Confession and End of Month Recap

69 Days to Paris.

Okay, I have to start with a confession. Now keep in mind I didn't do this on purpose, but for the sake of accuracy - particularly since I'm putting all of this training out there for the world to see - I should have verified this earlier. So, here it goes: I have been over-reporting my mileage for my 6 mile / 10k neighborhood loop. I just finished running it, and after I was done I hopped in the car and re-measured it, and to my horror it was actually only 5.75 miles or 9.2 K. I hope you can all forgive me. Hence forth I will report more accurately, I promise ;-)

Oh, and in keeping with my tendency for laziness, and my tolerance for inconvenience, I will not readjust my previous postings, but for my month end recap I will compensate to reflect true miles run. And for the record, my 6.94 Mile/11.1K and 8 Mile / 12.8K loops have been accurately verified. And of course for any mileage done on the treadmill I am relying on the machine's accuracy.

January training recap:

Well, what a month it has been. I mean who would have thought that Jay Leno would be back at the helm of The Tonight Show, muscling out Conan after only 7 months and once again changing the face of late night television? But I digress. It's hard to believe that it has only been one month since I started this blog. I am truly grateful for those of you who have been following it, and sending me words of encouragement. I am humbled by those of you who have said that I have inspired you. The purpose of this blog was to help inspire me. To help get me motivated to train for an insane event during, in my opinion, the worst possible time of year, when cold and darkness makes sitting on the couch in a nice warm house so much more inviting. So to think that what I'm doing here is also helping others is beyond any expectations I had. Once again, thank you all!

While I have reported all of my training activities, including power walks at lunch and workouts on the elliptical machine, what I'm going to report here as a monthly total is only the miles I have actually run; on the road, on trails, on a treadmill and on a running track.

Total January Miles Run: 99.65 Miles. 160.37 Kilometers. Average about 24 Miles per week.

Training update for this weekend: Saturday I did a long run of 8 miles (12.8K). 1:16:40. Pace: 9:35/Mile. Marathon time at this pace: 4:11:16. Playlist: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Today: 5.75 Miles (9.2K). 54:24. Pace: 9:28. Marathon time at this pace: 4:08:03. Playlist: Def Leppard.

Next time: Some thoughts on Jeff Galloway's "Run/Walk" method. This guy may be on to something!

Training update

71 Days to Paris.

Sorry, nothing much to write about today, so I will just give my training update from Thursday: Gave my joints a break and did 60 minutes on the elliptical cross-trainer. 900 calories. Playlist: A mix of stuff, mostly John Mayer and Blue Rodeo.

Today's an off-day. On Saturday, I will try to do a long-run (weather permitting) for having missed last weeks Winter Series Race # 2. If mother nature doesn't cooperate, I will be spending some quality time at the Y.

Where the Streets Have Names (apologies to U2)

73 Days to Paris.

For the curious among you, here is what 42.2 Kms / 26.2 Miles of pain through the streets of Paris looks like on a map:

For a bigger version, click on the following link to go to the Paris Marathon website and a full page route map.

http://www.parismarathon.com/marathon/2010/images/MDP10Parcours_HD.jpg

Training update: Another 6 miles around the running track at the Y; 55:10; Average Pace: 9:11 per mile. Marathon time at that pace: 4:01:04. Playlist: The Best of the Doobie Brothers.

Treadmills vs Running Tracks

74 Days to Paris.

I'm back! Sorry for the lack of posts over the last week, but between the travel for work, and visiting my daughter and other family up in Quebec over the weekend, blogging just wasn't taking priority. In any case, my training regiment took a serious step backwards last week. I managed one workout on Wednesday and one on Saturday, so I have some serious ground to make up. And while I never promised to post everyday, I really do appreciate all of you who asked me why I hadn't posted anything in so long....it's nice to feel wanted :-)

So tonight I finally decided to join the YMCA. I was using a gym already, but it was at the club where my daughter swims, and it is far from home, and getting motivated to drive another 25 minutes after commuting from work and then another 25 minutes home was just about as hard as actually doing the training.

