I don't have time!!!!

As I sit here, watching the Dolphins try to stay alive against the Jets (although I am at least enjoying that football is back on TV), I just started to think about something one of my potential fitness clients said to me this week. "Greg, I just don't have any time to spare to exercise... it just takes too much time!" There might be a little truth to that, but I started to think about my week, and how much time I have spent doing certain things... so here it is.
Working: Clinical (40 hours at the office). Marketing (5 hours). Administrative (3-4 hours)
Training/Working out: (7.5 hours)
Here's the kicker.... TV (about 20 hours!!!) Between pro football today, college football yesterday, all of the US Open for tennis, Big Brother, parts of the polititcal speeches on CNN, and other little things here and there.

My wife just asked me out of the blue, if I would consider training for a triathlon? I am following some people that Chris works with that are doing the Wisconsin Ironman today, and immediately said.. "I don't have the time to train"..... but actually I do, if I wanted to right? Let's face it... add another 10 hours/week of training and I could be prepared to do it... so.... take away 1/2 the TV time, and there you go...

I am not doing a triathlon... don't have any desire currently to do one, but my point is that the time thing is such a lame excuse... we all need to stop using this...either you want it or you don't... it's time spent vs. reward. For 99% of people, time is not a factor, even though we say it is.
I have a patient that is a single dad of 9 children.... 2 are autistic....that's right... 9 children!!! I asked him... "How do you do it?", and he said, "God doesn't give you more than you can handle"... makes me feel like an absolute dud.

But the main thing I realize is that no matter what it is, we are always going to find time for things that mean much to us. Our economy is in shambles right? I have patients every day telling me that they can't afford to pay their co pays for pills, MD visits, and visits to our office.... but I watch football today, and I see stadiums filled to capacity. I went to the movies last night and it was pretty much a sell out... the restaurants were packed, and as I came home yesterday from my run, I saw numerous cars getting on I-75 to go to Gainesville to watch the Gator/Canes game. So.... no matter how bad things are financially, personally etc., people will find a way to do the things that mean the most to them. It's just that simple.

Wait and see approach...

I am nearly 5 weeks from the big race... my training has been a little bit up and down over the past 2 weeks or so. 2 weeks ago when I went down to the Downtown area to run with the Blue Sharks, I rolled my ankle inward when I turned a corner, and "jammed" my ankle.... which at the time didn't hurt because I was at mile 4, but I happened to run 20 that day, so I continued to aggravate it throughout the run (even though I didn't feel it), and I really struggled after I got home that day. I was only able to run 30 miles for the week last week, which was 20 miles less than I was supposed to do. This is the time that I really need to be in full intense workouts, and I have had to taper it back quite a bit, because the ankle continues to nag me... so I decided to go from a 5 to a 3 day/week program, so that my ankle/foot can rest up and get back to normal. I continue to have good and bad days with the foot.... and this morning was no different.
I started to run at 5 am, and when I took my first 50 steps, I felt like my foot was on the verge of doing something very strange... almost like something was going to "pop".... as I was deciding whether or not to shut it down, my foot stopped hurting (this all was in the first 1/2 mile) and it gave me no other problems throughout the run. Go figure. When I got home, no problems with the foot, and all day I have been fine... until now when it is starting to ache a bit.... so it's a wait and see thing for me each day. I have just come to terms with the fact that I might be able to run only 3 days/week until the race.... at this point, I'll take it. The marathon means so much more to me than just having an "ideal" time... because from what I hear, the Chicago marathon is just such an incredible experience, that I want to just be there and soak it all in.. and I know that I'll have a great time. With that said, I feel as though I can continue to put in the fitness gains that I need to on 3 days/week of running.

So here is my plan as I lead up to the race:
I have 3 more challenging long runs, starting this Saturday, when I have to do 17 miles, with 14 of them at 8:00/mile pace (or at least that's the plan). This will give me a good idea as to what pace I want to attempt to hold throughout the race.
Next Saturday, I will do a 17 mile run, with the last 8 miles getting faster and faster (hopefully I will be running around 7:30/mile by the last mile)
The following Saturday, I will attempt to do the same thing but I will do 20 miles instead.... that will be my last "long run" before the race. I will be ready to taper at that time.

Somewhere in between now and September 20th, I will do a time trial of some sorts, probably a 10-15k, and that will give me additional information on what pace I should try to hold for Chicago. Just writing about it is getting me psyched up!!!!

Olympics in Review......

It's really cool when you can witness history in all different aspects of life... and really neat when you can witness history in sports. Over the past 2 weeks, many of us witnessed some pretty incredible feats that took place at the Beijing Summer Olympics. In my opinion, this is the best Olympics I have ever watched... but that might be because I have a new appreciation for many of the Olympic events that I would have not particularly been interested in a few years back.

