I posted almost a month ago and was just beginning to run outside more. Since that last post, I’ve been outside every day I’ve run except one (and I think I slept late that day!) I’m getting up around 5:00 Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to make sure I get my run in before I go to work. Saturdays, I’m able to sleep in a bit, but I still try to get outside as early as possible so I don’t eat up the day with the run.
The biggest change I’ve seen in 4 weeks is that I’m faster. Much faster. I’ve shaved at least a full minute to minute and a half off my pace, depending on the distance I’m running. How? I run smarter, not going out too fast, I push myself harder, knowing I can do it, and I’m losing weight, down 4 lbs in 4 weeks. Not a very dramatic drop, but I’m in the long-haul weight loss mode, trying to get down to 180 by January (again, anything lighter is a bonus) by cutting down on meat and dairy drastically and eating more fruit, veggies, and less junk. There are a few more changes I’m going to do with my eating habits that I have to transition into in the next few weeks before I feel that I’m in a good place to sustain my new habits. The dairy needs to be cut more (watch out Starbucks baristas!) and I really do want to eat less meat, sort of an omnivore-lite lifestyle. I’m not sure I can go truly vegan, but I can see vegetarian. Not because I don’t want to or don’t think I can, but because I’m trying not to make 2-3 different meals each night for myself, my wife, and my son. For medical reasons, my wife can’t have most fresh fruits or vegetables and it makes it a bit tough to find a balance of what we can and can’t eat together. When I first started changing my eating habits, I was full on vegetarian/vegan for most meals, which caused my wife to feel left out. Not my intention, so we’ve found a balance that we can work with to gradually get me where I’d like to be.
I’ve also had a attitude adjustment, due to Gordon at Running to Disney who is, despite his protestations, an inspiration to many people who follow his training and his awesome changes in eating habits that have made him change the intro to his podcast. He is no longer a chubby, back-of-the-pack runner, but is a mid-pack runner who has made an incredible leap forward in his running. His journey and transformation gave me the kick in the pants I needed to buckle down and take my training more seriously. No longer do I just go out and get the miles done. Now I pay attention to my pacing, my breathing, my hydration and fueling during long runs, things I did a few years ago, but stopped doing because I thought I knew enough about running. Well, obviously I didn’t know as much as I thought and I’m excited about running, training, and racing again. Thanks Gordon!
I’m still running the half-marathon on April 24. I have to review the course map, but I think I’ll do fine. Although I’m treating the race as a training run, I think I can actually PR (won’t try too hard, but still may get it) this race, such is my improvement and new attitude. I just have to watch the pace the first few miles, but I’ll do fine.
I hope to have another post before the race, but if not, I’ll have a race recap post soon afterwards.
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