Saturday 12/22/12

Race day!

Woke up this morning ready to run. Felt good, felt cold, but felt good all the same! The race was in Carmel, right next to where I work so it was an easy 25 minute drive to get over there. I got up, had a small breakfast and a cup of coffee or two and put on my gear. It was about the time I got the truck started and was ready to pull out that it dawned on me…I wasn’t worried about this race in the slightest!

This being my fourth race, I knew what to expect. Normally, I get a bit nervous…”Can I make it all the way through?”, “What if I take off too fast?” “What if, what if, what if?” This time around? I was just excited and ready to roll.

The race it self was great! There’s a pretty awesome park in the middle of Carmel, IN with a converted railroad trail that runs through the middle of it. The course started on this paved trail, then cut off through the smaller trails that wound through the park. The big downfall; it was 17 degrees when the race kicked off! As a runner, the cold temps are great! When the park department didn’t clear the paths like they had said they would, that’s when the suck arrives! Ice was the big problem of the day, but we bore through regardless. It was a bit iffy here and there, I had to help a lady up after falling and I saw at least two or three other people with bloody knees from their own spills. There was a section in the final mile where we ran down a hill, into a tunnel that passed under a major through road, and back up the other side. That was near solid ice both directions, so that was an adventure as well. However, considering that I still had a 9 min 50 sec per mile time after having to slow to a crawl as we all tiptoe’d down the hill/got into single file to run into the narrow strip of grass on the hill…that’s pretty great!

The next race I’ll be eyeballing is this 6.55 mi nighttime trail race at the end of January http://www.planetadventurerace.com/trail/winter/ Looks pretty awesome! In the meantime, I’m going to see if I can log 22 miles between now and the end of the year so I can finish up 2012 with a whopping 300 running miles! (And if I don’t, that’s cool too, it would just be cool to finish on a round number!)

Running:
0:30:35 || 3.1 mi || 9:50 min/mi || flat (+328 pts)

http://runkeeper.com/user/CinemaFro…ivity/137341292

Friday 12/21/12

It’s Friday and the holidays are officially in effect! Prep for family visit limited me to just a run on Wed with no gym. Office Christmas party was Thursday, so I declared a cheat day and enjoyed myself while a midwestern snow storm cut off my post work gym visit! So today, I”m up a pound or two from bad food bloat, which is not the end of the world and it too shall pass. Despite what Gandalf says.

It’s funny though looking back on the office luncheon yesterday. I had mostly okay food diet wise but I had a piece of pie a couple cookies to go with it. I’ve been on this diet since roughly the end of February and it’s amazing how much my capacity and tolerance has changed! While I didn’t feel like I had to be rolled out, the hearty helpings of food left me feeling over stuffed and the pecan pie and 2 cookies (and a couple small chocolate candy/pretzel thingies for full disclosure) left me feeling queasy within a good half hour of the party! It also left me with an amazing sugar rush and fighting to stay away in my recliner by 7:30 pm. Proof positive of that whole ‘you are what you eat/food is for fuel’ mantra I’d say.

Coming up, we’ll have some good eats on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but not so many sweets. Mostly ham, lasagna and scalloped corn, so not the end of the world. I’m on stay-cation next week, but I’ll still be tracking and counting all my food so not too worried. Heck, I’ll probably be hitting the gym at least two of the days next week too, and I’ll be running for certain! As it stands, I have a 5k to run tomorrow morning (in the snow, sweet!) and then I’ll have about 9 days to try and log 22 miles so I can finish up 2012 with exactly 300 running miles!

Not too shabby for a dude that started 2012 at 351 lbs. if I do say so myself.

And I do. I do say so myself.

Gooch2k2 Tracked a Workout for 1,095 pts Today
Standing Military Press:
- 95 lb x 5 reps
- 115 lb x 5 reps
- 125 lb x 5 reps
- 135 lb x 5 reps
- 135 lb x 5 reps
- 135 lb x 5 reps
- 135 lb x 5 reps
Bent Over Barbell Row:
- 70 lb x 5 reps
- 95 lb x 5 reps
- 95 lb x 5 reps
- 95 lb x 5 reps
Lat Pulldown:
- 50 lb x 10 reps
- 75 lb x 5 reps
- 85 lb x 5 reps
- 85 lb x 5 reps
- 85 lb x 5 reps
Pull-Up:
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
Weighted Hyperextension:
- 15 lb x 10 reps
- 15 lb x 10 reps
- 15 lb x 10 reps
Weighted Decline Sit-Up:
- 10 lb x 15 reps
- 10 lb x 15 reps
- 10 lb x 15 reps
Chin-Up:
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 5 reps || assisted || 85 lb
EZ-Bar Curl:
- 50 lb x 12 reps
- 50 lb x 12 reps
Lying Barbell Triceps Extension (“Skullcrusher”):
- 50 lb x 12 reps
- 50 lb x 12 reps
fito2sa

So today I finally got back to my Tuesday lunchtime run. It’s been a good month or so since I was able to do this due to the soreness problems, so I was pretty excited. I knocked out 4.1 mi in 42 minutes, so not to shabby. I’m having one of those existential moments though where I find myself frustrated with my 4 mile run at lunch because I didn’t make it the full five miles. Existential because this time last year, I was pushing it if I walked a half a mile! So suck it up Sally, it’s all good.

