Good day all. I am writing early this week because tomorrow is Easter Sunday and I might be traveling to my brother's. It was a busy week but I still was able to go out 4 days this week for my training. I did 13.59 miles in 3:58 hours of training. I always averaged well below 16 minutes per mile so I figured I am at a good pace for my overall training since I have not officially started yet and this is not really pushing myself at all.
I got the FIT newsletter this week. I am anxious to get started with them again. I miss the structure that it gives my life. Today I went on a 6 mile walk with Nancy and Barbara. It is such a treat to walk on the beach and see the dawn approach, as well as the comradaree of walking with them both. We saw some of the people we know on the journey. It is funny might not know their names, but we have speedo guy that is always at the Clipper parking lot, or the fireman going at race pace that we bump into as we leave Sunrise, and then the couple of drunks staggering from the beach. as time goes by and our miles increase I hope to have more stories of the people we meet on this journey.
As I told Nancy today, this is my blog;so I can make her as nice or as mean as I want to. Just kidding, I hope to be mostly truthful in the information I dissiminate on here. One thing that I neglected to mention before is that one of my goals is to drop some substantial weight during this year. So Barbara, no more Easter candy. I hope that you all will support on thsi, and help me along when you see me eating the wrong things.
I guess I have rambled on. Sorry, I sometimes do that sort of thing. Have a great week and for those of you celebrating....HAPPY EASTER.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
First week down, 39 to go....
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Well I made it through the first week. Although it was a tough week at work, my training went remarkably well. Out of the week I was out there 5 days, and I totaled 18.93 miles. I went out by myself 4 days, and on Saturday met with a bunch of my friends from FIT to do almost 9 miles on the beach. We were to start at 5:45am and as I got up and headed out the door at around 5:00 am , I kept questioning my sanity. We had about 8 walkers and Nancy our unofficial coach, suggested we go do the 17Th street causeway bridge, so we agreed and headed that way. Let me tell you, I hate that bridge , but I did it anyways. As we headed back , we saw the sunrise. At that moment I felt I was being given a gift from God , not only had I trained but here was this most spectacular sunrise. We came back to the park and back to reality, I had to head off to work.
Like I said, I made it through the first week. I signed up in the middle of the week for the New York Marathon lottery. If it is God's will I will be walking through the boroughs of New York come this November, let me tell you I knew of this marathon even when I thought it would be impossible for me to ever accomplish this feat. So I know that the day that I will complete it will be one of those memorable days in my life.
So I am about to start week 2. I am about to get my shorts , shirt and new balances on and trek out my door. Have a great week.
Monday, March 10, 2008
One foot ahead of the other...
Well here it is. 10 months to the beginning of the Goofy Challenge and the official day in my life to start training again. I realize that if I was pregnant today, I would deliver the baby before I would complete my training. Well I think that the training will be less painful then a delivery.
This morning I woke up and had several reasons why not to walk today. It was cloudy , it was too dark( the time change thing), I could wait until the evening , and I just didn't feel like it. I got down to the street level and as I waited for the Garmin to find its satelites, I kept praying for rain. Well I didn't get the rain and the watch started and I was off. One step in front of the other, until I completed 35 minutes and I was back home. Feeling good about my accomplishments and planning my training for the next few months.
I completed 2.27 miles in 35 minutes , at a pace of 15:42. I burned 294 calories amd my average pace was 15:25. As you cn see it was a slow easy pace. I have decided not to push myself so early in my training. And so I arrive at the specifics of my training now: 1) I want to walk 3-5 times a week, 2) I will do a longer walk once a week , preferably Saturday with my friends from FIT until that starts up again; 3) since I know with training I can do a marathon, I want to enjoy my training more this year and worry less; and 4) I will write and add to the blog at least once a week, most likely it will be during the weekend. So at least check back on Sunday to see how the week went.
Enjoy your day, enjoy the outdoors and be thankful for each day because it is truly a gift from God.
This morning I woke up and had several reasons why not to walk today. It was cloudy , it was too dark( the time change thing), I could wait until the evening , and I just didn't feel like it. I got down to the street level and as I waited for the Garmin to find its satelites, I kept praying for rain. Well I didn't get the rain and the watch started and I was off. One step in front of the other, until I completed 35 minutes and I was back home. Feeling good about my accomplishments and planning my training for the next few months.
I completed 2.27 miles in 35 minutes , at a pace of 15:42. I burned 294 calories amd my average pace was 15:25. As you cn see it was a slow easy pace. I have decided not to push myself so early in my training. And so I arrive at the specifics of my training now: 1) I want to walk 3-5 times a week, 2) I will do a longer walk once a week , preferably Saturday with my friends from FIT until that starts up again; 3) since I know with training I can do a marathon, I want to enjoy my training more this year and worry less; and 4) I will write and add to the blog at least once a week, most likely it will be during the weekend. So at least check back on Sunday to see how the week went.
Enjoy your day, enjoy the outdoors and be thankful for each day because it is truly a gift from God.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
A look back
As I sit and write this, I hve to look back and see from where I came, so that you will understand better the journey I embark on again, although I am sure it will bring new challenges and adventures because each day is a new and different beginning.
At the start of 2007, I decided that I wanted to do something different for my 50th birthday. I thought and prayed about it , and I set my goal as the Disney Marathon of 2008. You might think well that is a good goal , or to me it was an almost unreachable goal, see I am not a runner nor a very good walker for that matter. But I signed up for the marathon anyways, it was to be on Januray 13, 2008. I really had no idea what I was to do, so I started asking away. Someone mentioned to me that his wife had done one, and she used the Galloway method. I found that this was a method perfected by Jeff Galloway, I read his books, I tried his method. I found out that I really didn't have to run , I could walk because I walked really faster then I ran and still train.
