Form Follows Fitness 5K

 

This past Saturday I ran my first 5K after completely recovering from my grade 2 calf sprain in my right leg.

The 5K race I ran was the second annual Form Follows Fitness 5K, held in Downtown Dallas.  What made this race really fun was that I was given the opportunity to organize a team from my work to run with and with only three days notice, I was able to put together a team of 11 people to run with.  Now, once the race started, it was every person for themselves, so we didn't all finish together, but we all finished, including four who had not competed in a 5K before!

Part of our 11 member team.  I am on the far left.

It was 34 degrees at race time, and there were about 1200 people or so who raced, so it was a nice event to run.  I think it could have been a larger event had the Ft. Worth's Cowtown Marathon not been happening at the same time.

The course itself was relatively easy, with a nice downhill start that allowed everyone to build up steam.  It was the last 800 or so feet that was the biggest pain.  All uphill with what I am guessing was a 15 to 20 degree incline!  It was at that point that I started slowing down.

I wasn't sure what I would run as far as time goes in this race, but I had set a goal of 24 minutes right before the start.  After the runs I had the week leading up to this race, I knew I'd be able to run close to the pace I'd need to set, but I wasn't sure if I would be able to sustain that pace.

But I did maintain close to that pace the entire race!

Now the only thing wrong with this picture is that it shows me going 3.17 miles, because I started the tracking app on my phone when the horn sounded for the race.  I was way behind the starting gate, so I am going by the time the gps tracking app shows me at 3.10 miles, and not the official results.

Here is what I believe I ran:

 Yes, that is a 5K distance in 24 minutes and 26 seconds, which is 4 minutes and 58 seconds better than my previous PR of  29:24. set at the Turkey Trot held in Dallas on Thanksgiving Day, 2012.  That is a new PR!

Here are the official results for me from the race:

So, overall a great race for me.  I am now 100 percent fully healed and I appear to be faster than ever.  I am really looking forward to pushing myself even more.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day!

An Update From The Bench

The last couple of weeks have been tough on me.  First the pulled muscle in my Rhomboid muscle area of my back had me out of my lifting routine for a couple of weeks.  That was okay as I could still run.

Then I went to the podiatrist a week ago tomorrow and had both of my big toenails partially removed due to chronic ingrown toenails.  I was told I could start running as soon as I felt like it.  That was before they appeared to become infected.

So I go back to the podiatrist tomorrow and hopefully in the next few days I'll be back to what I was getting good at: becoming healthy.  I miss running and I miss my resistance circuit training.  I'll be back to it soon enough, but soon enough simply can't come quick enough.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day.

Prepping for the Dallas Turkey Trot

One of the races I have been looking forward to since I started running this year has been the Dallas Turkey Trot.  Seriously, who wouldn't look forward to running with close to 40,000 plus people?  To me this may be the closest I get to running a race like the Boston Marathon in prestige and size for some time to come and I am really looking forward to this.

Here is a little history, directly from the Dallas Turkey Trot website:

The original Dallas YMCA Turkey Trot was held at the Old Fairgrounds back in the early 1940s, but the long string of consecutive years began with the eight mile race back in 1968.
The unique eight mile distance was created when the one hundred and seven participants were instructed to run along the shores of White Rock Lake “to the big oak tree and back”. By 1979, the race had become so popular that it was moved to the downtown area to accommodate more runners and to showcase “Big D”.
The 3 mile Fun Run/Walk was added in 1984 to accommodate the increased participation of individuals and families. In 2009 the distance was changed to 5K and the course was certified.

 Here is a picture of what I am expecting to find this Thursday morning:

Who would NOT want to run in something like this?

