Success?

An apology to start this brief entry - I should have done an update on the April 28th half-marathon well before now!  Hopefully better late than never!

As I noted in the last post, weather was expected to be a factor and it was to some extent.  Temperature at the start of the race was basically at zero degrees Celsius.  For my American counterparts that's 32 degrees Fahrenheit.  And just in case you haven't picked up on it before, I'm a wuss when it comes to cold weather running.  I don't run outside in the winter or in any conditions that approach the freezing mark.  Some of that is a matter of personal choice.  However, I also do appear to have a legitimate physical condition that limits my enjoyment of these colder temperatures - my circulatory system seems to rapidly sacrifice my extremities, particularly my hands, when I run in these types of conditions.  I have tried various gloves in combination with hand warmers largely without success.  I often suffer to the point of having to slowing remove my gloves and get to a sink to slowly warm my hands back up, all with a great deal of pain involved.  Not fun.

So I was less than excited about a run in cold weather as one of my early tests and hopes for a personal best.  I came outfitted with my winter run pants and long-sleeve shirt/jacket.  Had a few hand warmers in my pockets to go into my gloves as circumstances dictated.  So there I was at the starting gate alongside fellow competitors - some in shorts, some in t-shirts, and some even wearing sandals (which I assume were designed specifically for running but I didn't ask).  Again, I felt a bit conspicuous by my garb, but...

Unfortunately, to add to the start of the day, we got off at least 20 minutes later than the planned start time.  Traffic/parking snarls delayed a number of participants getting to the venue and organizers decided to put a hold on the start. 

Bit of a different route this year than what I had experienced in previous events.  Mercifully so for me in any event.  In previous races we had done a fairly steep climb through a series of switchbacks within the first 5 kilometers of the start.  So I was quite happy for the change even if it meant a bit of unfamiliarity with the course at the beginning. 

When I scheduled this race and trained for it through the winter, I had hoped that this could be the year that I broke the 2-hour barrier for the half-marathon length.  I kept check on my progress throughout and (unfortunately) was pretty consistent in hitting 30 minutes per every 5 km.  Pretty much what I had been doing during training.  I guess what this tells me is that I can't trust to any adrenalin boost on race day to improve my performance!  Needless to say that pace doesn't work out to a sub 2-hour result.  However, I was able to beat my personal best and finished in 2:07:52.  Maybe there is hope as I age?  If I keep up this improvement I can beat 2 hours by the time I'm 60?

Next up for me?  More training - on the run, on the bike, and hopefully come June back into the pool before I forget what swimming is!  Next race is a 15 km run on July 1st, followed by a 100 km bike in mid-July. 

Time for more goals!

D-Day and H-Hour appoaches!

A very brief update for those that have been wondering "What's Greg been up to?" and "Is he ready for his first race of the year?".  The answer comes this Sunday, April 28th!

Despite high hopes for getting my weight into the 170s, alas it didn't happen.  I'll probably hit the start line on Sunday morning at 185.  There is good and bad to that.  The bad is relatively clear in that I didn't reach that stretch goal of dropping below 180 by the end of April.  I have to be honest in saying that I clearly wasn't as disciplined as when I first undertook a weight loss effort back in 2008.  That being said I started this effort from quite a different place than the first time around.  In 2008 I started my weight loss effort from around 225 pounds and at one time pushed myself down to 179 (just in advance of the honeymoon with my new wife :) - positioned me well to let all the rules go for that 2-week period!).  In 2013, I started weight loss from a starting point of 200 pounds and as I've said now sit at 185. 

The good of where I sit now weight-wise is that I don't believe I've ever run a race at anything below 190 and maybe not even below 195 pounds.  So I should be better positioned from a weight standpoint to give myself a good chance at a personal best half-marathon time come Sunday.

On the training side, I have to say that I believe the quality of my run training (and bike training) has been better than it was when I was preparing for my Ironman competitions.  Maybe no surprise.  I've learned a lot about myself, my capabilities and how much more I can do since I completed my last Ironman Canada in 2011. 

So everything should be set up for my personal goal of a sub 2-hour half-marathon performance this Sunday...except for the weather??  As perhaps most of us in North America might be able to attest to, this year winter was not particularly nice nor has it been all that excited about releasing its grip on our part of the world.  We've continued to have relatively cold temps through to this week and even fits of snow thrown in for good measure.  As I have checked out the course of the race I've not been very impressed to see patches of snow and ice on the course.  Been keeping a wary eye on forecasted race day temp as well - it appears that I will start the race at near 0 degrees Celsius and likely not get much beyond 5 degrees by the time I'm finished.  Neither temp or course condition seem particularly conducive to achieving a personal best. 

I will still give it my best, push myself to a performance I believe I am capable of.

