On Friday I took it easy, just a short run to let my legs recover a little. I am really trying to ease myself back into a solid routine without getting hurt. I especially have to be careful doing this because of the lack of non-paved trails here in Naperville, IL. I can't wait to get back home where I know the loops and trails, and where I don't have to pay a membership to take my dog to the dog park so she can be off leash, what a load of crap that is. Guess what Naperville, I still let my dog off leash, I just do it at a non-dog park, so she can run and chase her frisbee.
Friday night I was listening to the White Sox game and drinking a few beers, the game turn out ugly for my Sox, and the beer made me decide to sleep in Saturday morning.
So this morning (Saturday) I woke up, relaxed, ate breakfast, watched a movie, got a haircut, and now I am sitting at a local coffee house enjoying a delicious brew typing away. Coffee makes me happy and the caffeine can give me a little pep for a future workout. This afternoon I will go for another six miler, my goal is to stay at 8 minute pace, maybe picking it up the last mile. One thing that I have majorly been trying to focus on is my stride as much as I can. When I am tired I use my arms, you would be surprised how much your arms can help you. I don't know how well known it is, but your legs naturally want to keep up with your arms, so pump your arms when your tired, they can help you get to the finish line.
I apologize for being unable to tell you about the end results of my run this afternoon, but I do not have the internet at home currently, so hopefully I will be able to fill you in tomorrow. And by the way Alzheimer's affects not only memory, but also may cause the person to become anxious or aggressive. It cause the person to completely regress, it is a terrible thing to bare whiteness to.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday Day 4
I made it six mile yesterday and I felt great! I think I may need new shoes soon, my current pair have about 500 miles on them and that means it is about time to turn them into lawn mowing shows. I think I will go through with the run to St. Louis, I read about a nun who attempted to run an ultramarathon to raise money, so I think I can at the very least make the attempt as well. I will release my final plans next week on where my exact starting an ending points will be, the distance, and the path that I will run.
I am starting to feel lively again because I am getting back in shape! Maybe I should run a fun run some weekend coming up? I wonder if there are any ones going on that are nearby the Naperville, IL area or the Columbia, MO area?
I am starting to feel lively again because I am getting back in shape! Maybe I should run a fun run some weekend coming up? I wonder if there are any ones going on that are nearby the Naperville, IL area or the Columbia, MO area?
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Day 3
I got home at 8:15 pm last night, I was tempted to go for a run, but I had to do the smart thing and take the day off. My legs are starting to tighten up and it is good to take a day off when you just start training. Part of me feels like I let myself down, but I have to realize that these days will come where I have had to work to long of hours and will unfortunately be unable to get much personal time in. On days I can't go for runs, whether it me from work or soreness, I like to supplement my workouts with some cross-training or at least an indoor work out of some kind. I need to at the least make sure that I stay active each day. Hopefully I will be able to get a good six miler in tonight, I am feeling lively right now, I hope it lasts all day.
Oh ya, and I am super excited that I get to get married in two weeks!!!
Oh ya, and I am super excited that I get to get married in two weeks!!!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Day 2
Did you know that approximately 5.3 million people in the USA suffer from Alzheimer's Disease? It is a disease that deteriorates the brain tissue and causes individuals memory loss and loss of motor skills.
My second day of getting back in shape started with another long day at work, arriving home at 7:30 pm, but once again I was out the door within 15 minutes. So far this plan of making running part of my daily routine again has been working out (don't think about it, just do it!). I ran another 40 minute run, this time a little more up beat. I ran an out an back, which I am not too fond of, I prefer to run a giant loop. One thing that I forgot about is the amount of bugs your face will run into while doing a dusk run through a wooded area, that was tasty. Does anyone ever find themselves slowing up as they approach the end of there timed out and back run? I always have to fight the urge, part of me says, "Slow up so you don't have to run as far dummy." Then the other side reminds me, "Never hold anything back, save nothing for the return journey." Of course I end up somewhere in the middle usually, but at least it's better than stopping and walking.
So after my run when I walk in the door, I proceed to do start cooking my dinner while doing sit-ups and push-ups as my dinner cooks. I try to eat healthy, but I do not over concern myself with counting calories and fat content, I just use my best judgement. I listen to my White Sox blow another game on the radio, say good night to my fiance, and fall asleep waiting for the next day.
