Today was supposed to be an easy run day so I decided to do one of my favorite treadmill workouts when I'm on the road and have limited access to exercise equipment, Treadmill circuits - run .5 miles stop do 25 push ups and 50 crunches repeat for 4-6 miles. I set the treadmill at 6.5 mph @ 2.0 inc, was going to stop after 5 miles but felt really good so I did one more round. Ended up at 6 miles with 300 push ups and 600 crunches during. Finished the workout with 30 minutes of upper body weight lifting plus lunges.
Last night I tried swimming for a bit in the hotel pool, talk about a wake up call. My biggest concern about making the jump to triathlon is the swimming, it's not that I can't swim, it's more that I don't swim. Oh I get in the pool and play around with the kids, but that usually consists of me throwing them up in the air and other horse play, no actual swimming is done. In fact I haven't actually swam laps since I was probably 9 or 10 years old when I took lessons and the occasional time in high school when swimming was part of the curriculum for P.E. class. I made it about 15 minutes for roughly 300-350 yards, I'm guessing on the distance since its not a standard lap pool. I was all over the place, trouble breathing, couldn't seem to coordinate my arms and my legs to move at the same time. I'm sure had anyone walked by at that time and say me they probably got a good laugh. After last night I may reconsider my approach to swimming, originally I was going to try and get in 2 swim workouts a week once I get my Y membership, but now I'm thinking 3-4 may be needed just to get my form down. I might even need to seek professional help from a coach, I will have to look into those options, at least in the beginning.
I have all the confidence in the world in my ability to complete the biking and running stages of a tri, I have the fitness level already to succeed in those two elements. Add in the swimming and it becomes a game changer, that is my weakness and therefore that is going to be my focus when I start officially training for Triathlons in January.
Until next time...Do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Week in review: Getting Back into Training
Man what a week! Monday started the 8 day sales event for my company that ends today, I opened a new kiosk location at the Wal-Mart in Anamosa, IA, had Thanksgiving, Black Friday and helped get the Christmas decorations up at the house (okay full disclosure here, the wife and kids did all the decorations while I was out for a trail run with friends, I basically put the tree up, hung lights and assisted with hanging of the ornaments). In addition to all that I eased my way (with all the subtlety of charging rhino) back into training. I was able to get in 5 good runs last week including 2 on trails as well as a couple sessions on the bike trainer for about 7 hours total of training last week. I am jumping back into it full steam this week starting tomorrow, after taking a rest day today (although I did lift weights after work), rest days are difficult for me anymore, I always feel like I need to be doing something.
I am super motivated to get back to training again, even though I am going to (try) and keep it somewhat relaxed till the first of the year, the holidays are such a crazy time both at work and with personal obligations I don't want to get frustrated if I miss a workout or worse get burned out. I have had the honor to meet and make some friendships with some pretty awesome people over the last year like Aaron Mauer, Jeff Paul and others through Live Uncommon who have also inspired me to do more and push farther, I have big goals for 2012...like:
1. Make the jump to Triathlon (QC Triathlon and possibly Hy-Vee Triathlon)
2. Run a Spring and Fall Marathon
3. Run a Spring and Fall Ultra - 50k (Hawkeye 50k - March 17th and Wildcat Den 50k)
4. Run a 50 mile race (Haven't found one yet)
5. Do more obstacle races like Warrior Dash, Spartan Race and Tough Mudder and still do all the local 5k, 10k, Bix 7, and half marathon races I can.
