that I would 'complete'.

As my exercise evolved into running, I realized it was a great companion to my new lifestyle.  Running requires some semblance of a healthy diet.  Especially as I have started to run longer distances, I think about eating in terms of 'fuel' instead of just 'food'.  I also have had to learn that the idea of being able to eat whatever you want because you are running 30+ miles a week is a myth.  Granted it helps some, but you can still gain weight while running!  

Anyway, as I sit here watching the finale of this season's 'Biggest Loser', I realize that I was the big winner when the show got me to change my habits.  So if you happen to read this and you want to change something in your life, I hope it helps you realize you can do it.  It won't be easy and you may hit a few bumps along the way, but you can do it.  You may even discover that you enjoy something you always thought you would hate!

Should be all caught up now...

I think I have all my old posts loaded now, so if you happen to find this and are bored enough to want to go back to the beginning, feel free!

Back on track again....

I created a new training schedule for the next two months on Runners World's website.  The new schedule only has me running 4 days a week and I think that will help me stay on schedule.  My only goal for the marathon is to finish, so I am not so much interested in my time as I am building up the endurance and strength to finish the race.

I will continue doing Yoga one or two times a week as well as some elliptical or stationary bike work on my non-running days.

I got 7 miles in today and I enjoyed the mild temperature.  The only issue I had today was that my Garmin died on me because I haven't charged it in a long time.  In a way it was a nice change of pace to be running without it.  I never really focused on my pace or heart rate, I just ran.  Now I am considering charging my iPod up and taking it on a run again this weekend.  

New shoes = New commitment?

Well, I got the new shoes yesterday. I haven’t run in them yet. The guy at Fleet Feet was real patient and worked with me a long time. I loved the first pair I tried on, but he got me into two or three others just for comparison. I ended up with the Nike Air Zoom Structure Triax 11. I am generally not a big Nike fan, but these felt incredible when I put them on.


He bumped me up a half size and I am still not sure I am comfortable with that, but the folks at Fleet Feet have never steered me wrong before. They also will allow me to return them if I don’t like them after a run or two... 

I have been so slack the last two weeks that I can’t believe it. Well, it really hasn’t been a lack of desire or effort but really I have just had to put other priorities on top of running. After tonight, most of my commitments should be covered and I hope to be able to really get back on track.

I did a stint on the dreadmill on Friday and I remembered why I hate them. Of course, the fact that I lost my headphones didn’t help any. I also forgot what it was like to run up hill the entire time. Next time, I think I will do a manual program and keep it flat for part of the way. My calves were not happy on Saturday!

Getting setup on Blogger.....

Well, I am trying to get this blog moved over to blogspot, but they limit the number of posts I can make in a day..... It will take a while to get all my old posts loaded, so be patient if you stumble across this and the posts all look old....

Rain yes, ligtning no!

I started off on my 9 mile scheduled run yesterday in a heavy downpour. I was doing OK at the 2 mile mark and actually felt like I was going to start enjoying the run once I got off of East North Street. Then I saw the flash and heard the thunder. I checked my Garmin and I was 2.34 miles into the run, but I knew I was only about a mile from the house if I took the most direct route back. Needless to say, I ran a negative split back to the house! I’m not sure what I am going to do today. I would like to go run, but I may just hit the dreadmill at the gym. 



Meanwhile, I am back on the weight watchers plan full time as I have crept up to the top of my ‘allowable weight range’. I know most of it has to do with the holidays, but I don’t want to lose my lifetime status. WW did their annual change to the program this week, so I am learning about the changes. They basically combined the core & flex plans into one program, but I need to understand some of the new features. I’m glad I have thrown out all my old clothes so that I don’t have any choice but to stay ‘on plan’. It still amazes me that I can run as much as I can and still struggle with my weight. I know it is simple math, calories in vs calories burned, but dang it I burn a lot of calories!

Terrific Tuesday....

I got in 4 miles yesterday. The gloves and headband felt great in the wind. I ran at mid-speed pace for me of about 8:24. I am really having a hard time with my 7-8 mile loop now because traffic seems to be getting worse on the most dangerous leg of the run. I expected it to be easier after the leaves fell because I could see better, but somehow the number of cars and speed at which they are traveling is really increasing. I have an alternate route, but unfortunately it ends with some very steep hills. I guess I am going to have to just suck it up and run the hills. I have been put in the ditch twice lately and I am afraid the third time might be a ‘strike out’!

It felt good to get back to yoga today. We did a great core workout and I felt really good afterwards. I hope I feel good enough to get my 9 miles in tomorrow. I also want to sit down this week and map out some paths for my longer runs. I could easily do a couple of loops of my normal routes, but I think it would be good to stretch my horizons and go a little longer. I also need to get pouch for my fuel belt that can hold a cell phone in case I need a ride home!

I ran at night once last week and really enjoyed seeing all the Christmas lights. You get a different perspective on them from your feet than you do from a car. I may plan a night time run a little later in the season when even morel lights are up.

Wow, 2 days in a row...

I have run two consecutive days and it feels good. I hope to make it a trifecta today!
I really enjoy running in this cooler weather as long as the wind stays down. I got in 6 miles last night. I am just going to get all I can this week and hope to get back on schedule with a long run on Sunday.

Is it just me or does the holiday spirit seem to have skipped the drivers around town? I have had more close calls in the last few weeks than I care to think about. What is the deal with the folks flying down neighborhood roads and around blind curves? I know that texting and talking on cell phones is an issue with some of them, but most are just in a real hurry and aren’t paying attention to the road.

Rest day...

Well, I got in 4 yesterday instead of 3. I ran a comfortable pace of 8:22 and felt pretty good. I took today off and will pick back up with 7 miles on Wednesday.

I really need to get some more cold weather gear. I had planned on global warming preventing me from having to wear tights, but I must have mis-understood the concept. The nice wind chill just adds to the fun.

I did find some positives about running in cold weather:

• Gatorade stays cold in my fuel belt.
• More motivation to pick my pace up.
• Adding variables like wind speed and direction make picking running routes similar to three dimensional chess.
• The feeling of getting blasted by a leaf blower is unique.
• Stepping into an ice cold puddle helps numb the pain in your feet and ankles.
• Dry leaves on the ground make it easier to hear the dogs running up behind you.
• The garbage cans and dumpsters don’t stink as much in the winter.

Now that I have wasted a minute of your life with my ramblings, let me know your ‘favorite’ things about cold weather running....

Weekend Update...

What a weekend! Young son and I headed to Clemson with Lee and Julian Friday afternoon to set up for camping and attend Tigerama. We had a great time and the girls left for home while we were watching the fireworks. The rain held off most of the evening and Bobby played football with friends while I sat in the RV and watched football. We hit lights out about midnight and all was well.

About 2:15 or so, I hear Bobby getting up and heading out of the tent. He said he didn’t feel good and that must have been an understatement. He ended up tossing his cookies for the next 45 minutes while I tried to figure out what to do. I finally woke up my friend Billy and borrowed his car keys and hauled Bobby to my parents house in Easley where he stayed at Grandma General for the rest of the weekend. He was fine by Saturday afternoon, but I think he liked the treatment so much he stayed for another 24 hours of observation....

Meanwhile, I made it back to the tent about 4:00 am and promptly fell asleep for about 30 minutes until the storms rolled in. I slept off and on during the storms while I kept waiting on the tent to collapse. Fortunately it managed to survive. As I was falling soundly asleep after the rain, the guy in the RV next to us started working on his batteries because his generator wouldn’t fire up and his RV wouldn’t crank. That pretty much ended my sleeping....

So I got up and packed up the tent and equipment and had a great breakfast courtesy of Chef Elinor at the RV. The game was fun and we had a great time afterwards.

Now for the running news.... I got in 11.2 yesterday of my planned 14. I just ran out of time, I had the energy to keep going. I ran a nice, easy pace and it was a great feeling. I’m going for 3 or so today, though I may go longer to make up for what I missed yesterday.

