Finished the Trenton Half Marathon (2 hours, 5 minutes)

Lost 35 lbs

Unknown to a few people late in 2012, I hurt my leg running - which made 2013 a year with little or no running. Thankful to God - that this year my knee completely healed! Tomorrow, Lord willing - I will be running my third half marathon this year and to date I've lost 35 lbs (and perhaps a few years).

Niagara Falls 1/2 marathon\Completed!!

Last month I finished the Niagara Falls 1/2 marathon with a respectable 2 hrs, 10 minutes.  Nine minutes faster than last race!  It was really a great trip with my wife!  

Asbury Park, NJ Half Marathon - Finished it!

Did it!  Praise God for getting me there and completing the race.   My time was 2 hours, 19 minutes, 32 seconds (10:41 minute miles).   Two years ago I did the 13.1 miles in 2 hours exactly.   My hope is to beat this personal record by the end of the year.  

A week of tapering, and eating carbs!

Almost time for my first half marathon for the year! Praise God!  Now that I am only a week out, my training intensity lightens up a lot.  This is referred to as tapering in the running world. Kinda just pulling back on the throttle for the big day. 

Today I also start look at the weather reports and right now the forecast is for Clouds with limited sun with the high of 62 degrees.   I could not ask for better weather!  

If you're interested in donating to the Special Olympics please follow this link:  https://register.boardwalkrelay.org/fundraising/fundraise.aspx?event=20991&fundraiser=11332

 

Training almost finished - the home stretch (Asbury Park 1/2 Marathon)

Today I am three weeks out from my first half-marathon in two years. My schedule has me running 13 miles today, so I picked this run I did five years ago.

Link: http://www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=307319

As an update on my training. I have had problems with doing a majority of the shorter runs because of winter conditions - however I have committed myself to do the long runs, and to that I have been 100% successful. My weight loss is on target - but just barely (last weigh-in: 12 lbs lost so far). Everything looks like it's a go for the Asbury Park half marathon! Praise God!

2nd Weigh-In - on track for half marathon.

My schedule required me to be 255 by this date and while I had some catching up to do, I have made it!  Here is my official weigh in for March 22nd. 

Running Schedule For Asburg Park 1/2 Marathon

This is the running schedule I have put together for my 1/2 marathon training.  I will update this chart at least once per week (Lord willing) over the course of the next 16 weeks .  Note: Green highlighting means I have at least met my goal for the day.  

Weigh-in for New Years 2014

I have done my weigh-in for the new year using my wii-fit gaming console.   Nice thing about Wii-fit is it remembers your prior weigh-ins to allow for comparisons.   As you can see from the picture below - I am weighing in at 236.8 pounds - meaning if I lose 50 pounds I will weigh 186.8 pounds.  This would be the lowest weight I have been since I was a teenager. 

I will seek to weigh-in each week at the same time of the week - so I have an accurate measurement of how far I have come.  To lose this weight I need to drop one pound per week, which means by my 1/2 marathon race in April (Lord willing) I will be 16 pounds lighter (220 lbs). 

Looking forward to getting back in shape!

Intro & overview of my 2014 goals

My name is Brian, today is January 1, 2014 and I am creating this blog because I am seeking to lose 50 pounds in the next 12 months.  My purpose for seeking to lose the weight is for health sake - as I am over 50 years old, more than ever I understand the importance of eating and exercise as a life style.  I've lost weight before - and will be using what has worked best for me in the past.  

MY OVER ALL PLAN:

Exercise:
1.  Running.  I will be preparing for a 1/2 marathon race which is down at the Asbury Park, NJ in April.  This allows me 16 weeks to prepare for this run.  My fastest time for a half-marathon was two years ago at Raceway Park at 2 hours exactly.  My goal is to get as close to this as possible, and to have a new personal best by the end of the year. 

2.  Weight Training.   I heard that when you weight train before running you lose more weight.  Therefore I will be doing (as much as possible) weight training using free weights in my basement. 

3.  Stretching.  Since one of the things that hamper mature adults is how tight they're muscles become - I will seek to stretch out more with a goal of doing a split by the end of the year. I am setting this particular goal because read a list of things you will never do after 50 and doing a split was one of them. 

Eating & Drinking:
1.  No drinking beer or wine.  The only exception can be special occasions or dates with my wife. And when there is an exception - it can only be one glass or one beer, no more.

2.   No eating after 8 PM.   Late night snaking is nothing but trouble.

3.  No deserts, pastries, cookies, etc... period (exception birthdays, then a small slice).

4.  Monitor my calories (accurately) and enter them into my itouch app.

5.  No eating the same food as my family for dinner.  The kids eat high-carb foods - so I need to have alternatives for dinner.

6.  Need to drink more water.

7.  Five or Six servings of fruits or vegetables a day.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
What to do next: 
1. Do a weight in and set a more exact goal per week.
2. Prepare a running schedule to meet the April 26 deadline for the 1/2 marathon.