I know it is going to be hard to simultaneously train for triathlons, road marathons, obstacle races and trail Ultra's but I'm not doing any of these to win them. I'm doing them because I love being in shape an being an athlete again, because training and racing is fun, and it's my hobby and my therapy. I want to do them because if I'm not training for these things I will do something far less productive with my life like sitting on my @$$ watching TV, playing video games, drinking beer, eating like a slob and killing myself slowly all while setting the wrong example for my boys. I know I've talked about it before but setting the example for my 2 boys is one of the biggest motivating factors for me to keeping pushing myself. Don't get me wrong I love working out and I love training for races and competing and I certainly love how being in shape makes me feel, but setting a good example for my boys to follow, live up to and hopefully surpass is far, far more important to me. My legacy in life will not be how I finished in some race, but how I raised my children and the example that I set for them and since I can't sing worth a damn or paint a magnificent portrait I guess training, racing and living a life of fitness is what I got, God made me a beast of burden and I'm happy with that.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
I am super motivated to get back to training again, even though I am going to (try) and keep it somewhat relaxed till the first of the year, the holidays are such a crazy time both at work and with personal obligations I don't want to get frustrated if I miss a workout or worse get burned out. I have had the honor to meet and make some friendships with some pretty awesome people over the last year like Aaron Mauer, Jeff Paul and others through Live Uncommon who have also inspired me to do more and push farther, I have big goals for 2012...like:
1. Make the jump to Triathlon (QC Triathlon and possibly Hy-Vee Triathlon)
2. Run a Spring and Fall Marathon
3. Run a Spring and Fall Ultra - 50k (Hawkeye 50k - March 17th and Wildcat Den 50k)
4. Run a 50 mile race (Haven't found one yet)
5. Do more obstacle races like Warrior Dash, Spartan Race and Tough Mudder and still do all the local 5k, 10k, Bix 7, and half marathon races I can.
I know it is going to be hard to simultaneously train for triathlons, road marathons, obstacle races and trail Ultra's but I'm not doing any of these to win them. I'm doing them because I love being in shape an being an athlete again, because training and racing is fun, and it's my hobby and my therapy. I want to do them because if I'm not training for these things I will do something far less productive with my life like sitting on my @$$ watching TV, playing video games, drinking beer, eating like a slob and killing myself slowly all while setting the wrong example for my boys. I know I've talked about it before but setting the example for my 2 boys is one of the biggest motivating factors for me to keeping pushing myself. Don't get me wrong I love working out and I love training for races and competing and I certainly love how being in shape makes me feel, but setting a good example for my boys to follow, live up to and hopefully surpass is far, far more important to me. My legacy in life will not be how I finished in some race, but how I raised my children and the example that I set for them and since I can't sing worth a damn or paint a magnificent portrait I guess training, racing and living a life of fitness is what I got, God made me a beast of burden and I'm happy with that.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Impromptu Turkey Trot and Saucony Peregrine shoe review
So we were supposed to go out of town to the wife's grandma's for Thanksgiving like we do every year, but we had to cancel those plans with our oldest son being sick. We didn't think it would be a good idea to travel 3+ hours one way with a sick child or very responsible to take him to an assisted living home and potentially get a bunch of people ill.
The bright side was I got to go for an impromptu Turkey Trot on some of my favorite trails. It was a good day for a trail run and I got a good 7+ miles in, even got to see a couple deer including a massive buck run across the trail about 20 yards in front of me. My dog Lucky was completely disinterested in the deer but as usual wanted to chase every squirrel and rabbit he saw, which certainly helped me keep up my pace.
I also was able to try out my new shoes, Saucony Peregrine, I have wanted to purchase these shoes for some time, but couldn't justify yet another shoe purchase when I had a perfectly good pair of trail shoes that had little miles on them and where still in good shape. So to say I was happy when I blew out some stitches and trashed my shoes during The Wildcat Den 50k would be an understatement. Since becoming a dedicated runner I have developed a some what unhealthy obsession with running shoes, I generally have anywhere from 5-8 pairs in my rotation and that could easily be more given certain circumstances like say more disposable income or free samples from manufactures for review.
Saucony Peregrine Shoe Review:
Looks: At first look these shoes are pretty sweet, definitely a cool looking shoe, I went with the black and orange version instead of the black and blue but both color schemes are good looking.