Congrats to Marion, she BQ’d in San Antonio!

I can’t wait to read all about her training for that race!

Back on track....

Well, 48 hours after my run-in with dehydration things appear to be back to normal. I went out for a short run today and kept up an 8:06 pace for 3 miles with no ill effects. Hopefully, I’ll get out for a longer run tomorrow. In retrospect, I realized that I was not drinking as much water at work as I normally do and I think that along with my stomach bug helped me along the way towards this episode.

I have pretty much written this week off as far as getting my miles in that I needed. I am camping out with my son tomorrow night, so I likely won’t run on Saturday. I hope to get a long run in Sunday but I see that it is supposed to be pretty cold. I am going to shoot for a ‘normal’ week next week.

On one of my routes, I have to cross in front of a McDonald’s and it gets pretty dicey sometimes with people flying out of the drive though at one spot and people flying to make a left turn into the parking lot at the entrance. I usually think about how many times I would pull in a fast food place before I decided to change my lifestyle. I know what the people in the cars are thinking, because I used to be one of them. I never thought I would be one of those ‘insane running people’ out in the rain.... Of course, I never thought I would like a Mac more than a PC either.... I’m just slow that way....

I have a new game I play while running. When I see a rock, roadkill or some other debris in a pretty busy spot I try to guess how long it will stay there. I am amazed at how long some things sit in the same place despite the traffic and weather. There is one particularly disgusting piece of debris on the sidewalk on the corner of E. North and Haywood that has set the record so far. It has been there for at least 2 months. I guess it will be a good test of how long it takes latex to break down...

Good luck to fellow GTC member Marion this weekend at the San Antonio Marathon! You go girl!

Lesson Learned...

Well, I learned a big lesson yesterday. After a fairly easy lunchtime run, I started getting chills and nothing got rid of them. I ate some warm soup, took a hot shower and got dressed but I still couldn’t warm up. In fact, I was getting colder and colder. I started getting lightheaded and a little disoriented too. I finally made back to the bedroom and got under all the covers I could find. After about an hour I finally fell asleep. Well, you guessed it, I was severely dehydrated.

I had a little stomach bug the day before but didn’t think anything of it. I obviously had not taken enough fluids in to replenish my body from that and then a run really put me over the edge. I am going to be much more diligent about keeping track of my liquid intake now, that was a miserable feeling.

So, remember that even in cool weather, it is important to be properly hydrated!

Weekend update...

The Caine Halter Lungs4Life 5K was a great event. They raised over $200,000 for lung cancer research.

The course was pretty good and I think that other ‘downtown races’ should consider using it some. It took advantage of Cleveland Park and the new section of the Swamp Rabbit trail and ended up on the big field at the YMCA. There was very little impact on traffic which is nice for everybody. Anybody else notice how much more ‘runable’ the soft surface on the new section of the trail is compared to the first section they did? That first section is way too soft in my opinion, but the new section seems just right.

I hit a 5K PR at 23:16 (Garmin Time). Even though my first mile was pretty fast, I think I could have gotten under 23 minutes if it wasn’t for the walkers at the front of the pack. It takes time and energy to wade through a crowd. Since it was a charity event, I wasn’t upset about this. There were lots of people that were there for the cause and not the race.

I was disappointed that I didn’t get out for a long run this weekend. I have to figure out how to get those in consistently now that I am in full scale marathon training mode. I still think my best bet is early Sunday before church, but I would like to run some routes that would be safer during the daylight hours. I’m just going to have to deal with it week by week I guess.

I am also beginning to believe that after I dabble in a couple of marathons, I may become a 1/2 marathon guy. The training is significantly less of a burden and I think it would still help increase my 5K and 10K speeds.

I want to run....

I have a really hard time with my off days. Especially when I am not getting in a yoga class or other activity.

I also am cranking my Weight Watchers back up. I have been able to maintain without a lot of tracking, but the last 2 weeks have seen a couple of pounds creep back on. I am going back to tracking everything for a couple of weeks. I want to welcome the New Year at the same weight I was before Thanksgiving and I know it will take some diligence. My metabolism is much higher than it was before I lost weight and started running, but I still can’t eat like I did in high school. During my weight loss period, Thanksgiving week was the only non-loss week I had. I had a .2 pound gain. Other than that, I kept losing at least a little bit each week. That gives me hope that if I pay attention to what I am doing, I can start 2009 off in good shape. One of my favorite sayings that I got from weight watchers was to make sure you Holiday doesn’t turn into a Holiweek.

I’m going to do a little extra hydrating today with some gatorade just to make sure I am in good shape for the 5K tomorrow. My goal is to be under 25 minutes.

Odds and Ends....

I got in an easy 5K this morning. I ran negative splits, but really was taking it easy the whole time. Young son has his last baseball game of the season tonight and I had to go out of town for sales call, so it was all I could squeeze in.

I picked up our numbers for the Caine Halter Lungs4Life 5K. I am looking forward to the race. A lot of it will be on the new section of the Swamp Rabbit Trail behind Cleveland Street. I have no idea how big the field is, but I would expect several hundred runners. I love the fact that the race doesn’t start early, I can finally sleep in a little on a Saturday!

I want to get one of those velcro chip holding ankle bands that they use in triathlons. I am tired of having to tie my chip onto my laces and then have to stop at the ‘Chip Police’ at the end of the race and try to get my laces undone. Someone at Fleet Feet said that the Triathlon shops had those, so maybe I will go there this weekend.

After talking to the folks at Fleet Feet, I am definitely going to skip the Paris Mountain Road Race this year. It sounds like it would really take a lot out of me during a key part of my marathon training. There’s always next year!

I am in bad need of a Yoga class, but I don’t think I will make it there before next Tuesday... I’ll have to do some stretching on my own before Saturday. My calves are starting to tighten up just thinking about sprinting (well, that is what I call my fast pace anyway.... It makes me feel better to call it sprinting.) right now.

I am WAY behind on my mileage this week. I am supposed to do a 13 mile run Sunday, but I don’t know how realistic that is at this point. I think I’ll at least try to get 10 in on Sunday and go from there.

Thinking of long runs, I saw a sign a the corner of Cleveland and Faris that lists the mileage on the swamp rabbit trail... I think it was 9.4 from that point to Furman, so I may use it on an ‘out and back’ for some of my long runs.

Well, it’s time to get through today and look forward to baseball tonight!

Finally some speed...

Well, I kinda, sorta found some speed today. I ran for 4.2 miles, 3 of them at a race pace.

My legs felt pretty good but I still don’t feel as good as I did before the half marathon.

On a side note, I am ready for all the acorns, hickory nuts and pecans to be cleaned off the road. I am pretty sure it isn’t going to be long before I bust my tail on one of these things....

Legs are feeling better...

I ran 9.2 last night at a comfortable 9:14 pace. My legs definitely appreciated the time off, but my weight did not. Halloween weekend and no running is not a good combination! The only issue I had last night was that I stepped on a hickory nut that was under some leaves and my left foot was killing me for the last 3 miles or so. I was going to stretch it to 10 or 11 miles, but the pain wasn’t worth it. It feels good today, so I hope it was just some cramping more than a deep bruise. I’ll find out at lunch time when I try to get a tempo run in.

We have the Caine Halter Lungs4Life 5K this Saturday. It is a refreshing change to have a race that doesn’t require me to be out of the house at the crack of dawn. The course looks pretty good on a map. I hope I feel the same after I have run it. I was originally hoping for a PR here, but now I don’t think that will happen. I haven’t gotten all my speed back since the half and I don’t know that it will suddenly appear on Saturday.

As for future races, I am going out to Eastside High on Thanksgiving to run the Turkey Trot there. Other than that, I don’t have much on the schedule. I was considering the Paris Mountain 20K, but given how much time it has taken me to recover from the Spinx half, I don’t really want to do that 8 weeks before the Myrtle Beach Marathon. I will probably look for some 5K or 10K races I can use for tempo runs. I think the Green Valley race is the week before Myrtle Beach, so I may run the 8K there.

