I Just Felt Like Running p.4

Overall it was about a year of training from 0 to 26.2.  November of 2008 was marathon month.  I tapered my mileage, carbo-loaded a 2 days before race, and started hydrating a week before it.  I began the race along with the other 3 coworkers that were training.  We decided to start with run-a-mile, walk 30 seconds approach.  That technique was pretty successful until around 18 miles through Umstead.  Steve, who had been with me the entire way, fell behind with a little longer walk break.  I felt if I walked longer, I wouldn’t continue easy.  I pulled ahead, refilled my CamelBak, and made it through Umstead.  Emerging from the gravel trail of Umstead, I turned to the pavement where the sun kissed my face into an uphill section with no shade-22 miles or so.  Alas, the uphill was over and my body was really feeling it at this point.  Still though, keep a smile. 

Though I was fully energized, my muscles were pissed off.  My calves begin a mutiny and wanted to overthrow the brain.  My brain wanted to push forward but my calves did not.  First my right calf locked up.  If you have experienced this before, you can relate to what this means.  My calf was fully flexed and stuck like that.  I pulled off, massaged it a bit, and tried to force my foot up to release the muscle.  I created a little bit of relief but not much.  I took this opportunity to wait for Steve to catch up.  I gave it a rest while Steve caught up.  We ran together for a bit until my left calf locked up, and he passed me.  We’re around 24 miles at this point.  I know that if I stick to the run-a-mile-walk-30 deal I’ll never catch up.  I kick into overdrive doing the “marathon shuffle”.  I tried not to use my calves and instead pushed more off of my quads.  Running much faster than I had been in the last 5 miles, I caught up with Steve.  We continued side-by-side for 2 more miles.  The last .2 seemed longer than the whole race.  As we approached the last stretch we look at each other and Steve says, “together?”. “Yes” I said; “same time”.  I crossed the finish line at 4:11:57 and Steve with 4:11:58.  Margin-of-error I say.

Running has become a part of my life; an obsession.  I think about running quite often, “where will I go next?  Where is that person running to?  Do I have time for a run?”.   I would consider myself a runner.  A lot of people run as a form of exercise.  I think there is a difference though.  So what makes a runner?  It’s easy.  When you’re running down the road and you feel the rhythm in your stride.  Your heart is beating and your feet are hitting the ground and nothing matters anymore except you and the road.  The wind is on your face and the fresh air in your lungs.  Your legs hurt, it’s hot, you smell awful, and you love it.  You’re not running for weight loss.  You’re not running to get your 30 min of cardio in.  You’re running because you need it.  You run because it’s part of you and no one else can take it away.  Some call it an addiction – I call it a passion.

-Aaron

I Just Felt Like Running p.3

It wasn’t all running for me, though that was the bulk of my workout.  On the off days, I did do a little weight lifting and other types of cross training such as Yoga and Pilates.  I would give myself breaks but overall I was getting to be pretty active.  Not because I felt it necessary, but because I wanted to.  The better I felt, the more I wanted it.  


I like to play video games, so I decided to find ways to make working out fit into that hobby as well.  For example, my current obsession is Dark Souls – the spiritual successor to Demon’s Souls.  How can I make working out fit into a sit down activity?  As I’ve seen people do with other games, I started with 5 minutes of working out every time that I died in the game.  If you’ve ever played Dark Souls, you know death is often.  I would essentially be getting 30 minutes of workout in about an hour of play time.  This created a “oh no, I’m can’t die!” feeling.  When I did die, I would do pushups, sit-ups, and pull-ups.  Once the time was up Iwould rush back to play more.  It was an extremely rewarding balance that is unbeatable.  Another thing I would do was see how many sit-ups or push-ups I could do during loading screens of other games.  A favorite is to use a cycle trainer while playing, which can be found fairly cheap.  It’s pretty easy to add activity to daily routines.  Try parking your car at the back of lots when you shop and give yourself a little extra walk to and from the store.  Walk around when you're talking on the phone or when waiting for something.  While at work, I'll walk around the kitchen area essentially doing laps while waiting for my food to heat up.  Little things that don't seem like much really start to add up in the long run and gets your body used to moving.


-Aaron

I Just Felt Like Running p.2

Training for a marathon isn’t easy.  Something as huge as a marathon takes a lot of dedication, self-control, and spirit.  I ran in the cold, in the rain, during lunch at work, in a hurricane, and in 100 degrees.  It’s fairly easy to skip a couple runs and never get back into it.  My diet changed, my thought patterns changed, and my schedules changed.  Around senior year of high school my friends and I would ride our bikes to McDonald’s, eat a Double Quarter Pounded with Cheese, then bike around some more.  That eating habit did subside a bit, but you can see where I’m coming from.  My newer diet wasn’t aimed at making me miserable.  They key to sticking with something is to turn it into something you enjoy.  I stopped eating most fast-foods.  Not to say I didn’t eat it at all, but I made more conscious decisions about what I ate when I did.  I made certain exceptions and limited consumption to certain days.  For example, I could eat Chick-Fil-A but I would substitute the fries for fruit and drink for water.  Also limiting it to once a week at most.  Of course sometimes I would cheat and eat out with friends, but sticking to the guidelines really makes a difference.  Order something without the mayo, skip the cheese, grilled chicken instead of fried chicken, etc.  Writing things out will really help you see a difference in what you are eating/not eating over a period of time.  I did have my cheats though.  I would allow a half glass of Coke with a meal or during the day and I would eat a few Hershey Kisses as well.  I wouldn’t cut out everything delicious, I would just try to regulate it.  The mornings would be some cereal with skim milk or some egg whites on whole grain bread with fat-free cheese and cayenne.  Lunch would be a bit more boring since I was at work; plain tuna sandwich with beef jerky and some plain Greek yogurt mixed with fruit.  It’s surprisingly hard, at first, to deny a catered Pei Wei lunch and opt instead for Sweet Tomatoes soup/salad.  Once you get into the habit of eating better, it comes surprisingly easier to maintain.  I started to feel better about myself.  I felt more awake and more alert.  About 6 months into training, I had already seen a major difference in my body and my mood.  Running was starting to grow on me and I enjoyed it more and more.

In just six months I had already dropped 35lbs – from 165 to 130.  Results started slow in the first month or two which was expected, but definitely demotivating.  However, I knew my mileage was increasing and I had better endurance so I knew something was happening.  “Just stick with it” I would tell myself.  And it worked. 

6 months progress.  165 - 130lbs