Week 3: Midweek run

Took teddy out for a 5 mile run today. He got tired after the first mile so I took him back home. I went back out for another 3-4 miles. All in all a great day. I got a little nauseous on the last quarter mile, but I sucked it up and finished. Today was a good day.

My diet has been really off lately. I've not been eating regularly or nearly enough to maintain my minimum caloric intake. As a result I've been losing weight and muscle. I'm down from 215 to 197 in the last month. I'm getting dizzy regularly lately and I've been feeling weak very often. Diet is important.

Week 3: Recovery Run

Today an ice storm rolled through. Temp dropped into the 20's. Everything froze over. On top of that, the storm lasted 2 days. No running for me. The thermals work well, but that wind and cold blow straight through even the best running gear. No to mention that frostbitten lungs don't do anything for anyone. The recovery run will have to be skipped this week. On to the strength and mid-distance run.

Week 4: Long Run

Today was a 10k time trial. I bonked about 3 miles out. Complete wall. I was in a world of pain...then I missed the turnaround point. I ended up doing 7.8 miles for my 10k and walking about 1 mile of it. By the time I got home, I crawled into the tub turned on the shower and sat down until the water got cold and I could move again. I was asleep about 15 minutes later. Shell cooked some tilapia and veggies while I was sleeping. She woke me up around midnight and got me to eat a plat of food. I slept for another 10 hours and went to work sore.

I hate bonking. Thinking back, I remember when I was training for IM in 05, every time i bonked, I came back stronger about a week later. There's something about bottoming out that tells you with brutal honesty exactly where you're at. In those frozen moments of eternity when your heart is weighed and measured, the still small voice of God speaks up telling you you have what it takes. He who is in me is greater than he who is in the world. I am more than a conqueror. I have what it takes. I will survive.

Another bump on the road to Ironman. Another ounce of weakness squeezed from my body. Another step closer to my dream. I'm already succeeding and it feels incredible.

Thank you shell for traveling this road with me. I love you.

Week 4: Off Day

Not eating = no recovery

Remember that. Today I'm sore, sore, sore. My entire body aches and I'm generally feeling like crap. I'm cranky, tired, and my head is all fuzzy. I need to prepare for my fast better next week. One day should not thrown me this far out of whack.

Today I stared the day with a Simply Nutrilite Blueberry Protein bar, 3 breakfast tacos from Rudy's (thanks to my incredible, amazing, always right on the mark wife) and 24 ounces of water & Simply Nutrilite Immunity Twist Tubes. The rest of today is going to be much, much better as my body bounces back. I'll drink lots of water, a couple XS Energy drinks to help flush out the lactic acid, and eat a bowl of gumbo for dinner. All in all it's going to be a great day.

Tonight we're going to the Austin Torro's basketball game, then picking up Mike & Vanessa at the airport at 1030. Good food, friends and fun. Who could ask for anything more.

Week 4: Strength & Distance

Today I'm doing a full fast as part of Celebration Church's 21 Days of Awakening Prayer and Fasting. I really, really feel the difference in my energy level. I went out for a 5 mile run, ended up taking 2 laps around the outer perimeter of PRC and finishing in just under an hour. I do not feel very good. My legs are made of cement. I keep seeing flashes when i sit up or down too quickly. I'm getting that "it's 4am, can we got to bed already" feeling at 5pm and somehow the promise of a cold glass of water is doing nothing to alleviate these feelings.

Despite all of that I'm thankful that I can choose to fast and pray. It's times like these when all those things in the back of your mind come to the front and you can sort through what's really been bothering you for the past few days, weeks, months, etc. God is good at all times and gaining some clarity on what's important to me, what some of my strongholds have been, has allowed me to cast those troubles to him like a stone to a lake.

Thank you Lord for your blessings and favor in my life. Thank you for blessing my and my family with an abundant life. Thank you for always listening, always forgiving, and sending your son that I could come to know you better. Amen

Week 4: Recovery Run..

Today I went out for a midweek run with Teddy. About half way through, Teddy got a nasty case of the runs and, to spare everyone the nasty details, needed to get home asap. So, the second half of my run was spent giving him a bath. Total time was about 30 minutes. This actually works out better because now my schedule is back in line with the workout calendar. I had been a day behind for a while. Now I'm back on schedule and ready for the last month. This is going to be fun!

