Twelve Years of Rust: 1st 5K

Quite late in posting about this, but it's been a busy month, so sue me. Or don't, I don't have the money to deal with that.

So, 11/5/11. My 1st 5K. First, I want to state again how humbled and gracious I am for the outpouring of donations we got for the race. My original team goal was to raise $1000. We finished at a bit over $3000! We were officially the 2nd place team for fundraising at the time of the race, but another team got some post-race donations, putting them in 2nd place. Whatever, I'm just glad we were able to smash through my original goal. And the donations came from all corners...Coworkers, FB friends, Shannon's friends, family, family, family, people from my Ravens board. There were quite a few people who donated who have never seen either one of us in person. That is touching.

I saw a text before the race from Shannon which indicated there was a chance she would get released from the hospital that day, and that definitley helped give me some extra strength for this. It was FRIGID. No other way to describe it, it was just absolutely freezing when we got there at 7am. It warmed up a little bit after the race started, but by then, I had already clipped my race bib onto my jacket, so I ran the race in the following gear:

Winter hat (Plain, removed about halfway through the race)

Gloves (Water wicking, removed about halfway through the race)

Track Jacket (Unzipped 1/3 of the way through the race)

White Undershirt (Worn on top of long sleeve shirt and water wicking shirt)

Longsleeve T-Shirt (Plain)

Running Shirt

Track Pants

Underwear worn under pants

Undy Boxers worn over pants

Batman underwear worn over Undy boxers

Socks and shoes

Within the first mile, we'd seperated into a few packs. Bill and two of my co-workers ran with me, letting me set the pace. A few minutes behind us were two of my other co-workers who have had knee injuries (In his defense, Chuck was coming off a knee injury in the last month and ran in the 1st group), and then Andy was a few minutes behind them. About halfway into the race, I made up my mind that I was going to run the whole thing. I had only run for 20 minutes one time before, but I felt like I was doing good enough halfway through, it'd just be the right thing to do, running the whole thing. It wasn't really a problem until I decided I wanted to sprint at the end. I first caught sight of the finish line at roughly 1/4 mile to go. I started to sprint, then realized I'd never make it before I'd have to walk it. So I waited until I was literally within throwing distance of the finish line. And then I just went all out. The picture that was taken of me finishing looks quite ridiculous, as my coat is flailing around me and my face looks just...weird.

My finish time was 32:30, from start line to finish line. Not a great time for my age group, but I wasn't dead last or even close to it. I finished just behind the "middle of the pack", roughly top 60%. My pace was better than all my previous runs too. So, I'll take those results, just need to keep improving. And I'm proud/thankful to my fellow runners. Bill, Chuck, and Jay finished just after me, Dan and Slava finished a few minutes later, and Andy powered through about 8 minutes after I had, give or take a bit. We all finished in sub-42 minute time, so I feel very proud of our group.

And bonus, Shannon did come home that day. This should be just the first of many goals I'm going to set for myself, fitness wise. Already tenatively doing the Tough Mudder DC in May. I keep flip flopping on that though. Just seems like such a huge leap to go from a 5K race to a 10-13 mile endurance challenge, involving feats of strength. I just worry that Warrior Dash will be a bit of a letdown in terms of pushing my limits.

Twelve Years of Rust: How Far I've Come...

Been awhile since I've posted about my fitness/health. I'm still doing the diet and I'm still working towards my goal, but sometimes the progress is a bit slowgoing, and I only want to post when I hit a big milestone or have something big to say.

So weight wise, I've hit the halfway mark. I'm getting real close to leaving the 200 level behind, but whenever I want to hit a mark, it always seems to take some roller coaster hills to get through it. So I've dipped to as low as 203, went back up a few pounds, am now hovering around 204. I'd like to still go for 160 by April 2012, but that goal might fall a bit short. No matter, if I'm 170-180 in April, that's still a HUGE leap forward. And then I can just stick with the diet a few extra months, hit my goal, and transition to the maintain diet.