I missed yoga yesterday. I hope to get there Friday but I am not sure if I will or not. I’ll definitely make it next week and get back in the rhythm.

The only other thing I am working on is deciding what my next pair of shoes will be. I want to get them for Christmas so I can break them in for Myrtle Beach....

Catching up...

Well, I ended up running on Saturday for an easy 5 miles. Without Yoga and with my week long eating binge since the half marathon I felt that I had to do something to burn some calories. I could really feel some tired legs. Also, Friday while setting up for the hotdog dinner at the pool I tweaked my lower back. It isn’t a major issue and did not hurt while I was running Saturday, but I think it and my tired legs were a sign that I needed to lighten up a little.

I just read today in my new Runner’s World that people typically cut back too far or go too hard after a marathon or half marathon. I think I went too hard. I tend to underestimate the toll my body pays for running at race pace versus slower long training runs.

I am going to dedicate this week to my eating plan and resting my legs. I took yesterday off and will take today off. Depending on how my back feels tomorrow, I will either do yoga or go to the gym for some cardio work. Wednesday I want to get a tempo run in since we have a 5K on Saturday. Thursday I’ll probably run at a moderate pace for 7-8 miles. I’ll then take Friday off and race on Saturday. I had originally hoped to set at 5K PR this Saturday, but I think that is out the window now. I’m just going to enjoy the run and see how it goes. Hopefully I will be able to move back in to my normal training mode after that.

Right now, I have the 5K on Saturday and a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving on the calendar. I won’t be able to run the Greenville News Downtown run in January because of a skiing trip. I am seriously thinking about running the Paris Mountain Road Race 20K in December. It should be far enough away from my marathon that I can recover and it looks like a REAL challenging course.

6.27 on Halloween, No yoga today..

I got in 6.27 yesterday at a comfortable pace. I am going to rest today and try to squeeze in a 10 miler tomorrow. Yoga got cancelled because our instructor has been ill. Karen get well soon!

I have adjusted my route lately. This is definitely one of the benefits of the Garmin. I just run and it know how far, how fast and how long I have been going. I like changing the route to get different hills in. This new route has a nice mix of long moderate hills and steep hills. I am considering running the Paris Mtn. 20K Road Race, so hill work is essential. It is billed as the ‘toughest road race in South Carolina’ so it may be more than I can handle.

Bobby has his last Saturday baseball practice today. Then we have about a month of no Saturday sports (except for races of course!) We are also going to do a minor re-do of the dining room this week. Just some paint, but it will make a big difference until we are ready to completely re-do it....

7 more today....

It felt great out today and I enjoyed every bit of my run. I am going to enjoy the next two weeks of ‘light’ running before I start full blown marathon training. If all goes well, I will have three 20 mile runs prior to the marathon in February. I am hoping to get Lee to run part of my long runs with me.

I originally thought I would just run multiple loops of some of my normal routes on these long runs, but now I think I may try to map out either one big loop or a destination run where someone drops me off and I run home. I think I could do some pretty fun runs that way, especially if I incorporate some of the downtown area and swamp rabbit trails.

Last week I went in Fleet Feet to get some Shot Bloks before the race and I saw the ’13.1’ stickers at the checkout stand. I almost went ahead and bought them, but I am just too superstitious. I felt sure I would be tempting the running gods to strike me down with a sprained ankle or pulled hamstring. So I waited until after the race, but now I have them proudly on display. I can’t wait to add a ’26.2’ right beside them in February! I used to think it was funny that my kids got excited about getting stickers, but I guess I am no different!

I need to run...

Well, I couldn’t bring myself to get out in the freezing temps this morning before work and I am paying for it now. I wanted to get 10 miles in today, but it looks like I’ll get a big 0 in. If I am lucky, I will be able to run after church tonight. I’ll settle for a quick 5 miles today and then I can try to work in a 10 miler tomorrow.

I need to get out and find some cold weather running gear too. I have a few long sleeve technical shirts, but think I would like some long sleeve compression shirts. I hear they are really good at preventing chafing. I also need to get some running tights. My legs don’t normally get too cold, but I think that on these cold/windy days it would be nice to have them on.

So, I need to do some shopping and figure out a way to get my run in.... I don’t think its going to happen today!

The finish line...

After I finished the race Saturday, I had the opportunity to sit in the stadium and watch others finish. That was pretty neat. One thing that struck me as I watched was the different running styles was that the finish line doesn’t care how beautiful your stride is or how skinny your waist is. Before I started running, I would have thought that all people in races were bean poles with perfect gaits and long strides. After running for almost a year, I realized that there are runners of every body type, gait and speed. I learned to never judge a book by its cover when trying to project finishing times at the start of a race. I have been passed by knock kneed women, bow legged men, foot shuffling senior citizens and gazelle like teenagers.

Once we cross the finish line, we are all equals. The times may be different, but the results are not. We all asked our bodies to do something that takes as much mental toughness as it does physical strength. We all started out on the same side of the starting line and we all ended up on the same side of the finish line. My coach, Allan, put it this way last Saturday as we were waiting for the start and a girl in front of us heard us talking about our ‘goal times’.... Allan told me his goal for the marathon and she turned around and said “I’m just hoping to finish in 6 hours!”. Allan replied, “I promise you that the medal you get will look exactly like the one I get...”. He was right, the finish line looks the same to all of us and that is the beauty of running. Sure there is some competition, but the biggest competition is with yourself.

Back in the saddle....

I went out for an easy 5.4 miles today. It felt good to be back on the road, no soreness at all. I did have a little foot cramp but I am sure that yoga will straighten that out tomorrow.

I have had some time to reflect on the race and I have been reading some comments of others. I think the Greenville Track Club did a great job. I was even more impressed when I found out that a lot of their volunteers were not able to come because they were high school football players that had their games moved to Saturday because of the rain. There was plenty of water on the course and there were more spectators than I expected with the weather. This was the first race I have done where they put your name on your bib, and I appreciated the people calling me out by name as I was running. It was a great experience and makes me wonder what it would be like to run a big city marathon where the streets are lined with people.

I’ve also been thinking about what distance is my favorite to run in a race. I think the half marathon is a great distance. It requires training, but you don’t have re-arrange your life to prepare for it. I will be interested to see how I feel after the full marathon in February. After the half, I felt pretty good. I think I would like to run the Myrtle Beach in February, the Marine Corps Marathon next October and then the Disney Marathon after that. I won’t ever be a Boston Qualifier, so I think getting those three in would be a great accomplishment for me and then I could drop back to 10K’s an Halfs.

Weekend Wrap-up...

Wow, what weekend...

First the race...

I have never run a half marathon so I have nothing to compare it to, but I had a great time. I thought the course was pretty cool. As I feared, it was a little too tight when we hit the Swamp Rabbit Trail the first time. Also, it would be great if they could remove the poles that keep vehicles off the trail. The guy beside me almost got a free vasectomy when the girl in front of him jumped out of the way. I thought the water stops were well placed and well staffed. Thanks to Fleet Feet for the Gu!

My last mile was my fastest, so that is a good thing. I averaged an 8:42 pace on the chip time and my garmin. I was pleased with that and I would love to get close to the same pace for my marathon in February.

Here is a picture of me and my friend Tim at the starting line. I am in the headband and Tim has on the white visor....



Here we are with our medals on...




After the race, I hauled dear son up to Camp Old Indian for a day of hiking and other activities and a very cold night in a tent. We made it back in time for Sunday School. We had a busy day with church and other activities (a lot of it was eating, yikes!) and I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. I’ll probably run tomorrow and see how I feel.

Quick race report...

Just a quick report... I made my goal of under 2 hours with a 1:54:14 on my garmin.

Off to camp with young son for the night... I’ll check back later...

16 hours until the race....