We have a YMCA about 3 minutes down the street, so tonight I went and signed up. They have literally tons of equipment, but they also have gobs of people. So at this point I'm not sure if actually getting a machine will be a problem, but on the plus side, they have a running track, which is what I used tonight after I got myself registered.

The running track has some definite advantages over the treadmill:

• No waiting for a time-slot on the track - get on and get going;
• No time limit on the track - I can run as long as my little feet want;
• The same resistance as road running - no free propulsion from the rolling mat;
• You're actually going somewhere - not just running in place with the same scenery.

On the other hand, the treadmill does offer some perks:

• You don't have to keep count of how many laps you do - on the track at this Y, you have to do 13 laps for one mile. I may have lost count once or twice, but based on my overall time I think I was accurate to 6 miles (that's 78 laps, which seems like an awful lot).
• If you don't have a watch, no problemo, the t'mill will tell you exactly how long you have been running to stand still.
• The t'mill tells you you exact pace at any given time, as well as your average pace throughout the run.
• If you're really a glutton for punishment, you can add "incline" and pretend you're running uphill.
• You don't have to pass all the slow walkers and inconsiderate walk-and-talker who take up the width of the running track.

All in all, with one run under my belt, I think I definitely prefer the running track. And it sure as hell beats running out in the cold!

Training update:

Saturday: About 6.8 Miles on two different treadmills. I was trying to make up for the fact that I was missing the second race in the Pike's Peak Road Runner's Winter Series which was an 8 mile race. I set the first treadmill for 75 minutes, but the "club limit" was 60. So I set it for 60 and after about 36 minutes I had completed 4 miles, so I reset it for another 36 minutes, trying to complete the 8 miles on the treadmill, but about 0.8 miles into the second set, the blasted contraption just up and stopped. I couldn't get it going again, so I switched machines and did another 2 miles. I ran out of time to do the full 8, but still a solid run, and I did the last two miles in about 17 minutes, so a respectable pace. Playlist: An 80's mix of 38 Special, Triumph, April Wine and Loverboy.

Sunday: Spent the day with family up in Quebec. No training.

Monday: Traveled all day back to Colorado. No training.

Tuesday: 6 Miles on the running track at the Y. About 55 minutes (I forgot my watch). Playlist: Nothing - I forgot my iPod too....ugh.

Legs don't fail me now

80 Days to Paris.

After being home for 3 days, I am back on the road and back at sea-level, struggling to eat right and get some training in. Plus, it's been a tough week so far: My feet have been killing me the last few days, with my right ankle giving me some pain, and the top of my left foot that has been hurting. I only hope it's not the new shoes.

So, I've tried to listen to the advise I have read online or in magazines to "listen to your body", and gave myself a bit of rest. Oh, don't get me wrong, the timing was also very convenient; on Monday evening I was busy getting ready for an early flight the next morning, and yesterday I was tied up in a business meeting that ended late, after having spent most of the day traveling. So today was the first training I had done since last Sunday's 7 mile run.

I had a decent run on the treadmill, but I just couldn't muster up the gumption to do more than 5K (3.12m). Then, to not feel like a total washout, I decided to jump on the elliptical machine for an additional 15 minutes. Well, about 30 seconds in my calves started to really cramp up. By minute 5 I was in pain! Well I managed to push through and complete my 15 minutes (I know, I know, so much for listening to my body), but I was limping all the way back to my hotel room.

Sore ankles. Sore feet. Cramping legs. Damn. It's hard enough to train while traveling, but this added challenge is a real, well....pain in the leg!

Training update:

Monday - Diddley

Tuesday - Diddley Squat

Today - 5k (3.12m) on the treadmill; 27:19; Followed by 15 minutes on elliptical machine. Total calories burned: 760. Playlist: The Beatles Abbey Road.

Of Passing and Being Passed

83 Days to Paris.

I read an article in this month's Runner's World magazine about how men, in particular, hate getting passed while running. It goes on to say that "...male runners' confidence can inflate or deflate depending on whether they are the passer or the passed".

While I would like to think that my psyche is above such petty competitive tendencies, I'm willing to confess, here and now, that I am a running cliche.