Fit and Feel: These shoes have a good fit, they are roomy enough in the toe box to allow my toes to move and splay out as I run but not so much room that my feet feel like they are moving around inside the shoe, which can cause blistering on long runs. I did notice some looseness in the heel cup and felt like my heel was popping up at times, this may have been due to the fact that I didn't lace up through the last eyelet like normal. I started out with lacing trough all the eyelets but after I tightened the laces I didn't like the feel, I will have to try them laced all the way up on my next run and see if that improves the fit. Overall the fit seems to be fairly similar to my Kinvara's which is to be expected since the Peregrines are built on a similar platform as the Kinvara's. The weight on these shoes is good too just under 10 oz (website has them listed at 9.7 oz for size 9's) which is considerably lighter than my previous shoes and you can really notice a difference on the weight during the run.
Overall I really like these shoes after just one run and really can't wait to put some more miles in them in the near future.
The bright side was I got to go for an impromptu Turkey Trot on some of my favorite trails. It was a good day for a trail run and I got a good 7+ miles in, even got to see a couple deer including a massive buck run across the trail about 20 yards in front of me. My dog Lucky was completely disinterested in the deer but as usual wanted to chase every squirrel and rabbit he saw, which certainly helped me keep up my pace.
I also was able to try out my new shoes, Saucony Peregrine, I have wanted to purchase these shoes for some time, but couldn't justify yet another shoe purchase when I had a perfectly good pair of trail shoes that had little miles on them and where still in good shape. So to say I was happy when I blew out some stitches and trashed my shoes during The Wildcat Den 50k would be an understatement. Since becoming a dedicated runner I have developed a some what unhealthy obsession with running shoes, I generally have anywhere from 5-8 pairs in my rotation and that could easily be more given certain circumstances like say more disposable income or free samples from manufactures for review.
Saucony Peregrine Shoe Review:
Looks: At first look these shoes are pretty sweet, definitely a cool looking shoe, I went with the black and orange version instead of the black and blue but both color schemes are good looking.
Fit and Feel: These shoes have a good fit, they are roomy enough in the toe box to allow my toes to move and splay out as I run but not so much room that my feet feel like they are moving around inside the shoe, which can cause blistering on long runs. I did notice some looseness in the heel cup and felt like my heel was popping up at times, this may have been due to the fact that I didn't lace up through the last eyelet like normal. I started out with lacing trough all the eyelets but after I tightened the laces I didn't like the feel, I will have to try them laced all the way up on my next run and see if that improves the fit. Overall the fit seems to be fairly similar to my Kinvara's which is to be expected since the Peregrines are built on a similar platform as the Kinvara's. The weight on these shoes is good too just under 10 oz (website has them listed at 9.7 oz for size 9's) which is considerably lighter than my previous shoes and you can really notice a difference on the weight during the run.
Overall I really like these shoes after just one run and really can't wait to put some more miles in them in the near future.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Nov. 21, 2011
Long day today, got up early to run, colder than expected starting temp was 24 degrees, still made it outside though. I did get to run on some rural, gravel side roads which was nice and peaceful, add in the fact that the wind was minimal and it wasn't a bad run. Scared some cows, well not so much scared them as made them look at me like what the heck is that bi-ped doing running down this road before sunrise. When I ran past the same cows later I'm pretty sure one of them rolled their eyes...haha!
Spent a little over 12 hours getting my new store set up, but its done and ready to go, we even got a couple sales out the door at the end of the day so all in all it was a good day.
I did get a disturbing phone call today about my brother, seems he's gone off the reservation again, nobody has seen or heard from him in about a week, worried about him, keeping him in my prayers, any additional thoughts and prayers would be appreciated.
On the docket for tomorrow . . . tempo run, maybe 7 0r 8 miles, either that or if its too cold a treadmill interval workout with push ups to failure in between . . . I don't know . . . we'll see what the morning brings. I know it was only a week off but man I really missed training . . . until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Spent a little over 12 hours getting my new store set up, but its done and ready to go, we even got a couple sales out the door at the end of the day so all in all it was a good day.
I did get a disturbing phone call today about my brother, seems he's gone off the reservation again, nobody has seen or heard from him in about a week, worried about him, keeping him in my prayers, any additional thoughts and prayers would be appreciated.