Well the big race (Spinx Half Marathon) is tomorrow morning at 8:00. Young son is running the 1.2 mile kids marathon at 8:10 and Lee and young daughter are in the 5K at 9:00. I hope Lee is able to push young daughter to run some.

I have taken care of most of my pre-race tasks. I got some more Shot Bloks (gummy bear like electrolyte candy) today. I picked up all our packets, numbers and chips at the expo. I have been hydrating. I am glad I read Runners World regularly because I noticed an article not long ago that said drinking lots of water prior to a race can actually flush out your electrolytes. I don’t want that, so I am mixing some gatorade in with my hydration plan.

I still need to pick up some band-aids. I was going to just go with the body glide, but with the possibility of rain and the cool temps I think I will go old school with some band-aids.

I also need to do a little shopping because I need to get together the food and stuff to take camping with young son tomorrow night. Yes, I am looking forward to a night in a sleeping bag and tent to recover from the half marathon!

Thanks in advance to all those volunteers that make the race possible. I’ll be easy to pick out if you are watching the race. I’ll be the guy that you see and say “I don’t think he really understood how long a half marathon is...”

Thanks Megan....

One of the other Greenville Track Club bloggers posted a message about her pre-race jitters. That got me thinking and then it got me worrying!

Now every time I stand up, I feel a pain that I am sure is a pulled muscle. Every time I sneeze, I am convinced I have the flu. I look at the map of the race and I think, ‘there is no way I can run that far’. I will be glad to get out there Saturday morning and get moving. One thing I am trying to do to calm my nerves is laying out a race ‘strategy’. I am starting to put together a mile by mile pace plan.

One thing I have decided is that I am going to focus on finishing strong rather than finishing fast. I am going to do my best to go out slow and speed up. I would like to get two miles in at a moderate pace and then speed up for 5-7 miles and see how I feel. I would love to finish under two hours (OK, I have now publicly stated my goal) but I mostly want to finish.

I have a short run scheduled today and yoga tomorrow. I may have to schedule some Pepto training sessions if the butterflies in my stomach don’t settle down!

5 Mile Tempo Run

I ran another five mile tempo run today. Actually, I ran the first three at my tempo pace of just under 8:00 per mile and the last two at about 8:30 a mile. I wanted to see how good I felt slowing down after going out fast. I hope to be able to go out at a target pace on Saturday, but if I go out too fast I wanted to see how well I recovered when I slowed down.

I felt pretty good and I felt like I could have kept up the 8:30 pace for quite a while. I hope I feel the same way Saturday!

I need to by Fleet Feet and pick up some more Clif Shot Bloks for the race. I am planning on wearing my fuel belt even though they are having water every mile. I like being able to drink out of the bottles and I like being able to drink on my schedule. I’ll also carry a half of a clif bar just in case I really crash.

Now that it looks like it will probably be wet and cool on Saturday, I am a little unsure about what to wear. I also wonder if I will wear my ‘rain’ shoes or my ‘race’ shoes. I would much rather wear the Pearl Izumi’s I like to race in than my older Saucony’s, but if it is really raining I’ll probably go with the old shoes.

Hopefully the rain will bail out before we go to Camp Old Indian after the race. Nothing like a night in a sleeping bag after 13 mile race...

Yoga today...

We did a very intense workout today. Lots of quad, hamstring and core work. I sweated like I had been doing cardio for 30 minutes. It is a great feeling to be totally stretched out at the end of the workout.

We also did a lot of specific work on our knees to strengthen the joint. I will definitely go again Friday to get totally loose before the race on Saturday.

On another note, my daughter won an award for Most Improved Swimmer on her high school swim team. She worked really hard this year and I am proud of her determination and effort. Now, we will try get her to run a 5K before the spring swimming season begins.

Saturday is looking to be cool and wet. I’m not sure what that will do for my run, but I don’t think it will matter too much. It is a good thing the races are ending at Fluor Field so that the spectators and early finishers can stay out of the weather while the rest of us penguins waddle through to the finish....

Race Week!!

Well, the wait is over. Race week is finally here. The Spinx half marathon is this Saturday and I guess I am as ready as I can get. I hiked yesterday and then went out today and ran five miles at a pretty fast pace (for me anyway) with a time of 31:59.

I will do Yoga tomorrow and hopefully Friday. I will run hard again Wednesday four or five miles and probably an easy jog for five or six miles on Thursday.

I want to put together an actual plan for my run this week too. I want to get a realistic goal time set and then lay out a mile by mile plan that lets me achieve it.

I need to get some more shot bloks. I want to run with them again this week just to make sure my stomach still handles them OK.

It should be an exciting week and I am looking forward to Saturday.

No running today...

No running today. I walked a good bit, but that didn’t make up for the eating I did! Our friends the DeYoungs put on a tremendous tailgate today. They fried fish, shrimp, onion rings, hush puppies & french fries. That was on top of the brownies, chips, dips and other stuff....

Oh well, I guess I will run it off next week during the half marathon.....

Tomorrow our Sunday School class is going to Paris Mountain for a picnic and hike. I’ll probably do a little run later on in the day as well.

10 miles and a fall....

If you were driving down East North Street this morning and saw a guy perfectly execute a face plant on the sidewalk in front of the Bi-Lo at the North Hills Shopping Center, that was me!

It was quite an experience. I thought I had perfectly planted my foot on the curb I was stepping onto, only to have it slide off and leave me doing a Super Man like dive to the concrete. Fortunately, I just scraped up my hands and bruised my pride bone pretty good. I briefly thought about doing 10 push ups to make people think I had some kind of really tough training program going, but my hands were burning too much for that.

I got up and kept on moving. The blood clotted up pretty quickly so it wasn’t too bad as I finished up the run. I wanted to go for 13 or 14 miles, but I just didn’t get started early enough.

I liked the Clif Shot Bloks. The texture and flavor were pretty good and I washed them down with a bottle of water with no problem. I felt a pick up pretty shortly after eating them. I’ll definitely take some on the half next week.

5 more in the books...

I got in a great 5 miles at an 8:16 pace. That felt great to me. I am really trying to run my shorter runs at faster paces than I used to. I am going to try and get in a 10-14 miler in the morning and then figure out a taper plan for next week to rest for the half on 10/25.

I have started hydrating a little earlier in my runs lately and I think it is really helping me keep my speed up for longer periods of time. I have some Clif Shot Bloks that I am going to try on this long run too.



If I like them, I will probably carry some in the half along with a half clif bar. I have some friends that carry fig newtons with them on long runs, but I would eat a whole sleeve of them and I really don’t want to do that.

I just realized that right after the Spinx Half, my son and I leave for a cub scout camping trip. So much for a great nights sleep after the race!

7 great miles today...

I felt great today and got in another 7 miles at my goal pace. It was a little warm in the sun, but felt great in the shade.

I have been reading John Bingham’s Marathoning for Mortals and I am really enjoying it. At first it was a bit scary as the case is made that it is not something to attempt unless you are totally committed. Once I got further into the book, it became evident that the beginning is like being beat down by a coach or drill instructor at the beginning of training to be built back up in the end. It has lots of practical advice, but the best part to me is that the enthusiasm of the author comes through loud and clear. It has me fired up and I hope to read it through again in January.

7 miles Monday, Yoga today...

I got in seven miles Monday at a good pace. I kept a consistent 8:30 pace for the whole run. I would love to keep that up for the half marathon in two weeks, but we’ll see how that goes.

We had substitute yoga instructor today and he was pretty good. We did some poses with a wide stance that I liked because I could get my hands flat on the floor.

I have been having some email conversation with Allan, my running coach. He is trying to ease my nerves about the half marathon. It is good to get feedback from someone that has been running for a long time and someone that has known me for a long time too. Since his parents and my parents know each other, I doubt that he would encourage me to do something that would actually cause me bodily harm. Plus, he knows my athletic ability pretty well since we were on the JV basketball team together back in the day.... In fact because he knows me so well, he about had a heart attack when he saw me at the Reedy River Run last year!