Last weekend, during the PPRR's Winter Series race through Cheyenne Mountain I was able to, early in the race, get past a dozen or so people whenever the trail widened up beyond just single file. Each person I passed gave my ego a tiny little boost (well, okay, a big boost), and I would feel my pace pick up, even if just minimally, and even if just in my imagination. Let's face it, for a 224-ish Lb middle aged man to pass a younger, fitter, lighter person, is very satisfying! BOOYAH - Take that, Generation Y!

As we finally reached the apex of the seemingly never ending climb, cosmic payback began: my pace didn't pick up (for reasons that I've already blogged about, and that's my story and I'm sticking to it), and the people I had passed started to pass me. We were finally going downhill and I was very possibly in the way between them and a personal best-time (or at a minimum, between them and the hot cider and hot chocolate waiting for us at the finish). Every time someone would pass me, that little voice inside my head would utter some words of disbelief, but my legs were starting to feel the fatigue and I just couldn't go any faster.

Then, the inconceivable: people I had not passed earlier also started passing me. Ergo, people who had been behind me from the very beginning. Arrghh! Just as I thought I couldn't take the passing anymore, the finish line appeared in the distance. I was finally able to pick up my tempo and sprinted the last few hundred meters. Mission accomplished.

I don't know why the passing and being passed mattered to me so much. After all, what I'm doing is really about personal improvement, and the only person I'm competing with is myself. But again today, as I was out running through the neighborhood, I was able to pass another runner and as soon as I passed her - yes, a her, and she was running with a dog who was probably slowing her down, but whatever, passing is passing - I felt my pace pick up a bit and I may have even had a smile on my face.

That's me. The running cliche.

Training update: 11.1k/7 mile run through the neighborhood. Temp 12c/53F. 1:05:38. Pace: 9:27 Mins/Mile - 5:55 Mins/Km. Estimated marathon time at current pace (presuming no fade. Yeah, like that's gonna happen): 4 Hours 8 minutes. Playlist: The Cranberries.

Paris Playlist

84 Days to Paris.

Before I ran the Denver Half-Marathon I put together a Playlist of songs on my iPod that would carry me through the streets of the Mile High City for at least 2-1/2 hours if needed. Indeed, I knew that if I heard a certain song, and wasn't in the vicinity of the finish line yet, that it would mean that my pace was seriously slow. My goal for Denver was 2 hours 15 minutes, and I had 2 hours 30 minutes worth of music. In the end, I finished in 2 hours 7 minutes and still had several songs left to go!

In the weeks to come I will be putting together a Paris Playlist, and what I'm looking for is some suggestions from the blogosphere. I'm going to have to put together at least 4-1/2 hours of up-tempo music to keep my pace going, so my challenge to all of you is to send me some suggestions. I have eclectic taste when it comes to music (as anyone who has seen some of my posted playlists can attest to) so I'm pretty much open to anything with the exception of country music and most rap/hip-hop (though I do have The Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" on my iPod which is like the Classic Rock of Rap). So, bring on the ideas! I will start posting my new Playlist as I build it over the next 84 days.

As with my Denver Playlist, I will start the race with "Battle without honor or humanity" by Tomoyasu Hotei. This is a killer song that has "On your marks, get set, GO" written all over it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG2_kpSYxXI

Training update: Back to my regular neighborhood 6 mile run. The temperature was a balmy 14c (about 59 F) when I started, but I got a late start and as soon as the sun went behind Pike's Peak it started to cool down quickly. I was feeling the return to altitude in the first 20 minutes, but after a while I started to get back into a decent rhythm, both with my breathing and my pace. 54:00. Playlist: Yes' 90125

What the hell happened to my altitude advantage?!?

86 Days to Paris.

One of the things I was really looking forward to when I headed out to Indianapolis this week was being close to sea-level. You see, Colorado Springs is at close to 7,000 feet and training in the thinner air is supposed to give you a great advantage when you get down to sea-level, where your body just swims in the extra oxygen and propels you to great athletic feats of wonder. It must be so, because the U.S. Olympic Committee has a large training center in the Springs, and we all know how many Olympic medals U.S. athletes accumulate thanks in part to their high altitude training.