Week 5: Long Run

So last night I got chased back to the house by the threat of a rabid pit bull loose in the neighborhood. Unbelievable. When does that happen in real life? Evidently the pit bull was not only rabid, but wily. Shell and I heard choppers, sirens, cars and trucks looking for the thing for the rest of the night. Craziness. I suppose it's all for the best. It could have been worse...




With all the craziness, my run was pushed back to the morning. So, bright and early I headed out for a ~8 mile run. I took the log loop down to the edge of Pflugerville and back running most of the length of windermere and Settler's Valley. The run down was great. The run back was rough. A strong headwind and a dry cool morning cut right through me. I finished in right at 100 minutes. My legs and butt hurt before I got out of the shower.

Another unexpected benefit of the nice, dry weather was that I picked up a nice case of Jogger's Nipple. If you've never had this before, it's caused by your shirt rubbing back and forth against your nipple until it chafes. The longer you run, the worse it gets. Here's a pic from a pretty mild instance from last year.



This morning I forgot to take a picture, but it got both nipples and soaked through two shirts. Fun, fun, fun. I'm looking forward to some XS and a nice walk tonight.

For breakfast I had a banana, granola, an apple and some xs. I feel good, just sore.

Week 5: Mid-Week Run

Today was a fun run before church. I had to get out and back, shower and get to church in 90 minutes. I did a quick loop down to the park and back in 53 minutes, then headed in to shower. The run was fun. I'm wondering just how quick I'm going. I think I need to get on a treadmill or map out some closed courses to make sure my pace is where I want it to be. I'm feeling strong though. Hammy's are a bit tight, so some stretching is in order, but all in all I feel great.

Week 5: Recovery Run

Today, rather than going for a quick recovery run, I played some basketball with Evan after the kids were done with Upward practice. I could tell that my legs weren't quite recovered by how unresponsive they were to sudden stops and starts. We played for about 15 minutes and I shot around on my own doing full court layups and touch drills for another 15 minutes. It was a nice break from the norm. I'm happy I tried something new. Tonight for dinner, Voila Shrimp.

Week 5: Mid-week run

Today i headed out for a 50 minute run. I went out and back from my house, down by HEB and back. There were two rolling hills along the way. When I finished, I did 5 strides down a 50 yard decline by my house. My hammy's screamed afterwards, but it was a good pain. I'm feeling stronger and starting to get my diet under control. This week I've incorporated Nutrilite® Veggie 150 Omega Complex into my diet along with the Nutrilite® Double X® Vitamin/ Mineral/ Phytonutrient. I feel great. I'm recovering quickly. I'm really enjoying this training build up.

...I slept like a log that night.

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Week 6: Long Run

Today was a fun run. I went out for a 70 minute run, tried a new route, and ended up running for 90 minutes before I got home. I felt good the entire time. My legs were sore, but I felt strong. Several short declines on the way back let me work on my strides. Temperature was in the high 50's, so no cold weather gear. All in all a great day. For dinner I had some voila chicken and a joint health twist tube.

Week 6: Strength Run

I've been slacking on the posts, but not the workouts. These will be brief to catch up:

I was in Dallas for the weekend. Sunday I went out for a 48 minute run through downtown stopping occasionally to let Teddy ti-ti and take pictures of all the cattle statues in the parks. It was a great run.



Temperature was about 45 degrees, but the Reebok cold weather gear saved the day. This stuff is truly incredible. Then, flexible, perpetually dry and warm. Best workout purchase since the Cervelo. After the run I had a light breakfast. Dinner that night was sushi and, later on, some burgers.

Week 6: Recovery Run

Today I surprised Mrs. D with chinese food for dinner. It's her favorite thing to eat besides big pieces of things that used to go "Moooo." We feasted on rice, noodles, chicken, shrimp and vegetables. All this before the run. It's nice going for a run on a settled stomach. I may not run real fast, but I feel great before, during and after and my metabolism skyrockets. It's still about 6 months before I need to get proficient at eating during my workouts, so for the time being, I'm going to enjoy these pre-run meals.

I took teddy with me for a 15 minute out and back. He ran like a champ. So did I. It was a good run on a warm, humid night. Teddy slept fast just after his bath and I'm resting my legs.

Week 6: Mid-Distance

Who put the cement in my shoes. Physically I felt great today, but heading out on the run, my legs were just not moving. I got to the 25 minute point on the way out and my right foot started cramping hard. I managed to walk it off for about 3 minutes, then finish up the run. Somewhere around the last 5-10 minutes or so I finally began to feel like myself again and loosened up. It wasn't a fun run, but I'm glad I finished it. Another challenge overcome.