Wish me luck!

The good...and the not so good...

It's been some time since I updated my status as it relates to the goals I've been working on - and the deadline for achievement is approaching at the end of April.

For those following the blog, I had committed a couple of months ago to two goals.  Goal number one was to try work my half-marathon time down under 2 hours.  The best I've done to date on a pure half-marathon effort (i.e., not part of a triathlon) is about 2 hours, 8 minutes.  So should be a reasonably achievable goal.  Now I'll admit right now that I won't be particularly satisfied if I finish my April 28 half-marathon in 1:59:59!  I'd like to do slightly better than that.  My training has actually gone quite well.  I've had what I consider to be some good (indoor) runs accompanied by some equally good (indoor) bike rides.  I'm actually hopeful - if still not entirely confident! - that I'll make my goal of a sub 2 hour half-marathon performance.  If past history is any guide I should do better on the actual race day than in training.  Must be the competitive spirit and adrenalin kicking in.  Still a few weeks to go and I've got some challenges to the workout regime ahead - family coming to visit this weekend and then I'm away from home for a week on business.  So there will be competing priorities and potential barriers in the way.  Got to keep focused!

That was the good.  Goal Number One seems on track!  As for goal number 2, the idea was to lose 30 pounds by the end of April.  So the picture to the right starts to convey some of the challenges I'm feeling right now - how do I keep my fat ass in my spandex and yet perform at my desired level!  Three months time would have meant weight loss of 10 pounds per month.  Reasonably aggressive but not something that I thought was insurmountable.  In a past effort at concerted weight loss I had shed 37 pounds in 3 months.  Granted this time I started at a point that was at least 25 pounds lighter than when I was at my heaviest.  So perhaps I should have expected more challenge this time around.  So the bad news is that I've only dropped 12 pounds to this point in time when by plan/hope I should have been down by 20 at this stage.  I am somewhat frustrated.  At the very least, what I console myself with now is that I will still be racing at my lowest ever weight.  Even when I completed my two Ironman Canada adventures I was weighing in at 195 pounds on race day.  So I should be fleeter of foot come the end of April?

What comes back to me with my current effort on these two goals is my first Ironman effort.  At that time I was also trying to accomplish similar types of goals - lose weight and have a great performance.  Now there was more than a few variables that came into play with my 2010 Ironman Canada race as it relates to my finishing time.  But as I reflect on that reality and compare it to this year's efforts it comes back to me that perhaps weight loss and high(er) athletic performance are not necessarily compatible objectives. 

Oh well, I can still dream can't I!?

Back to you at the end of the month with an update on my race performance!  After all, isn't this supposed to be a blog about athletic performance versus one about weight loss!?

A Good Restart...

Last time I posted it was to put a public commitment out there regarding weight loss and run performance.  In regards to both I had established an end point or milestone of the end of April 2013. 

I'm proud to report that I've taken concrete steps on the right path.  On the weight loss program I'm hoping to be able to say that by the end of today - or about 3 weeks into my effort - that I will have lost at least 6 pounds.  Would I have liked to have lost more?  Absolutely.  But is 2 pounds a week a good rate of loss?  Yes, and probably the safest level of weight loss (at least to my way of thinking) given that I'm also trying to ramp up the volume and quality of my workouts at the same time.  Still having moments of failed willpower and there are still steps to take to ensure my success - those damn potato chips still keep calling my name...and probably still have work to do on managing portions on my plate.  But getting there and it is getting easier each day I'm on the plan.

On the workout side of things I had, for me, what was a good weekend of workouts.  Even with a long weekend and family in from out-of-town, I was able to get in a 10 km run on the Saturday, a 45 km indoor bike on the Sunday, and another 10 km run on Monday!  I haven't had that kind of consistent effort in a long time.  I was happy not only with the quantity of the workouts but also the quality of the effort.  I've been very conscious of the effort I'm going to have to put in if I'm going to finish the half-marathon in under 2 hours.  And so I've been pushing up my effort and getting used to a higher level of intensity.  So far so good.  My base comfort level on the run is certainly higher than it was in my Ironman years.  And I pushed hard enough on the bike to feel it.  The other comforting part is that, other than the hours immediately after the workout (when I'd like to nap) my recovery has been very good.  Waking up the next day and ready for more!

I've also taken steps to map out my race year as well.  Already booked my first target race - the Edmonton Police Half-Marathon on April 28, 2013 - and plan to register for several other run events through to September.  In addition, I plan on registering for the 100 km version of the Tour de l'Alberta again this year.  Accomplished it last year with very little training and don't want to repeat that mistake.  I really coasted on the base I had established in my previous Ironman training.  So I finished the effort but paid for it!  Hoping better training and lower weight will combine to make the ride a little more enjoyable! 

