boot camp, karate, running, success :)

OK, I had to wait until current DietBets were finalized before i could sign up for new ones and I did that as soon as I could so, for right now these are the dates and body weights I need to be at in order to win my diet bets on DietBet.com

1. May 16-17, 238.6 lbs   (a 10% 6 month diet bet)
2. May 23-24, 232.9 lbs    (4%, 4 week diet bet)
3. May 23-24, 238.6 lbs  (a 10% 6 month diet bet)
4. May 25-26, 233.1 lbs    (4%, 4 week diet bet)
5. May 26-27, 233.1 lbs    (4%, 4 week diet bet)
6. June 1-2, 238.6 lbs      (a 10% 6 month diet bet)

That’s the reality of the body weights I need to achieve in the foreseeable future.   I’m currently in the 240s …Low 240s so I have my work cut out for me.    There were several days when i expected to see a weight in the 230s but that hasn’t happened yet so I’ve had to re-evaluate and think a bit.

For one thing, sparse eating worked very well in the past in terms of melting away bodyfat & weight and I’ve emulated that but I’ve mainly only been doing my minimum 1 mile per day to maintain my runstreak (which is somewhere around day 310 now)  Previously, I was running much more and even hitting that 100 mile per month milestone in terms of miles run per month.  So, increasing mileage is one solution and since the weather is getting nicer that should be a do-able goal.

Another thing – I haven’t known exactly what I’m eating or how many calories per day I’m consuming so I broke out the MyFitnessPal app to help track things so I know exactly what’s going on.

ANOTHER thing …. My mom helped me with this one.  I told her about expecting some weight drops that didn’t happen and she mentioned ….Beer.   huh?  yeah – ok.   Well, I was only counting food, i never counted beer before.  However.  On one of the days I expected a weight drop, I only ate 3 helpings of wings ….I was at a bar that had free wings and $1.50 bottle beers …..Blues game …then the Cardinals game …then the Kentucky Derby ….it was a good day for sports 🙂  and I had maybe 6 wings per plate and figured that was very little for the day but never considered the beer ….I guess there’s calories there also….  so, now we track beer and I may have to do without that staple until I hit my 212 bodyweight …we’ll see.

Other solutions thus far…..

Karate – that’s going pretty well, if i can make at least 30 minutes of class then I go and I may just go even if I can only make 10 minutes – doesn’t matter, i need to be there and one of the guys is wanting help training for his black belt testing this coming October and, more than likely, I’ll be able to test also as long as I keep showing up.

between him, myself and another black belt named Jesse, we stay late after class to brush up on our katas and other fun stuff like that.

Boot Camp – this is new.  In fact today was my first boot camp workout and a very local gym.  I’ve got 30 days with them I got via a Groupon coupon which is much nicer than the $147 or $197 price they charge which ….will never happen.   However, I also belong to a regular gym where I take my karate and have a friend there that runs several classes so I’ll probably hook up with her to continue to augment the boot camp type workout.

The workout was interesting this morning.  It only last 30 minutes but that seemed REALLY long when you’re pushing yourself for that much time.  We had a series of 6 exercises and would do each exercise at our own pace for 12 repetitions then we would go through the cycle again for 11 repetitions then again for 10 reps and so on until we eventually did 1 rep per exercise.  Today I made it down to 9 repetitions 🙂  so….  idk, 6×12 plus 6×11 plus 6×10 plus ……2×9 plus 3 reps – that’s how many i did.

there were several boards around the gym room with the exercises on them so I took a picture of one of them so maybe i can finish up the reps later tonight after work.

So, that’s the dirty dozen..

 

I’ll try to bump my mileage up.  I seem to recall doing 2x per day at one time, maybe 3 miles in the morning and 3 in the evening or maybe 45 minutes in the am and 45 in the pm.  doing that all in one shot is too much for me, at least it was in the past and probably is now as well  but breaking it up reduces the intensity.  I’d like to get back to Long Acre park, that’s the place where I first started running for my first marathon back in 1994 and, I did meet a lady who goes there after boot camp so I’ll probably meet up with her there later this week.

I’ve also got a Walk with a Doc program  …one of about 1,000 different ideas floating around but have someone interested in that so that will add to my activity. .

gotta run – will keep everyonen posted – primary goal – 212 lbs by July 5th to July 19th, somewhere in that time frame I gotta weigh 212 or less.  …piece of cake 😉

Run Log Updated & 30.6 lbs to $2,096

10 weeks and a couple days from today I have a two week window to weigh 212 lbs, in which case I’ll win $2,096 from HealthyWage.com.