To prepare for this race, I actually started Saturday with a 7.68 mile run, just to see how far I could push myself.  I feel like I could do the 8 mile race, but I want to be competitive doing it.  For this year I will be doing the 5K race instead.  Here is the route I will be taking in the 5K race:

The red line designates the 5K distance

I will be honest here; I am not sure what to expect as far as trying to accomplish my current goal of running a 5K in under 30 minutes, especially with as many participants as they are expecting, but I am going to do my best, that is for sure!  I plan on doing two more runs this week: a speed run tonight and a distance run tomorrow night.  I will be taking Wednesday night off to make sure I am rested for the race Thursday morning.

I urge you to come out and see the race if you are not going to be running in it.  Cheer us on as we run this race!  If you don't want to run, there will be other family friendly things to do here.  From the Turkey Trot website, there will be clowns, pony rides, bounce houses, live music, and many other things to do!  I hope to see you there!

It's a new Thanksgiving tradition for me and my family, and I am really going to enjoy this.  If you would like to register then click here and you will be taken to the Turkey Trot's registration page.

Have a great rest of the day and as always, thanks for reading!

Pushing the Running Limits

I'll be honest, I am physically tired.  My legs feel heavy and I thought about going to the gym tonight to do a full body circuit workout, but I cannot do it tonight.  You see, I pushed myself running today and I ran the longest continuous run I have ever done.  Not only in distance, but in duration as well.

The last couple of runs I ran this week were at the gym on the treadmill due to the cold weather.  Normally I am only able to run at night during the week and I really do not feel like running at night in 35+ degree weather.  Plus I get to do my circuit training after my run.  Today however, I was able to run during the day and I made the decision to make this run a distance run, something I have not been able to do in a while. 

So I took off running and decided to take a different route than I normally do.  The route I took today allowed me to add more elevation to my run.  I expected to gain some distance today; I had set my goal at 5.5 miles, and if I pushed it, maybe even run my second 10K distance (6.2 miles).  Well, I pushed it alright.  I pushed it all the way to 7.68 miles in 1:25:32.  What surprised me was my pace.  Normally on my long distance runs I run about a 11:25 to 11:40 pace, but today I finished with an average pace of 11:08 minutes per mile. 

Here is the details of the run:

My longest run ever, both in distance and time.

Here are the splits for the run:

For some reason, I felt like I was getting faster with each mile.

After running this distance, and for this duration today, I really feel good about training for my first half marathon.  I still have as my goal for my first half marathon to be next September, running the Plano Balloon Festival's Half Marathon, but knowing that I can do this distance and duration now, I may move my first half marathon race up to June or July.  Stay tuned.

And the other best part of the day?  I dropped over 3 pounds today in my weight loss!

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day.

Today's Spirit Run! 5K Results and Thoughts

Today I ran the Spirit Run! 5K in Richardson, TX and what a great time and a great race it was!  The course was laid out so that we ran on city streets and on concrete paths in a local park at at four different spots, local high school students were set up to cheer on the runners.  One high school had their drum line, cheerleaders and I believe members of their dance team cheering us on, while the other high schools represented had their varsity and junior varsity cheerleaders cheering.  It really was a cool experience to run the gauntlet of the cheering sections that had been set up.

The day itself was very windy, with temperatures in the mid 60's.  In the shade it was actually quite chilly.  I had thought to wear my colder weather gear (long compression pants and long sleeve compression shirt), but had decided against it.  I'm glad I did.  Once we started the race and found our way to the sunshine, it warmed up quickly.  For a while it was partly cloudy, but by the race's end most of the clouds had dispersed.

I decided that I wanted to try and push my pace this race and see about accomplishing a goal I had set, which was to run this 5K in under 30 minutes.  I set the coaching part of my iPhone app I use, MapMyFitness, to track my pace and it would announce the pace I was running every minutes.  The pace I set was a 10:15 mile pace; I realize that I would not really make the goal I set with that pace, but my thoughts centered on running faster than that pace.

I ran this race with a friend of mine and we sort of fed off of each other during the race.  We kept up with each other until the last quarter mile or so.  I started sprinting the very last part as I really wanted that goal.  We both did really well this race and both of us set new personal records!  I was very proud of him as this was the fastest pace he had run yet.

