Wake Up

Didn't realize it had been a week since I had posted.  Just put up a 4 mile run yesterday which still involves some walking even though the temperatures are cooling off but it really is only adding about 30-40 seconds per mile to my total pace.  I'm progressing slowly but I feel much better in general due to the increase in exercise.  This weekend will be a big test because I'm going out of town and need to make sure I still get in my 3 mile run on Saturday and 5 mile run on Sunday.  I'm a little concerned about the upcoming long distances for training but hopefully it will start to come back to me.  On the eating front, I have been eating and cooking healthier and my weight has reflected it slightly.  I'm currently hovering around 291 and am hoping to be in the low 280's by early September.

Sticking to the Shade

The shade has been my friend lately when running.  I look for it and seek out the side of the road that I can find it on.  Honestly running in direct sunlight is brutal right now.  Yesterday I put down 4 miles but couldn't quite do the entire run without walking some.  I got to the bottom of a large hill at the 3 mile mark and had to walk to the top of it (about 1/4 mile) before I could get my legs under again.  It probably wasn't the smartest thing I could do but I did cut the lawn before going for a run hoping to get some cooler temperatures, but cutting the grass takes 1.5 hours so it was quite a bit of exercise.  I'm pretty sure once the temperature drops down some I'll be better but that time couldn't come sooner.  If only I lived somewhere that was 60-70 all the time; Great running weather.  Confirmed the fix with my foot pod again yesterday which makes me happier about the thought of running indoors this winter.  Week 2 ends with a 3 and a 4 miler on Saturday and Sunday respectively.  Weight wise my appetite has been stronger lately and I need to get ahold of that.  I'm trying to drink some hot tea to help suppress it.  My goal is to be at 280 or near it by Labor day and hopefully into the low 270's or upper 260's by race day in mid October.

Summer Heat

It's a bit discouraging when you get out there for a 3 mile run and can only go half way before needing to walk but thats what happened yesterday.  I'm not going to let it get me down.  The temperature was in the upper 80's with a very high humidity but it wasn't too bad when I left the house in mostly shade.  However between the 1 miles and 1.5 mile (turnaround) point, there was no shade and it zapped all the energy I had in me.  It's very difficult to get back into running in heat like this, but I have no choice because I will run that half marathon come hell or high water.  And I'm seriously considering running the half marathon in Las Vegas in December.  If that means I have to walk some during this heat, thats fine but I will do the full distance and I will achieve these goals.  There is a possibly I could go use the gym track to escape the heat and I may do that today especially since I've finally got the app to correctly gauge my distance using the foot pod.  At least I don't have to count laps or guestimate based on time. 

As much as I don't want to, I know I must focus on my eating again because my weight gain is affecting my clothes.  Even though I did not gain much (5-10), my clothes are feeling a little tighter and I want to remedy that quickly.  One thing I'm struggling with is late night hunger which I never had before when I was using tobacco but without tobacco, it seems the craving for nicotine was replaced with food.  I think the running will help suppress some of my appetite because it has in the past but if nothing else I just need to make better choices as well.

First of many long runs

It was a decent start to my training week, I did miss a run due to a wedding for a friend that I was in but otherwise everything was good.  I got in my long run yesterday but instead of running outside (93 degrees) I went to the gym and ran around the track for 40 minutes which at my usual pace is 4 miles.   I didn't take an exact measurement and actually felt like I was running so I probably went over which is just fine.  I usually run a lap in a minute and its 10 laps to a mile but I was doing some laps in less than 1 minute according to the clock which was nice to see since I had been a little slower outside since I started but was pretty sure that it was because of the heat and now I know that is why.  My weight didn't do me any favors this week and I'm not 100% sure why with the increased activity.  I need to watch what I eat better so I can begin losing more weight.  On to week 2 of the 1/2 marathon training, nothing really crazy this week but I may utilize the gym until this heat calms down.