Supporting Cast

I couldn't have made it this far without help. My roommates have been a huge source of encouragement and support - they have been able to push the right buttons so to speak and make me feel more accomplished than I thought. There were times that it seemed like I made little or no progress on such a huge challenge, but I can count on their positive spin and glass half-full rhetoric to keep moving along, no matter how small the steps may be.

In addition, just being able to talk to my classmates about their progress and struggles is encouraging in its own way because I know that I'm not alone in working towards behavior change. I feel comfort and assurance that I have people around me that I can turn to for support in any of my pursuits and I'm grateful that I have them around!

Update:

11.05 miles last week spread over 3 days with an extra hour of basketball to increase my overall activity level for the week!

Below is a hilarious prank gift box from the Onion store...works great for any occasion!

My inspriation

The person who inspires me to keep up my activity levels is my grandma. At 78 years old, she continues to wake up everyday with the intention of getting chores and straightening up before leaving for her daily walk and social rounds. She wholeheartedly believes in the mantra of "keep moving" which she picked up from Oprah or something. It's amazing to see her after a lifetime's worth of hard work and activity, still refusing to take it easy. Don't get me wrong, she takes breaks and watches tv, but she enjoys being active, both physically and socially. Just watching her in action is both inspiring and humbling at the same time; inspiring because she makes me want to match her motivation levels and humbling because her drive is innate, natural and so organic. At times when I get lazy, I think of her and how she takes days off only when she truly has to and this is usually the motivation I need to get off my butt and do something.

12 days left until the half-marathon...

Update:
4/18/09 - jogging/walking total of 6 miles in 63 minutes

Less than a month left before 13 mile assault!

So the half-marathon is coming up fast, one month from last Friday and timing couldn't have been worse because I've been kinda in a running slump these past few weeks. My routine isn't as consistent as it was when I first started and I've been trying to run more outside to simulate race day. Running outdoors is definitely harder and I've only managed a meager 2.5 miles without slowing to walk. It's definitely frustrating because I can easily last 5 miles on the treadmill before I walk...

My goal this week is to increase each of my outdoor workouts from 2 laps (2.5 miles) to no less than 3 (3.75 miles). Gotta get back into running mode!!

Update from last week:

3/30/09 - jogging total of 1.25 miles in 11:50
3/31/09 - jogging/walking total of 2.5 miles in 25 minutes

Props to Veeral for telling me about this site, fail.org, where this pic's from:

It's the end of March already!

Damn the semester is just flying by. It seems like we all just started our respective quests for personal growth and well-being.

I totaled my progress since I committed to the crazy idea of running a half-marathon and I've logged 105 miles since November 30 of last year! Considering that the last time I ran for exercise was for the AIDS walk back in 2007, I feel pretty accomplished and proud of myself for sticking to it. I will use this reflection on my progress to propel me through to May 3's duel with my personal Goliath - the 13-miles in Newport Beach...















Update for the week:

3/23/09 - jogging/walking total of 3.15 miles in 30 minutes
3/25/09 - jogging total of 2 miles in 18 minutes
3/28/09 - jogging total of 2 miles in 20 minutes

Progress

Howdy peeps!

Here's an update of the past two weeks:

3/9/09 - jogging/walking total of 1.35 miles in 15 minutes
3/12/09 - jogging/walking total of 2.54 miles in 24 minutes
3/13/09 - jogging/walking total of 5 miles in 51:30

3/17/09 - jogging total of 2.54 miles in 24:44
3/20/09 - jogging total of 5.1 miles in 50 minutes

Good Luck and Good Night

What up party peoples? I'm sure you're all studying hardcore for our upcoming midterm, so here's a quick update:

3/1/09 - jogging/walking total of 3.1 miles in 30 minutes
3/2/09 - jogging/walking total of 2.7 miles in 30 minutes
3/4/09 - jogging total of 1.27 miles in 11:21
3/6/09 - jogging/walking total of 2.54 miles in 24:13

Benefits of Running

Some interesting articles on the benefits of running and why people run-

Article highlighting a 20-year longitudinal study comparing runners and non-runners:
http://med.stanford.edu/news_releases/2008/august/running.html

Running - a different kind of "high" - this article chronicles former drug addicts that have turned to running for a positive addiction:
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-243-297--12302-0,00.html

"Runner's high", consistent runners are less and experience less anxiety:
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=77215

For the challenge:
http://money.cnn.com/2001/10/31/news/costello_column/


Weekly update:

2/23/09 - jogging total of 3.1 miles in 30 minutes
2/25/09 - jogging total of 3.7 miles in 37 minutes
2/27/09 - jogging/walking total of 4.1 miles in 43 minutes

The 411

Here are a couple websites I found useful:

Amazing! Free Training log (calendar to plan/record runs and distances; route calculator with map; shoe mileage tracker, BMI and body fat calculators; and more!):
follow site: http://www.active.com/running/ >> then go to free trainer log on left column

Running tips for beginners:
http://completerunning.com/archives/2006/09/12/100-beginner-running-tips/

Comprehensive guide to runners of all levels, including the schedule of local races:
http://www.coolrunning.com/

Comprehensive guide, tips, nutrition advice, articles for runners of all levels...helpful article on pre-race meals:
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-303-307-10203-0,00.html

All the health benefits of running (when adding up all those advantages and weighing them against hanging out and watching tv with a bag of chips):
http://www.medicinenet.com/running/page2.htm


Weekly update:
2/21/09 - jogging for a total of 3 miles in 35 minutes

Back on the wagon...well, almost

It's been a slow transition back into my running routine. I need to organize my time a little better (and stop being so lazy) in the next couple weeks so I can make running more of a priority.