On the docket for tomorrow . . . tempo run, maybe 7 0r 8 miles, either that or if its too cold a treadmill interval workout with push ups to failure in between . . . I don't know . . . we'll see what the morning brings. I know it was only a week off but man I really missed training . . . until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Sunday Nov. 20th
Getting ready to head out of town for a couple days, got a new store opening in Anamosa, IA at the Wal-Mart, should be a good store and I'm excited to add it to the Iowa Market. It's going to be a hectic week with the new store, a holiday promo starting tomorrow and of course Thanksgiving and Black Friday. This is a week that I really don't look forward as someone who works in retail, but it hopefully will be a good week and help me and my stores make our budgets.
Will also be a good week to ease back into the training spirit, still taking it easy but I should be able to get in a couple of runs and bike sessions. I was able to get an hour on the trails yesterday which felt surprisingly good, legs seem to have recovered well after last weeks race. Got an hour on the bike this morning before church which felt really good, I'm so glad that I made the investment in a bike this summer and a stationary trainer for this winter. Riding really allows me to ease back into training without putting a lot of extra stress and strain on my legs and joints.
Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving...until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Will also be a good week to ease back into the training spirit, still taking it easy but I should be able to get in a couple of runs and bike sessions. I was able to get an hour on the trails yesterday which felt surprisingly good, legs seem to have recovered well after last weeks race. Got an hour on the bike this morning before church which felt really good, I'm so glad that I made the investment in a bike this summer and a stationary trainer for this winter. Riding really allows me to ease back into training without putting a lot of extra stress and strain on my legs and joints.
Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving...until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Wildcat Den 50k race report
I couldn't have picked a better race for my first ultra marathon, this is a low key event on an 3 mile out and back course (5 loops = 30 miles or 50k). Race registration consisted of showing up writing your name in the book and making a donation. The race director, Larry Sandhaas, does an amazing job with this race on a minimal budget and utilizing the church pot luck model for food and refreshments. The unofficial race results can be found here.
The night before I got all my food prepped and ready for the next day, I wasn't entirely sure what I would need or even be hungry for while running for 5 - 6 hours. I had a pretty good idea what my nutritional needs might be based on my marathon experiences so I went off that and added some for the additional mileage/time.
6 PowerBar Gels, 2 packages of Clif Shot Bloks, 2 peanut butter and nutella sandwiches, 2 bananas, G2 and chia fresca, for about 2350 kcals, along with a Monster Rehab, G2 and protein powder for afterwards.
I slept pretty well the night before and got up at 5:30 to get some breakfast and coffee before heading off to meet up with James, Courtney and Scott to drive down to Muscatine.
5:30am and ready to race.
I was really glad to have some friends joining me for this race, James and Courtney only planned on doing 1 or 2 loops and Scott had ambitions of sticking it out for all 5.
3 Amigos and 1 Amiga
About 140 runners showed up to do anywhere from 1-5 loops, we all huddled up for a group photo and some words from the race director and we were off on our adventure.
The first loop went really well, I was full of energy and excitement for the day, I really had to fight the urge to go to fast to soon as I knew it was going to be a long day. After going through the course the first time and experiencing all the climbs and descents I knew there was going to be a fair amount of walking in my near future.
At the turn around was an aid station with goodies, water and Gatorade. The aid station volunteers really deserve a big thank you, they put in a long day and did a great job keeping peoples spirits up.
A much needed cup of cold water at the turn around aid station
Feeling better after the aid station
The biggest thing I learned while running 6+ hours and covering 30+ miles is that the course isn't the only thing that has peaks and valleys. When running for that kind of time and distance you go through a lot of emotional and physical highs and lows. For the first 3 loops I was pretty much on an emotional high, and having Scott running with me for those 3 loops really helped pass the time, when he decided to call it quits after 3 I was starting to spiral down a bit, but I grabbed some much needed refreshments and headed back out for another loop. Another nice thing about this race, you really could think about it as running 3 miles at a time, which doesn't sound so bad and made it a lot easier to head back out for another loop.