Or so I thought.

Now granted, my expectations may have been a tad on the fairy-tale side. As we were on final approach for the Indy airport on Monday, I had visions of myself breaking all of my personal records: Bursting through the 50-minute mark for a 10K on the treadmill; Dominating the Hill Climb on the elliptical machine; Bench pressing 350 Lbs with one hand.

Tonight, reality hit me. Now, to be fair, I think I did a pretty good job this week with my training. While I did eat and drink a bit more than I would have liked, all-in-all I think I did better than I have in the past in the munching department. And I did work out every day I was here, starting with a 5 mile run on Monday, followed by time on the elliptical on Tuesday and Wednesday, culminating with 10K on the treadmill tonight. I have also been working out for 6 straight days now, having skipped my "off-day" on Tuesday with a 30 minute session. But honestly, tonight on the treadmill, I was feeling the pain! It was sheer will power that pushed me past the first 5K, after which I was was ready to call it a night and head to the nearest mini-bar for some over-priced cocktails. But, I kept on going, driving myself with thoughts of all the high carb food I'd eaten this week.

As I was rounding past 8K, with about 12 minutes to go, it dawned on me that I was not feeling any benefit to being at sea-level. And in fact, as I thought back on my previous three workouts, I didn't recall feeling any rush of super-oxygenation propelling my performance to elite levels. By the time I finished my 10K, over 58 minutes after starting (which was in no way a personal best) I realized that the only thing that got burst was my bubble.

Looks like I'm going to have to set more realistic expectations for how my altitude training will impact my performance in Paris.

Now, I just hope that when I get back home, I don't feel like a wheezing asthmatic.

Training update: Yesterday I did an hour on the elliptical cross-trainer. 1151 Calories burned; Playlist: U2's No Line on the Horizon.

Today: 10K run on the treadmill; 58:50; 1085 Calories burned; Playlist: U2's Live from Paris.

On The Road Day 2 - Listening to my keister

88 Days to Paris.

Nothing much to report today. Spent the vast majority of the day holed-up in a boardroom discussing business initiatives for 2010. Ate reasonably well at lunch, and avoided any snacks throughout the day. After a nice sushi dinner and a nightcap with a few colleagues, my keister was tired being sat upon all day, and it insisted that I haul it down to the gym for a brief workout, even though it was my off-day. Good call, keister!

Training update: 30 Minutes on the elliptical cross-trainer. 607 Calories burned. Playlist: Loverboy.

Training while traveling

89 Days to Paris.

This week, I am in Indianapolis on business. The frigid arctic air that we had a week ago in Colorado is still lingering here in the Midwest. When I left Denver this morning, it was about +5c (40F), and three hours later, wheels-down in Indy we emerged from the plane to snow and about -10c (25F). That means that my training will be pretty much confined to the gym in the hotel. Luckily for me, the hotel we are staying at in Carmel, IN has a lot of equipment to choose from (treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, weights, etc). The biggest problem during business travel is the eating. It is very easy fall into bad habits, particularly when lunch is brought in, which is typically high carb high calorie fare (deli sandwiches, pizza, etc). Couple that with eating dinner out every night, and it is easy to gain a few pounds during a week on the road. Not good! So my challenge this week will not be to find time to workout but to keep the eating under some semblance of control.

Training update: After sitting on my arse for most of the day at the airport and on the flight over here, I did a solid 5 Mile run on the hotel treadmill. Approx. 44:30. 900 Calories burned. Playlist: Best of David Bowie.

Tomorrow is my "off" day, but since I will be pretty sedentary for most of the week (with no opportunity for a power walk at lunch), I will see if I can do at least a 30 minute workout on the elliptical cross-trainer.

I am also Running for a good cause

Despite having my iPod on for my run today, my inner dialogue was in overdrive, but it actually came up with a good idea!

I thought that, in addition to being a chronicle of my preparations and training, this Blog could also be used to help others, so now not only am I Running to Paris, but I am running to raise awareness of and funds for a good cause!