I spend a lot of time thinking about training, nutrition and hydration for the race. I don’t always spend enough time talking to people that have done the distance and listening to their experiences. I plan to do more of that in the next two weeks and I’ll do it again leading up to the Myrtle Beach Marathon in February.

Furman Blue Shoes 5K

This was a fun race. It was my first time running a true cross country course. I was a little intimidated at first as the college and high school teams were unloading and heading up to the course. I briefly thought we were going to be running against them. I was very relieved to find out that the 5K was just a preliminary event to the big Cross Country meet that Furman was hosting.

Some of the kids were cheering us on and that was pretty neat. I ran a little slower than I would have on pavement, but I was happy with my time.

I got out for a little over 8 miles at a slow, easy pace today. Then we went to the mountains and did a little hike with my son and the dogs. The dogs wore me out. I need to get a prong collar for Pearl (the new dog) so she doesn’t pull her collar through her neck. I got quite the triceps workout holding on to them.

We need to get some more miles in for Bobby. He has to have 25 in by the time of the Spinx Kids Marathon.

Tomorrow... I may try to get in a short run before work or during lunch. I’ll see how my legs feel.

Wasted day... race tomorrow...

I got a different kind of cross training in today. Duke Power decided to enforce a right of way through our back yard that they had ignored for 50 years and I had to move a shed. Two of my neighbors had to move sheds too, so we got together and scheduled it today. I spent the day cleaning out the shed, throwing away stuff, taking down a fence, taking down the ramp... blah blah blah...

Well it is all done and I didn’t have time to run today. I was going to go out late today and try to get a few miles in, but with the race tomorrow I figured I would just take the rest and move on.

Hopefully I will post a decent time tomorrow, but I am not too worried about it. I am just looking forward to running on the grass. I haven’t run off road before, so it should be interesting.

7 miles today...

I got 7 miles in today. I ran at a fairly moderate pace and felt pretty good most of the way. I was only scheduled to run 5 today, but I decided to run 7 today and an easy 3 tomorrow so that I will be pretty well rested for the 5K on Saturday. I am fading fast, I need a caffeine fix!

Blame it on the dog...

One thing that got me out moving, even before I was trying to lose weight was our dog, Indy.


Two years ago, Lee told my son that he could have a dog for his birthday if he improved his penmanship. Now, how are you going to tell a second grader that he didn’t improve in something? So I knew then we were getting a dog. Well, after a false start with a dog someone was rescuing, we ended up at the pound. They had a nice, two year old, crate trained, calm dog. We decided to think about it while we went to get a haircut. We came back, with Lee’s dad in tow now as well, and someone was sitting outside with our dog!

Needless to say, emotions started running high. The next thing I know, we get stuck in the kitten and puppy room. I’m allergic to cats and constantly feel the guilt of depriving my family of a cat (well, not that guilty they could get an outside cat if they really wanted one!). There is this cute, small, docile puppy in a cage by itself. I try to suggest that maybe it is alone because it is unsociable, but no one listens. The next thing I know, they are all taking turns holding the little puppy with the one broken ear. It starts nuzzling up to them and I know that it is all over and done with.

48 hours later, the sedatives that they had the dog on to make it appear adoptable have worn off and we have a bundle energy on our hands. As Indy grew, her favorite thing became sleeping all day so she could drive us nuts with tennis balls all night. She retrieves them, she puts them under the chairs so we have to get them, she holds one in her mouth and plays soccer with the other one.

In an effort to regain some relaxation at night, we started walking her more and more. It didn’t really slow her down, but it did get us moving and started on our journey to a healthier lifestyle. We finally solved the problem of her not being tired at night. We got another dog. So they play all day and then we all rest at night.

Rainy day run...

5.4 miles in the rain today. I don’t mind running in the rain. I generally sweat so much that it looks like I have been in the rain anyway...

I tried to go out at a normal pace and then kick it in for three miles. I kicked it in for one mile and then decided to just enjoy the rain and go at a normal pace. All in all, I averaged about 8:33 a mile I think.

One thing about running in the rain is that I look down a lot more. I saw a dead squirrel, a dead bird, a shoe and half of a hamburger. I also saw a pile of dog waste that I avoided, only to step in a puddle that was MUCH deeper than I thought. That’s why I wear my oldest shoes in the rain!

The Spinx Runfest is coming up and I think we are all going to be running in an event. It will be a great family day!

One other thing...

I want you to meet my running buddy, Body Glide.



I first met Body Glide when I weighed about 50 pounds more than I do now and was still running in cotton shirts. A friend introduced us and we have had a close relationship ever since. Once and a while, I forget to take my buddy with me and I end up being bloody mad about it when I get home!

After my 13 miler yesterday, I discovered that I may need to strengthen my friendship with good old Body Glide. It seems certain parts of my anatomy weren’t ready for the extra three miles....

If you like this....

If you like this blog, you will probably love the ones I have linked over on the left sidebar. These are fellow Greenville Track Club members that also blog. The good thing about their blogs is that they actually know a lot about running, so you may learn something from them!

Standing still but gaining ground?

Well, today is a cross training day and I used yoga for that. It always amazes me how much I can sweat while standing still!

I toyed with the idea of taking a short run this morning, but I am glad I didn’t as we worked our lower body pretty hard in class today.

Two months into yoga and I can see some real progress. On a good day, I can actually touch my toes with my legs straight. That is probably an improvement of 3 to 4 inches in flexibility. If you saw me today you might laugh at this, but my balance is improving as well. Today I managed to fall forward onto my head twice during crow pose, I hope my head didn’t dent the floor! The first time I tried crow pose a month ago, I couldn’t bend my knees enough to really get in position to balance.

Another area of improvement is my quadriceps flexibility. They have stretched out nicely and my stride feels much more balanced when I run.

Five days straight of running coming up with the Furman Blue Shoes 5K part of it on Saturday.

It looks like I have a couple of wet runs coming up if the weather forecasters know what they are talking about. Sometimes I really enjoy running in the rain. I hope this will be one of those times.

LSR finally done...

Thanks to Lee taking the kids to school this morning, I had time to sleep a little later and still get my my 13 mile run in. It was hard to slow my pace down early on, but I was glad I did later on. I had eaten a lot of carbs last night so I didn’t eat anything this morning before the run. I did carry gatorade with me in my fuel belt.

This was by far the longest in distance and time that I have run. I ran about 13.2 miles in about 2 hours and 8 minutes. I ran about 90 seconds a mile slower than my normal pace. I was glad to run the distance, because now I know I can finish the Spinx half on 10/25. My question now becomes “Can I break 2 hours?”. Given my normal race pace, that shouldn’t be a problem. However, I am not sure I can sustain it for 13 miles.

I wonder if they are having any ‘pace groups’ for the Spinx. I might be interested in finding one if they do. Tomorrow is a Yoga day, but I might try to squeeze in a 3 mile run early if I can.

Furman Blue Shoes 5K is this Saturday. It should be fun as it is all off road.

Arrrrrgh....

I didn’t get to bed until late last night and then I just couldn’t get my lazy tail out and running this morning.....

I guess I will move my long run to tomorrow morning and try to get back on schedule from there.

Sometimes sleep just wins out...

:-|

Yoga today... LSR tomorrow...

We had a great day today... One kid went off with their youth group to Carowinds and the other one had baseball practice at the same time we had Yoga. It worked out well.

Yoga was crowded as Karen is getting bigger crowds now that she has her own studio. It was fun being back on Saturday when we have coffee afterwards.

From Yoga, we picked up Bobby and headed home to clean the house. Then the fun really began as we loaded up both dogs and went to Paris Mountain for a hike. We went up the sulfur springs trail for about 1.25 miles and then back. It was pretty steep and the dogs were a hand full the way they pulled. The weather was great though and we had a good time.

After that, we headed out for some shopping for Julian’s birthday and then dinner with Lee’s dad. Now we are watching ‘Honey I Blew Up the Kid.’