Now, running. I took a running/jogging class in college, but I can't remember my mile time, or whether I could actually sustain a run for a full mile. I do remember gym class in high school. I remember running with Andy Bruchey, both of us pondering if we'd need crash carts at the end of running a mile. I remember falling to the ground after the mile was up. It felt like such a labor to get through a single mile. With Shannon's surgery being a few days before the 5k, and her not likely to be released from the hospital before the 5k, my last chances to run would've been Thursday (I had a minor surgical procedure on 10/21 and was limited from running until then). So on Thursday, I broke out the cold weather gear (performance tee, long sleeve white tee, track pants, gloves, thermal hat) and decided to do a practice 5k. I did it in 34 minutes and felt pretty decent. I planned to do one more practice/tune-up run this weekend. Was originally going to try it yesterday during the snow, but I was too tired and ended up going to sleep early. So tonight, I said I need to do this. Originally planned to just do 20 mins of running...

I did a 2nd 5K. I did 10K in 4 days.

And you know what? I did not need a crash cart. I did not fall down at the end. I felt good.

I think I see the corner and I've rounded it. In just 5 months since I started tracking my runs, I've:

Run 90+ miles

Run 18+ hours

Burned 74+ donuts off

Powered nearly 15 TVs

Shaved about 2:30 off my mile pace

Just a note to my friends out there who say they need to start exercising but put it off, or think they can't do it...I did it. I went from 260 pounds to almost 200, and from struggling to run 1.5 miles to pulling off 5K in almost no sweat.

Twelve Years of Rust: The 20 Minute Run

This Couch-to-5k program has been great for me, from so many angles. The running has certainly helped my weight loss. The plan has made it easier for me to progress in my goal of running the Undy 5k in November. Hell, you could even argue the routine of running has helped me with procrastination (Shannon would probably beg to differ, since I still don't do the dishes or clean the rabbit's cage as often as I should or without a few honey-do reminders).

The plan itself is pretty straightforward. (PLUG: http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml). You assume that you are not up to snuff physically (hence, COUCH to 5k), and this little puppy outlines some easy stepping stones to help you break down the task of going from not running to running 3.1 miles in a single sitting. The steps in the early weeks are pretty simple. Run 1 min, Walk 1.5 minutes (Week1). Run 1.5 min, Walk 2 min (Week2). Run 3 minutes. Run 5 minutes. All the way until Week 5. In week 5, it does something a little odd...Day 1, Run 5 minutes, Walk 3, Run 5, Walk 3, Run 5. Day 2, Run 8 minutes, Walk 5, Run 8 (Ok, there's your step up from 5 minutes, got it).

DAY 3. Run for 20 minutes without walking. Ummm, WTF? Are you serious?????? I haven't run for any longer than 8 minutes...ONE TIME! How am I supposed to run for 20 minutes? At once?

So first off, a disclaimer. I repeat weeks on Couch to 5k. I find that helps you best, if you do each week twice, your legs get used to it easier without injury. So I did the first 2 days of W5 last week. Then I repeated them this week. On Wednesday, after doing my first 8 min run, followed by 5 min walking, I went to do 8 min of running. But I decided to push it. I finished out my route running it. I ended up at 11 minutes and change running. And what did that tell me? Once you get past 8 minutes...nothing really happens. Your legs don't fall off. There's no searing pain. There's no panic attack. Your legs are still hella tired, but that's it. So I said, alright, let's do the thing.

Tips...1) Do not look at your watch. For as long as you can stand it. Because as soon as you see you've run for 4 mins/5 mins, all your mind can do is "I have to do 3 more of what I just ran?" And then time just stops moving. 1 minute of running feels like 5 minutes. 2) Since you need to check your watch, pick a landmark on your run for watch check. I used the library, which is about 1.6 miles of my normal 2.1 mile run. So when I checked in and saw I had run for 16.5 minutes, I was like "Allright! Only 3.5 more mins to go! I can do this easy!". And 3) If you start feeling tired, first try slowing your pace. Just do a little more than a brisk walk. If that doesn't do it...then walk. No shame in trying, you'll probably get further than you thought you would anyway.

So yeah, 20 mins. I can do that. Because I just did. So eat it, body rust!