I hadn’t updated my Running Log since last August but now have my miles filled in through April ’06.  My run streak is in tact and as of yesterday I’m at Run Streak Day (RSD) 298

I count on my Nike Plus app synced with Smashrun to keep track of my streak now since it can be a bit cumbersome to make out a post for Instagram everyday to keep track of my running.  If anyone is interested I can be found on Instagram at @drdukowitz

I have 6 months worth of question marks for my weight in my Running Log but, I really don’t mind because I don’t necessarily want to have to keep track of my weight every day or even every month of my life (if i don’t have to) but, I did weigh in yesterday for another wager going on DietBet.com in which I needed to weigh no more than 243.8 and I beat that by a bit over a pound with a 242.6 weigh-in.

I don’t think I’ll have time for all the cropping and edits to make nice charts so readers will just have to deal with my feet being in the pics.  Regarding the Log which I keep under my Running Log tab it’s not too shabby

Last year I kinda got huge into running and while there are still ambitions there, my priority focus is definitely body weight mainly because if I don’t make my 212 weight then not only do I not get a $2,096 prize but I’m also out the $756 I put up to make the bet.  I have to say it’s a lot easier with other real & local people that you know you are going to meet up with after 12 weeks like was the case in the local Lose to Win contest I was in.  There’s a much higher degree of competition which, for me, fuels a lot of activity and motivation.  However, this will still be a good test.

Looking at that log, it appears I’ll need my average weight to drop a decade with each successive month.  May will have to average in the 230s, June in the 220s and July definitely in the 210s.

One motivational aspect I’ll use is working to obtain the 3rd rarest running badge available on Smashrun.com which is the Towering Stairs badge.  To get it, I’ll need to increase my mileage by at least 15 miles per month for 6 consecutive months.  I made a go at it last year but was starting with mileage well over 100 and would have needed to work my way up to 165 miles or so during the 6th month …something kind of ridiculous, at least at this stage of the game.  Anyway, I have another shot at it here.

My next run is a half marathon in Nashville, TN this coming weekend so I’ll be sure to have all the miles I need in for this month.  After that, I am registered for a half marathon in Geist, Indiana.

I’ll just have to keep posting because this stuff isn’t always on my mind and a big challenge now is simply maintaining awareness of this 212 goal in spite of everything else I’ve got going on.

My next scheduled weigh in is for Tue/Wed the 26th/27th of April so maybe we’ll see a number less than 242.6 and since I’m blogging and have this on my mind, I think I can sign up for another 1 month 4% weight loss dietbet and use that 242.6 weigh in as a new starting point …..calculating……that would mean needing a 232.9 weight or less in 4 weeks.  I guess the weather is nice enough to get out and run more often now….

OK.  We can only be in three 4% 4 week bets and three 10% 6 month bets so I only had room for one more game and found Mama Laughlin’s DietBet which starts tomorrow and my last verified weight of 242.6 was able to be used as my starting point.  I have two more of those 4 week dietbets ending this week, one in two days and one in three days ….looks like those two weigh-ins overlap on the 27th so….well, honestly, I don’t want to lose too much in the next couple days or I might get a goal out of reach ….or, maybe just let the chips fall where they may and put ‘er into high gear to help make my 212 weight asap.  I’ll post again Wednesday with updates.

btw – This latest DietBet I joined has 1,916 players (more pending) a total Jackpot of $67,060 and only $35 to join.  I was given a link directly to the game if anybody wants to join —> http://diet.bt/9iCOzw

 

11 Weeks & 30 lbs to $2,096

There are many different areas of life that vie for our attention and there is only so much time we may devote to any one area.  Generally speaking, I can improve most any area of my life I pay attention to, simply staying aware of any particular facet of life is almost curative in terms of improvement.  So, this blog is kind of like my insurance policy to help me keep track of my weight and running although these days I am most concerned about weight and not running because of a $756 bet I made on HealthyWage.com over a year ago to weigh no more than 212 lbs by July 5th-July 19th which will pay out a nice $2,096 if I can make that weight 11 weeks from now.

There are limits as to how much extreme diet and exercise manipulations can do so the bulk of the weight loss between now and that final weigh in will need to be legitimate weight loss.  If I can get down into the teens, 216 or so then I should be able to employ some emergency measures to hit my final weight.