So all-in-all making progress towards my goals! 

The Power of New Goals!

Well this sort of seems like the first day of the rest of my life.  Hmmm...perhaps a bit over the top.  What I have done (not just starting today) but since coming back from the Goofy experience in Orlando is carry through on some commitments I made to myself at the end of 2012.  At that time I said to myself, "Self, we are going to lose 30 pounds and we are going to get our half-marathon time under 2 hours in 2013!"  I have started on the road to achieving both those goals.

Earlier this month I went back on the weight loss program that saw me lose 37 pounds in 2008.  I officially started from 223 pounds back then and got down to 186 within 4 months.  About a year later I decided to push the envelope just a bit further and temporarily pushed myself down to 179 so I would look particularly svelte for my wedding - and to look good in my Armani cruise wear on the honeymoon!  Unfortunately, the honeymoon and the damn the rules approach I took to having fun at the time put 9 pounds back on within a 2-week period.  Zoinks!  Since then, and through my two Ironman Canada events, I have floated at around 195. 

Since starting on my weight loss program (less than 2 weeks ago) I have dropped four pounds.  That's a good rate of loss - two pounds a week.  If I lose more great.  But I'm trying to keep it realistic and healthy.  I'm also conscious of the energy level I have to sustain if I'm going to meet goal #2 - taking my half-marathon time under two hours.

Historically, the best I've every done at the half-marathon distance is 2 hours, 8 minutes.  When I consider I pulled that off at 195 pounds I'm actually pretty impressed with myself.  With thirty fewer pounds on my frame I'm guessing that gravity will be more forgiving come April - that's when I'm focused on breaking my own personal sound barrier.  I'm also far more aware of what kind of training it's going to take to meet my goal and I've already begun to push my pace.  I'm becoming more confident by the day.  I also don't intend on finishing my race year in April.  I'm looking at races throughout the year of varying distances all the way from as little as 5 km events through to more than one half-marathon effort.  Would be nice to establish a consistent level of success throughout the year and maybe even continue a progression. I won't just be running either.  I will continue to get on the bike as I appreciate the variety in training and I hope to get back into swimming come June when Heidi starts her latest maternity leave. 

So there are the goals - get down to 170 pounds by the end of April and get my half-marathon time under 2 hours by the same end point.  Stay tuned and wish me luck!

And as Picard would say (that's him to the right) - Make it So!

A Goofy Recap!

It's been just over 2 weeks since my family and I completed our events at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend in Orlando.  It was a great time and performance by all!

Right off the mark, I have to say how inspired I was by the performance of the three girls in my life.  Each of them had their own challenges to overcome as they competed in their particular events. My soon to be 3-year old literally (continued) to dance to the beat of her own drummer as she finished her first ever race and high-fived Mickey and Donald in her 100 metre dash.  My 12-year old overcame her self-doubt and disability to complete her Mickey Mile in a personal best time.  And my wife successfully completed the half-marathon on the Saturday and the full-marathon on the Sunday - all while 18+ weeks pregnant!

The events themselves were, of course, well-organized and well-supported.  And there was lots of Disney magic to boot.  25,000 participants in each day of the adult races, multiple waves of kidlets in the 100 metre dash, and oodles of more ambitious kids (and running partners) in the Mickey Mile - all of us had the opportunity to be greeted by characters either along the way or at the end of our races.  And the medals for all of us were awesome! 

We started our adult race adventure on Saturday with an early morning wake up call - 3 in the morning!  Gave us the time to get organized, get some food into us, and then make our way down to Epcot for marshaling for the Donald Duck Half.  There were at least 8 different corrals organized by targeted finishing time.  Heidi and I were in Corral D.  Now when we first registered, Heidi was not pregnant.  So we knew we were going to have to be a bit more reasonable with our finishing time expectations in consideration for health of mom and babe.  However, we still felt comfortable with our positioning.  The weather was awesome - reasonably warm for the start with a temperature in the mid 60's.  One of the experiences of race morning that I'm sure is not on any official Disney website is the line-ups and other antics around the port-a-potties!  Multiple line-ups and generally about 15 deep at every one.  And for those of us who have options (men) the bushes also beckoned.  It was quite amusing...It was a long walk from the entry to the actual corrals.  Several people commented that the official distance should have recognized the mile or two walk to start line.
The half-marathon started at around 6 a.m. with each wave going off about every 5 minutes.  Mickey, Donald and Goofy were there to get us going.  For good measure fireworks were also used to get our adrenalin pumping!  And then we were off!  One thing that struck me throughout the half was that we never seemed to get a whole lot of space to run.  With 25,000 people in the race I guess that was no surprise, but it seemed we were constantly dodging other athletes, or bumping elbows or shoulders, and that was particularly the case as people made stops at the port-a-potties or as we passed through aid stations.  One of the neat things about the Disney races is the various photo-ops along the way either comprised of lit up entry points/stages or opportunities to have photos with various Disney characters.  We didn't take advantage of these opportunities and on the first day in particular Heidi and I felt pressured to finish the half in good time so we could get back "home" to get the family so the kids could do their races later that same morning.

