Bobsrunningweightloss's Blog

Weight: 258.0#  After many many months trying to lose 40 pounds while preparing for the marathon, one might say that I was less than successful at one goal and the other goal was still pending.  Since I try to look at the world as “Glass Half Full” (OK, the world outside of SAP.), I will state that the 16 pounds I lost is 16 pounds better than nothing, even though it is 24 pounds short of my goal.

I have been told not to try to lose weight while endurance training and I guess ”They” are right.  At least in my case.

Marathon Weather:   Bing and I have been watching the weather for the marathon for over two weeks and it has been anywhere from lousy to bad.  There has been thunderstorms, high heat, 20 MPH wind and high humidity.  We have been preparing for heavy rain by putting together three “Sets” of clothing/shoes in case I have to run the entire 26 miles in the rain.  I am prepared trade off into dry hats, shoes, socks and shirts.

This morning, I pulled up the forecast and, lo and behold, I find that there is only a 10% chance of rain and sub 10 MPH wind.  I think all the prayers my friends have made to Mother Nature have started to pay off.  I think this weather is doable.

Back Ache:  This last pre-marathon week has been tough for me.  Earlier in the week my back started to act up due to sitting too much at my desk.  Since wind, which was forecast, and its effects on my back was my biggest challenge during my 20 mile runs, I was very concerned that I would have major difficulty finishing the race. 

I have been trying to correct the back pain by getting an hour massage, icing my back regularly, staying off the computer as much as possible.  In addition, Bing has been applying “BioFreeze” to by back as often as legally possible.  In all, I am feeling better but the three-hour drive to the race could be a challenge.   We are not home yet but we can see the destination.

This week should have been a breeze.  The training program called for only a three and a four mile run.  Barely even worth breaking a sweat for.  Well, my work has caused me to spend too much time at my desk in my home office and my back has started to act up.

I can’t believe that I have done 7 months of resistance training and four months and 500 miles of marathon training and I start to jeopardize my effort by sitting at a desk.  OMFG!.

I needed to do something, so I went for a one hour massage that focused on my back and spent some time on my left leg.  Trainer Tina suggested Biofreeze and Nurse Bing (She’s not a real nurse but she looks mighty fine in her little Candy Stripper outfit, but that’s for another discussion.) suggested a warm bath too.

I did the bath earlier in the afternoon and Biofroze (Is that a word?) later in the evening.  I really don’t think I am getting markedly better but I do feel some improvement.  Most of my running friends tell me I will be fine but I see through their fear that I will flame out in the race and cry like a baby as I fail to finish.

On the other hand, I may not be able to finish anyway in that there are forecasts of scattered thunderstorms and that could include lightning.  I have heard that the course could be shut down due to lightning.  That would really stink.  Train, Train and Train more and then get shut down due to dangerous weather.

Today was scheduled to be the last long of the marathon training program.  I have now finished 17 of the 18 weeks of what seemed like 70 weeks in preparation for my first marathon.  When you choose to run a marathon and you say, ‘I can do that!  I have run 9 half marathons and over 775 miles so I can run this silly little marathon training program.  There where only 6 runs longer than my longest run in my life.  No Problem!’

Well, let me tell you.  I can do it.  I did do it and I can’t believe I did it.  This training program was one of the hardest things I have tried to do in my life.  I am sure if I thought about, I could come up with harder  things but until someone jumps up and down and shows me the harder things in my life, I am going to go with the marathon training was the hardest thing.  Oh, but wait, my first semester at U of I was really hard.  I studied harder than I every studied before and, well, just know it was hard.

The major accomplishment achieved today was that, with todays miles, I exceeded 500 (Nike+) miles for the year.  My average pace for these 71 work outs was 11:22.  Let’s hope that my marathon pace will be within one minute of this achievement.

For the month, I have run 16 work outs for 115 miles in 21 hours, 57 minutes and 35 seconds.  I burned 22,588 calories and ended up with an average pace of 11:24.  Lastly, I am currently 195 out of 10,697 participants of a Nike + program for those wanting to run 500 miles in a year.  I am also 3rd out of 14 wanting to run 1000 miles in a year.

I would guess that I can run the 1,000 miles and may be able to get to 1200 miles but after having to run these so many miles over the last month, I am really looking forward to slowing down for a while.   I probably will have to increase the miles as I prepare for running the Chicago Marathon but lets finish the Illinois Marathon first and then worry about the next day then.

Todays weather was wonderful.  Great for running.  About a 6 mile wind, 60ish degrees and I had a good day at work.   My body and mind where in the game.  That doesn’t happen too often on mid-week runs.

I have been icing my left calf several days this week just in case if can help minimize some of the pain I feel and I think it is working.  Oh, and then there is the taper.  My body really likes the reduced running.  No wait, it really really really likes the reduced running.  It seems like I have some unusual knee pain but not much more.

I took off on my 5 mile jaunt with a nice pace and kept it up.  I ran the short loop into the wind on one straightaway and up the hill with the wind on the other.  In other words, I did not take the easy route.  I ran opposite of Bings route so that I could keep track of her.  She was run/walking great.  We got to see some deer at one of their favorite sites.  It was just a great day.