I am still on my Run Streak and completed day 291 yesterday (4/17/2016) but have usually only been doing the minimum 1 mile per day to maintain that streak.  I’ll have to update my chart on the Running Log page.  I have data for all my runs and mileage but will have question marks for several months regarding my weight.  About 5 days ago I had a legitimate weight of 243.8 which I’m happy with because at the beginning of last year my goal was to weigh in the lower 240s so, I’ve maintained that pretty well and, at the worse have kept with in striking distance of that previous goal weight.

To help push me down to that 212 weight, I put up an additional $470 on DietBet.com and joined three 6 months contest where I need to lose 10% of my weight and will cycle through several one month contest where I need to lose 4% of my weight.  I should be able to turn that investment into $1,000+ sometime in August which will be very helpful in paying the 2nd installment of my property taxes on Sept 1st 🙂

Mainly, sparse eating combined with an increased volume of lower intensity distance training with lesser bouts of speed work and probably some weight lifting thrown in there should be an effective combination towards achieving this 212 goal.  That goal still boggles my mind a bit because …well, I can’t really remember the last time I weighed so little.  In terms of overall health, it may be the case that weighing even less may be optimal but, one step at a time.

The six month, 10% weight loss diet bets which end in August have a target weight of 233.2.  My thinking here is that there will probably be a bounce up in weight after achieving the 212 weight but I wanted to put a cap on it and 233.2 seems like a good cap.  Perhaps I can work at maintaining a weight in the 225 to 230 range which would be very nice 🙂

Other than that, I’ll probably be adding a net tab or page called Money, since i landed a freelance writing gig that has this webpage listed in my bio and figure I would put a link to my Facebook, S4 Mafia Investment Club page since this page doesn’t have much to do with finance.

Year 2, Week 44, Down 80 lbs

Gotta play some catch-up for the last couple weeks.  Last week had five Thursdays which meant five weigh-ins for me but the last one was extremely manipulated since I needed a weight below 223.2 for some DietBet’s I was competing in.  I managed a 222.8 to win my bets but the weight was nothing legitimate so I decided to leave it out of the October weigh-ins plus, it keeps things looking nice and neat with four weigh-ins per month.

My weight for the first weigh-in of November was at 234.0 and I was pretty happy with that.  Especially since my goal for the year was the low 240s.  I’ll need to stay in striking distance for some diet bets I have going through February of next year.

by midnight this coming Friday night I’ll need a weigh in of 227.8 lbs.  I’m not overly concerned.  In my mind, I know I can go out one evening and run 4-6 miles, then go to bed and wake up 5 or 6 pounds lighter then what I weighed before the run and I also know I can zero out my carb consumption for a day or two in order to very quickly lose water weight.

My run streak is still going strong and at 134 straight days of running at least 1 mile every single day with a daily average of about 3 miles right now.  It’s a busy time of the year and I’ve got a lot going on so every thing seems rushed.

Last year, in November, December and all but the last day of January 2015 I did not run a single mile – not a single step.  So, even maintaining my daily miles will be upping my trailing 365 day running total which is currently at 685 miles which are entirely from this year.  By the end of February, I should be pushing about 1,000 miles for my trailing 365 days.   …which reminds me I need to update my Training Log page as well.

Future Goals???
I’m not exactly fully engaged and focused and know there will be slight variations in my mindset regarding my running and other fitness oriented goals.  I have a 222 lb DietBet goal for the middle of February and a goal of 212 lbs by July 5th of next year.  I know I want to get a mile in under 8 minutes for the Macklind Mile.  For Running Goals, I’ve done some work looking at maintaining a 5 (or 5+) mph pace through a half marathon distance.  I think that equates to around a 2 hour and 37 minute half marathon.  I’ve easily exceeded that pace in the 5K distance but not for a full hour although I am close.  I’m figuring on 5-6 mph pace goals with various distances.  It’s not exactly setting the world on fire or anything but it would be steady pressure and allow for continued improvement with minimal risk of getting injured.

Since I started my Run Streak on July 1st of this year, I’ll be able to join and be listed in the United States Run Streak Association as a personal birthday gift to myself on July 7th, 2016 and that will be kind of fun.

One of the most interesting things about running every single day is that my days seem longer.  They seem more like 36 hour days instead of 24 hour days.  Several times when people talk of an event that happened yesterday, in my mind, it seems like something that happened a couple days ago.  Overall, it’s been a very, very good thing.

