Before & After Update

It's been 10 months since I last did a "Before & After" post, so I thought I'd do another, since I have fresh pictures. The first one is from January 2011 at 240 lbs., and the second from August 2015 at 175 lbs. Not a huge difference in the last 10 months, but gradually trimming and toning. 

My body may ache after completing a half marathon, but I find satisfaction in knowing that this temporary soreness was brought about by doing something great. I may have felt pain-free and "comfortably numb" when I was "fat and happy"; but as a whole, the extra energy, added mobility, and overall healthier feel of being fit and healthy far outweigh any exercise induced discomfort. The road I was on had me headed for a rendezvous with one of those motorized "mobility scooters", but now the road I'm traveling has nothing of the sort on the horizon (Lord willing).

Get out there and forge your own road that's headed in a direction you want to go. I see my friends sharing on social media about their progress from eating a balanced, healthy diet; and from engaging in exercise like kickboxing, cycling, crossfit, running, interval training, etc., and it keeps me inspired and motivated to keep going.

All Day Long!

Recap: Canby Dahlia Run - Half Marathon

Today I officially completed my second half marathon, the Canby Dahlia Run. The following is a recap of my experience:

My alarm was set to go off this morning at 4:30, but I was awakened 15 minutes prior by thunder, lightning, and heavy rain. Not a good omen the morning of a road race. The timing was perfect though, because the showers moved through quickly and the rain ended an hour before the start.

I arrived 45 minutes before the start, warmed up, and found my spot in the mass of bodies. I started off with what I felt was the right pace, but for the first mile I was quite a bit slower than I had intended. By the midway point of the race, I had found my groove -- and I knew the photographer was going to be somewhere in the dahlia farm part of the course, so I was prepared to smile for this race photo!

I knew in advance that wind would possibly be a factor, and that was definitely the case. I think the wind was in my face about a mile more than it was at my back, so who knows how it really affected me. The end result was that I did finish with a PR... by 1 second per mile. An improvement, but not quite what I had hoped for. Still, I'll take it.

One thing I would like to try in future half marathons is eliminating the Honey Stinger gel packets that I had thought were helpful for me. Just like the Volcano Half, I started to feel a bit nauseous towards the end of the race, this time before I'd reached mile 10. I've done 10-11 mile training runs with no gels, and never had this feeling.

As far as the Dahlia Run itself, it was a beautiful course, and an event that was very nicely executed. My hope is to continue training through this fall and winter, with the hope of running at least the two events I did this year, and possibly trying a 10K or two along the way.

#10kmbefore10am #ilived