A while back, I read Stephen Lewis' book "Race Against Time - Searching for hope in AIDS-ravaged Africa" and I was deeply moved by the daily struggles of countless African women who are living everyday with HIV-AIDS.

I’ve chosen to support the Stephen Lewis Foundation because they put money directly into the hands of grassroots organizations that are working to turn the tide of AIDS in Africa. The money we raise will go directly to the African grandmothers, children, and women who need it most.

To donate online now, please hit the link on the right side of my Blog and together we can help turn the tide of AIDS in Africa.

Thank you!

Run, Fat Boy, Run.

A few pictures from yesterday's race

90 Days to Paris.

As promised, here a few snapshots from yesterday's race:

An information kiosk with Cheyenne Mountain behind it. For those that don't know, Cheyenne Mountain is where NORAD has a military base buried a few miles inside the mountain. They often show the entrance in disaster movies. It showed up in the movie "War Games" for those with a good memory.

A shot of the crowd at the finish line. By the time I arrived, a lot of people (the really really fast people) had already left. Still, a good group enjoying the well deserved hot chocolate and cider.

Yours Truly - Fat Boy After the Run!

Training update: Today was another awesomely gorgeous day for a run. Clear blue skies and the temperature went up to about +10c (50 F). I ran in shorts and a tee shirt - not too shabby for January! Despite the lingering fatigue from the previous day, I managed a solid run. 11.1k (6.94 Miles) in 1:05:59. A very respectable pace given the soreness that still resided in my legs from yesterday's grueling climbs. Playlist: John Mayer's new album Battle Studies, and a few songs from an older album, Continuum.

Winter Series Race # 1 (After)

Still 91 Days to Paris.

This morning's 10+K race through Cheyenne Mountain State Park was run under perfect weather conditions. It did indeed go upto about +8c (about 46 F), with sunny skies. 614 runners finished the two races (a 5K short course, and the 10+K long course...the "+" is because it was actually 6.5 miles, which is about 1/4 mile longer than 10K).

Just like with Waldo Canyon, sections of this trail whipped my ass, but good. Once again I learned the hard way that trail running is very different from running on pavement. There was quite a steady & steep climb for the first 3-1/2 to 4 miles, and then the last 2-1/2 to 3 was pretty much down hill or flat. The conditions varied between clean dry dirt, to mud, to hard or semi-hard packed snow covered, and there were a few icy patches that I think claimed a few victims. In some sections, the trail was pretty much single-file, and at the beginning we had a few log-jambs which forced us to slow to a walk as there was no room to pass.

So, here are my stats for the race:

• Official Time: 1:16:04
• I was 184th overall out of 266 who finished the long course
• I was 129th out of 152 men.
• I was 16th out of 19 in my age class (the paunchy middle aged class).

Not the best of results, but still a solid day, training-wise (trail running helps develop all sorts of muscles that regular road running doesn't use). I started pretty strong, and started to slow around mile 4 as the climbing was getting to me. As I hit the downhill portion on the way back, I did not pick up as much speed as I would have liked, in part due to my body starting to feel the fatigue, and in part due to not wanting to slip and crash on the slick surface - I'm training for something bigger (Paris) and I don't want to be blogging about having a leg cast removed in 91 days instead of running through the streets of Paris. I probably could have pushed it a bit more, which my inner dialogue was debating with itself whether or not I could (remember, no iPod for this race). On the plus side, I did get a good sprint going once I had the finish line in sight.

All in all, a good day to run around in circles through the mountains. I will put up a few pictures once I get them downloaded from the camera.

Playlist: None, but I did have the guitar riff from John Mayer's song "Belief" stuck in my head for a good portion of the race.

Winter Series Race # 1 (Before)

91 Days to Paris.

I'm 30 minutes away from heading out to Cheyenne Mountain Park to run a 10K trail race that is part of the Pikes Peak Road Runner's Winter Series.

Looks like it going to be a beautiful day for a run. Skies are clear and the cold snap (must have been a "blast of Canadian arctic air") that descended onto Colorado Springs seems to be over, although it is still quite cold this morning. That has made decisions on what to wear a bit difficult, as the temperature will likely go up to about +8c (mid 40's F) by the time I'm well past the point-of-no return on the trail. So, I've decided on shorts and a couple of layers on top. Despite all the recent cold, you've gotta love the fact that you can still even contemplate running in shorts in the middle of January!