So the highlights for me???

Michael Phelps - Ok, so the guy is a freak of nature, and has a body that is ideal for swimming.... but do you realize that he swims for 2-5 hours/day??? That is just unreal... this guy works so hard, that he has developed that mental edge over all of his competitors... that to me is the most impressive thing about him.

Usain Bolt- 3 golds, 3 world records, in two of the most highly anticipated events in the Olympics??? And of course, he is Jamaican... so this one is near and dear to my heart. What the Jamaicans did in this Olympics was incredible... with a population of 3.6 million people.....to have that much talent in the Track & Field events is very impressive... they are still partying in the streets of Jamaica... actually my cousin was in Jamaica this past Friday, and he told me that they have sold out of (Usain Bolt Water)... which is supposed to make you run faster!!! Classic... he said they are selling like hotcakes!!!!

Also the Jamaican women went 1,2,3 in the 100 m. That is just unreal!!!!

Redeem Team - It's not just that they got back the gold medal... but it was the way they handled themselves throughout the Olympics.... they were at so many of the events, cheering on other Americans... they didn't come off as "We're better than all of you... so this is above us" type... they really made the U.S. proud, and put basketball back where it is supposed to be. I must say though, that the world continues to catch up... beware in 2012....

The women's and men's marathon- I know this is not necessarily a favorite event to most of you.. but for me, this was one of my favorites (obviously there is some interest on my part now). It's really cool that a lady that is 38 could crush the competition like that... which shows that your body can continue to do amazing things as we get older... it's usually ourselves that put these limits on what we want to do.

The Kenyan man that won the Olympics was absolutely incredible. I don't think the average person realized what he did yesterday... running that pace in that weather was almost incomprehensible... even the experts thought he was going to croak or something.... for me that was the 3rd most impressive feat at the Olympics (behind Phelps and Bolt).

7 weeks left....

until the big day!! I was having a difficult time with the training when I came back from vacation, along with having a really crummy goal pace run... but since then, things have really made a turn for the better. I am back on track with my running. Below are some of the runs that I have done since last week.
14 mile run with Shane and Chris on the Gandy Bridge.
12 mile tempo run around my neighborhood
12 mile easy run on the Suncoast Trail
I have decided that my main weakness at this point is not having the confidence that I can hold a fast pace for the full marathon distance. That is going to be my biggest area of concern over the next 3-4 weeks. Today, I did a 20 mile run with a big running group in Downtown Tampa called the "Blue Sharks". They had 122 runners that started at 5:30 am this morning...wow!!! That was enough to get me pumped up and ready to roll. I did the first 12 with the group, and then decided to add another 8 miles...trekking down Channelside and then to Ybor and heading back on Bayshore.... it was quite nice...but I can tell that my body is just not used to running that long...much less running any type of respectable pace. Luckily, I still got time... so I'm gonna work hard at this over the next few weeks. After I finish a 6 mile easy run tomorrow, I will hit 55 miles for the week, matching my PR. Last week, I was feeling so lethargic and undisciplined, that I thought this week I would scale back quite a bit... well... I didn't and I feel really good. I realize know that most of my problems last week, was d/t me getting back in the swing of things with being on a regimented schedule. Now, I think I am back on that... and it will make it much easier to really get back on schedule when the Olympics finish.... man I'm tired from staying up and watching this stuff.... Big up Jamaica!!!!!
Speaking of the Olympics... I'm going to watch the men's marathon now... hopefully it will be a great race with a great finish.... hoping for Ryan Hall to perform well... ok, see ya!!!