So how did I do?  See for yourself.

Not too bad for my third 5K race!

I finished this race in 30:14 and finished 5th out of 12 racers in my age bracket and 95th out of 317 overall.  I came close to my goal, but despite running a 9:44 mile pace, at 6.15 mph, I didn't hit it.  

Blame it on running faster than I ever have, but I forgot to pause and save right after crossing the finish line, hence the longer than normal 5K distance!

Then after looking at the split times of this race I figured out why.

The race split times.  Notice the time for mile three.

My mile three split was above a 10 minute mile pace.  That one time is what cost me my goal.  Between mile marker two and mile marker three was a circular ramp we had to run up and move from the lower level of the park to the higher level of the street.  This was a difficult time for a lot of runners and for my friend and I, this part of the race course slowed us down and it was this small section that cost me my goal.

Like I stated earlier, I didn't make my goal, but I did set a new personal record (PR).  The last 5K race I ran back in October, the Lost Dog 5K, I ran it in 33:04.  Well, today I ran the Spirit Run! 5K in 30:14.  I shaved 2:50 off my last personal record!  Not too shabby.

So what's next for me?  Looks like it will be the Turkey Trot in Dallas on Thanksgiving Day.  It's the largest and oldest Turkey Trot 5K in the nation and they are expecting something like 45,000 runners!  Now that will be an experience I am looking forward to!  My goals for that race?  Run it in under 30 minutes.  That's my biggest goal right now.  When I get that one down it will be time to really turn on the afterburners and move faster.

Thank you for reading.  Have a great rest of the day!

My Next 5K -- The Spirit Run! 5K

This Saturday, November 10, I am running in the Spirit Run! 5K event in Richardson, TX.  It's a local event for me, which is a definite plus.  It also had a discount code available which allowed me to pay half the normal cost.  Again a plus!

What sets this event apart is the fact that at various points on the race course, there are local high school bands, cheerleaders and dance team members cheering the racers on with cheers and music.  At the end of the event the runners get to choose who had the best cheering section.  I believe that this will be one of the very few races I run in that I will not wear my headphones and listen to music to run.

Here is a video of the event.  I believe it is from last year.

Here is a map of the course I will be running.  The best thing about this course is that this course is my normal course!  I run this at least once a week!  Talk about an advantage! 

Right in My Backyard!

The other good thing about this race is that I will be running it with a good friend of mine.  For the first time I will have somebody to race against I know.  Since he's a better runner than I am it'll be even more challenging for me.  I promise this to you: I will do my best. 

I'll let you know how I did later on Saturday.  If you're in the neighborhood, please stop by and cheer us on! 

Thanks for reading and have a great rest of the day!

Catching Up on My Runs for Early November

Eight days into November and I have three runs for the month!  Of course the first three days of the month I spent doing prison ministry, so that does count as something more important than running to me. 

So far for this month I have run on Sunday the 4th, Monday the 5th and Wednesday the 7th.  Here are the details for those runs.


Sunday, November 4, 2012:

I decided to make this a speed run instead of a long run.  I will be running another 5K this Saturday and I needed to see what my pace was right now.  On shorter runs, those under 3.5 miles, I tend to pace myself faster and I needed a bench line to see what to set a PR bar at. 

11-4-2012 Details

11-04-2012 Split Times

I think that I will be able to get close to my goal of running a sub 30 minute 5K during this next race.  It'll be close but I think I can do it.

My next two runs for this month, and this week have been longer runs.  Both have been over 5 miles and both have been in just about one hour in duration.  I'm thinking that in the next three weeks or so I'll be moving on to even longer runs.