Tomorrow, I start into my new schedule with a 13 mile run. I hope I get out of bed and get it done. It will be the longest run I have had to date and I am doing it to prepare for the Spinx Half.

Marathon training officially begins...

Well, it is kind of beginning anyway... I have officially registered for the Myrtle Beach Marathon. I am proud to report that Lee has registered for the half marathon!

I think I have settled on Hal Higdon’s training intermediate II training plan. I like it because it focuses on one tempo run per week and one long run per week. I am not sure I could handle trying to keep up with speed work as well. I also like that it gives me three 20 milers during the training. I still don’t understand how I will suddenly be able to run 26.2 miles when my longest run in training is 20 miles, but enough people have done it that it must be true. :)

I added a calendar to my web page to keep track of my training schedule. I had to modify a few things to take care of the Spinx Half on 10/25 and also because I want my X-Training to be on Tuesdays instead of Mondays if at all possible.

We’ll see how it goes. I am pretty excited about it in general and hope I feel the same way when I hit the big mileage weeks.

Anniversary of the first day of the rest of my life...

Wow, what a difference a year makes. One year ago today, at 11:40 AM, I walked into Weight Watchers for my first weigh in and meeting. I remember it very well. It was a little intimidating because I was the only guy there. Fortunately, the leader was very good and she made us all feel comfortable. As I read the materials and listened to reports from those that had already been members for a while, I realized that it wasn’t the program that was magic, it was the desire for change.

Several people had obviously been attending for a long time with what I considered relatively little progress. Others had shown significant weight loss. As I listened to the side conversations, it became obvious there were two types of conversations going on. Some people were talking about what they could eat on the plan and ways to eat more and stay within their ‘points’. Others were talking about ways to take what they were eating or liked to eat and make it fit into the plan. The difference may sound subtle, but over time it became apparent that it was the difference in successful participants and not-so-successful participants.

There is a different topic each week at the meetings and they also try to give you some tools to help you change your mindset about food. Tools for discovering what you think about food and why you think it. Tools to help you change your self image. Tools to help you deal with situations where you will be surrounded by less than healthy choices. A hammer is a great tool, but it is useless if someone doesn’t swing it. The same is true with the Weight Watchers tools.

I lost a little over 8 pounds the first week. That actually made me a little depressed because I had logged all my food for the week and I still ate a lot of food. Then I realized how much I had actually been eating before and it was disgusting. That is when I resolved to make this work.

Other than my desire to change, the single biggest factor in my success has been that Lee did the program with me. It made it nice to have the accountability at home and at the meetings. She was willing to try recipes I found online, even if they weren’t for her favorite foods. She even started running so we could do the races together. She swore she would never run a race, now she is going to do a half marathon!

Today I ran the first annual Robert’s Weight Watchers Anniversary 5K in 24 minutes flat. I am also going to do my monthly weigh in. I never thought I would celebrate anything by running and then getting on a scale. As I said at the beginning, what a difference a year makes...

Another one in the books...

10.6 miles early this morning. I would have gone further, but once again I did not want to get up and get moving. My transition time from bed to driveway was about 25 minutes. I need to cut that down to 5!

I altered my route a little today and did about 3 miles on the Lake Forest track. This let me focus on some pacing and avoid a second loop up East North Street. I enjoyed the cool temperatures and I look forward to the Furman Blue Shoes on 10/11 to see if my 5K time picks up with less heat.

I am currently looking at marathon training plans for the upcoming Myrtle Beach Marathon. One thing I have noticed is that most of them for beginner/novice/intermediate runners start out with lower mileage than I am currently running. I am trying to figure out if I just up their mileage in the early weeks to meet my current level and stay there until the plan increases it or if I just keep doing what I have been doing until I hit the week in their plan that has similar mileage.

There are lots of races coming up. I hope to fit many of them into my training schedule. I heard there is usually a 5K at Eastside High School on Thanksgiving. I may see if that is happening this year. If not, I may run the first annual ‘Robert Prepares to Pig Out 10 Mile Turkey Trot’. You are welcome to join me!

Yoga today...

Yoga today was a good workout. It felt great to stretch my muscles out. I am seeing more and more flexibility every class. I still have trouble with balance, but I am getting less self conscious about falling over. It helps when I can get in the back of the room so I don’t feel like I am distracting those behind me. Here is a picture of the studio from my normal spot in the back....



One area that I have seen great improvement in is my feet. I never really thought about stretching and strengthening my feet, but they feel great. I rarely have cramps in my feet while running since I started yoga.

I am feeling a little odd today since I haven’t run. Six straight days was good in some ways, but I know my body needed the break today. My quads were really tight and it felt good to stretch them out. Tomorrow I hope to get in another 10+ miles. I can’t believe that the Spinx half is only three weeks from this Saturday. I am going to push through some mileage these next few weeks and then taper off for a few days before the half. The 10 day forecast looks great for running with lows in 50’s.

One other note... The Garmin is great. I have really enjoyed being able to explore new areas and not worrying about how far I have run. It also allows me to take off across a field if I want to get out of traffic.

Good luck to my friend Mark Harris who is running the Army 10 Miler this Saturday in Washington, DC.

10.5 nice and easy...

I wanted to run a faster pace this morning, but after the speed intervals last night I didn’t have it in me.  Instead of the 9:15 pace I wanted for my long run, I had about a 9:37.  I felt good though, so that was a positive.  I have been running without my iPod for the last month and I am thinking about taking it with me for my next long run to see if it helps or hurts my pace.  

I have a busy 6 weeks coming up with 3 races (possibly 4 if we do the 1 miler in Clemson this weekend).  I have a 5K on 10/11 that I will probably be leg tired going into because I will be in a heavy week of training for the Spinx half on 10/25.  Then on 11/8 I have a 5K that I hope to really be able to sprint through and shoot for a new PR.

After that, things seem to slow down until the first of the year.  I am going to keep my eyes open though because I seem to find races that aren’t heavily publicized if I look hard enough.

After 6 straight days of running, I am looking forward to Yoga tomorrow.

Need for Speed..

We took the dogs and my son up to the track at the local school this afternoon and I ended up running speed intervals.  I had never really done them before, so it was a new experience.  I was kind of surprised that the later ones were easier than the first few.  I think I am going to try to some each week.  It was a nice change of pace from my normal running.  Now I wonder what I will feel like running in the morning...  I’ll just go out and see how it feels...

Rest day?

So far I have been resting today. I think we are going to at least get a walk in this afternoon, but that will be about it. I want to run 11 miles tomorrow, so I don’t want to do much today.

I have eaten too much in the last 24 hours and I can feel it. I need the break from the four straight home games so that I can get back into a normal eating routine.

So, hopefully we will get a little exercise, a salad for supper and an early bedtime. Then I can get in an early run and start the week off right.

Got in my 30 for the week...

I got out for a quick 3.25 this morning to get to my total of 30.8 for the week. I felt pretty good, but my legs were a little tired. I was going to get it in last night, but the rain stayed around and I went to the gym with Lee instead. I think the tread climber is what made me leg-weary this morning. Even though I didn’t exactly hit race pace, I did run negative splits on each mile. I was happy with that.

Now it’s off to Clemson to undo all the exercise I did this week!

5 in the rain..

Wow, what a refreshing run in the rain. We need the rain and I had forgotten how much I enjoy running in a cool, light rain. I looked for lots of big hills today and had no trouble finding them. The uphills were challenging, but I had two significant downhill portions that really demolished my quads. They felt like jell-o when I got done, but in a good way. I got in 5.47 at a decent pace. I have run about 27.5 miles this week and feel great. I hope to get up and get 4 EASY (read that slow) miles in tomorrow to get me over the 30 mile mark.

My biggest issue right now is fear. Things are going so well with my running that I am getting nervous! How weird is that? Hopefully the yoga is going to continue to help me stay healthy.