There are some people that it annoys.  And many of those people want to fight me on the issue and maybe point out that injury is inevitable by never taking a day off.  Their words never say to much about me or my situation but it does say a lot about them.  When it comes to the human body, I’m definitely in the top 1% of people in the world when it comes to understanding the human body.   Of course, even in the US that could mean there’s still 3 million people that know more than me but, …none of them have been people who have given me shit about my running, that much is certain.

Incidentally …there are less than a million MDs, under 100,000 DO’s and around 70,000 DC’s in the US …at least, those are the rough figures that permeate my brain.    I’ve got too many tangents going off in my head and need to wrap this up.

Heck, I should have weighed myself again before I blogged all this since, technically, it’s Thursday again and time for another weekly weigh-in 🙂

oh, i did notice something else – it looks like in 2014 I ended the year weighing about 40 pounds less and in 2015 here it also looks like I’m about 40 pounds less.  A little more than 40 pounds each year.  Not too shabby and the nice thing about it – should that trend continue that means 2016 will be my last year with any significant weight loss.  Kinda like finally paying off all your credit cards 😉

 

Down 89 lbs – Year 2 Week 40 Weigh-In

Down 89 lbs – Year 2 Week 40 Weigh-In 🙂

Check it out! 🙂  I’m in the 220s with a weekly weigh-in of 227.2 🙂

The last time I was in the 220s was back around 2001.  I only need to lose another 3.9 lbs to hit this months 4% diet bet goal weight of 223.3 🙂  Some more long runs and sparse eating should do the trick 🙂

This past Saturday I completed the Frog Hill Half Marathon in Waynesville, Missouri and was pleasantly surprised with a 2nd place finish in my age group 🙂

And, today – Thursday, October 8th will be my 100th straight day of running 🙂  Not including today I’ve covered 329 miles in the preceding 99 days so I will finish my first 100 days with a daily average of about 3.3 miles per day.  I would love to average 4 miles per day but, knocking out the equivalent of a 5K per day for 100 straight days isn’t too shabby either 😀

 

 

Year 2, Week 39 Weigh-In

Chomp, Chomp, Chomp!  That’s how I had planned on starting this blog entry for my 39th weigh in of the year because I was eating everything in site and running as little as possible.  I had expected a much higher weight as opposed to a new all time low but, I have one theory as to why my weight dropped again instead of going up.

My thinking is that I removed a lot of physical stress.   Ever since the Navy/AirForce half marathon a couple weeks ago I’ve mainly been running the single miles needed to maintain my run streak and by eating whatever I wanted there was also no need for my body to fear any impending famine so there was zero starvation mode stress as well.  I can only guess corticosteroid levels would be minimized with this type of behavior.  It is kind of bizarre though and a little counterintuitive but, I’ll happily accept it 🙂

Today was also the official ending for the last of three 10% diet bets I had placed at the beginning of this year.  I had bets which started in Jan, Feb and April and each lasted for 6 months.  I have two more 10% bets I recently placed which both end in February of 2016 with an ending weight of 222.

I am curious and wondering if I could pull off a 4 week, 4% diet bet starting at this verified weight of 232.6.  That would require me to get down to 223.3 in four weeks.  A 6 month 10% diet bet would require me to get down to about 209 pounds.

209…that kind of plays games with my head a bit – something I’m not used to seeing.  My HealthyWage bet which comes due July 5th of 2016 is for 212 pounds.

…..OK – I’m committed!  I just signed up for three different 4 week, 4% weight loss diet bets that all started today and will end on Wednesday, 4/28.   The final weigh-in will be Thursday, 4/29 to midnight on Friday 4/30.  Thursdays are my weekly weigh-in day for this blog so I’ll shoot for a Thursday morning weigh-in and it must be 223.3 or less.

I have never lost a diet bet or monthly weigh-in and this will be the biggest challenge yet.  All I know about weight in the low 220s is when I was ranked in PowerLifting USA magazine I had a 515 bench at a 222 lb body weight and that was back around 2001 so, I’ll be pushing the clock back well over a decade if I can pull this off.