Mental battle with the training

My bad for not posting for awhile. I have been away and when I came back to work this week... it has just been one thing after another. But I am somewhat back to normal and everything is all good... Praise God!!!
But honestly, I would say that this has been my most disappointing week of training. Until 2 Saturdays ago, my training has gone near perfect with my runs. The weather has been uncomfortable, but I have been able to hit most of my paces (besides tempo runs) without a problem. My last post talked about my first 20 miler of this training cycle, which did not go so well, so I won't harp on that too much.
During my vacation week, I was still able to hit most of my runs, but I decided to do them on a treadmill for 2 of them, so I could sleep in and feel lazy!!! I must say it was quite nice... the only thing that I did new was try hill repeats in a parking garage and on a treadmill. I am wondering if my legs got messed up from this new type of training. Anyways, this is the start of my stinky training week....
I was supposed to do 15 miles with 12 miles at marathon pace. I have been looking forward to this run, because it was supposed to give me full confidence that I can hold that pace very easy. I am more than halfway through my training for Chicago, and I haven't been able to run any races, so this was more of a reward of how my training was going. I was supposed to do this on Sunday, but I was still on vacation, and I decided to wait until I got back. So this Tuesday, I woke up at 5 am, and trekked out to do the simulated run.... it sucked!!! It was hard from the 3rd mile.... I just felt like my legs were heavy, my breathing was labored, and I had difficulty holding my pace. I felt like I was running 30 miles, instead of 12, and this was NOT good for my confidence heading into the second phase of my training. Basically, I ran the splits as fast as I ran my half marathon about 9 months ago.... which is not too reassuring... I am supposed to be much faster, right???? Well the second I finished that 12th mile, I had to stop and catch my breath... I averaged about 6 seconds slower than what I planned...ugh!!!! I had to battle throughout the run to keep going... this is what I expect at mile 22...not mile 9!!!! So anyways, my confidence has been a little shot, and mentally I am struggling to put it behind me. But, I was able to think about this a little more.... I am training for a marathon.... and I know that completing a marathon is more mental than physical.... so I am looking at this as mental training for me.... can I pick up the pieces of a key run, and continue to plug along??? Well.... yes!!!! I will, and I won't let this get me down for long. I will say that I am actually going to substitute the bike for one or two of my easy runs over the next 2 weeks, so that I can get my legs back... but I have two key runs this weekend... a 14 miler on the Gandy Bridge with Shane and an 8 miler with some interval sprints in there.
Shane and I talked today a bit, and he feels as though because I am fairly new to running, my body is not used to running high mileage (for me that is)... so he wants me to tone it down a bit, and take out a day of running over the next week...to get my mental edge back... and that is exactly what I plan to do.... I'm ready to go out there again!!!!!

BTW, after my Tuesday run... I came into my house, kinda bummed, and as soon as I turned on the TV after I showered, it was on the Olympics channel...not NBC, but the channel that is a 24/7 feed on the American athletes and their road to the Olympics... made me put things in perspective a bit.... as Pat Riley said, "Hard work guarantees you nothing, but without it, you have no chance"

Bumps in the road

On Saturday morning, I journeyed out to finish my highest mileage week ever. It seems as though every week, I seem to break my record with re: to mileage... but this is it!!! I will not go beyond 55 miles for my program in preparation for Chicago, so I felt as though this would be the ultimate test for me. I was not very motivated to do this run, and I asked Chris if he would accompany me on part of the run. He obliged, so we decided to start around 5:40 am at the Suncoast Trail. Chris said that he would run the first 10 miles with me, and then I would be on my own for the rest. The interesting thing is that when I run with Chris, we always have great talks... I don't want to bore you with our conversations, but the main thing we talked about was how we all have weaknesses, and sometimes our spiritual enemy plays on us a bit, and tries to expose our weaknesses....so we have to get stronger with re: to our weaknesses. Also, we talked about how crazy it can be when everything seems to be going right, and then all of a sudden... all hell breaks loose (no pun intended). It was a great talk, and I needed the encouragement and I'm sure he needed it too.
Well after he left me, I had to finish the last 10 miles. I decided to stop and put on my Ipod, and finish out the run strong. The funny thing about the last 10 miles of my run is that it was exactly what Chris and I had talked about. I was running really comfortable.... actually, a lot slower than I usually do my long runs, and I just decided that I was going to coast for the last 10 miles. I would not push it, just finish. Well.... all was well until around mile 18 or so... and then I just felt like... ok, this might get kinda tough....let me slow down a bit more. As soon as I hit the 19th mile, I started to feel woozy, like I was gonna hit the ground. I stopped running, and I started to drink the little water that I had left. I felt awful... I knew I was in trouble, but I also knew that I could at least walk the last mile if I had to. So, I ended up walking for about a tenth of a mile, and then I started to run again. I was severely dehydrated at this point, and I knew it... my legs didn't feel like lead, but my body just ran out of steam. When I got to 1/2 mile left, I said I would just try to run a little bit more and then walk, but I just kept on going and just playing mental games with myself. I ended up running/shuffling (but most importantly...not walking!!!) the last 1/2 mile. I was disappointed in how my big week finished, but I felt as though I showed some mental toughness in gutting it out and finishing the run.... running!!! So, I was able to crawl in my car, get home... and I crashed.... felt like I was gonna puke honestly... but after about an hour or so of getting fluids back in my body and taking a 90 min. nap, I felt better again, and drove down to Ft. Lauderdale. That's where I am at now, and will be here for the rest of the week. This will be a recovery week for me, in which I will cut back to 40 miles or so... I need it though, because my body feels tired. So here is the run/carnage. My run was exactly what Chris and I talked about earlier.... things can be going so well, and all of a sudden, bad things can come in a barrage... but you gotta fight through it... and I think that is what I did... it wasn't pretty, but I made it. Isn't that what life is all about????

