Fitness: Mind, Body, Spirit 4 Mile Run - Bob Harper/Olivia Ward

This morning was the Fitness: Mind, Body, Spirit 4 mile run in Central Park.  This was number 6 of 9 for my 9+1 Entry for the NYC Marathon.

My last time running a 4 mile race my time was 54:44 with a 13:41 pace.  My goal for this race was to PR with 52:00-53:00 finish time.

Race was at 9:00 AM and we got to the park around 8:00 AM.  There was a pre-race festival area set up.  As my wife and I were looking at the different tents, something caught my wife's attention.

It was Biggest Loser's Bob Harper with season 11 winner Olivia Ward!  I took a moment to introduce myself to Bob and told him my story.  We had a nice discussion about weightloss, running, and he was a genuinely nice guy.

After talking with Bob, we met Olivia Ward, who won last season on the Biggest Loser, she was really nice as well and we had a nice chat!

At around 8:40 AM we headed over to the corrals.

The gun went off at 9:00 AM and we were OFF!

I was feeling good at the start, but I guess I was feeling better then I had thought!  Mile 1 was done in 11:43! 

During the 2nd Mile I started playing leapfrog with a guy wearing a neon yellow shirt.  He would get ahead of me, then id catch up and jump in front and vice versa, we did this for the next mile or so.   

Mile 2 - 11:37

I knew I was going faster than I had thought, so thought I should perhaps reserve some of my energy for the finish, and the guy in neon yellow I was leapfrogging I guess felt the same way cause we continued on thru the 3rd mile.

Mile 3 - 12:52

After we passed the 3rd mile marker, i caught up to the guy in neon yellow, told him was nice running with him, gave him a high 5, and said have a great run, then I was off to the finish!  On the way to finish line I saw my friend Gal on the side, gave him a high 5, and that was all I needed for that last boost to the finish!

Mile 4 - 11:47

Finish time - 48:03

Pace - 12:01

NEW PR!!!!!  OLD PR DESTROYED!!!!!!

13.1 or Bust! Half Marathon Training Update!

First off, Id like to apologize for not blogging as much as usual.  The main reason for the lack of blogging is that I really find myself with little to no free time most days :(

Today I've completed week 5/12 of my training plan.  I'm actually ahead of the plans scheduled miles.  For this week, the long run called for 6 miles, I finished my first ever 8 Mile run!  The reason im getting ahead of the plan is because the plan only has me getting to 10 miles the week before the race.  I would feel a lot more comfortable to be at least up to 12/12.5 the week before the half.  So I'm currently on target to be at 10 miles by labor day with a month to go before the half to work on my pace at the distance.

My 8 mile run went well today.  It was a slow 2:05 total time with about a 15:30 minute pace.  I definitely didnt push myself too hard during this run because I didnt get enough rest and woke up tired, and I also wasnt feeling that great.  So in order to make sure I hit the distance, i took an easier pace.  The course I took was also very hilly.  Overall,  I was just excited to hit the 8 miles and I'm looking forward to upping that to 9 next week.

I've also picked up  a new pair of shoes, hopefully these will get me thru my first half and well into marathon training next year :)

These are my new Brooks Adrenaline GTS 11's Limited Edition

Speaking of BROOKS, there is still time to enter this months free giveaway, which happens to include a couple nice gifts from BROOKS!  So go check out the details on my site.

A Thoughtful and Appreciated Gift!

This past weekend I received an e-mail from a fan of the site, Julie Fulmer.  She wrote me the following poem, which when I read for the first time, it sent chills down my spine.  It really is filled with a lot of emotions, and I really appreciated this most wonderful gift.  Julie gave me her blessings to share it with you here on my blog.  I hope you all enjoy it and appreciate it as much as I do!  Thanx Again Julie!!

Why do I do it? Get up and do my daily run?
Do I do it because I like it, or think it is fun?
No way, my dearest friend! You got it all wrong,
I run because I have to. And I'm getting strong!

I'm achy and I'm sweaty , just running on guts.
My muscles are twitching and I wanna throw up.
My body ïs in hell, but I'm gonna beat my time.
I will not stop until I cross that finish line!

Up in the morning, before my neighbors wake,
Been running half a mile, before the bakers bake.
Rubbing achy muscles, think I have arthritis.
My hamstrings really ache, maybe I've tendinitis,

You'll be hanging with friends or reading your books,
I'll be stretching and running, just me in my Brooks.
I'm used to the pain, getting up before dawn.
My mind is focused on The NY Marathon.