My 5 miles was run in 50:16 or a 10:03 pace.  MY FASTEST TRAINING PACE EVER.  I have run a 6 mile 10:01 on 2/6 but that was timed with the Nike +, which is typically 30 seconds per mile fast, thus the 10:01 was probably around 10:30.  My 5 miles where run at 1) 10:05, 2) 10:23 (into the wind and up the hill), 9:55 (into the wind and up the hill), 4) 10:01 and 5) 9:51.  SWEET.  Lastly, my heart rate was 147 BPM.

Again, Bing had a nice run.  She has been working very hard with her Chiropractor and doing stretches and icing and everything she can to get better and her hard work is paying off.  You go (and go) girl!

Recently, I started to feel that my Christmas present shoes where starting to lose their cushion, especially in the bothersome left foot.  I had considered long ago getting a second pair of shoes to back up my primary shoes but never got around to doing so.  Big mistake.

Runners are told that when they find shoes they like, buy a second pair.  If  I had done so, I wouldn’t be scrambling now because they no longer make my shoe and the new shoe that replaced mine doesn’t fit my feet.  Now what?

Luckily for me, my Dick Pond Shoe store was able to find me a pair so I picked them up this after noon and started to break them in hours later.  I do not think I have enough time/miles to fully break them in but I plan to run each of my next 25 miles and use them as back-up during the race if needed.

Today’s run was just four miles.  What a pleasure.  My average pace was 10:23 with miles at 1) 10:45, 2) 10:34, 3) 10:38 and 4) 9:35.  WOW, did you see that last mile?  9:35 is probably on of my fastest training miles ever.  It makes me wonder what I can run a 5K in if I truly tried.

My calories burned where were 829.  The evening was just the right  combination of cool weather, light wind and dogs and deer.  There weren’t many dogs out to bark at me but I did get to see five deer.

Bing also was able to get out and run/walk for with minimal pain.  She was sooo excited and couldn’t wait to tell me.  She is working hard icing her shoulders and shins and stretching everything she can.  She wants to do everything she can to be ready for he 5K in a few weeks.

And another ones gone, another ones gone.  Another one bites the dust.  Week 16 of 18 is officially over with today’s 12 mile short long run.  I know that you are probably tired of reading about how amazed I am over my long runs or my short long runs but I don’t take anything for granted and before February, I only ran over 11 miles if there was a medal and a finish line to look forward to but now a run like today is no big deal.

Today’s results where 12 miles (12.84 Nike +) in 2:23:32 at 11:57 pace and burned 2439 calories (2511 Nike +).  The last three miles where interesting in that they were 11:45, 11:46 and 11:47.  Although this pace was for a short long run which is supposed to be slow, I am anticipating running at this pace for the entire marathon, depending on the weather.

My personal goal was to run the entire 12 miles, something I could not do in previous half marathons, but I had to stop to talk to a home owner doing yard work about his nightly deer visits and Bing as she was preparing to leave and then finally after 11 miles because I was just tired.  I don’t think I will have any problem going back to the run a mile, walk a minute pace when the gun goes off to start the marathon.

Interesting thing about race starts.  Often, the starts are anticlimactic.  Sometimes a race celebrity or the race director just yells into a mike,  “GO!”

With the finish of week 16, I have only two weeks left of training.  In looking at this weeks taper miles with runs of 4, 5, 3 and 8, I can’t belive my eyes that I can actually live a non-allencompasing running life.

Probably the best part of today was that Bing got to blow the dust off her and ran/walked in the park for over 4 miles.  It was nice to see her out without much pain.  She has not run all month.  We are hoping that she can enjoy her 5 K at Illinois and be ready for a good 5 K three weeks later at a previously unscheduled Giest in Indianapolis.  You go girl.

Today was just a 6 miler.  Again, nothing compared with 8 mile mid week days but  6 miles I was not interested in running.  I had already started my work day at 6:30 and driven over 300 miles for the day.  I knew I could run the 6 but again, just did not want to. 

Again, I was fortunate to run in a nice gusty wind.  (I am hoping that the insincerity can be seen dripping from my previous sentence.  If not, re-read the previous sentence while having your spouse blow into your mouth and face while you are thinking about poor Bob running into the wind.  Now, have that same spouse turn on your favorite room fan and have both the fan and your spouse blow into your face.  Now, have your spouse, their favorite fan and a jet engine blow into your face.  If any of these actions are fun to you, run, don’t walk to the nearest hospital and check yourself in for observation.)

The course I chose was to run up the hill in one direction and against the wind in the other direction, for five miles.  The last mile  was sideways to the wind most of the mile.  Even with the course going against me, I was able to run in 1:04:30, a 10:45 pace versus the 10:57 pace 5 mile run I ran on Tuesday.   The calories burned were 1260.

Month to date, I had 9 runs for  76.25 miles, at an average pace of 11:29 (Nike+) and burned 14,911 calories.  Year to date, I have run 469 Miles and am still on pace to hit the 500 mile mark by the marathon.