Twelve Years of Rust: I've Finally Reached the OVER-DIET Problem

I'm pretty certain this is the furthest I've gone on any diet. Four months in, and still doing it. I think it's a nice thing to look at a typical meal plan in my old ways and a meal plan today and notice the huge difference...I've figured out what things are heavy in fat and calories so I should avoid, what things are good for me (Pretzel Sticks are the best snack food. 28 pretzel sticks are 110 calories, 2 grams fat. Lots of carbs too).

But I'm noticing that I've finally gotten TOO far on the diet. I'm having trouble eating up to 40 grams of fat a day now. It's easy to see the problem if you look in my fridge. Fat Free might as well be on the outside of the fridge. I've got fat free mayo, fat free shredded cheese, fat free meats, fat free bread, fat free yogurt, fat free ice cream. Cutting out fats is a good thing, but I'm cutting out so much, it's actually getting bad on my nutrition. This was reflected in my bloodwork. I'm really low on HDL Cholesterol. The tips to raise this level are exercise, diet, give up smoking and drinking, and add in more oils, peanut butter, etc to your foods. Except the last one, I've already done all those. And if I add in those oils/peanut butter, my fat jumps WAY up and then I struggle to stay under my daily limit.

So, here's my plan of action. Now, the doctor didn't mention HDL to me at all. I'm thinking he knew I was exercising and dieting, so he ignored it for now. But I would bet that number won't come up much with more diet and exercise. So, for one thing, I started taking a multi-vitamin. Niacin is known to help raise HDL, although I'm taking it in a small dose in the multi-vitamin. My dad mentioned someone he knew went on heavy dose of Niacin and got hives all over, so let's stick to the multi vitamin for now. I'm also SLOWLY adding the reduced fat things back into the diet over fat free. Tonight, I used just 93/7 turkey instead of 99/1. I'm also trying to add in real eggs when I make egg beaters for breakfast. We're getting "farm fresh" eggs from my in-laws now (Thank you btw, they are delicious!), and I know eggs have good fat in them, so if I add one and then use 2 egg beaters, that adds in some fat while not going crazy.

I just find it funny/somewhat proud that i've done so well, I've now got to ADD fat into my diet. Like tonight, eating a cup of pudding after dinner because I was under on all my totals. Oh woe is me, I have to eat some awesome pudding. :)

Twelve Years of Rust: 1st Checkpoint

So one of the hallmarks of the Spark Diet is setting goals for yourself. I suppose most weight loss programs do this, but Spark wants to get more general than weight goals, they like covering fitness, lifestyle, etc. Now, I'm doing Sparkdiet, but I'm not crazily into all the site, it's not bad stuff, but some of it is overkill to me. But I do like the goals idea, because instead of focusing on "I have to lose 100 pounds in a year" and looking at progress against the big number, you can chunk it up.

So originally, when I was dropping nearly 3 pounds a week, I'd targeted 225 by July 1st. But my weight loss settled out and I adjusted it to August 1st. In the week leading up, the scale continued to read 228. I knew I was still making progress, because I'd done good on my ranges, I've kept up my exercise, and the 228 number was more common on random weigh ins. My weigh in number changes from hour to hour, so I generally average them out to figure out my real weight, since so many little things can bump you up a pound or two here or there. So when I weighed in today, I was expecting to not hit my goal.

224.4

Yup, I got it. CHECKPOINT CLEARED! I'm going to celebrate with a Lean Pocket Turkey Sausage, Egg, and Cheese (Still good on my diet) and focus on my next checkpoints. I'm on track to be the lightest I've been since college in just a few weeks time.


8/1/2011 - 225 POUNDS - ACHIEVED
11/1/2011 - 200 POUNDS
11/5/2011 - D.C. Undy 5K
2/1/2012 - 175 POUNDS
4/1/2012 - 160 POUNDS
5/19-20-2012 - Warrior Dash MD

Twelve Years of Rust: Doctor Approved

So, another big hurdle I can cross off in my path to chisle off the crap that's built up in twelve years inside my body...I saw a doctor today.