Demolition Day aka Founders 5K

Yesterday was the Founders 5K in Prospect Park.  This was my first time racing in my hometown of Brooklyn, NY!  My prior PR for the 5K distance was 49:19.  It had been a while since I ran a 5K, so I was shooting for a sub 44:00 finish time.

Before the race at the Start

The first mile felt really good, I decided to ditch my usual intervals and just run and take short walk breaks as I felt necessary.  When I got to the Mile 1 marker I almost did a double take, 12:25??  My fastest mile EVER!

The second mile was the hardest of the run because there was a really big hill that I wasn't expecting.  This hill had a LONG and STEADY incline that just never seemed to end.  I asked the guy at the 2nd mile marker when the hill was gonna end, he didn't sound like he knew so wasn't very encouraged!  I wound up finishing mile 2 in 14:29.

The 3rd mile wasn't too bad, but I knew the hill during the 2nd mile took a lot out of me, but I had enough energy reserved to make sure I finished strong.  3rd Mile time 13:42.

Official finish time was 41:33!!!   DEMOLISHED my prior PR and my goal of 44:00!!!

I went to my Weight Watchers meeting when we got back, and figured Id kick the scale's ass too while I was at it.   Down another 1.4lbs, bringing my total weight lost total to 205!! 

Here I am wearing a jacket I bought in size LARGE!!  My first time wearing anything without an X in front of it in 20+ years!!

A Milestone Day!

This morning I ran the NYRR Run for Central Park 4 Mile race.  The race start was at 8AM, so woke up early around 4:45AM.  This morning was a BEAUTIFUL morning for a run, cool and no humidity!

CPC Tent

When we got to the race, we met up with my friend Amy who was volunteering at this race.

Amy and Me

Also met a few other people before the race including these folks who were looking ready for a great race!

Last time I ran this course, I finished in 56:42 with a 14:10 pace.  My goal for this race was under 55:00 with a sub 14:00 pace.

The following were my splits as per my Nike GPS

Mile 1 - 13:11

Mile 2 - 13:04

Mile 3 - 14:19

Mile 4 - 13:30

Official Finish time 54:45, almost a 2 Minute PR with a pace of 13:42!! Wooohooooo!!!!

Here I am coming into the finish, as well as a video shot by Amy as she was cheering me on!

Then after we got home, I went to go for my weekly weigh-in at Weight Watchers and I lost another 3.2 lbs!  Ive now lost a total of 202 lbs!!!!!

My Weight Watchers Charms

Screenshot from my online tracker

Certainly a milestone day!!!!!

What a Day! Walking, Climbing, Flying!

I went into the city with my wife Gail today at around 11AM.

First we went into Central Park to meet my friend James at his restaurant by the remote controlled boats and had a great lunch and catching up with him since I hadnt seen him in about 2 years.

On the way to meeting James, I saw a great looking tree and a branch to use to take a great pic of Gail, was fun getting her up on the branch!

After lunch we walked thru the park which included climbing a number of hills on the way.

We then went to the Museum of Natural History to see a bunch of dinosaurs, I hadnt seen them since I was a kid, and guess what, they didnt look like they aged much since the last time I saw them!

After the museum, we then went back into the park to walk some more and get back to the east side to pick up my shirt and bib for saturdays race.

So now we headed down to 67th and 3rd, and by that point we had been walking for about 6-7 hours and around 10 miles total if not more, what did we do???

We went to Flywheel Sports where my friend Jesse Alexander is an instructor.  For those who dont know about Flywheel, its "like" spinning but 100x better!  Its a 45 minute workout that totally kicks your ass and i kid you not, I felt MORE energized after that class then when we first walked in!  Thanx for the great class Jesse!

I forgot to take a pic while we were at Flywheel so Im posting this pic of Jesse with another happy Flywheel client!

This was definitely a great day all around, and for me, I had so much to be proud of!  The fact that I made it thru this day feeling the way I did, it just made me remember why Im doing what Im doing.  This is a lifestyle that I missed out on for too long, not anymore!

What does 400lbs lost look like???

Gail at 175 lbs

Melissa at 394 lbs

Me at 476 lbs

                                                        

The 3 of us today

Melissa @ 242 lbs

Me @ 277 lbs

Gail @ 129 lbs