We're in!

We're finally at the move in stage at the new house, and I can't wait until it's all said and done!!!

We've moved all but one of the big items, abd the one that's left is going to be a major bitch!

We have a king size mattress, and we wanted to build a platform bed to go with it. So I built a very sturdy, strong, solid, heavy platform for the bed to go on. The problem is that I built it in our bedroom at our old house, and it doesn't come apart.

So imagine a platform that's the size of a king mattress that has no flex to it that sits about 6"off the ground supported by 4"x4" posts to hold it up. Now imagine that it's upstairs, and that the stairs double back on themselves, then have a 45° turn, with a banister on one side and a sheetrock wall on the other...

That's what I'll be dealing with today.

But, that is the last big item! After that there's only a few things left that aren't that important to daily life, mainly the kids toys, our tv, and some other random crap.

So starting tomorrow morning I will begin running consistently again. And next weekend I will start weekend runs as well! I'm also going to clean my diet back up and try to get back under 185, if not under 180.

Wish me luck!!

Thinking of changing things up.

For the last few years my training has centered around ultras. So in the afternoons when I could go running for and hour or so, I would only get in 5 or 6 miles because I was running at a slower pace. My weekend mornings were spent running for 4~6 hours in the wee hours before the sun started showing its face.

But now that my kids are getting older and getting more involved with sports and other extra curricular activities I want to spend more time with the family than I do beating feet on the pavement.

That's not too say I'm done running. Oh no! Far from it in fact! Just that I'm going to change the way I run to better suit my current lifestyle.

I think I'm going to center my training around running faster. There's no way to run 6 hours in any time shorter than 6 hours without approaching the speed of light (the speed of gravity), and I'm no Usain Bolt so I don't see that happening any time soon.

But I can run more miles in what time I do have by running at a faster pace.

If I have an hour's worth of time to train in, then I should be able to get to the point to where I can run 8 miles relatively comfortably within a few months and eventually work myself up to 10 miss within that hour.

...

My old hometown just had its local marathon (The Gusher Marathon) and the winning time was a 3:00:57... Don't take that the wrong way, that's a very fast time for sure... But it shouldn't be fast enough to WIN a marathon in my opinion. I made a deal with myself a long long time ago that I wouldn't run a marathon until I was confident that I could debut under the coveted 3 hour mark.

So I think that in order to get there I will need to be able to go sub 1:20 in a half marathon a few times, and have a good endurance base set up as well.

I want to start winning races and not just in my age group.

Now, I'm not giving up on ultras. I still want to try to get in 2 or 3 weekend morning long runs per month. Just a few hours of a nice leisurely pace down some old county roads is just what the doctor ordered some times.

A bit of an epiphany!

Since Rocky Raccoon in 2012, my training has been all over the place. I've been 200+ pounds and out if shape after 4 months off from training due to a turnaround at work, to feeling like I was in my true prime after being on the Makers Diet for 3 months and weighing in under 180 for the first time in over 10 years.

The only thing I haven't been is consistent.

When I was working in the plants back in Southeast Texas, I would work 5-8's one week, then turn around and work 16's until I would throw in the towel. Then we had the nightmare 4 month long turnaround. And all of that started for me after running RR50 in 2012.

Then, when things finally settled down and I had time to train, we started the Makers Diet and things were going GREAT! The speed of my progression and recovery during that time period still blows me away!

But then we were told that we were being relocated to the Conroe area. Great! We had always wanted to move, and what better opportunity is there than when your wife's company PAYS you to move?

The only downside was that we had to finish remodeling our halfway remodeled house. So all dieting and training and running got put on hold.

Then we moved and I had to look for employment. Plus it's hard to try to train when you have to try to follow a schedule that works for 6 people, 4 of which are adults with full time jobs.

So I haven't been doing much in the way of training lately, and I'm feeling it.

Now we have been house hunting, looking for just the right one.

And we found it!

So after moving into our new home and getting settled in, I hope to resume training.

My epiphany though, is this...