Short-term goal:

This week - get to the gym at least twice
Next week - get back to roughly 10 miles/week


Update:

2/13/09 - jogging/walking total of 2 miles in 22 minutes

Damn, Damn, Damn!

This week's update will be quick, but not so easy...

So not getting a flu shot finally bit me in the a$$ and I came down with the flu on Saturday night (the night before my the Huntington 5k). Needless to say I didn't make either the 5k or the Superbowl party my roommates and I threw - Damn, Damn, Damn!

Update:

No running this week!

Lesson learned: take preventive measures when opportunities present themselves.

Have you seen this movie?

It's kinda weird how the most random things can inspire people to change...I saw a movie back in November of last year called "Run, Fatboy, Run" with my roommates and that's where my running days started. It followed the life of a middle-aged man who many considered a loser; he was out-of-shape, just floating along in life in a dead end job with no real goals and he certainly wasn't living with purpose or fulfillment. His only joy came from hanging out with his son, whom he shared custody with his ex-wife. His ex drops the bomb that she's serious with this highly driven, highly successful guy and, of course, gets jealous and attempts to compete with him. After hearing that the new guy is running a marathon in a few months, he is inspired to run the marathon to prove to his ex and their son that he is a changed man, that he no longer runs away from challenges.

I was immediately intrigued and reflected back on my own life. For most of my life, I was that floater, the student who coasted his way through high school and college. I was driven, but when things got really tough, instead of buckling down, I settled in my old ways and crammed as much info as I could one or two nights before midterms and final exams, and luckily that was enough. That movie got me picturing myself 20 years down the line and I just didn't want to regret not living life, not working hard for things that I knew I wanted.

You're probably thinking, damn this movie must be amazing. A little more background...before this story I was already trying to incorporate positive habits into my routine, so I think of this movie as the final piece that motivated me to take control of my health and challenge myself at the same time. Looking into the future, I have big plans. By setting this huge goal (I've run one 5k in my LIFE and straight up don't like running), planning and organizing time to work towards that goal and overcoming barriers (physical and will power), I feel empowered and sincerely believe I can do anything I set my mind to.

Weekly Update:

1/25/09 - jogging total of 3.16 miles in 28 minutes
1/28/09 - jogging total of 3.22 miles in 28 minutes
1/30/09 - jogging total of 3.32 miles in 29 minutes
5k this Sunday in Huntington!

Exhausted!

Howdy peeps, it's Friday of week 2 and boy, am I exhausted! I just got back from Washington, DC on Wednesday afternoon and I'm still trying to recover from that 5-day long action-packed weekend. Not too much to update you guys this week in terms of running at least 10 miles, but I did manage to get some in this morning:

1/23/09 - 3.36 miles in 30 min
1/20/09 - 0.5 miles in 10 min (jogging to the gates before they closed off the last entrance to the National Mall to view the inauguration - check out the all the people traffic in the pic, 'twas bananas!)

Anyways, being away from home made it tough to stay on my routine, therefore, I consider traveling as a huge barrier keeping me from my goal. It is, however, only a barrier, and with proper planning and organization, I definitely could have brought several extra layers of running clothes and my running shoes to combat the forces of nature in Philadelphia and DC (but for this trip, I just focused on surviving the 20 degree temperatures).

A second barrier, somewhat related to the first, is getting sick or injured. I am experiencing some symptoms of a cold and felt a some buckling in my left knee as I was running on the treadmill this morning. Being sick or developing an injury is tough and is partly out of an individual's hands. Taking preventive measures such as eating well, resting, hydrating, proper hand washing and managing stress levels work to an extent to ward off illness. Proper stretching and acute awareness of body mechanics, techniques during exercise also help in preventing injuries. Unfortunately, sometimes illness or injury happens and all you can really do is rest and recover.

The last barrier I'd like to bring up, one that has affected my exercise routines in the past, is just flat out juggling too many things and having to drop a couple for a while. I think it's safe to assume that we've all experienced this - school transitions into midterms and finals and we resort to eating, sleeping and studying for extended periods of time while "temporarily" letting go of our exercise routine. Time management and planning usually can prevent huge disruptions in exercise schedules. By breaking up studying or projects into smaller, manageable chunks, one doesn't have to pull all-nighter after all-nighter during those particular weeks. Also, exercise is a great way to work off any stress that midterms, finals, projects and papers might bring.

I'm gonna do what?!?!

So I told the class on Wednesday that my goal was to run at least 10 miles a week for the next 16 weeks. That goal is definitely still on the table. Even before this class I became motivated to run a half-marathon (funny story to be included in future blogs)and was planning on running one on Super Bowl Sunday in Huntington Beach. Unfortunately, the day I finally had money to pay for the registration fees, was the same day that I realized it was already sold out...so, I ended up registering for a 5k, which I've done in the past, with the intention of building up to the big half-marathon, which I've already registered for on May 3.

Revised goal: Complete the Avia OC half-marathon, Newport Beach in 2 hours and 20 minutes.

Action plan: Run at least 10 miles a week for the next 16 weeks and gradually increasing total distance per week as the semester progresses.


Week 1 update:
1/14/09 - jogged 3.25 miles in 28 minutes
1/16/09 - jogged a total of 3.3 miles in 29 minutes