Monday, November 5, 2012 run:

11-05-2012 Run Details

11-05-2012 Split Times

Wednesday, November 7, 2012 run:

11-07-2012 Run Details

11-07-2012 Split Times

I have noticed that when I do a long run, well, long for me anyway, I tend to stay on pace for an average 11:30 mile.  I'm not sure if that is a great pace or not; I'll have to look at that, but I am happy with that pace so far.  It won't win me any races, but I think it's a respectable pace for a 248 pound guy who's only been running for 4 months!

Till next time, thanks for reading.

Have a great rest of the day!

The Last Run of October, 2012

Since tonight is Halloween, I don't think I'll be getting any running in, unless I hit the treadmill at the gym, so I would like to post the results of last nights run.  I have to say that it was a good run.  I felt great, had a decent pace, and actually ran the last mile in under 10 minutes!  My legs did feel heavy at times though, so it wasn't perfect, but it was a good one nonetheless.

Here are the details from last nights run:

10/30/2012 Run Details

Here are the split times for this run.  Actually not too bad, especially the last full mile.

10/30/2012 Run Split Times

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day.

Sprinting To The Finish

I did my run yesterday and during the start of my run I still was not sure if I wanted to make it a long run or a speed run.  I had set my goal for 4.5 miles before the run, so I decided to make it a long run.  There was a problem with that decision, however, in that with the app I use on my phone to track my runs, I can only use the coaching feature to track distance, pace, or a few other aspects of running, but not multiple.  It has to be one or the other.  When I crossed the first mile and heard what my pace was I was annoyed at the slowness of my speed, but I decided to press on.  Then I heard my second mile and decided it was time to kick it up a notch on speed. 

At the three mile mark, I had decreased my overall pace for the run, but I wasn't satisfied, so I kicked it into a gear I didn't know I had!  When I finished the last part of the run, I had simply run out of steam.  Then I looked at my splits and realized that if I could have held on for just another tenth of a mile, I would have run a mile in under 9 minutes.  Talk about disappointment!  The good news I can takeaway from this is that I should be able to kick up my 5K race pace now when I hit that last mile in any 5K race.  If I can stay at a 10:30 to 11:00 pace for the first two miles, then hit that fourth gear and get in the last mile in under nine minutes, I should be able to break that 30 minute barrier I so want to break!   At least in theory anyway.

 But enough of my rambling.  Here are the stats for last night's run:

10/28/2012 Run Stats

Here are the split times.  Pay attention to the times and how they started decreasing.  I am going to attempt to start duplicating that even after my long runs to build up stamina and speed.

10/28/2012 Split Times

Thanks for reading and have a great rest of the day!

Thursday's Long Run...My First 10K distance!

There are sometimes when my body surprises me and last night was one of those times.

We had a cold front move through the region yesterday and I thought that I would do a run last night with a stiff north wind blowing.  When I started my run, the air temperature was at 57 degrees and by the time I had finished, the temperature had dropped to 55 degrees.  With the windchill, it actually felt like 44 degrees or so during my run.  I decided to run in long compression pants with shorts and a long sleeved compression top worn with a tech fit running shirt over that.  I decided to play it safe and wore running gloves as well.  Yes, I probably looked a little weird, but I was determined to stay warm!  To finish my ensemble, I wore a tight fitting ball cap with an attached light on the brim.

I had decided that I wanted this to be an easy run.  I really did not want to do a speed run, where I try to do a PR (personal record) each and every time I run one of my speed runs, instead, I wanted something a little more leisurely.  I wanted to try and stay at a pace of 11:30 to 11:45 minutes per mile.  when you look at the stats below, you can see that I actually finished the run at a pace of 11:35 so I accomplished that part of the goal.  It was the distance goal I set of 4.5 miles that surprised me.  I actually finished with a distance of 6.58 miles!  I ran my first 10K distance last night and I am excited about that.  Now that I have broken that barrier, I plan on trying for that distance at least once a week.  Now it's time to break the time for that distance and really get going on training.

Here are the stats for my run last night:

The stats for my first 10K+ distance.