There are no looming things hanging over us after we move. No more turnarounds that take me out for 4 months. No remodeling, no moving, no crazy hectic work schedule, and no crazy extended family schedule. Just the 4 of us (me, wife, son, daughter) and the dog! Not only should I be able to resume my training, but I shouldn't have any major interruptions for years to come! (Barring unforeseen events of course...)

It never ends..

"It never end, and so therefore it never starts."

-my head just now.

I haven't been running. I haven't been cycling. I haven't been eating right...

But I also haven't been gaining weight! I'm somehow all under 195, yet my gut has enlarged so it doesn't really come across as a positive.

Life never shows down. I thought once we moved to Conroe I could start running because we wouldn't be remodeling a house. WRONG! I moved here and started at a job working crazy hours, then I got a job with steady hours, and we start house shopping, the kids start playing sports, and we start "training" for the MS150.

On top of that, my little cousin Spencer passed away last week. It's something that didn't really come as a surprise, but it still wasn't easy... I know he's better off now, and he's not suffering anymore, but I still took it really hard and still haven't fully recovered. It's never easy when some one so young and so full of life passes on.

Well, we've found a house! We're in a contract pending inspection, and it's in a great neighborhood too! Every time we've driven into the neighborhood I've seen a handful of people out jogging / running! And our house is right next to the sidewalk that runs down the main road. I'm not sure how long the side walk is, but I would guess a round trip would be something like 4~5 miles.

So hopefully the combination of being in our own house, on our own schedule, with our own groceries and our own space in a beautiful neighborhood watching people running around will inspire me to get off my fat lazy ass and do something again!

Switching Gears

I'm changing things up a little bit right now. My focus right now is on cycling.

My wife and I signed up for the BP MS150 the other day. For those unfamiliar with the MS150, it's a charity race to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis that goes from Houston to Austin, which is approximately 150 miles. I did get a new bike a few months ago, a Quintanna Roo Caliente tri bike. I've ridden it twice...

We also just purchased a Cannondale Synapse road bike for my wife, and it's pretty freaking sweet!

The ride isn't until April, so we've got 3 months to prepare to cover 150ish miles in just 2 days.

I'm excited!

Not running yet.

Thanks to this inner cleanse that I'm currently taking, I'm holding off on running until after its finished running its own course.

It's a 15 day cleanse. 6 pills in the morning, 6 pills in the evening, and a lot of shitting everywhere in between... A lot...

And it's not like your everyday "Oh, I need to go poop!" It's more like "I think I need to fart, but I'm not trusting it. I better get to a bathroom NOW!"

AND I'M ONLY ON DAY FIVE!!!!

At least I'm over half way. I've lost a good amount of weight. Somewhere around 8 pounds since the start. I've also started back on the Makers Diet in combination with the cleanse, so it's sort of a double whammy right now to my gastro intestinal track.

But as soon as this is all over, and my daily bowel movements are back to normal (or at least controllable!!!) I plan on running my not so fat ass off again! Weekend long runs included!

2014 Resolutions

I've come up with a small list of "resolutions" for the new year.

1)  Be a better father to my children.

2)  Be a better husband to my wife.

I don't feel like I'm a bad husband or father, I just want better for my family!

3)  Keep running. After remodeling our old house, moving, and changing jobs 3 times last year I spent a lot of time not being active, and that Shit SUCKS!!!

4)  Run another ultra. I don't care if it's a 50K, I want to run another ultra.

5)  Lose weight, and don't find it again. I'm already down 6.something pounds this year thanks to eating right again. Hopefully after getting our own place we will be able to keep eating right and keep the weight off long term. I'm tired of people giving me funny, disbelieving looks when I tell them I enjoy going for 20 Mile runs on the weekends because I have a pronounced gut.

6)  Ride my new bike more. Hell, ride my new bike period! I'm wanting to ride in the MS150 this year, and I want to do an Iron Man at some point, so cycling and swimming are a must!

7)  Meh... 6 Resolutions are good enough I guess.