I got a lot of good thinking in on today’s run. I’ve been constantly turning over all the factors in my head on what’s been killing my mileage here as of late and today as I walked back from to the gym it finally hit me; I thinking about it too much. I can run without the leg pain now, so that problem’s solved. I think the problem is one part psyching myself out worrying about every twinge and doubting if I can make the whole distance. That needs to stop. It’s time to get back to running simply for, “yay, I get to run again!” The other part of the problem is now that I’ve seen my self break a 10 minute mile more than once, I’ve been come all too obsessed with pace and times instead of just running nice and easy to see where I get to. Instead of being surprised by crossing the 8 mile marker and thinking that’s cool, I’m starting every run like there’s a starter gun behind and and going out strong at a 10 minute per mile pace. I’ve been told this before mind you, but ‘woo, speed!’ won out. Now that I’m thinking back on today’s run, if I start out closer to a 11 minute mile, I can pick up the pace at mile 5 and give no shits.

So, there you have it. My own little mental break through for the day. Feels good and I’m going to put it in practice tomorrow and see what happens.

Gooch2k2 Tracked a Workout for 426 pts Today
Running:
- 0:42:33 || 4.1 mi || 10:24.1 min/mi || flat
- http://runkeeper.com/user/CinemaFromage/activity/136835430
fito2sa

Weight today was up about 2 pounds which is annoying when so close to the milestone. I know what is is though, mostly water and other minor diet side effects, so no worries. Food was solid for yesterday, though one serving of hamburger helper probably would have sufficed. It all fit in my numbers though!

Monday 12/17/12

Screw you Monday, you don’t phase me! Feeling large and in charge today. The weight is holding at 253.4 this morning, but I’m not worried. That ‘down 100 lbs’ is going to happen this week, I vow it!

All the same, knowing that I’m within 2 lbs of a major milestone helped to push me on to a good, solid workout at lunch. I nailed 3 working sets of 195 lbs on bench press today which was awesome and seeing as I cut my squats to one day a week, they’re holding strong at 255 lbs which feels good. I seem to have have a lot of folks at the gym, trainers and other members and such, keeping an eye on my goals and progress and fit feels good to start drawing some attention from some good old fashioned hard work.

This week’s plan is to take advantage of my re-found running legs and pile on some miles! This Saturday I’ll be racing in the 5k’s of Christmas in Carmel, IN which will be fun. I’m seeing some awesome times on my personal 5k’s, so let’s see if I can clock a sub 31 minute 5k on an official timer! This will be race number 4; I’ve come to enjoy the hell out of running a race and being the guy that has to swerve around all the walkers! I’ve also set my sights on this Trail Marathon in Indianapolis in January. I’ll be entering in the 6.55 mi quarter marathon if I do it. It’s a distance I haven’t raced before, (I have run it) and I’ve never run on real dirt trails before, so seems like a good icebreaker. Plus, it’s in the dark, so being able to brag to my friends that, “Yah, I ran 6 mile race, in the woods, in the dark” sounds pretty bad ass.

So there you have it, a good Monday! Christmas Miracles DO happen!

Gooch2k2 Tracked a Workout for 1,933 pts Today
Barbell Squat:
- 185 lb x 5 reps
- 205 lb x 5 reps
- 225 lb x 5 reps
- 245 lb x 5 reps
- 255 lb x 5 reps
- 255 lb x 5 reps
- 255 lb x 5 reps
Barbell Bench Press:
- 135 lb x 5 reps
- 145 lb x 5 reps
- 155 lb x 5 reps
- 195 lb x 5 reps
- 195 lb x 5 reps
- 195 lb x 5 reps
Barbell Incline Bench Press:
- 95 lb x 5 reps
- 105 lb x 5 reps
- 115 lb x 5 reps
- 125 lb x 5 reps
- 125 lb x 5 reps
- 125 lb x 5 reps
Dips – Chest Version:
- 10 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 10 reps || assisted || 85 lb
- 10 reps || assisted || 85 lb
Weighted Hyperextension:
- 10 lb x 10 reps
- 10 lb x 10 reps
- 10 lb x 10 reps
Weighted Decline Sit-Up:
- 10 lb x 15 reps
- 10 lb x 15 reps
- 10 lb x 15 reps

Recently, I’ve started keeping a fitness log on a message board that I frequent. My entries there are cataloging my workouts, my daily food intake, my runs, etc. as I start to train for my first half marathon in May. Since I do get wordy and talk at times about the thoughts and doubts that are going through my head, I figured I’d share here for those of you out there that may be having the same thoughts and doubts, so that you know you aren’t alone!

Sunday 12/16/12
Weigh-in: 253.4! Down 98 lbs.

Even more exciting? After today’s run, I saw 251.6. That’s .2 lbs away from losing 100 lbs. SO DAMN CLOSE! It will happen this week, but won’t count it till I see it in the morning! (Post run’s mostly dehydration, after all.)

For the past two weeks, it’s felt good to see the miles start to add up, but I was starting to worry cause I still couldn’t break the 5k mark. Before I started battling leg pain/soreness, I was hitting 8 miles but now…just wasn’t happening. Today though, I woke up and I could feel it would be a good day. I had a podcast to record this morning, my mind kept wandering during that to ‘Oh man, almost time to run’.

All that hype was for good reason; today I finally broke my 5k mental barrier. It’s a damn good day.

Running:
0:51:17 || 4.9 mi || 10:31.5 min/mi || flat

http://runkeeper.com/user/CinemaFro…ivity/136573787