Half way through my 4th loop I really hit a low point and really considered calling it a day, it was probably a good thing I was almost to the aid station and not the start/finish line other wise I just might have. I took my time at the aid station, gobbled a couple handfuls of trail mix and pretzels (yeah seriously craved the salty and the sweats) refilled my water bottle and headed back out. By the time I made my way back to the start I was riding high again, doesn't hurt that heading back is on a nice down hill and nothing makes you feel better than an up tick in your speed.
I headed back out for my 5th and final loop which was definitely my toughest but also my most enjoyable. I walked a good portion of the first half, I was starting to feel the effects of the day and I really wanted to finish strong. After the turn around I ran would could and walked when I had to but by that point I knew I was almost done and I was riding an emotional high again, just a couple of miles left and I would be done. As I neared the finish and the down hill section I picked up my pace and was able to run my way to the finish ending my journey in 6 hours and 30 minutes, well over my goal of 5:30 but never the less a new PR and my first ultra distance finish.
At one point during one of the last loops I'm pretty sure I told myself I would never, ever run this kind of distance again, I've also said the same thing after both of my marathons, but now writing this race report a week later I'm certain I'll do it again next year, if not sooner, the Hawkeye 50k is in March I believe...
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
The Magic Bullet
I've been asked many times how I've done it, concerning my weight loss, and the simple answer I usually give is eat better and exercise more. Now I know that is not typically the answer people are looking for, most people want to know some secret pill or magic bullet that let me lose weight without dieting and exercise. Well unfortunately that doesn't exist, or at least I haven't found it yet. There is a secret though, and I'm willing to share it with anyone and everyone that will listen. Kind of like the old saying "Find a job you love and you'll never WORK a day in your life" same thing goes for losing weight, find something you are passionate about and it will never seem like exercise.
The main reason I can get up at 5am to run, bike, swim (in the near future) or lift weights is because I'm excited to. I literally can't wait till my next workout sometimes because I enjoy what I do so much. I love how I feel after a hard workout, I love seeing my body change in the mirror over the weeks and months. It's what drives me and motivates me to continue to do more, push my limits further and further. I also read about other peoples stories and journey's as well, I read a lot of books about athletes who do seemingly impossible things and that motivates me to try those things. 3 years ago I never thought I could run the Bix 7, heck at the time I couldn't even run a mile, but I read one of my all time favorite books Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes and I was inspired to get out the door and run, any distance I could cover at the time, it didn't matter I just wanted to run. The seed was planted and all I had to do was keep at it, perpetual forward motion, as I've heard it called.
It also helps that I'm incredibly stubborn and I hate to quit or give up on anything once I've set myself to a goal or task. I've found that having a goal race to train for keeps me motivated. I can't just exercise all the time because I love it, some days I don't want to get out of bed that early, some nights I don't feel like putting in a second workout. When that happens I usually can talk myself into it because I know it will make me better and I know I'll feel better afterwards, but on the rare occasions when I feel burned out or just plain exhausted, I'll take the time off, skip a workout and get the extra rest knowing I will get back after it the next day.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
Tuesday, November 01, 2011
Losing too much weight?
I never in my wildest dreams ever thought there could be a possibility that I may being losing too much weight, and for the record I don't believe I have. I'm still a good 15 pounds from my ideal weight, I currently weigh around 205 (depending on the day) and I would like to get down to 190. This is where my cardiologist originally stated he would like to see me at 2 years ago and I laughed at him, I haven't been below 200 lbs consistently since I was 14 years old. And by all accounts 190 is my ideal weight based on various different health metric.
