camaker
Anything worth doing is worth overdoing
- Joined
- May 8, 2015
I decided to start this training journal to help keep myself motivated and hopefully provide some motivation and inspiration to others out there. Comments are welcome and encouraged. I have benefited immensely from others’ experiences so far and hope I can provide some, as well.
I guess I’ll start with the clichéd question. Why do I run? I had been a big guy my entire adult life. In 2009, I had knee surgery for a torn meniscus and the surgeon told me I should never play sports again. That hit me hard and I did not respond well. By the beginning of 2013, I weighed in at 335 pounds and was on a CPAP for sleep apnea and daily medication for blood pressure and acid reflux. At that point, I decided enough was enough and lost 150 lbs walking and playing Ultimate prior to starting to run seriously in early 2015. I think pictures really tell the story, though.
This was me at my oldest daughter’s HS graduation in 2012:
This picture is from SWDS this past April:
Having a stretch running goal to work for is a major factor in my ability to maintain that weight loss. Maintenance is proving as hard or harder than actually losing the weight initially. I got down to 180 pounds in the initial surge of weight loss, but I’m hanging in the 195-200 pound range now. I’d really like to get that back to about 185 pounds for optimal running, if possible. Ultimately, though, I just enjoy running and getting out into the fresh air (no treadmills here).
So on to what I’m training for right now. I’m looking at three major events coming up. First up is the 2016 Dumbo Double Dare at Disneyland to complete my Coast to Coast Challenge. After that is the Raleigh City of Oaks Marathon the first weekend in November. Finally (for now), Dopey 2017 is in the cards for January!
My marathon goal is to see what I can do when trained and healthy. I signed up for the 2016 WDW 10k and Half Marathon this time last year. Then during the summer I decided to register for the marathon, too, because why not? It would be a signature achievement to commemorate the 3rd anniversary of my decision to lose the weight, if I could do it. Then I tore my hamstring in September and I wasn’t able to train for it. At Marathon Weekend it was a game time decision whether I was even going to attempt it. The morning of, I decided “what the Hell” and it turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. I have never had more fun athletically in my life and I got faster and faster as the race went on. I finished in 5:48:48 with plenty in the tank and I don’t want that to be the time that I associate with my marathon PR, as I can do a lot better. This marathon is to lay down a marker for a standalone marathon and then decide from there whether I want to continue to improve the distance or focus on half marathons.
Congratulations on making it this far in my wordy first post! From here, I am going to be running four days a week using a modified Hansons plan put together for me by @DopeyBadger to train for City of Oaks. From there I intend to follow a plan to maintain that fitness level through Dopey in January. I can’t thank him enough for the great feedback and follow-up that he’s provide so far.
I guess I’ll start with the clichéd question. Why do I run? I had been a big guy my entire adult life. In 2009, I had knee surgery for a torn meniscus and the surgeon told me I should never play sports again. That hit me hard and I did not respond well. By the beginning of 2013, I weighed in at 335 pounds and was on a CPAP for sleep apnea and daily medication for blood pressure and acid reflux. At that point, I decided enough was enough and lost 150 lbs walking and playing Ultimate prior to starting to run seriously in early 2015. I think pictures really tell the story, though.
This was me at my oldest daughter’s HS graduation in 2012:
This picture is from SWDS this past April:
Having a stretch running goal to work for is a major factor in my ability to maintain that weight loss. Maintenance is proving as hard or harder than actually losing the weight initially. I got down to 180 pounds in the initial surge of weight loss, but I’m hanging in the 195-200 pound range now. I’d really like to get that back to about 185 pounds for optimal running, if possible. Ultimately, though, I just enjoy running and getting out into the fresh air (no treadmills here).
So on to what I’m training for right now. I’m looking at three major events coming up. First up is the 2016 Dumbo Double Dare at Disneyland to complete my Coast to Coast Challenge. After that is the Raleigh City of Oaks Marathon the first weekend in November. Finally (for now), Dopey 2017 is in the cards for January!
My marathon goal is to see what I can do when trained and healthy. I signed up for the 2016 WDW 10k and Half Marathon this time last year. Then during the summer I decided to register for the marathon, too, because why not? It would be a signature achievement to commemorate the 3rd anniversary of my decision to lose the weight, if I could do it. Then I tore my hamstring in September and I wasn’t able to train for it. At Marathon Weekend it was a game time decision whether I was even going to attempt it. The morning of, I decided “what the Hell” and it turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. I have never had more fun athletically in my life and I got faster and faster as the race went on. I finished in 5:48:48 with plenty in the tank and I don’t want that to be the time that I associate with my marathon PR, as I can do a lot better. This marathon is to lay down a marker for a standalone marathon and then decide from there whether I want to continue to improve the distance or focus on half marathons.
Congratulations on making it this far in my wordy first post! From here, I am going to be running four days a week using a modified Hansons plan put together for me by @DopeyBadger to train for City of Oaks. From there I intend to follow a plan to maintain that fitness level through Dopey in January. I can’t thank him enough for the great feedback and follow-up that he’s provide so far.
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