I'll let everyone know how things went later on today. There will be no Playlist on this run, as iPods are not allowed as part of PPRR's rules - and since this is the first time I will have run this trail, and with a lot of "traffic" it's probably a good idea.

Have a great Saturday!

Have Medical Certificate, will travel

93 Days to Paris.

I had a doctor's appointment this afternoon. Before hopping on the scale for the requisite weight-in, I emptied my pockets of everything including every scrape of lint, took my wallet out of my pocket, removed the Crackberry, and got rid of my car keys. I did everything short of stripping down to my skivvies and then I took off my shoes and got on.....226 Lbs. Bloody hell - are you kidding me?!? As I've said previously, that is without a doubt the Devil's scale.

So, I'm back on Lipitor, but now I know that my high cholesterol is more a genetic thing than a weight thing. Or so the doctor says, and after loosing 60+ Lbs I am inclined to believe her.

More importantly for my little exercise in insanity, my doctor filled out the Medical Certificate that I am required to provide to the Paris Marathon organizers as their waiver should I keel over during the race. Since I did not have to provide one when I did the Denver half-marathon back in October, I will chalk this up to the legendary French Bureaucracy. I will now send this document by First Class mail to France and my registration will be complete! One more step on the long journey completed.

Training update: Hell is still frozen over here in Colorado Springs, so I hit the gym again. Did 60 minutes on the elliptical cross-trainer. 901 Calories burned. When I got home, the bathroom scale registered 222.2 Lbs. Now granted I was still slightly dehydrated from the workout, but this was just more proof that the scale in the doctor's office is an agent of evil. Playlist: Chickenfoot.

Tomorrow will be a rest day (I'm trying to do 3 days on, 1 day off) as I get ready for the first race of the Pike's Peak Road Runner's "Winter Series" on Saturday, which will be a 10K trail run in Cheyenne Mountain park. Hopefully the weather will warm up a tad. Check it out at www.pprrun.org.

Thank you, Steve Jobs

94 Days to Paris.

There is an essential part of my exercise gear that I could not live or train without. Yes, I know that it would be pretty hard to run without a good pair of shoes, but the bushmen in the Kalahari seem to manage, so why couldn't I if I really had to? Shorts, tee-shirts, socks, yes all necessary, and I'm certainly not going to advocate running in the nude, but what I'm referring to is something truly essential, without which I am certain I could not do what I'm doing. My iPod.

I can not imagine having to spend an hour (or two, or in the case of the full marathon 4+) with only two things to listen to: my panting breath, and my inner dialogue. Now, I realize that for many runners, the time they spend hitting the pavement is their "quality thinking" time. It gives them an opportunity to reflect on the day to come, or the day that has just passed, or to wax philosophical about the meaning of life. Well, I say: Nuts to that. I do enough thinking during the day. Why would I want to listen to myself belly-ache about how sore my legs are, or how labored my breathing is, or how it would have been so much easier to just stay in the house, and why on earth am I doing what I'm doing, this is insane, you should just turn around and go back home right now!

No, I prefer to just plug in some good tunes, drown out the world (while, of course, keeping the volume at a safe level so I can hear the traffic around me) and let the music inspire and drive me. Listening to some up-tempo songs can't help but to get you going and keep your pace strong.

Now, back in the day, one could run with a Walkman or later on with a Discman, but they had one inherent flaw - they only lasted as long as the cassette or CD you had in the player. That was probably okay for a 5 or 10k run, but when you are trying to do a half or full marathon, you need something with more chutzpah, that will keep you going for several hours. Along came the iPod. With a massive capacity to hold countless hours of music, and with few moving parts to drain battery life, it was the perfect invention for the runner who doesn't want to have to listen to himself.

So, thank you Steve Jobs and all the other techie nerds at Apple for inventing the perfect piece of running apparel. I for one, would not be where I am today without my iPod Classic 80GB on which I have about 4,000 songs.

