I just reached 1,000 Page Views!!!!
I just wanted to take a second to thank all of my readers, whether you are a dedicated reader or just happened to stumble upon my blog by mistake one time, thank you for taking the time to read the things I have to say. A blog is nothing without the readers; so again Thank You!
Monday, January 30, 2012
100+ January
January 30, 2012 --
Happy Monday! I hope that everyone enjoyed their weekends, and made it through their Monday successfully. I struggled through work today, but somehow survived the day!
My first update is that this morning when I looked at the scale, I now have a recorded weight loss of 58 pounds, and an unofficial weight loss of probably close to 70 pounds. A great feeling, and definitely a testament to the how hard I have been working and training this past year.
Secondly and more importantly (at least more impressive in my opinion), at the one mile mark of today's run, I hit the 100 mile mark for January. With a goal of running 1000 miles in 2012, covering 100 in the first month definitely has me on my way to hitting that goal as well. I close out January covering 105 total miles, as I do not have a run planned for tomorrow. Who knows maybe I will try to see if I can top 105 miles in a single month later in the year.
Finally, there are 12 days left in operation 23 by twenty-four. Obviously, from the news two paragraphs ago, I have far surpassed my goal of 210 pounds by my twenty-fourth birthday. I now hope to be under 200 pounds by the big day. Back in October, almost six months ago, when I first came up with this plan and challenge for myself I didn't think the day would ever come. I have been wanting to lose weight and get down to 210 pounds for the last four or five years and have never succeeded. It feels great to finally hit that goal I have been trying for so long to accomplish.
One more thing, I did always say that if I got back down to 215 pounds I would get another tattoo...so expect that to come soon. I just am not sure how a new tattoo will mesh will all my marathon training, so it may need to wait until after the big race!
That's all for now, get out and make your dreams come true!
Happy Monday! I hope that everyone enjoyed their weekends, and made it through their Monday successfully. I struggled through work today, but somehow survived the day!
My first update is that this morning when I looked at the scale, I now have a recorded weight loss of 58 pounds, and an unofficial weight loss of probably close to 70 pounds. A great feeling, and definitely a testament to the how hard I have been working and training this past year.
Secondly and more importantly (at least more impressive in my opinion), at the one mile mark of today's run, I hit the 100 mile mark for January. With a goal of running 1000 miles in 2012, covering 100 in the first month definitely has me on my way to hitting that goal as well. I close out January covering 105 total miles, as I do not have a run planned for tomorrow. Who knows maybe I will try to see if I can top 105 miles in a single month later in the year.
Finally, there are 12 days left in operation 23 by twenty-four. Obviously, from the news two paragraphs ago, I have far surpassed my goal of 210 pounds by my twenty-fourth birthday. I now hope to be under 200 pounds by the big day. Back in October, almost six months ago, when I first came up with this plan and challenge for myself I didn't think the day would ever come. I have been wanting to lose weight and get down to 210 pounds for the last four or five years and have never succeeded. It feels great to finally hit that goal I have been trying for so long to accomplish.
One more thing, I did always say that if I got back down to 215 pounds I would get another tattoo...so expect that to come soon. I just am not sure how a new tattoo will mesh will all my marathon training, so it may need to wait until after the big race!
That's all for now, get out and make your dreams come true!
Monday, January 23, 2012
No Shirt, No Medal, Just Sore Legs, and a Serious Runners High
January 23, 2012 --
Today I decided to make up the 14 mile run that turned into just over 4 because of Saturday's snow storm. Another record for me as far as distance. My previous best was 12 miles, and today I covered 14 in just over two hours and twenty five minutes.
I got home from school, which for me is work, threw on an Under Armour turtleneck, a pair of compression shorts, a pair of running shorts, and my valley stream north basketball Nike tech tee, filled up and strapped on my fuel belts and headed out. The forecast called for rain this afternoon, but only at a 35% chance until 7pm which I knew I would have been home before. Well, I guess the weather report was wrong again, because just about an hour into the run the rain started coming down. Thankfully it was not very heavy at all. I was not ready to call it quits on this run which had already been cancelled once. So I kept ticking off the miles step by step. I felt very good for the entire run, I have definitely improved my cardio-vascular endurance because at no point of the run was I sucking wind at all. Great Feeling!
For anyone who has never run in the rain, I definitely recommend it. I personally really enjoy running in a light rain. It can get to be too heavy though, and that is really not a good time.
I must say though, there is definitely something to knowing that at the end of your long muscle busting run, there is someone to congratulate you and put a nice shiny medal around your neck. Sometimes it is hard to remember that all of this training is working toward a final goal of the marathon in DC.
If anyone is interested, you can take a look at today's run here...
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/144165370
I originally had it at the beginning of the post, but knew that everyone would click the link and then be so impressed with the run that they would forge to come back to read the post.
That's all for now. Stay tuned for some info on a biggest loser competition I entered at work.
Today I decided to make up the 14 mile run that turned into just over 4 because of Saturday's snow storm. Another record for me as far as distance. My previous best was 12 miles, and today I covered 14 in just over two hours and twenty five minutes.