My second day of getting back in shape started with another long day at work, arriving home at 7:30 pm, but once again I was out the door within 15 minutes. So far this plan of making running part of my daily routine again has been working out (don't think about it, just do it!). I ran another 40 minute run, this time a little more up beat. I ran an out an back, which I am not too fond of, I prefer to run a giant loop. One thing that I forgot about is the amount of bugs your face will run into while doing a dusk run through a wooded area, that was tasty. Does anyone ever find themselves slowing up as they approach the end of there timed out and back run? I always have to fight the urge, part of me says, "Slow up so you don't have to run as far dummy." Then the other side reminds me, "Never hold anything back, save nothing for the return journey." Of course I end up somewhere in the middle usually, but at least it's better than stopping and walking.
So after my run when I walk in the door, I proceed to do start cooking my dinner while doing sit-ups and push-ups as my dinner cooks. I try to eat healthy, but I do not over concern myself with counting calories and fat content, I just use my best judgement. I listen to my White Sox blow another game on the radio, say good night to my fiance, and fall asleep waiting for the next day.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Day 1 Know Yourself
So I am 6 feet and 0 inches tall, I currently weigh 192 lbs, I have run 4 marathons, and my fastest 5k is 16:53. Of course these running achievements were when I weighed about 180 lbs. So I need to get back in shape and by the time April rolls around I hope to weigh about 180 lbs.
My first day back in the saddle on Monday was a long day. After getting three hours of sleep Sunday night I headed into work at 8:00 am and found myself working a long day, getting home at 7:00 pm. I walked in the door and was out the door running by 7:15, not even giving myself a chance to think it over. And think it over is what I usually do after a long day. Generally I get home and say that I am going to go for a run, but lately with the longer work days, it just has not been happening. I believe this is because I will have every intention of running, but when I get home I may be hungry or tired, so I say I will eat first or put my feet up for a little while before I go running. I have even had my running shoes on ready to go out the door and decide to wait and rest my legs first. Well after I have let myself mull it over for a while I decide that I need the rest for work. So after all this I usually just end up taking it easy at night and not running, saying maybe I will get up early and run at 5:00 am like I used to, oh no that never happens anymore, I love my snooze button too much now. Monday was different because I am focusing on overcoming my shortfalls and I also have a goal that I intend on keeping.
This first run I took was an easy run at about 8:30 mile pace and I went for 40 minutes. I need to do two things before I really get back at it; I need to get in good enough shape where I wont get hurt if I push myself and I need to build a base (a large one). I am worried about injuring myself in anyway, an injury of any kind at this point would cause me to have to start from scratch all over again. I also know that I need to run a lot of longer runs to build up a base before trying any medium or hard workouts. I knew that I could still run 5 to 6 miles at an easy pace so I thought that would be a good starting point. Over the next couple of weeks I will vary my distances, not really breaking 6 miles so that I can allow my legs to get back into the swing of things. After that I will starting building my pyramid.
The main thing is to know what your goal is, knowing yourself, your current abilities, and assessing what you need to accomplish each day. Over the next couple of weeks I will develop a training schedule on a calender for future more intense training so that I can see my goals each day, I have never made a schedule like this before, but I think it might help me stay more focused than usual.
My first day back in the saddle on Monday was a long day. After getting three hours of sleep Sunday night I headed into work at 8:00 am and found myself working a long day, getting home at 7:00 pm. I walked in the door and was out the door running by 7:15, not even giving myself a chance to think it over. And think it over is what I usually do after a long day. Generally I get home and say that I am going to go for a run, but lately with the longer work days, it just has not been happening. I believe this is because I will have every intention of running, but when I get home I may be hungry or tired, so I say I will eat first or put my feet up for a little while before I go running. I have even had my running shoes on ready to go out the door and decide to wait and rest my legs first. Well after I have let myself mull it over for a while I decide that I need the rest for work. So after all this I usually just end up taking it easy at night and not running, saying maybe I will get up early and run at 5:00 am like I used to, oh no that never happens anymore, I love my snooze button too much now. Monday was different because I am focusing on overcoming my shortfalls and I also have a goal that I intend on keeping.