Training update: Did a 40 minute power walk at lunch (2+ miles). By the time I got home darkness was creeping in and it had gone down, in the last 2 hours, to -15c. So, seeing as how Hell had officially frozen over, and there was no way in that frozen hell that I would be running outdoors, I hauled ass to the gym. By the time I got there it was actually -17c. I must admit, thoughts of this blog are what motivated me to get my butt in gear, otherwise it would have been way too easy to use the cold as an excuse to just park my rear end on the couch and eat the homemade cookies my wife made today. 6.25 Miles (10k) on the treadmill. 56:38. 1108 Calories burned. Playlist: Metallica.

Winged Chariots

95 Days to Paris.

So, last Sunday after I completed my Waldo Canyon trail run, I stopped off at the Colorado Running Company, armed with the lovely gift certificates that I received at Christmas. My mission: to get a new pair of shoes to replace the Nikes that have so faithfully carried me since August, and who supported my carcass through 13.1 miles of Denver pavement back in October.

This was the first time I ever bought running shoes that were actually fitted and geared to my foot type (arch and something called pronation). As it so happens, my feet are actually pretty standard. No flat feet, no wonky ankle thing happening. They had me step on a contraption that measured not only my feet (12-1/2's), but where exactly my body weight fell on my feet (mostly my heels. And my left big toe, go figure). Then, after I tried on a few pairs to see which one felt the most comfortable, I ran for about 30 seconds on a treadmill while they filmed me. They then analyzed the video to check for the pronation (In anatomy, pronation is a rotational movement of the forearm at the radioulnar joint, or of the foot at the subtalar and talocalcaneonavicular joints. - Thank you Wikipedia!).

I tried on three different shoes. A Saucony, a pair of Nikes and some New Balance. And the winner was....

The Saucony ProGrid Triumph 7. Here are the shoes that will hopefully carry me through the streets of Paris on April 11th. My winged chariots!

My first real tests of them was the 5K on the treadmill on Monday, and tonight was their first venture outdoors, on real pavement. I must say they felt very comfortable and supported me in all the right places. So, a big SHOUT OUT to my wife's family who gave me the gift certificates. Thanks for your contribution to my insane little adventure!

Training update: Ran 5 miles tonight (about 8.4k). 47:38. Not too cold (about 7c when I started, 4c by the time I finished), and when I started there was still a glimmer of daylight, which was all but gone by the half-way mark. Playlist: Pat Benatar's Greatest Hits.

Pourquoi Paris?

96 Days to Paris.

Many people have asked me "Why Paris?". To which I reply..."D'uh, it's Paris!"

Seriously though, while it is true that there are plenty of marathon options in and around Colorado, as soon as I came across the Paris Marathon website, I just knew that I had found my race. Aside from the fact that the timing seemed right and that I would have enough time to train (albeit in the middle of winter), I thought that running a marathon may be a once in a lifetime thing, and why not make it as memorable as possible. Add to that the fact that I have never yet been to Paris, but have always wanted to go, it just seemed like the perfect alignment of events - it was too good to pass up!

And of course, if I'm going to torture myself for 4+ hours running through the streets, I may as well enjoy the view! How better to help deflect attention from my burning calves than by running past the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and the Champs d'Elysees along with 40,000 other maniacs? If I'm going to lose a few toenails, isn't it cooler to say I left them behind on the streets of Paris versus, say, the streets of Fargo?

Training Summary for January 4th: Today was a "rest" day, so I kept it limited to a good power walk at lunchtime. Walked for about 35 minutes, about 2 miles. Back to the pavement (or treadmill) tomorrow. Weather is turning cold again. Ugh.

My first follower!

Thanks to Luzma Pasini for being my first ever Blog Follower!

A brief history of man (well, this man anyway).

So, just to give everyone a bit of context, let me recap where I was and where I am now...

On March 3rd of 2009, following a sobering visit with my doctor, I finally resolved to get my health and fitness in order. At that time I clocke

d in at 284 Lbs (286 Lbs on the doctor's scale, but I'm pretty certain it's the devil's scale, so I will stick with the reading on my bathroom scale).