Feeling the beat down

The last couple of days have been challenging for me from a running standpoint. I'm still a fairly new runner, with my first half-marathon only 18 months ago. I was averaging about 10 miles a week at that time, and for my first two attempts at a marathon, I was averaging 20-25 miles/week. It's funny how your perspective changes... because at that time, I felt as though my body was being pushed hard. I also thought that it would be virtually impossible to train more than 40 miles/week... just felt that my body would not be able to handle it, along with feeling that time constraints would be such a major issue for me. Also, when you tell someone that doesn't run at all, that you run 10-20 miles/week, they think you are nuts... but times have changed for me. I now browse RW.com forums on a frequent basis, in which the average person on the marathon boards runs around 60-75 miles/week... with a good amount of folks averaging 80-90 miles/week, and going over the 100 mile mark a few times during their training. Also, most of these folks run twice/day.... and it is not uncommon to find many of them starting at 4 am to get their first runs in.... seems crazy, huh??? But common... one guy who is training for a marathon this fall, said he gets home from work at 10-11 pm, and usually runs from 12 am-2 am, goes to bed, and wakes up at 7 am to go to work... it's his way of managing everything and getting his runs in. Gosh... it really makes me feel horrible to even slightly complain about my running schedule.
So.. I have just completed my first 50 mile week.....ever... I was recently not driving 50 miles/week when I was just working at the North Tampa clinic... a year later, I am running that per week... how cool!!!! My schedule over the last 3 days was as follows:
18 mile long run on Sunday
6 mile recovery run on Monday
11 mile tempo run today

Sunday's run really exposed my weakness..... endurance. I have good endurance for the average person, but I struggled to hold pace at the end of the run... from miles 16-18, I tried to hold my goal pace for the marathon, and even though I did it... that was not about to happen for any more miles. I am hoping that over the next few weeks, I will build up my endurance by doing more of these long runs. Its just draining to do them.... but just like everything else, your body starts to get used to it.
Usually after a Sunday long run, I feel pretty good, and ready to do some sort of run by Monday... but I just wasn't feelin' it Monday morning. I did not want to wake up any earlier than I had to, so I ended up doing my run right after work (Bayshore... yeah!!!). It was supposed to be a recovery run, which it was for the first 4 miles. All of a sudden, about 20 high school girls and 3 older guys started to run in a pack by Bay to Bay Blvd. I was kinda intrigued, and one of the girls looked like one of my former patients, so I decided to run with 2 of the guys and started to talk to them about the group. It was the Plant High School cross country team, and I did a little marketing while I was running with those guys, and told them about what I do, and if they needed any of our services... (services are always needed!!!). So I ended up running the 5th mile faster than I would have liked, and the 6th mile was supposed to be sprints anyway... so I just don't think I really "recovered" from that recovery run...does that make any sense???? With that said, I knew I had a 11 mile tempo run scheduled for today, and I knew it would be a struggle.... and it was. I started a little before 6 am, and it took me a full 3 miles to feel somewhat warmed up. My heartrate was climbing, I was sweating heavily, and I just knew this was gonna be a crummy one. I guess the good thing was that I was able to fight my way through the tempo portions, and my splits were somewhat respectable. I really wanted to just walk home after I finished the tempo portion, but I just knew it would make everything prolonged... I just wanted to take a shower and climb in a bed or something.... but then I thought... this is what it will feel like at the end of the.... marathon!!!! This was a little test for me. I had to fight through it, and keep on going even though I didn't want to go... and you know what??? After a mile, I was ok.... not great... but ok. I could've kept on going, but once I got to my house, I was happy to get inside, go straight to the shower, and get in some clean clothes and hug and kiss the Todd Squad. My right outer ankle (peroneals) are on the sore side, so I definitely won't run tomorrow, but I plan on doing a 12 miler on the Gandy bridge Thursday morning before work with Shane. I want to be well rested for that, as this will be the first time I have ever done hill work. If my ankle (which is already feeling a little better) is not right by tomorrow, I will bag it for another day... but I think I will be fine. Saturday morning, I will have a scheduled 20 mile run, so the beat down will continue. I will finish out this week at 55 miles. It will be my highest week ever, and it will be my peak week for my training for Chicago. Let's keep on keepin' on!!!!!