I got home from school, which for me is work, threw on an Under Armour turtleneck, a pair of compression shorts, a pair of running shorts, and my valley stream north basketball Nike tech tee, filled up and strapped on my fuel belts and headed out. The forecast called for rain this afternoon, but only at a 35% chance until 7pm which I knew I would have been home before. Well, I guess the weather report was wrong again, because just about an hour into the run the rain started coming down. Thankfully it was not very heavy at all. I was not ready to call it quits on this run which had already been cancelled once. So I kept ticking off the miles step by step. I felt very good for the entire run, I have definitely improved my cardio-vascular endurance because at no point of the run was I sucking wind at all. Great Feeling!
For anyone who has never run in the rain, I definitely recommend it. I personally really enjoy running in a light rain. It can get to be too heavy though, and that is really not a good time.
I must say though, there is definitely something to knowing that at the end of your long muscle busting run, there is someone to congratulate you and put a nice shiny medal around your neck. Sometimes it is hard to remember that all of this training is working toward a final goal of the marathon in DC.
If anyone is interested, you can take a look at today's run here...
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/144165370
I originally had it at the beginning of the post, but knew that everyone would click the link and then be so impressed with the run that they would forge to come back to read the post.
That's all for now. Stay tuned for some info on a biggest loser competition I entered at work.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
10 Shy of 14
So for the first time this winter, the weather has finally ruined a run for me. Overnight Friday into Saturday, an accumulation of a few inches of snow fell, and continued to fall into Saturday morning.
Being the crazy person that I am, I still planned on doing the fourteen through the snow. I layered up, and set out for the run. I felt good temperature wise...my layering had worked very well. I ran about two miles no problems, and then my hips began to hurt. I was not getting any push off the ground with my feet to propel myself forward, and had t work extra hard with my hips to actually keep moving.
I ran another two and a half miles to amass a total of about 4.5 miles and then called it quits. I was right near my house, and decided to try this run again sometime this week (weather permitting Monday).
I am not overly upset over this run, I expected that at some point the weather would ruin one of two of my workouts. My shorter ones can be run inside on my treadmill, but I'm not sure I can stand to be on a treadmill for over two hours to get to the 14 mile mark, but we will see what is necessary to cover the miles.
That's all for now, I'll be in front of the TV all day watching football. Go Ravens and Giants!!!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Updates and a 14 Miler
January 18, 2012 --
Hello all, so here are a few updates on my life and my progress.
1- This morning I weighed in at 205 lbs. Which means that operation 23 by twenty-four was a success and then some. Originally, 23 by twenty four would have taken me to 210 lbs before my twenty-fourth birthday which is February 11th. With still three weeks to go, I have already surpassed that by five pounds.
2- Marathon training is going better than I could have imagined. I did my twelve miler last weekend with no problems. My time was just a few minutes over two hours for a 10:10 or so pace. I have a 14 miler coming up this weekend, and am really looking forward to it.
3- The decision to do the half ironman has begun to sink in, and I am beginning to get more and more excited about the race. I know that in the next few months I am going to have to do a few things to the road bike to get it ready. I want to get some new pedals, shoes, and aerobars for it. I also want to get an indoor trainer for it.
I think thats it for now...I'll let you know how the 14 miles go this weekend!
Hello all, so here are a few updates on my life and my progress.
1- This morning I weighed in at 205 lbs. Which means that operation 23 by twenty-four was a success and then some. Originally, 23 by twenty four would have taken me to 210 lbs before my twenty-fourth birthday which is February 11th. With still three weeks to go, I have already surpassed that by five pounds.
2- Marathon training is going better than I could have imagined. I did my twelve miler last weekend with no problems. My time was just a few minutes over two hours for a 10:10 or so pace. I have a 14 miler coming up this weekend, and am really looking forward to it.
3- The decision to do the half ironman has begun to sink in, and I am beginning to get more and more excited about the race. I know that in the next few months I am going to have to do a few things to the road bike to get it ready. I want to get some new pedals, shoes, and aerobars for it. I also want to get an indoor trainer for it.
I think thats it for now...I'll let you know how the 14 miles go this weekend!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Road to 70.3
January 17, 2012 --
Happy Tuesday! I hope that those of you who had a three day weekend enjoyed the extra day off on Monday for MLK Day. For those of you who did not have Monday off, I hope you had a nice day at work yesterday.
This weekend was filled with some pretty big decisions on my part. Marathon training has been very successful so far, and I have to say I am feeling somewhat invincible at this point. It was this feeling that led me to just look at some half ironman events in the area, and what training for a half ironman would entail. At first, this was just a thought and something I was not sure of being plausible.
Many things had to fall into place for this to all come together. I first needed to find an event late enough in the season to give me sufficient time to train, which after researching different training plans seemed to average about 18 weeks. I also wanted to find an event before September so that should I get lucky and find a full time teaching job for September, I won't be too overwhelmed with the new job and intense training all at once. This left me in the month of August assuming I would start training after my marathon, and I needed to only find an event a reasonable distance from my house.