With a combination of better eating (mostly South Beach Diet - with yummy meals provided by my uber-supportive wife) and exercise, I hit a low of 218 Lbs in November. At the beginning, the exercise consisted mostly of 30-40 minutes on the elliptical cross-trainer in the basement. Until, that is, I broke the darned thing sometime in May. So, I was faced with about $100 for parts to repair the thing (plus actually trying to

do the repair, not really my thing), or worse still buying a new machine.

Being the cheap bastard that I am, I took a look at my running shoes and decided to start jogging. So at first I had a neighborhood loop that was about 2-1/2 miles. Took me well over a half-hour and I could barely run 5 consecutive minutes without keeling over panting to catch my breath.

Slowly but surely, I was able to get through the run without feeling like I was going to suffer a stroke, and over time I was able to expand it to about 3 miles (about 5k). Then 4 miles. Then 5 miles. One of the highlights of the summer was doing the 6 mile (10k) loop that my father used to run. Took me about 65-70 minutes, but truthfully I never, ever imaged I would be able to run the loop that my dad ran.

Then, one day in August while I was still enjoying the endorphin rush of a just completed run, I started surfing the web and found out that the Denver Marathon was in October. "What the hell" I thought to myself, and signed up for the Half-Marathon. So, there I was, the endorphins slowly subsiding, and I came to the realization that I now had about 8 weeks to train to train for 13.1 miles (21k), more than double any length I

had previously been able to complete.

Well, long story short, I did it!

As I reached about the 12 mile mark, we came to a fork in the road where the people doing the half-marathon veered right to head back towards the finish line, while those doing the full marathon continued on for another 14 miles. While I knew that I was not ready to finish a full marathon, I did have a moment of envy for those continuing on.

So, again to recap what I had done in the 8 months since starting my fitness crusade:

- I dropped about 60 Lbs

- I went from a shirt size of XXL to L

- I went from size 44 pants to 36.

- I hiked up Pikes Peak. Ok, I did it via the shorter, back route along The Crags, but it was still about 12 miles round trip with an altitude gain of 4,000 feet (from 10k feet to 14,110 feet at the top).

- I completed the Denver half-marathon.

Sometime in November, again in the throws of an endorphin high (damn those things!), I thought to myself...I need another challenge. I am the type of person that needs a goal to keep focused on in order complete something this challenging. So there I was again, surfing the web, trying to find my next challenge, this time a full marathon. At first I thought of New York City, but that was in November, which did not give me time to train. When I found the website for the Paris Marathon, I knew that I had found my next challenge! 95 Euros later, I was officially registered! Bib # 41979 was mine! Me and 39,999 other lunatics would be running through the City of Lights.

So that's it in a nutshell. Now here I am with about 97 days left before the big day. I'm faced with training in the middle of a Colorado winter. Cold. Dark in the morning. Dark at night. Finding the motivation may be the real challenge. After seeing the movie "Julie & Julia" I thought it would be fun to document this insanity. I don't know who will end up reading this, but I hope that you find it interesting and, if I may be so presumptuous, a tad inspiring?

Training Recap since New Year's Day

Jan 1st - Did a 6 mile (10k) run around the neighborhood. About 55 minutes. Not the best (my PR is 52:18), but felt good throughout.

Jan 2nd - Did 30 minutes on the elliptical machine, then did a running hike (trail run) of Waldo Canyon which is about 6-1/2 miles. 1 hour 30 minutes. That was a PR for this loop, but sections of the trail continue to kick my ass, and I still underestimate how much longer it takes to run on a trail versus on pavement. When I started it was like a beautiful spring day, and mid-way through I was in a snow storm. That's Colorado for you.

Jan 3rd - 5K on treadmill in 27:48 followed by 15 minutes on elliptical machine. Total calories burned approximately 775.

Current weight: About 224 Lbs. Target weight for marathon: 200.

Gettin' motivated and startin' to Blog

97 Days until the Paris Marathon on April 11, 2010.

I'm just setting up my Blog, inspired in part by the film "Julie & Julia", I thought it would be fun to blog about this former lard-butt's preparations for his first full Marathon in Paris, France.

More to follow....