100 Pound Milestone

Yup that's right 100 lbs is finally in the books, this is the first time I've seen a 1 at the beginning of my weight since I wrestled 189 back in Freshman Year, I was 14 yrs old, before I made the jump to heavyweight.

This has been such a long journey, over 2 years, since I committed myself to a healthier and more active lifestyle, but this milestone doesn't mark the end of the road but merely the beginning. I have gone through my share of ups and downs over the last 2 years, I'd like to think that I have learned some things about myself during this process. I've learned about sacrifice and commitment, goal setting and doing everything in your power to achieve those goals. I've learned that sometimes failure and setbacks are the greatest teaching tools we encounter in life.

As I've shrunk over the last 2 years I hope I have also grown, and grown up a little as well, one of my main motivations is to be an example to my boys and although they will probably never remember their "Big" Daddy when they get older I'm hopeful that I am setting the example and showing them the way to not only live a healthy lifestyle but to live a "good" life, that making a lot of money and owning a bunch of fancy things doesn't define you but rather being a good person, helping others and taking time each day to try and grow as a person is what is really important. That when you leave this world you don't get to take any of those fancy things with you, but you will leave an impression on the people closest to you, what do you want them to remember about you?

One aspect of my life that I really feel I have neglected is doing volunteer work, this is something that has tugged on my heart strings a lot lately, so as one chapter of my life comes to a close a new one begins, this book is still being written and its up to me to determine the outcome. Live Uncommon is something I'm looking into getting involved with, but I'm really open to anything, the perfect scenario would be something I could do that was also centered around my athletic interests, I know that God will guide me in the right direction and whatever comes next I will attack with the same passion and desire that try to put into everything I do.

My first 100 mile week

I officially logged my first 100 mile week last week for running and biking, the week was capped off with a 16 mile run on Saturday morning and 30 mile bike ride that afternoon. I was really suprised at how well my legs responded that afternoon and how fresh they felt, but even more suprising was the lack of sorness the following day. I really expected my legs to be trashed, but they weren't and that was great. I did a fairly hard tempo run on Monday morning plus lifted weights, including squats, stiff legged dead lifts, calf raises and lunges, legs were a little tired last night before I headed out for my bike ride but seemed to work out after a few miles. This is all very encouraging for me and my aspiration to do a Triathlon, my biggest concern is the training and how my body will handle the work load training for 3 separate events, especially my knees, since I have had issues with them for years.

I came across a blog for a local professional triathlete, Jeff Paul, Dream Big JP and have been reading about his struggles to balance family, work and training and it has really inspired me to give it my all, and not only in my athletic pursuits. I really want to take my training to the next level, and will need to if I want to do a triathlon, but not at the sacrifice of my family, I've already been down that road training MMA. Being able to read his blog and how he handles training, work and family hopefully will keep me inspired and on the right path. If you get a chance I recommend checking it out.

Firecracker Run - 2011 - 10K results

Click the link below for the official results

Race Results

I felt like I did really well, I set a new PR for the 10k with 49:23 which is great considering I wasn't running this race as a high priority, I was basically using it as my speed work for the week. I started off slow, I intentionally kept myself in the back of the starting area with the walkers and people with strollers so I would have to go slow. The first mile is flat and after weaving through the crowd I was moving pretty well and I felt great. The second mile brings the first real hill and I was able to pass some people as I have grown to love running up hill, I'm fairly confident in my ability to go up hill these days, I run enough of them during runs and I have grown stronger at it. At the top of the hill was a lady spraying a garden hose for passing runners and as I ran through the spray I yelled "I LOVE YOU!" she laughed and I sped off. Miles 3 and 4 were mostly flat and I started to reel some people in, my basic strategy in any race is to find people ahead of me and use them as a target to catch and pass, this keeps the race from getting boring, and helps fuel my competitive drive. After a down hill section mile 5 brought on the next and last hill, which was a bit brutal, as I approached the uphill I passed some people who looked like they were struggling just a bit and called out "Here is where the fun begins" not sure if they heard me and if they did if they took it as intended, before the race began the race director had made a special comment about this hill and the elderly lady that lived on it who plays an organ for the enjoyment of passing racers.

After the hill came a nice down hill section which was a welcome change for my aching legs. Once I reached the final stretch I spotted a guy I have seen at the last couple of races I've done and I made it my mission to pass him...yet again. As I reeled him in I reached the 6 mile mark as I passed him and I was moving at a pretty good clip, then suddenly he shot passed me! It was on, my competitive fire ignited I shot off in a sprint and blew past him crossing the finish line in 49:23 setting a new PR much to my surprise. I quickly found the guy I passed and apologized (some people may consider blowing by someone at the tape bad form), no hard feelings, and we shared a laugh about it.

Overall I was really happy with my performance I finished 16th in my age division and 5th in the Clydesdale division (210+ lbs). I was really hoping to place in the Clydesdale division seeing as how it was probably my only opportunity to compete in that division, hoping to be down in the low 190's for the QC Marathon in September.

Runners blog #13

Today was one of the first times in a long time that I just didn't want to run, it was a combination of being tired, sore and just not mentally in to it. I forced my self out of bed at 5:45 after hitting the snooze button more times than I should of, got ready and was out the door at 6. My run started off slow and sluggish, my legs felt heavy and tired and my feet were sore. I haven't been feeling good lately, mostly just run down and tired, but last night after work I had a bad headache that just wouldn't go away, not sure if that was the culprit and caused me not to sleep well or not, I intentionally went to bed at 10 so I could get some rest. Either way after a couple of miles I was hitting my target pace even though my legs felt like I was running through mud. By the end of my run I was feeling much better and my legs were loosened up and feeling much better, after cooling down I lifted weights and did some core work, which I have neglected a lot lately and I could tell going through my workout.

On the upside, I weighed in today at 205 lbs which is only 5 pounds away from the century mark for total weight lose, really hoping I can make that goal before our vacation in couple weeks. I would love to be at or around 190 lbs when I run the QC Marathon at the end of September, which seems like a much more realistic goal these days. I think weighing nearly 35 lbs lighter than last year will greatly help me reach my goal of going under 4 hrs in the marathon.