Here are the split times.  Again, I wasn't trying to break any land speed records here, but wanted a nice steady, respectable pace.  I believe I got was I was looking for.

Split times for my first 10+ distance.

So that's my long run for the week.  Here's to many, many more.  Thanks for reading and have a great rest of the day!

The Night Before My Birthday...

And all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even....Oh, who am I kidding?

I decided last night after the lightening left the area to do my evening run.  I actually felt really good last night, so I decided not to do a speed run but a distance run, and the distance I wanted was that elusive 10K I am trying to reach as my next goal.  I felt sure I could reach it, as I kept running, and went past my normal turn around point to show myself I could do this.  However, as I came upon the four and three quarter mile mark, I was really starting to slow down, and made the decision then to make it to five miles and then call it a night.  Trust me, I wanted to stop at 4 3/4 miles, but decided that if I could do that, I could do five.  I'll hit the 10K distance soon.  I know I will.

After the run I had a nice surprise!  Find out after the pictures below.

The details of my latest run (10/22/2012)

The split times for my run. (10/22/2012)

So what was my surprise?  I achieved my third weight goal of going below 250!

Third Weight Goal of being below 250?  Check!

So Happy Early Birthday to me!  On to my next weight goal, which is to be at or below 225 pounds!

Thanks for reading and have a great rest of the day!

Friday's Run (10/19/2012)

Some days I feel like I am "On" during a run and there are sometimes when I don't.  Tonight was one of those runs that I just didn't feel "on".  I felt like I ran slower and according to my split times, I did run slower. I felt like I was going to throw up a few times and overall I felt like I didn't have a good run.  But I kept the run going and ran through the feelings my body was giving me.

It probably did not help that my meals consisted of mostly crap today.  I had to visit one of our company's construction sites very early this morning and missed my normal breakfast, resulting in a Whataburger sausage, egg and cheese taquito.  Lunch wasn't much better.  I had a Chik-Fil-A grilled chicken club sandwich (without the bun) and a small waffle fry.  For dinner I had ham wrapped grilled chicken with a slice of provolone cheese.  Not a great day eating.

But the important thing is that I ran.  So here are the details and the split times for tonight's run.

The details.  Not a very good run for me.

My split times. 

I am very grateful that at 252 pounds, I am able to run at a sub eleven minute mile, but I am looking forward to the times when I can run a sub ten minute mile.  That will be an accomplishment for me.

Thanks for reading!  Have a great rest of the day.

Using A Workout Playlist To Run Faster

I have read several articles on running and whether or not having a playlist with more upbeat music helps you increase your running pace or not.  There are good arguments on both sides, but I wanted to add my two cents on this topic.

I have noticed that when I used previous workout lists, I tended to run slower, only running 11:50 to 12:00 miles.  An example of one of my previous workout playlists is below:

One of my previous workout playlists

I love praise and worship music, but my problem is that the beats were too slow and I believe were affecting my running times.  So I decided to make some new playlists, this time with much faster music.

New Christian Workout Mix. Notice the different styles including rap, rock and pop.

My Pop Workout Mix.  Notice I have different eras and genres.

My Rap Workout List.  Yes, I actually do like rap.

My Rock Workout List.  This is really the best one when it comes to beats per minute.

 If you look at my run from last night, you'll see that I had a much faster pace and I will attribute that to the fact that I changed up my workout list as last night I listened to my rock list.  Tonight I will try my pop list and see how that goes.

My advice to you, for what it is worth, is to build a list of music you enjoy and like, somewhere in the range of 150 to 190 beats (or more) per minute and run to it.  Compare your times running to the faster music you like to the runs listening to the music you used to listen to, or in some cases for those who normally do not listen to music, to the runs you ran without music.  I would be very interested in hearing if your minutes per mile increased or decreased and by how much.

I would also like to know what you listen to.  Leave me a comment telling me what's on your playlist. 

I hope you have a great rest of the Day!  Thanks for reading.