Stay tuned!  🙂

Year 2 Week 38 Weigh-In & Washington DC

I was stunned, tickled to death and pretty happy this morning when I saw a 232.8 staring me in the face when I weighed in.  Last night I weighed in at an even 233.0 and was amazed because of all the eating I’d done during my DC trip this past weekend.  Last night we had relatives stop by from out of town and we went out very late to eat & socialize and I ate PLENTY.  I had a snapshot of my 233 weight and half expected to use that weight because it seemed representative of where I was but thought I’d check my weight this morning and was a whole 0.2 tenths lighter 🙂

For the month, I’m at 70 miles and need 30 more to hit my 100 miles so there’s plenty of running left and I’m thinking I have a very good chance of seeing my weight dip into the 220s in October with a decent chance of having an average weight in the 220s for October.

My #1 priority is my Running Streak.  #2 is hitting 100 miles per month.  A distant 3rd was increasing mileage by 10 miles per month for 6 months to earn a rarely earned badge on SmashRun.com.  I have found it interesting that I think of these things mainly in terms of priorities as opposed to goals and while these things are priorities specific to my running it made me wonder what my priorities were in my life in general.  This is where things get a bit hazy.  There’s a plethora of other things in my life, so many items that I can’t hold them all in my head at the same time.  I might be able to jot out 4-6 bigger items but more will come to mind given time and only a list or my calendar can help me keep everything straight.

Having said that, I think dropping weight to a healthy and perhaps a visually pleasing level is one of the top priorities in my life right now.  Kind of nebulous, ephemeral and not so clearly defined as a priority in my life.  I wonder if I were to rank the priorities in my life and if my health, specifically my weight was the #1 priority if I could achieve greater results.  This may be a concept ball which needs to bounce around in my brain more before I have any final conclusions.  I may say that family, friends and people would be a bigger priority but, in a way – taking care of myself could be considered a means of respect and love for those I care about because I would assume that people I care about reciprocate and care about me.

I think I can use extremes to help with this point.  If I were strung out on drugs, getting high everyday and always drunk then the people who care about me would be distressed but if I’m at the opposite end of that spectrum and doing well then I would be removed as a source of stress in their lives.  Perhaps at the other end of that spectrum lays hope and inspiration …a much better scenario.

I think of a quote attributed to Padmisambha

If you want to know your past,
look into your present condition;
If you want to know your future,
look into your present action.

I think my train is headed in the right direction.  I’m slow to want to speed up the train or alter its course.  Patience and time are great allies now.  Some people make weight loss and their health a priority via surgery which is a huge decision but also one that represents one of their priorities in life.  My venue consist of running, running every day, hitting 100 miles per month and keeping very little food in my home.  If those efforts take precedence over other areas of my life then I may conclude my physical condition is a priority and supersedes other aspects of my life however important those other aspects may be.

I suppose today’s blog, up to this point is mainly clearing out, organizing, clarifying and cleaning up any clutter in the attic of my mind.  Which …now leaves me little time left to cover my Washington DC topic but I’ll do the best I can 🙂

Washington DC

One thing is pretty certain – I’m going back 🙂  I’ve heard back from the race directors of the Navy/AirForce Half (NAFHALF) that a permit has been submitted for Sunday, September 18, 2016 and I’ve already checked on hotels and found a very appropriate one in the Pentagon City area which includes free shuttle service to & from the airport and is only 1 1/2 blocks from the Metro.

I’ve got a couple pictures from my run and have noticed two things about them.  My gait is much better than pictures from the Lincoln Presidential half marathon last year where I was shuffling along and it also appears that I could still stand to drop some weight.

 

Something else I’ve learned in the past couple months is I don’t think I ran any half marathons prior to 2007.  I did full marathons in 1994 and in 2004 but have no record of any half marathons until 13 years after my first full.  As such, I don’t have any spectacular race times for my half marathons.  I really wish I could find data on my first full marathon.  I finished that one in approximately four and a half hours.  The first 20 miles were non-stop running at single digit minutes per mile so I would guess maybe a sub 2 hour half but have no data to support that guess.  The last 6 miles consisted of stopping every couple blocks to squat down so I could keep moving my legs.

Regardless, I’ve still pushed the clock back by beating my best time from 2007.  My time is up here.  I’m thinking next year I’m going to crush the time I got this year.  🙂

Year 2, Week 37 Weigh-In

It’s kind of late Wednesday night but, past midnight so technically this is a Thursday weigh-in.  It’s kind of a fluke I weigh the same as last week but all weigh-ins this week have been in the mid to lower 230’s so this is a pretty representative weight and this also moves my September average down to 234 and I’m AOK with that 🙂

It’s almost 2:30 a.m. and I’m hoping I can get at least 3 hours of sleep before I have to get moving tomorrow.  I’ll be heading to the airport around 7 a.m. then traveling to Washington DC for the first time in my life and I’m pretty excited about that so, sleep deprived or not I’ll definitely be wide awake to see the sights 🙂

I’ve been pondering some realistic and shorter term goals.  While I don’t have anything left to hit for this year (officially) …any, by officially I mean there are no running goals left that were set at the beginning of the year that remain to be achieved.