This first run I took was an easy run at about 8:30 mile pace and I went for 40 minutes. I need to do two things before I really get back at it; I need to get in good enough shape where I wont get hurt if I push myself and I need to build a base (a large one). I am worried about injuring myself in anyway, an injury of any kind at this point would cause me to have to start from scratch all over again. I also know that I need to run a lot of longer runs to build up a base before trying any medium or hard workouts. I knew that I could still run 5 to 6 miles at an easy pace so I thought that would be a good starting point. Over the next couple of weeks I will vary my distances, not really breaking 6 miles so that I can allow my legs to get back into the swing of things. After that I will starting building my pyramid.
The main thing is to know what your goal is, knowing yourself, your current abilities, and assessing what you need to accomplish each day. Over the next couple of weeks I will develop a training schedule on a calender for future more intense training so that I can see my goals each day, I have never made a schedule like this before, but I think it might help me stay more focused than usual.
Monday, August 24, 2009
The Challenge
I know I haven't written in a long time, but I found myself consumed with work and traveling, oh and plus I haven't had the internet at home because I am living on the road and the place I am staying at does not have internet. Needless to say I have let my fitness slowly decline over the past several months. I need a challenge and I need focus. I have often found it difficult for myself to stay focused on workouts if I do not have a goal in mind. Well here is a goal that I may or may not try, it is something that would be extremely difficult and I would need the support of my soon to be wife, my family, and my friends.
I have it in my mind that I need to do something more than just raising a few thousand dollars each year for the Alzheimer's Association. Witnessing the effects of such a disease can really change your perspective on things and it makes me want to do more for a disease that seems to get lost in the shuffle.
I was driving up to Chicago for work on Sunday and it was late, about 3:00 am. I was on I-55 just thinking away, because there isn't much else to do on long, late night, lonesome car rides like that. I have always tried to come up with ideas of how I can make a difference, or at least the biggest difference a regular person like myself can make. I decided that maybe I should try something a little crazy, that I should run from Columbia to St. Louis for the St. Louis Marathon this coming April. Upon my arrival on Saturday I would rest and that following morning I would run the St. Louis Marathon or at least do my best to run it. This trek would put me at about 140 miles in less than 3 days and I believe that I can accomplish this with the proper training and preparations. My goal would be to log my training regiment here on this little blog, writing about my runs and the mentality of trying to stay focused on training for 6 months. Hopefully people can take my training experiences and learn from the different ways that I balance dealing with life and finding time to seriously train for such a monstrous task.
If I do decide to go through with this I will decide within the week. My plan is to raise as much money as I can for the Alzheimer's Association for this run and hopefully bring some more awareness to people along the way.
Running is something that I am very passionate about, it gives me a chance to relax and take in the world wherever I am at. I hope that I have the guts to commit to this challenge and I hope that I find myself worthy. I hope that I can make some difference, at the least shed light on the illness to just a few, if only that happens I will consider it a success.
I have it in my mind that I need to do something more than just raising a few thousand dollars each year for the Alzheimer's Association. Witnessing the effects of such a disease can really change your perspective on things and it makes me want to do more for a disease that seems to get lost in the shuffle.
I was driving up to Chicago for work on Sunday and it was late, about 3:00 am. I was on I-55 just thinking away, because there isn't much else to do on long, late night, lonesome car rides like that. I have always tried to come up with ideas of how I can make a difference, or at least the biggest difference a regular person like myself can make. I decided that maybe I should try something a little crazy, that I should run from Columbia to St. Louis for the St. Louis Marathon this coming April. Upon my arrival on Saturday I would rest and that following morning I would run the St. Louis Marathon or at least do my best to run it. This trek would put me at about 140 miles in less than 3 days and I believe that I can accomplish this with the proper training and preparations. My goal would be to log my training regiment here on this little blog, writing about my runs and the mentality of trying to stay focused on training for 6 months. Hopefully people can take my training experiences and learn from the different ways that I balance dealing with life and finding time to seriously train for such a monstrous task.
If I do decide to go through with this I will decide within the week. My plan is to raise as much money as I can for the Alzheimer's Association for this run and hopefully bring some more awareness to people along the way.
Running is something that I am very passionate about, it gives me a chance to relax and take in the world wherever I am at. I hope that I have the guts to commit to this challenge and I hope that I find myself worthy. I hope that I can make some difference, at the least shed light on the illness to just a few, if only that happens I will consider it a success.
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