For dinner I had a pizza. Tons of meat. Washed down with 24 ounces of each Simply Nutrilite Joint Health and Sport twist tubes. I threw in a couple more glasses of water for good measure. That night I slept like a log. Good day.

Week 7: 5k time trial

Today was essentially my rest workout. On a 40 degree evening, I had a timed 5k run. The only challenge was that I didn't have an accurately measured course, but judging by the time, landmarks and my pace, I'd say I put in about 3.4 miles. My time was just under 30 minutes. It's not a land speed record, but I'm happy with the time given the hills and lack of speed training. I think I'll have to incorporate more strides into my cross training days to build up some foot speed. After the run, I had a bowl of italian sausage pasta, joint health twist tube and a couple glasses of water.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's strength and stretching day. It's giong to be great. On a side note, the Reebok cold weather running pants and 1/4 zip jackets are amazing. I don't ever remember being that warm wearing plastic pants with sweats. I stayed warm, dry and had my full range of motion. Talk about a great pick up. Thanks Santa daddy.

Week 7: Strength & Mid-Distance

Cheetahs Win! Cheetahs Win! Way to go everyone. Our Upward Basketball k-5 thru 1st grade team put up an impressive 28-8 win today. Best of all they showed examples of sportsmanship, good will, teamwork, and servanthood in the process. I'm proud of the little guys for how hard they played and how much they worked as a team. It was a great day for Upward and a great day for them. Geaux Cheetahs!!

As an added bonus, it's 76 degrees and sunny today. It was actually warmer walking out of the game than it was inside the gym. I set out for a 40 minute run with a friend about 2pm. The first 20 minutes stretched into a 31 minute run/walk cutting up and telling stories. He had to call it a day a bit early, so I finished the last 20 minutes with a quick out and back. My legs are a big sluggish and my feet feel like they've been beaten with bamboo rods, but overall I'm feeling good. Tomorrow is a fast 5k time trial followed by a stretching/strength day. It's going to be great.

My post run meal today is a Thundercloud sub, sugar-free strawberry smoothie, and some baked lays chips. I'll sleep hard tonight.

On a side note, I may have the best wife in the world. Qutoe for the day, "Baby, you stink...but it's kind of a sweet sweaty smell. I love you. Go shower." Talk about a spoonful of sugar. LOL.

Week 7: Recovery Run

Today was the first official practice for Upward Basketball at Celebration Church. By official, I mean the first I ran from start to finish by myself. I'm coaching k-5 through 1st graders. Shell is coaching the 5th grade cheerleaders and overseeing the girl's coaches. These kids have tons of energy and a remarkable attention span for their age. I'm going to go ahead and say that video games have made a positive difference in that area.

Since it's the holidays, some things have been moved around, so tomorrow is our first game. We play at 8am. I'm more than a little nervous. Upward is a youth ministry. Parents bring their kids here to expose them to basketball and Christ. It's an incredible responsibility thinking that a parent would entrust even a small portion of their kid's journey to discover Jesus to me. I'm up for the responsibility and I know I can do it. The realization of the task is just really humbling me tonight.

Say it with me now, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." I don't know why I'm worrying at all. The kids didn't know how to play before they showed up. The entire program isn't really about basketball. And it's His show, I'm just moving where he guides me. Tomorrow is going to rock. Something great is going to happen.

On to the workout...

Short recovery run. I took Teddy out for the run with me after Upward Basketball practice today. For a little Schnauzer, he's incredibly fast over long distances. We did a 20 minute out and back, but thanks to Teddy we cut about a minute off my usual mile pace. Afterward, I did a quick Pilaties ab routine and stretched.

Afer the run I grilled up some Elgin sausage, had lots of water and a Simpliy Nutrilite Joint Health Twist Tube. My diet wasn't the best today, but I did manage to get in 2 solid meals and a solid 8 hours last night. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's long run and Sunday's 5k.

Whoot. 43 days until I toe the line. Bring it on.

Tonight I'll be cramming for our first game tomorrow.

Week 7: Midweek Run

Today was a gorgeous (and windy) 70 degree day in Austin. I went out for 21 minutes through a construction site (lots of soft ground) and then turned around and came back. Total time 41 minutes. Afterwards, I had a strawberry protein slushie and a Nutrilite Chcoloate Nut Roll meal bar. Yes, it sounds like candy and tastes like it too, but it's amazingly balanced and full of protein. Due up tonight, pizza for dinner and stretching and veggies late night.

It's a great day. Can't wait for the PM.