My Run Last Night: A Great Compliment From My Wife

I decided not to run this past Tuesday.  Instead, I took it easy, if you can call changing a blown out tire on the street easy, and go see my youngest daughter's softball game.  After that we all went home and simply relaxed for the evening.

So I went running last night after compiling some playlist to run to.

The night was a little cool, and we actually had a light northerly breeze, unless you were running directly into it, so I put on one of my long sleeved compression shirts under my running shirt and out the door I went.

Forty-Four minutes later I arrived home and my wife looked at me as I walked into the living room and said "That was a quick workout." 

Without hesitation, I looked back, breathing a little heavy and said, " That was four miles." 

It was the best compliment I have had in a long while!

Here are the stats for my latest run:

 

Here are the splits.  I actually had some good splits and I believe I am getting a little faster in my runs:

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day!

My Last Two Runs: Running Indoors

My last two runs have been what are considered indoor runs, which means I have been running on a treadmill in the gym instead of running my normal routes.  Now considering that I actually enjoy running outdoors, you might wonder why I have run my last two runs on a treadmill.  The main reason has been for convenience.  I ran indoors this past Saturday simply because I had no choice.  I was in San Antonio for family business and I needed two things: I needed to de-stress and I needed to run.  The hotel we were staying at was a very nice one and the machines in the fitness room were first rate.  Here are the details from that run:

Indoor Run on 10/13/2012

Not a bad run, but I was hoping for a longer run.  Usually on Saturdays, I try to run further than the last week, or at least equal what I ran the previous Saturday and on the previous Saturday I ran 5.07 miles.  However, I had both of my daughters with me in the fitness room and with a swimming pool calling to them and the hot tub calling to me, I decided to make sure I got my 5K distance in at least.

Last night's run was again an indoor run by necessity.  Not because of rain or inclement weather, but because of the lateness of the run.  I started my run around 9:50 PM or so and to be honest, I simply didn't feel like running outdoors at that time of night.

Here are the details for last night's run:

Indoor Run on 10/15/2012

So that's it for now on my latest runs.  I'll be posting a little more a little later on today.

Have a great rest of the day!

Thursday's Run (10/11/12)

So Thursday's run was brought to you by the numbers 11, 12, and 13, as in October 11, 2012 (10/11/12, get it?). 

I decided to keep my run in the neighborhood last night, in order to stay close to my home.  It wasn't a bad run, a tad bit slow, but the distance was nice.  I think I have decided that my best course of action for maintaining a good pace, say 10:30 to 10:45 minute miles, is to try and run with a partner or with a group.  When I have others with me I tend to run a faster pace.  When I run by myself, the opposite occurs.  So I am attempting to start a running club at my work.  So far only two others have expressed interest, but it is a start.

Onto this particular run.

Here is the overall of the run:

Overall information for Thursday, October 11, 2012's run

Map and Splits for the run.

Overall it was better than the last run I had and was the first time I have actually run in my own neighborhood on the streets and sidewalks.  I think I like this one a little better, especially at night.  Just in case something happens, I know lots of neighbors and can get to help a lot sooner than if I am by myself on the trails in the park.

Anyway, thanks for reading!  Have a great rest of the day!

My Run Tonight

Well, I ran tonight, but it was a difficult run for me.  I am not sure if I was simply tired, or my food had not digested enough or what, but I was way off my normal pace, which is around 10:40 to 11:20 per mile, and there were at least five times that I wanted to simply stop the run, and walk the rest of the way home from where I stopped.

But I didn't stop.  I kept on running until I came to my normal stopping point and then I finished the run.  Then I walked home, using my walk home as my cool down.

For those of you who might be interested, here are the details of the run.

Overview of tonight's run.

Time Splits and map

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day!

Lost Dog 5K Race Results

Today I ran the Lost Dog 5K put on by the White Rock Racing Group.  This was the first time I have run in colder weather and it was downright chilly!  At race time it was 46 degrees and the long compression pants and long sleeve compression shirt helped out tremendously!