Another 5+ Day...

I got in a little over 5 miles today at a moderate pace. It felt really good out, even with the wind. I am glad I remembered my Body Glide. If you aren’t familiar with it, this miracle product is great for preventing chaffing in sensitive areas...

I also started thinking back to when I first began running late last year. I started out in cotton t-shirts, under armor compression shorts and gym shorts. As the weather cooled and my intensity increased, the cotton t-shirts and shorts got more and more soaked and uncomfortable. The chaffing got serious then too. After a few runs with band-aids covering sensitive areas on my chest, I discovered Body Glide. I also understood why everyone likes the new wicking fabrics so much.

Since then, that is about all I run in. Even if it is cold and I need a sweatshirt or long sleeved shirt, I still wear the wicking shirts underneath. I have consistently found good deals at Target on the Champion C-9 line of athletic clothes. I’ll also pick up some great technical shirts at Fleet Feet when they have their sales.

Tomorrow, I wanted to go to Yoga, but I don’t think that will happen. I hope to get 5-6 miles in before work.

Long run in...

Well, I didn’t get up quite as early as I wanted but I was able to get 10.35 miles in. The cool weather was great. I ran in my Pearl Izumi’s today and I am pretty sure they are now my favorite shoe. I need to retire my oldest pair of Sauconys, so I think I will get another pair of the Pearls in the next few months.

The Garmin was great today. I actually had to break out the instruction book to find out how to get the backlight to work so I could see it in the dark. I also set up an ‘auto lap’ for 1 mile. It beeps every mile and records the split time. I was surprised that I ran a pretty consistent pace. I need to pick it up from miles 4-8 to get my time where I want it, but overall I feel good about where I am.

Between mile 7 and 8 I had a big downhill followed by a big uphill and my quads really let me know. We worked them hard in Yoga yesterday and I think that contributed to the feeling. Once I got off the big hill, they felt better and held up for the rest of the run.

I only saw a few people out today, but I did recognize two of them. Amy and Megan were working hard running up Shannon while I was doing a mile on the track at Lake Forest. I like seeing people I know. The only other person I recognized was the guy delivering papers on Sweetbriar and McCarter. He had to dodge me about 3 times. I keep waiting on a copy of The Greenville News to hit me on the head.

Women and rubber straps...

Well, you might think it would be a guy’s fantasy to be in a room full of women and rubber straps, but it isn’t! We used resistance bands in Yoga today and it took the workout to another level.

Aside from the core strength workout, I had a small victory today in the flexibility department. We got stretched out enough that I actually touched the top of my feet (yes I kept my legs straight!) for the first time. I may make it to the toes yet.

Hills and Yoga

What is a hill? That is an interesting question. When I started running, I realized just how many hills there are around my house. Cars tend to make you ignore hills unless they are really big. Around our house, there are very few truly flat sections of road. When I first started running on the track at Lake Forest, I thought it was hilly because of the incline the track is built on. Then when I started running on the road, I realized how flat that track really is relative to our neighborhood. When I ran at the beach the first time, I truly understood the difference between flat and hilly. Now, I actually like hills most of the time. With the Garmin, I found that my pace stays fairly constant over the course of an entire run, but you can definitely see slow downs on the big inclines. No surprise there, but I would like to work on being able to maintain speed up hills. I think that is where I can cut the most time off of my races. Based on my time at the BMW, which was a flat course, I would say that I could shave 30 seconds a mile off my times if I could maintain pace up the hills. We shall see. Right now my focus is really on increasing distance, not speed.

I am going to do a long run tomorrow morning. I want to go for at least 10 and would like to go for 11 or 12 if I have time. October 25 is coming up sooner than I like to think and I want to be ready to at least finish the Spinx Half Marathon. My goal would be under two hours, but I am not sure how realistic that is right now. I am starting to get a little antsy about this race since it is such a huge distance increase. If I can get that distance in a long run in the next three weeks it will make me feel much better. I hope having the Garmin will keep me from going out too fast.

I have decided to try and place my long runs the day after a Yoga class. I have noticed that any run the day after Yoga feels great, so I hope that carries over to a long run.

Garmin is great...

I used the Garmin at lunch and it was great. I decided to take a different route halfway through, and I liked that I could easily still track my distance. I saw some interesting stats at first glance... My loop included about 1250 feet of uphill and an equal amount of downhill since I started and finished at the same location.

I also liked the calories burned function, which should be close to accurate since it has my weight and captures my heart rate during the whole run.

Now I just have to read all the instructions so I can learn how do the different workouts and create my own.

Looking forward to lunch...

I was going to get a long run in today, but decided to sleep in and get 5 miles at lunch. I am looking forward to using my new Garmin on the home course and see how far I have actually been running. I suspect I will be disappointed to find out my routes have been a little shorter than I though, but at least I will be fairly accurate from here on out.

It will be nice to be able to just go out and run and not worry about being on a specific route. I like to be able to detour if I see construction going on or a ‘For Sale’ sign that I haven’t investigated yet.

I was a little disappointed in my totals from last week. I only got 22 miles in and one yoga class. I need to get close to 30 miles in this week and I hope to make 2 yoga classes. I may start adding some speed work on a track in the evenings to get some extra miles.

Garmin is here & a great two miles

Got the Garmin, charged it up and took it to my race tonight. Of course, I left the heart rate strap at the office, but the distance and speed was mostly what I was interested in.

This race was really neat. BMW has a performance driving school near their plant here. The course was on their track and through some parking lots and access roads. Totally closed off, so it was fun to run. They had the start divided off by estimated times. Of course, lots of folks had no idea where they should be and we still had to struggle to get running at first.

I ran 14:44 for a 7:22 average. That was a great time for me and I think it would have been 10-15 seconds faster if I hadn’t been so bunched up the first .2 of a mile.

When the race was over, they had beer, water, gatorade, fruit and the gigantic pretzels that were as thick as bagels. We also saw some of the professional drivers on the course and they were flying. You could ride with one for a $10 donation, but we had to leave and pick up my daughter at a party... maybe next year.

I hope to run tomorrow morning before we leave for the game.

Thanks to Marion who’s blog turned me on to sporttracks software... I imported my Garmin run and it put it on a Google Earth map...

Waiting....

Waiting on my Garmin...... It should be here today. Maybe I can charge it and use it at tonight’s race.

Tonight we are running the BMW 2 miler. It is on a closed course at the BMW performance center. I am sure the race will be filled with lots of elite runners. This is the kind of race that I am using as a speed workout and not really trying to make a goal time. I just want to see how fast I can run over a ‘short’ distance. I was going to go out and run 3 or 4 miles this morning, but decided to take it easy and then run with my Garmin in the morning before going to Clemson.

We ate pasta last night and I overdid it, but hopefully it will give me the juice for a speedy run tonight.

I am starting to get excited about the Spinx half in October. I hope there will be people out in their yards supporting us on the run, I am going to need it! I used the Runners World tool that predicts finishing times based on past races of different distances and it projects I can finish the half in just under two hours. I guess I will make that my goal, although my real goal is just to finish and hear my name called out as I enter West End Field...

What great running weather!!

It was perfect running weather this morning. Even though I only ran 5 instead of the 8 or 9 I was planning on running, it was great. I slept in and didn’t have time for the longer run. It was a cool 61 degrees when I went out and I enjoyed every minute of it.

My new Garmin 305 should be here tomorrow. I finally decided on the 305 after hearing of more issues with the 405. That and I had enough money saved up for the 305 too! Depending on when it gets here tomorrow, I may use it at the BMW 2 Miler tomorrow night. I’ll be anxious to see how my ‘calculated’ distances match up to the GPS. I hope I have been running further than I think!

We have a busy racing schedule coming up, so I hope the cool weather holds out. As of right now we have the following races on the schedule:

9/19 - BMW 2 Miler
10/4 - Clemson Downhill 1 Mile
10/11 -Furman Blue Shoes 5K
10/25 - Spinx Runfest (Half for me, 5K for Lee)

After that, I need to look around. I hope there is a Turkey Trot in Greenville somewhere on Thanksgiving. If not, I may just have to have my own...

