You have no idea how long I’ve been itching to write this post. The idea for it came into my head… oh, about 6 months ago, when it looked very likely that I was going to achieve what everyone’s told me not to: Go from the Couch to running a Marathon in less than a [...]

Let me tell you a story: Last Saturday I was feeling particularly melancholy because I knew I had to do a training run, but really had absolutely no desire or motivation to do so. I’m sure you know the feeling, it’s that “eeeeeh” apathy that comes when facing something unpleasant when there are far more interesting options available. Well, one thing lead to another and I decided to completely skip my run, but I made it a point to at least get a short bike ride in to my favorite coffee shop / office away from home. I’ve always wanted to scout out the 670 connector which supposedly connected to the Alum Creek bike path that’ll take me all the way to my favorite running/skating area down south. So I got all my stuff together, slung on my messenger bag with my laptop and hit the road.

The monday of the Boston Marathon, Garmin had the official world debut of the Forerunner 405, their latest entry in fitness GPS products. Given that they’d had product specifications on their website since November (with an ever-shifting release date), it wasn’t much of a surprise, however many individuals were nevertheless salivating over its release, myself included.

Two things make this Forerunner so special. First of all, it looks like a watch, and not like a portable computing device strapped to your wrist. Secondly, it doesn’t require a cradle, and uploads all of its data wirelessly with no fuss at all. In addition to that it does all the other neat things that a Forerunner does: Heart monitor connection, optional foot pod and cycling cadence meters, in essence anything that an endorphin junkie type-A obsessive personality (like myself) needs to satisfy both their compulsion and their high. Add to that the former two options and this geek was sold before it even came out.

There is enough snow on my 4′x4′ back door landing right now to build a snowman, and the backyard is… well, I’m stuck for the time being, though I look forward to playing in the snow this afternoon and evening. There will be snowmen, oh yes, there will be snowmen.

But for now, a sorely needed update. My life’s been busy, but there haven’t been enough spectacular highlights to really fill an entire blog post. I think I’ve got enough material now, so here goes:

Two weeks ago my mom came to visit, and from what I was told she enjoyed herself immensely, even though I myself was under a bit of stress due to our impending launch and the Flex 3/Air presentation I gave. Much like any good mom she came, she cooked, she filled my fridge with food, and she left me a few surprises around the house that were sometimes pleasant, sometimes less so. All in all, good thing, if a little stressy.

A few random things going on in my life: Apartment & Junk I always thought that getting a bigger apartment would give me more freedom, however as it turns out it’s greatly reduced what I do with it. There are small, predefined areas where I spend most of my time- my desk, the couch in [...]

I ran five miles yesterday. This is taking some time to sink in, and I still don’t quite believe it myself. It’s certainly an accomplishment for someone who came from the world of morbid obesity, and I am having a hard time not being smug at everyone I know.

Of course there are some caveats- I scaled my speed down to a 10 minute mile with ten second negative splits on the mile, so other than the distance increase I wasn’t really pushing myself. Even so it feels like a significant accomplishment not only because it’s the longest I’ve ever run in my entire life, but because I’ve also managed to break past the 3.1 mile mental barrier that comes with training for a much shorter race.

What really struck me about the whole experience is how easy it was to go the extra mile(s). Once I’d gotten up to speed and convinced my body it wasn’t stopping anytime soon, it was just a matter of keeping my mind occupied while my feet did all the work. My iPod really helped with that, but I’m told the bigger races don’t allow headphones. I can already imagining myself stopping after the 3rd mile because I got bored and saw something shiny lying in the road.

So, of the three goals I set myself, I succeeded at… ONE. Well, one and a half. I managed to slowly increase my time for the first two miles, but then started having issues. Plus I wasn’t holding myself back enough during the outset. I beat my previous time (which I didn’t want to), but at least I ran all the way through, so that’s all good.

The last bit was uphill (Enough for me to make an excuse of it, but not enough to account for 45 seconds). I really need to learn to pace myself- I was consciously pulling back during the first mile, but clearly not enough. Plus, whoever was sending me happy fast thoughts this morning right around 9:10 or so, thanks- I got a boost of… something right about then. Maybe it was second wind. Maybe it was wind. Who knows!

I’ve managed to sustain 20 minutes at 8 min/mile on the treadmill, and while I certainly felt it, I know I could have kept it for another 4, so that’s all good. The goal with this race first and foremost is to go all the way through, no stopping. Everything else is secondary, but if I can manage this thing called “reverse splits” (running each mile faster than the previous one) then I’d be super stoked. In other news, I’ve added 15-20 minutes of ellipticals after my normal half hour run every day. This is to get my heart and metabolism slowly used to the idea of keeping it up for more than 30 minutes, in preparation for starting 10K training.

There’s another 5K Reindeer Run this Sunday. My personal goal would be to finish the entire track running, and to learn to pace myself. Should I do it?

I should probably talk a little more here about my running adventures. So, this morning has me back on the treadmill, which I’m gradually moving up to the recommended 1.5 degree incline to simulate outdoor running (windresistance, etc etc). Because of work I actually took yesterday off from my exercise schedule, which my body thanked me for this morning by being extra happy. The training program’s got me at a 5m warm up, then a 5/3/5/3/5 run/walk interval. And man, I was smoking it, to the point of forgetting to keep track of the time and realizing I accidentally overran one interval. This is likely to change, mind you, because wednesday it’s got me doing 8/3/8 followed by 20 on Friday. But the way I figure, if I can pull off 20 straight at 8mm, I should be able to match my 8.5 from last weekend on Sunday with a sustained run. \mm/

The clock read 26.29 as I came across the finish line. I know I crossed the two mile marker at 16.26, so I’m guessing the 8.5 average was more like a 7/8.5/10 or something along those lines. I crossed lines after finishing though (The water lady was over there), so I don’t know if my billet number will match the clock.