The course itself for those of us running the 5K was straight and simple enough.  Down one street for a little over 1.6 miles and back for a total of 3.1 miles while those running the 20K race kept going.

I had two goals again for this race: the first was to again finish without stopping to walk at anytime.  The second was to keep at least a pace of at least 11:00 minutes per mile. I am happy to say I accomplished both of my goals!

Here is the map of the event with my split times:

So This is taken from my MapMyFitness Page.

So how did I do?  Well, I won my age division, my weight division and placed 5 in the Masters division.  (And to be honest, it was a smaller race, but I am not trying to downplay my results; just being forthright with the facts.)

I am ranked 5th in this image.

I have to admit that I was really happy with my time in this race.  I actually bested my time from the Plano Balloon Festival 5K by a full one minute and twenty-three (1:23) seconds!  Yes, a new personal best!

So overall it was a great race for my second 5K race ever.  A new personal best time, a first place finish and a fifth place in the masters division, and even a trophy!

It's a small trophy, but still, not bad for my second 5K!

I'm not sure what my next race will be, but as soon as I know, I'll post it on here.  Until then, have a great rest of the day!

Revisiting My Fitness Goals

Yesterday I started playing catch-up with my blog and let you know how I have done on my weight loss since I last posted (which was simply way too long).  Today I wanted to catch you up on how I am doing with my fitness goals.

When I posted back in July, I had not yet started a fitness program to speak of; I was simply riding my bike on the local trails and at times walking those same trails as well as the roads in and around my neighborhood.  Now granted, I was doing fairly well, averaging about five to six miles per bike ride, and between three and five miles on my walks.  However, I wanted more, as I show below (taken from my goals back on July 31, 2012).  Because I had so many goals, I am going to break them down individually at first.

• To start and finish the Couch to 5K program and run my first 5K race.

 When I first wrote down this goal, I hated running, but I knew I needed to do it.  I have never been a runner in my life and when I was forced to do it, I ran, but did not like it.  Fast forward to today and I am passionate about running!  I really like it!  Not only did I start the Couch to 5K training program, I am four daily sessions from finishing it!  I am currently on week seven day three and will start the final week, week eight on Monday.

Apart from starting the C25K training program and about to finish it, I actually ran my first 5K race back on September 23, 2012!  My stats from the race is shown below:

Results from my very first 5K - 9/23/2012

Crossing the finish line in my very first 5K!

The next goal I had listed was to run a 5K race with my family, specifically the Turkey Trot in November.  That goal is still on, but we'll have to see how it goes.  I'm hoping to at least be able to run it with my wife.  Not sure if the kids will be able to or not.

• To run a 5K race with my family.
• Turkey Trot is the first one I want to do. 

The goal after that I have actually met.  I am now running on average 5 times a week at 4 to 4.5 miles with a pace of 11:20 per mile.  That's 5.2 miles per hour.  Some days I am faster, some I am slower, but I enjoy it!

• To be able to jog a minimum of 3.5 miles 4 times a week.

 The rest of the goals below still remain future goals that I will work on.  I realize that this journey I am on is a slow one, and as Rome wasn't built in a day, neither will my healthy life be built quickly.  These goals will be met though.  Just six months ago who would have thought that I would be running on an almost daily basis, and drop over a hundred pounds?  If I can do that, anything is possible.

• To be able to bike a minimum of 10 miles 3 times a week.
• To be able to swim a minimum of 1 mile 3 times a week.
• After achieving this goal I want to start increasing that distance every month until I can swim 2 to 3 miles at a time.
•  To be able to start training for my first Sprint Triathlon.
• To compete in my first Triathlon.
• Sprint first
• Olympic second
• Ironman eventually

So that's it so far for fitness.  I have another race to prepare for and I will post more on that tomorrow!

Until then, have a great rest of the day!