I stumbled upon the Rev3 Racing website, and to my pleasure, found that they are, for the first time hosting a half ironman in Maine on August 26th at Old Orchard Beach. This fit my timeline perfectly, and talking to Amy, she told me that Old Orchard Beach is a beautiful, so we may make it into a small five day four night vacation! (Two birds one stone!)
So, after a weekend of back and forth mental battle of whether or not I thought I was insane (still not sure which side of that argument won out) and if I thought I would be able to do this, I have decided to make the trip up to Maine for the Half Rev at Old Orchard Beach. Amy is working as we speak to put together a training plan for me compiled from training plans we found on various websites online. Maybe at some point I will post it somewhere on the Blog. I will also put up a countdown for the Half Ironman event at some point in the near future.
Thats all for now. I definitely have to create something for the Half Rev for my Goals board!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Goals Board
January 9, 2012--
Happy Monday to everybody! I just wanted to share with you an idea Amy came across. Amy is an avid reader of blogs, and possibly reads blogs written by as many as ten to fifteen distinct bloggers. Well, on one of the many blogs Amy reads, she came across an idea of an inspiration board. This inspiration board is more or less a collection of images and quotes which serve to give inspiration and remind you of all the things you aspire to accomplish.
Amy was very excited to make an inspiration board, and I jumped on the inspiration board train as well; so, we headed over to Staples, picked up some cork boards and some push pins, and went to work searching for images and quotes for these boards.
I took this idea, and tweaked it slightly. Instead of using the entire board to show everything I wanted to accomplish and could use as motivation, I divided my board in half. One side dedicated to my goals for 2012, and the other for my accomplishments this year. On the goals side, I have the Race Logos of the races I am currently signed up for, some time goals for races, my distance goals for the year, and some other assorted things I would like to accomplish. As I accomplish these goals, they will be moved over to the accomplishments side of the board. Hopefully, by the end of 2012, there will be nothing left on the goals side of the board.
Amy stuck more with some of the examples she had seen on the blog she found this idea on. Here is a picture of the two of us showing off our hard work, and craft skills!
I definitely like this idea a lot! Sometimes it is beneficial to no only think about your goals, or write them down, but have a visual of them as well. There have definitely been times in the past where I felt I haven't accomplished anything, and with this goals board, if you make your goals small enough (such as go for a run today) you can put it in the goals in the morning, and after you hit that run, you can put it in the accomplishments. Goals do not have to be 'lose 100 lbs' or 'run 5 marathons'. Use different types of goals. Big goals, small goals, lofty goals, reachable goals, any other goals you can think of. Use this board as visual proof of all the things you are accomplishing and a reminder of all the hard work that went into making it happen!
Sunday, January 1, 2012
New Year...New Goals
January 1, 2012--
How many of you incorrectly wrote 2011 on something you dated today? I already have several times. I had just gotten used to writing 2011 on things, and here already it is 2012. Maybe this year I will just start writing 2013 so that for once, (when 2013 arrives) I can enjoy an entire year without having to cross out the incorrect year on just about everything I write.
Along with ninety percent of the world, I have made some New Year's Resolutions. I have decided to share them, in no particular order.
1- Get a full time probationary (tenure track) job teaching Math. I currently am working as a TA, but really want to start teaching math.
2- Find a nice, affordable apartment on Long Island or in Westchester to move into with Amy.
3- Break the 200 pound mark and get into the 190's ... this is my final goal for weight loss. After this I just want to maintain.
4- Run 5k under 25 min
5- Run Half Marathon under 2 hrs. 15 min.
6- Run 1000 total miles in training and races. (1/100th of the way there already after today's 10 miler)
7- Survive Marathon in March!
8- Earn the Grand Slam Heavy Medal from the Rock'n'Roll Marathon Series.
These are just a few of the things I would like to accomplish in 2012. I really tried to make these goals realistic and attainable.
I hope that everyone had an enjoyable New Year's Eve and wish only the best for a happy and healthy 2012. May you reach your goals and see your dreams come true this year!
How many of you incorrectly wrote 2011 on something you dated today? I already have several times. I had just gotten used to writing 2011 on things, and here already it is 2012. Maybe this year I will just start writing 2013 so that for once, (when 2013 arrives) I can enjoy an entire year without having to cross out the incorrect year on just about everything I write.
Along with ninety percent of the world, I have made some New Year's Resolutions. I have decided to share them, in no particular order.
1- Get a full time probationary (tenure track) job teaching Math. I currently am working as a TA, but really want to start teaching math.
2- Find a nice, affordable apartment on Long Island or in Westchester to move into with Amy.
3- Break the 200 pound mark and get into the 190's ... this is my final goal for weight loss. After this I just want to maintain.
4- Run 5k under 25 min
5- Run Half Marathon under 2 hrs. 15 min.
6- Run 1000 total miles in training and races. (1/100th of the way there already after today's 10 miler)
7- Survive Marathon in March!
8- Earn the Grand Slam Heavy Medal from the Rock'n'Roll Marathon Series.
These are just a few of the things I would like to accomplish in 2012. I really tried to make these goals realistic and attainable.
I hope that everyone had an enjoyable New Year's Eve and wish only the best for a happy and healthy 2012. May you reach your goals and see your dreams come true this year!
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