However … my biggest priority is to maintain my running streak and my 2nd biggest goal would be to keep up with a minimum of 100 miles per month of running.  The other “goal” i have … I would like to throw in the trash – that’s the one about adding 10 miles per month for the rest of the year.  I just shake my head everytime I think about it.  I don’t know – I’ll be heading back to the Ozarks at the beginning of next month so I could get a really good jump on my miles with that extra time but that also means I have to somehow manage 126.8 miles for this month …idk ….

I did get some unexpected news about the upcoming Chicago half marathon in that as a volunteer – Back of the Packer – we may not be getting a medal.  I do appreciate the kindness of other members letting me stay at their home and a free race  which really helps with the expenses but it’s still a good 9 hours of driving and probably $70 or so in gas alone and I’m not sure if it’s even going to count as a race – i need more information.

…hmmm, almost 6 a.m. now – guess I should pack 😉

Year 2, Week 36 Weigh-In

233.2 today for a September average of 234.6 so only a couple 10ths of a pound more is needed to round my average down to 234 which would be a 4lb drop from August.  I’ll take that 🙂

From the 20th of this month until the 18th of next month there are 4 half marathons and one 5K on the books with a strong possibility for another double half marathon weekend.  I’m not sure I realized the upcoming intensity but here’s what we’ve got

• 09/20 – US Navy/AirForce Half Marathon, Washington DC
• 09/27 – Chicago Half Marathon, Chicago, IL
• 10/10 – Brooklyn Rock n Roll Half Marathon, Brooklyn, NY
• 10/11 – Shades of Death Half Marathon, Allamuchy, NJ
• 10/17 – St Louis Rock n Roll 5K, St Louis, MO
• 10/18 – St Louis Rock n Roll Half Marathon, St Louis, MO

I’m registered for all those runs except the Shades of Death Half.

Another interesting run coming up in November is a 5K on Thanksgiving morning which has a Clydesdale Division for runners who weigh 220 lbs and over.  There’s a good chance I’ll be below 230 by that run and according to a chart from Runner’s World the extra weight drop will help my speed.

As of yesterday my Run Streak was at 71 days, on Thanksgiving I’ll be on day 149 so that’s over double the streak running and I’ve also added weekly Tempo Runs and Speedwork to my running routine.

From what I’ve read an average elite runner is around 130 lbs and I’ll never weigh that little so I’m kind of excited about a chance to be competitive against people of similar weight 🙂

Year 2, Week 35 Weigh-In

This has been an interesting week.  This past Monday I saw a weight in the 220s for the first time in I don’t know how long ….

That 229 weight was after a lot of running and a bit of sleep but still a nice preview of things to come 🙂

I took my official Thursday weigh-in at the end of the day for a nice 236 which helps to solidify my place in the 230s which is well beyond what I was shooting for at the beginning of this year.  The next morning I was 234.2 so I am on course for another month in the 230s and should have an average weight maybe 3 or 4 lbs lighter than last month 🙂

I actually set a 5K PR (personal record) this past Saturday (8/29) and thought of the many people on DietBet working to improve themselves.

Changing oneself, dropping weight or improving as a runner can be such a long, arduous process.  I’ve been fortunate and grateful that I am still able to improve.  I am very grateful.  However, the timelines in my head, the pace at which I envision improvement has always fallen short of the reality.  Maybe not by much, a few months perhaps, maybe more but there’s no cheating reality.

I guess a key to success is in bolstering hope while minimizing discouragement and continuing with persistent efforts.

For me, that 5K represented an expression of hope and something I wanted to share.  It represents 20 months of training that started in January of 2014 with a few hundred miles of walking and culminating with nearly a 1,000 miles of running thereafter.  It started with a body weight of 316.2 pounds and barely able to run 15 seconds.  So, while a 5K in 34:25 is below average or mediocre at best in the world of runners, it was huge for me.

There will come a time in our life when we won’t be able to improve our times anymore.  I don’t know exactly when that will be for me but, for now, my goals are still fraught with improvement.