There was one benefit to Today’s run.  I got to see what I thought was a figment of my imagination last year. 

Last year, on one of my first nice weather runs of the season, I saw an under dressed, over tanned women on a mountain bike.  I saw her bounce by me, speeding over the trail.  She probably could have used a sports bra.  With that being said, she probably could have used a bra of any kind.  I saw her only once and never ran into her again. 

Today, I either saw my figment again or her shorter hair sister.  Again, under dressed, over tanned, on a mountain bike.  She passed me once on foot and twice on her bike.  Then she road away and I never saw her again.  Just like the Chicago Cubs, now I have to wait till next year.

Today was a 5 mile run and I really dreaded it.  The evening did not start right because my car was not ready at the dealer, so I had to get a rental.  Then I was going to try out a new pair of running shoes on my treadmill because I was unsure they fit properly.  AFter I tried them on, Bing and I agreed they did not fit and it was not even worth testing them.  Now What.  It’s 6:00 and I haven’t even started to run yet.

Bing suggested that, even though she was on the DL,  she could walk while I ran so we went to the local state park.  I got my 5 miles in, saw three deer and complained to myself the whole way.

The most interesting thing that happened during the sub 11:00 pace run was that my Nike + actually showed me running less than the Garmin.  That has not happened since a half marathon last year.  Not sure why the results where what they where but I hope it does not recur in the marathon. The last thing I want to happen is to run 26.2 miles and have some Nike+ gizmo tell me I failed to meet my goal.

Weight: 260.5#  One day into my new diet and I lost 1.5 pounds already.  Let’s hope that this is a trend and not a blip.

Today was the day.  The day that has sat on my calender for months.  The day to dread, not to cherish but a necessary day either way.  The best way to finish this day was to start.  Start my second and last 20 mile training run. 

I did not have to run this second 20 mile run but at the beginning of the year, when I chose which Marathon Training program to run, I had the choice between the Novice, which only had one 20 mile run and Intermediate, which had two 20 mile runs.  I felt that I had put in enough miles over the last year that I could handle the Intermediate.

The weather was to be in the 50′s and 60′s with only a 10 mile wind.  If today was a 10 mile wind, then my name is “mud”.  As you will see below, the Windy miles where very hard miles.  The “with wind” miles where easier but still difficult.  Today’s miles took 4:16:15.  Five minutes and 10 seconds more than my 20 miles two weeks ago.

My Nike+ I-Pod results where 20.88 miles, 11:50 pace and 4257 calories.  My Garmin results, the ones I consider accurate, where 20 miles at a 12:48 pace, 3800 Calories and a 131 BPM average heart rate.  Interesting that this run was6 BPM lower than previous.  I can only assume that my BPM was lower because my pace was lower.

The real news of today, as I said before, was the wind.  My “with” the wind pace over the last 10 miles  11:39, 11:48, 12:50, 12:45 and 12:31.  ”Against” the wind was 14:20, 12:45, 13:15, 14:21, 15:11 and 13:02.  There was a lot of walking ”into” the wind and a lot of “hard” running with the wind.

The biggest fear I had was how my back would hold up running into the wind.  I had started to feel pain after mile 8 and every mile I ran into the wind thereafter.  IN addition, I had post nasal drip on a couple of occasions as I ran into the wind.  I am not sure what was causing it but it was very aggravating. (Trust me, you don’t need to know the details.)  Lastly, there was the stupid left foot but in general , my body reacted well to the miles.  Jeff Galloway states that you can run too slow when covering your long run miles and today, I believe I proved him right.

The best part of today, other than finishing, was that I am now able to taper for the next three weeks.  Tapering is designed to let the body recuperate and be in the best possible condition for the marathon.  After all I have put my body through, I am going to enjoy the taper.  No, I am going to REALLY enjoy the taper.

A couple interesting Tid Bits about todays run.  Even though I drank tons of water, I lost 5 pounds.  Also, I noticed at the end of my run that my Christmas present shoes, which now has over 300 miles on them, are starting to fall apart where my shoes rub against each other, by my right ankle.  I had planned to get a new pair of shoes after the marathon but now I think I need to get them before, just in case my primary shoes fail me.  I don’t think I have enough time to break in a new pair but I will give it the old college try.  Lastly, I limited my Gu intake to miles 3, 6 and 9 in that I am wondering what impact the carbs have on my Pre-Diabetic condition.  Note to self: I have to learn more before the race.

To sum my effort, I am on pace to run almost 500 miles in four months.  I have done so with little “Major” pain.  Pain that would stop me from running for any period of time.  I have to say that I am very pleased with my effort so far and may have actually exceeded my expectations of the training.

The real question will be the weather on race day.  If it’s cold, windy and rainy, the marathon will be a killer and my time could exceed 5 hours and 30 minutes.  If it’s cool, calm and I am collected, then the marathon will be hard but manageable and I hope to be around 5 hours and 15 minutes.  In either case, I plan to run across the finish line. On a first marathon effort, finishing is the only true goal.