Got in 5....

Got a quick (for me anyway) 5 miles in at lunch. The only downside was I didn’t get any lunch!

A Clif bar and fat free popcorn will have to do....

Also got to check on the new dog and see how she is recovering. She is far from 100%, but she is looking better.

Lazy tail....

By the time we got home from swimming and got Julian in bed it was 11:00. Then I had to finish some work and didn’t get in bed until midnight. When the alarm went off, I just couldn’t get up and run. I was looking forward to the cool weather too...

I hope to do a quick 4 miles for lunch to get some work in. Maybe tomorrow I can go for 8 or so.

Yoga...

It feels good to be stretched out....

Just when I feel like I have improved my core strength, we have a class like today where I feel my ab muscles shaking like an earthquake.....

At least I only fell once during the balance pose....

Off day...

I was going to go out for a short run today, but I heard the rain this morning and decided to give myself a rest after the 10 miles yesterday. I will be going to Yoga today, so that will be enough of a workout. My legs feel good and I haven’t had any pain. Tomorrow I want to go out for 7 miles at a decent pace.

Julian has her last swim meet tonight and then we need to figure out what she is going to do between now and basketball season.

The Biggest Loser starts tonight too, I am glad we have the DVR set up to record it. It is kind of a goofy show, but I really like it. It was one of the things that got me off my tail and moving about a year ago. The one thing I really got from that show is that there is no shortcut. You have to decide you want to get healthier and then follow through. They present unrealistic results because they are in a controlled environment, but that does show you how much of a lifestyle change is required to lose weight.

Someone asked me “Are you through losing weight yet?” Well, I guess the answer is yes, but that doesn’t change anything. I am committed to making sure my lifestyle stays healthy and that requires as much effort as losing the weight did. In fact, it is a little harder because when I was losing weight, it was like a game where I won every week when the scale went down. Now, the focus is on keeping the scale where it is.

Another question I get is “Do you weigh everyday?”. This seems to be a very polarizing issue when I discuss it with other Weight Watchers folks. Weight Watchers only wants you to weigh in once a week because of the normal ups and downs your body has. However, I weigh ever morning and every night. The scale is not what defines me, but it does help keep me on track. It is kind of like running without timing yourself, I need the feedback that I was running fast (for me anyway) or slow. It helps to reinforce the new self image I am trying to develop of a healthy, athletic me.

Long run done!

I was a little nervous about my weight this weekend since I didn’t exercise after Friday, but everything held up pretty well. Even with the homemade lasagna last night, I maintained my weight....

I did not want to get up this morning when the alarm went off at 5:00, but I managed to get out of bed. Once I am up and walking, I am OK. It is getting out from under the covers that is hard. I took two 8oz bottles of Gatorade in my fuel belt and headed out about 5:15. It was a beautiful morning to run because of the full moon. It was pretty warm and humid though, so I was drenched by the time I hit the three mile mark at the pool. If the cover wasn’t on it, I would probably have jumped in.

I had wanted to get 8.5 in, but I got 10. I felt like I could have easily made it for 13 or 14, but the clock caught up to me. It felt good to get that long of a run in. I had no pain or cramps. I ran negative splits between the first 5 and second 5 and really was moving really well at the end. I think the two days rest did me right.

I am getting close to buying my Garmin, but I am now having some second thoughts about getting the newer model 405.



Or the older model 305...


I have read that the 405’s touch sensitive bezel kind of gets wacky if it gets sweat on it. And if I wear it while running, I will definitely get sweat on it! I also have heard that the 305 is more comfortable and the battery last longer. I think the 405 does have better satellite reception though. I think I am going to go to Fleet Feet and try on the 405 and see what I think...

Tomorrow I want to get a short run in and go to Yoga class...

We have a busy week this week as Bobby starts back in Cub Scouts and has baseball practice tonight. Julian has her last swim meet on Tuesday. We have church on Wednesday and we are running the BMW 2 mile on Friday night. Oh yeah, our newest addition to the family is having her surgery on Tuesday too... Here is a picture of Indy (b&w dog) and her new friend Pearl (on the bed).... I’ll get better pictures when we get a new camera, this came off my phone...

Ready for Monday...

Spent Saturday at the ball game and today doing school projects after church. I’ll get back on the road Monday after a nice two day rest. Hopefully I can get 8.5 miles in tomorrow morning.

Building the base....

I went out today and ran an easy 4 miles. This is the third day in a row I have run and the 4th out of the last 5... I am working on building a base of 30 miles a week to prepare for the Spinx Half and then push that up to 40 as I prepare for the Myrtle Beach Marathon in February.

So far, I have done well with no aches and pains showing up. I attribute this mostly to the Yoga I have been doing for the past month or so. My flexibility in my quads, hamstrings and calves is significantly better than it was. I think this has really helped me react to potholes, stepping off curbs and stepping on debris.

I may try to get 4 or 5 miles in tomorrow morning if I get up in time. That would give me 27-28 miles this week.

I also would like to get to the point where I run 10 on Monday, 7 on Wed, 8 on Thursday and 5 on Friday. That would make a nice week for me with Yoga on Tuesday and Saturday. Once I get to that level, I want to add a mile a week to the Monday run until I get to 13. We’ll see.....

5 more miles...

5 more miles today....

I was going to bike this morning, but I decided that two days of yoga will probably be enough cross training right now. I really need to start building my mileage base. I need to get up to about 30 miles a week relatively soon and then really start hitting a training program.

Why do I run?

The question of “Why do you run?” was posted on one of the weight watchers message boards that I frequent. I had to stop and think about it....

The easy answer is that I run to stay in shape, but I don’t think that is really the whole truth. I could go to they gym where I have a TV and weather doesn’t matter. I could play basketball, soccer or some other high intensity sport. I could just focus on my diet and maintain my weight. So why do I choose to run?

Initially, it was because I wanted to get my 4 miles in faster because I was getting a little board walking around the track 16 times. Then, once I started running I noticed some things other than just losing weight and getting in shape.

First, every mile I run seems like a mile further away from the ‘old’ me that was out of shape and unhealthy. Each step is reprogramming my self image to see myself as healthy, fit and someone who makes good choices. Each step takes me away from the old me that dealt with stress and joy the same way... by eating!

Second, every time I finish a run it builds my confidence that I can accomplish whatever is in front of me. Running is a physical battle within yourself. You will always have some pain, fatigue and/or other issue that comes up during a run. Mentally, you have to be able to focus on the task at hand and block out the distractions. If you are 4 miles from home, you don’t have a choice. You have to win the battle and make it back home. Mental toughness comes into play. You build up the mind to be able to block out discomfort, doubt and fear.

Third, I enjoy the competition. Running is very competitive, even when you are alone. You can try to beat your last time or make it up a hill you have never conquered before. In races, you do compete with others but also with yourself and your previous performances. There are not many sports where 7 year olds can compete with 70 year olds and both can win by meeting their personal goals. At the end of a race, everyone is smiling and enjoying the success you feel from finishing a race. There are no losers in running. As my friend Bill Buck Bates told me, “No matter what your time was, you beat all the folks that chose to sit on the couch.”

Fourth, I do enjoy the endorphin rush I get from running. There is always a smile on my face when I finish.

Fifth, I solve a lot of the worlds problems while running. It is amazing the clarity with which I think while running. I am able to find solutions to problems, make decisions and set goals while I am on the road. Somehow the physical exertion clears my mind of the negative thought patterns or self imposed limitations that might creep into my mind during a normal day.

Finally, my ego does come into play. I just enjoy doing something that I thought I could never do. I like being able to say I am a runner. I enjoy knowing people think I am an idiot when they see me out in the rain or the 100 degree heat. I know that is not necessarily a good reason to run, but I have to be honest here.