Granted, he wasn't doing anything more than talking to me and doing slight exam, but it was a big step for me. See, every time I thought about going, I knew I was going to have to talk about the number on the scale, and address how I was going to fix it. And I just didn't want to think about it. So instead, I just went to Minute Clinics every time I needed antibiotics and just ignored the doctor. But, with the recent plan in place, I felt now was the time to get this cleared medically and make sure I wasn't missing anything troubling that needed to be addressed...

So let's start with the vitals, which is probably the biggest news from the visit. Weight was about same as at home...228, but that was also with jeans and flip-flops. Height was the first suprise. I did a quick check at home when I started this diet, and I had my height as 5'7". At the dr's, they have me at 5'9". That will help my BMI a bit. They took my pulse and BP. I didn't catch the pulse (They said it was lower, but attributed that to exercise), but the BP was outstanding. 112/70. That is normal range, no monitoring needed! When I had pneumonia earlier this year, my BP was 164/92 or something crazy like that. High blood pressure runs in my family, so to hear that after just a few months of dieting and exercise, my BP is in a totally normal range, alright! I'm kicking ass and taking names!

Apart from vitals, not much to report. Doctor just went over my history, said I'll need to go for blood work for a full metabolic panel to check out all the routine screens. Need to fast for 12 hours before, so I can do it after 9:30am tomorrow. He gave me referrals for a dermatologist (for mole check, since we've had some mole issues in my side of the family as of late) and a urologist (for snip-snap day) and that's that. But the overall feeling I got was I'm on track now and no concerns.

The next goal I have, outside of the diet and exercise...to donate blood. I've never donated and I've always been slightly afraid of the process, but I want to give. That'll come soon though, since I don't have any prep work to do for it.

Twelve Years of Rust: Not Just a Diet, but a Lifestyle

I don't think I've used the term in this blog, but that's what I'm calling this recent kick I've been on....Twelve Years of Rust. Twelve years ago, I was 16, at a decent enough weight that my senior pictures looked good, actually able to FULLY run a mile without stopping to walk. The years after that have been a gradual relaxation of all health sense. Yes, in that time I did WW twice, I did Spark once, I even took a running/jogging class. But every time, I just did it for a bit and let it go. Not realizing where I'd end up. I started off losing weight at 260 pounds, and I'm down enough that people are noticing, and I like that. I'm around 228 now, which isn't even halfway to my goal weight of 160, but it's the lightest I've been in probably 5 years.

But, what this entry here is about, is not just the weight loss. Because, just losing the weight really isn't enough. I've done diets before, I've lost weight before. With Shannon's cancer battle going on, I've realized I need to get EVERYTHING about my health back on track. It's really scary when I can't recall the last time I saw a doctor. I mean, I know the WEIGHT I was at (190, wow :-/) and I know it was during college, but before senior year, so we're talking at least 6-7 years ago. But in any case, that's 6-7 years of no checking blood pressure, cholesterol, and other general health things I'm sure I need to be watching for. I'm glad to say at 2pm tomorrow, that will be remedied. I'm going for my first doctor visit with Dr. Ruzbarsky. I'm a little nervous but a little excited. Because I like telling people I'm losing weight. It makes me feel accomplished. I'm sure he'll talk about what I need to lose still, and I'll need blood work, but I know a lot of things are already improved. My blood pressure for instance, was 164 on the systolic when I had pneumonia this year. Now I'm sure pneumonia was part of that, but 164 is almost stage 2 hypertension. Now, I'm down to the 120s. Still a bit high, but way closer to normal.

Another big piece of this is the exercise. I didn't do that any of the other times. I'm actually getting excited to run and try races and think down the road. I'm already planning the 5K in November and the Warrior Dash in 2012. Once that's done and I can really hit the ground with running, I'm torn on whether to go for 10K/Half-Marathons, or maybe start trying to train for a Triathlon. I know Ironman is out...EVER! And I don't really want to do the Tough Mudder...EVER! But apart from those two, I want to try these fun crazy runs like "Run For Your Lives" Zombie 5K. I loved when I went to do my 5 min run on Monday and despite thinking I was never going to make it, I pushed through and did it. Goal setting, goal smashing.