Our half-marathon adventure primarily took us through Epcot and the Magic Kingdom - so we got to run through some pretty iconic venues - Cinderella's Castle, Main Street USA, Adventureland and Epcot itself.  We joked that while my brother would partake of various forms of alcohol if he were to get back to the international pavilions of Epcot, we drank our way around the same path via Powerade! 

As we finished we hurriedly got our Donald Duck medal, got some post-race refreshments and a space blanket for Heidi - she was planning for the full marathon on Sunday!  Then it was off to get the kids for their races.  As we left, we took an overpass that gave us the opportunity to look at the half-marathon course - it was still a sea of humanity!!  It was an amazing sight.  So even "labouring" under our restriction we still performed well in the field of 25,000!

Next up was Kennedy and 100 metre dash.  Parents could accompany their kids on the race.  So Heidi had the opportunity to add an extra 100 metres to her half-marathon distance already covered.  The rest of us, Baba and Gido included, sat in the stands at the Wide World of Sports venue, to watch and take pictures.  It took some time for Kennedy to be released from the start line with several waves of kids participating in the run.  And when she got going it took a lot of Heidi's motivational skill to keep Kennedy focused on getting to the finish line as opposed to performing for the audience in the stands.  We got some great pictures and Kennedy was rewarded with a Mickey high-five, a medal and a lollipop!  I think she enjoyed the last most of all.

Next was McKenzie with her Mickey Mile.  So Dad got to be the run-along coach for this one.  We had to walk a little distance to get to the starting point which was outside of the track and field venue.  It was interesting to discuss the start and the race with M before we started.  There were a lot of participants and so she suggested we should hang back at the start to let things "cool off" before we really got going.  She did say she was nervous and I kept trying to coach her to maintain a good even pace and to avoid walking if she could.  She had her moments of challenge through the race, a few walking moments, and a few aches and pains as she worked through the challenges presented by her right leg.  As we neared the stadium, I reminded her that at that point she would have about 100 metres left to go on the track and that she would be performing in front of the audience.  I encouraged her to give it all she had for the finishing kick - AND SHE DID!  She actually took me by surprise by the strength of her finish.  As the picture attests she was immensely proud of her accomplishment!

We then went home to relish in our day and enjoy a well-deserved nap and swim in the pool.  In a few hours Heidi and I would start the whole process over again.  This time it was the full marathon in view and travels not only through Epcot and the Magic Kingdom, but also through Animal Kingdom, the Speedway, and ESPN venues.

The start up was very similar to the day before and it was neat to experience the similarities and differences as we made our way through the marathon course.  One thing that I neglected to mention before was that there were a number of people in full Disney character costume for the race.  Some of these were quite elaborate including a foursome in amazing regalia as Aladdin, Jafar, Genie and Abu.  I just can't imagine the weight and heat of these costumes.  Heidi and I noted how sweaty we were in our regular run gear particularly as the day wore on and the heat got into the 80s. 

The marathon itself seemed less packed than the half.  Same number of people but drawn out over a longer course.  So a little more elbow room all around.  As the day progressed we took it easier further into the race.  Again, I was impressed with the organization, the character opportunities, and the venues we went through.  Particularly noteworthy for me was the run around the speedway.  Not only were character vehicles from the Cars movie out there - Lightning McQueen, Mater and Sally - but so too were a whole range of vintage and exotic cars!  It was an incredible lineup.  And no race of this size can overlook the volunteers or Disney Cast.  They were always there with support and encouragement.  One of the other memorable moments in the race came as we went through Animal Kingdom - Disney Cast members helped direct competitors to free rides on Everest!  It was hilarious to see people taking a detour from the race to do the ride!

We eventually (!) came back through to the Epcot finishing area for the 2nd day.  Certainly a great sense of accomplishment and some weighty rewards at the end of the day with 2 medals around our necks.  Also a great time to be together.  Its the first and only time so far that Heidi and I have started and completed a race together.  Maybe the start of many more to come?  And maybe next time - without baby on board - we can shoot for a personal best half/full marathon time!

And just to prove that we are truly Goofy we ended our day not with an early bed-time or relaxing massage, but by taking the whole family out to a performance of the Blue Man Group at Universal Studios! 

Neither of us claimed to be sane...