I spoke to everyone that I knew or any one that would listen about my training. I worked for a really negative company and there was a bet how quickly I would stop training and if I ever made it to the marathon that I would certainly not make it to the end. One of my Emmaus brothers, said he would train with me, and so a couple of weeks later we were doing a half marathon on A1A. Well we finished it, and it was rough but I made a group there called Friends in Training that were to become my friends and would train me for the next 9 months. My coach Shari, had all the faith that I could complete the marathon with the training I was doing. During the journey I have met some incrdible people, Nancy, Lynn and Marilyn. People that have inspired me and kept me focused on the end result, no matter how far it seemed.
One of my Emmaus sisters and best friends, Barbara comes into the picture about this time, she had heard about all my excitement in training and so decides that she wants to start some training too. During all this time she has been supportive and has never doubted that I would complete my goal. Well about this time I figure I need a mantra toget me through the long miles of training, and so I come across the concept of the Wizard of Oz. All of us become one of the characters , Dorothy, the scarecrow, the cowardly lion, the tin man. Even the ones fighting my progress have a play in there as the witch and flying monkeys.
I can't go into all the details of the past year. I should have done blogs all along, but I got to the marathon, and Barbara was at my side. She cheered me on through miles 4, 10 and to the finish. I never thought I would be able to complete it but through alot of prayers and not once remembering th yellow brick road, I made it to the finish line. It was 6:58:13 later but I still made it within the 7 hours they gave me. I had a very bad blister, I could hardly walk and I developed a really bad flu right after but I MADE IT. It was one of the greatest feelings I had ever felt knowing that I had pushed , I had trained and I had done it.
During the year I completed many 5K races, one 10K and one 13K, 4 half marathons, and one marathon. During my months of training from April 9 to just yesterday March 8 I completed 891.15 miles. I the day after the Disney marathon decided on my next challenge. The goal that I had reached convinced me that I not only could complete a marathon, but that my body could be trained and challenged for more. So I signed up for the Goofy Challenge. That is I will do half a marathon on Saturday and then a full marathon on Sunday. The date is January 9 and 10. So tomorrow it will be 10 months before the beginning of this challenge.
I hope to record on a regular basis my progress, my ups and downs on here. I invite you to come on the journey with me. If not in person , at least in spirit as I share my thoughts with you here.
Let the training begin.
At the start of 2007, I decided that I wanted to do something different for my 50th birthday. I thought and prayed about it , and I set my goal as the Disney Marathon of 2008. You might think well that is a good goal , or to me it was an almost unreachable goal, see I am not a runner nor a very good walker for that matter. But I signed up for the marathon anyways, it was to be on Januray 13, 2008. I really had no idea what I was to do, so I started asking away. Someone mentioned to me that his wife had done one, and she used the Galloway method. I found that this was a method perfected by Jeff Galloway, I read his books, I tried his method. I found out that I really didn't have to run , I could walk because I walked really faster then I ran and still train.
I spoke to everyone that I knew or any one that would listen about my training. I worked for a really negative company and there was a bet how quickly I would stop training and if I ever made it to the marathon that I would certainly not make it to the end. One of my Emmaus brothers, said he would train with me, and so a couple of weeks later we were doing a half marathon on A1A. Well we finished it, and it was rough but I made a group there called Friends in Training that were to become my friends and would train me for the next 9 months. My coach Shari, had all the faith that I could complete the marathon with the training I was doing. During the journey I have met some incrdible people, Nancy, Lynn and Marilyn. People that have inspired me and kept me focused on the end result, no matter how far it seemed.
One of my Emmaus sisters and best friends, Barbara comes into the picture about this time, she had heard about all my excitement in training and so decides that she wants to start some training too. During all this time she has been supportive and has never doubted that I would complete my goal. Well about this time I figure I need a mantra toget me through the long miles of training, and so I come across the concept of the Wizard of Oz. All of us become one of the characters , Dorothy, the scarecrow, the cowardly lion, the tin man. Even the ones fighting my progress have a play in there as the witch and flying monkeys.
I can't go into all the details of the past year. I should have done blogs all along, but I got to the marathon, and Barbara was at my side. She cheered me on through miles 4, 10 and to the finish. I never thought I would be able to complete it but through alot of prayers and not once remembering th yellow brick road, I made it to the finish line. It was 6:58:13 later but I still made it within the 7 hours they gave me. I had a very bad blister, I could hardly walk and I developed a really bad flu right after but I MADE IT. It was one of the greatest feelings I had ever felt knowing that I had pushed , I had trained and I had done it.
During the year I completed many 5K races, one 10K and one 13K, 4 half marathons, and one marathon. During my months of training from April 9 to just yesterday March 8 I completed 891.15 miles. I the day after the Disney marathon decided on my next challenge. The goal that I had reached convinced me that I not only could complete a marathon, but that my body could be trained and challenged for more. So I signed up for the Goofy Challenge. That is I will do half a marathon on Saturday and then a full marathon on Sunday. The date is January 9 and 10. So tomorrow it will be 10 months before the beginning of this challenge.
I hope to record on a regular basis my progress, my ups and downs on here. I invite you to come on the journey with me. If not in person , at least in spirit as I share my thoughts with you here.
Let the training begin.
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