But recently I have had more than one person tell me that I need to stop losing weight, or tell me I look like I'm getting too thin. Granted I have lost a lot of weight, 100 lbs over 2.5 years, but I've done it safely and slowly, I've never lost more than a couple pounds in a week and I am not starving myself in any way shape or form, in fact I still eat a diet that tops out at 3000 calories a day (if not more if I indulge a little which I do from time to time). I do appreciate their concern, they are just looking out for my best interest I'm sure and I'm certain none of these people have anything but good intentions when they say these things to me. But my real issue is where we these people with their good intentions and concern when I was eating myself into an early grave? Why didn't they speak up and speak out while I was gaining weight?
That right there is the underlying problem with America's obesity epidemic; we don't try curtailing someone in the midst of their weight gain. We offer them a super sized portion and tell them something stupid like "It's good to indulge a little" or "You only live once" and "Live a little" (I find the irony of that last statement hilarious). It seems to me we as a society only become concerned with a problem once it has reached an exaggerated point, once someone has become so obese that going on a show like Biggest Loser is their only hope.
I'm trying to live my life in a state of balance, not on one extreme or the other, and that includes everything from diet, exercise, time spent watching TV, sleep and everything in between. I'm 34 years old and I can honestly say I'm in the best shape of my life, I can run for an hour or so in the morning before my kids wake up, go through an entire day of work and family activities and then get another hour long work out in after the kids go to bed. I sleep about 6-7 hours a night because I've found that is what works best for me (anymore and I’m groggy any less and I'm lethargic) and I have enough energy to do it all over again the next day. I can run up to 20 miles on a Saturday morning play with the kids and do chores all afternoon and evening and then knock out a 50 mile bike ride on Sunday morning before church. Yes I may be extreme compared to the normal person, but in my opinion this is the best way for me to live my life. I'm healthy, happy and in a great place in my life. Living the "normal" life is what got me over 300 lbs in the first place, if that is normal than I'll pass on a couple extra hours of TV in favor of a run or a bike ride any day.
I'll get off my soap box now, thanks to any of you that read this blog, I would appreciate any feed back on this and any post.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
But recently I have had more than one person tell me that I need to stop losing weight, or tell me I look like I'm getting too thin. Granted I have lost a lot of weight, 100 lbs over 2.5 years, but I've done it safely and slowly, I've never lost more than a couple pounds in a week and I am not starving myself in any way shape or form, in fact I still eat a diet that tops out at 3000 calories a day (if not more if I indulge a little which I do from time to time). I do appreciate their concern, they are just looking out for my best interest I'm sure and I'm certain none of these people have anything but good intentions when they say these things to me. But my real issue is where we these people with their good intentions and concern when I was eating myself into an early grave? Why didn't they speak up and speak out while I was gaining weight?
That right there is the underlying problem with America's obesity epidemic; we don't try curtailing someone in the midst of their weight gain. We offer them a super sized portion and tell them something stupid like "It's good to indulge a little" or "You only live once" and "Live a little" (I find the irony of that last statement hilarious). It seems to me we as a society only become concerned with a problem once it has reached an exaggerated point, once someone has become so obese that going on a show like Biggest Loser is their only hope.
I'm trying to live my life in a state of balance, not on one extreme or the other, and that includes everything from diet, exercise, time spent watching TV, sleep and everything in between. I'm 34 years old and I can honestly say I'm in the best shape of my life, I can run for an hour or so in the morning before my kids wake up, go through an entire day of work and family activities and then get another hour long work out in after the kids go to bed. I sleep about 6-7 hours a night because I've found that is what works best for me (anymore and I’m groggy any less and I'm lethargic) and I have enough energy to do it all over again the next day. I can run up to 20 miles on a Saturday morning play with the kids and do chores all afternoon and evening and then knock out a 50 mile bike ride on Sunday morning before church. Yes I may be extreme compared to the normal person, but in my opinion this is the best way for me to live my life. I'm healthy, happy and in a great place in my life. Living the "normal" life is what got me over 300 lbs in the first place, if that is normal than I'll pass on a couple extra hours of TV in favor of a run or a bike ride any day.
I'll get off my soap box now, thanks to any of you that read this blog, I would appreciate any feed back on this and any post.
Until next time...
...do today what others won't, so tomorrow you can do what others can't.
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