The Long Road to Long Beach (Marathon Recap)

After nearly three months of preparation and training, the Long Beach Marathon - my Marathon Number Eight - is now just a memory. My training was not great but it was definitely better than my training for the San Diego Rock 'n Roll Marathon, so I consider the whole experience an improvement.

Hello, Dexter

The event was in Long Beach, which is at least a ninety-minute drive from my home in San Diego. With such an early start time, I decided it made sense to stay overnight before the race. Hotels in that area are costly and often unavailable the night before a major event, so I opted for AirBnb, instead. Good call. For $80, I found a private room in a beautiful home only a few miles from the start/finish line and two blocks away from the 12-mile mark on the course. That meant a good night sleep before the race instead of having to drive all the way up from San Diego.

The house was also featured throughout Season 8 of Dexter, which is kind of cool. The host was super friendly, too, which reinforces the idea of AirBnb instead of hotels whenever possible.

Pack Carefully

The night before a race is always a little stressful. I have more gear than I can possibly carry or use, but I do like to have options. I opted to carry a few things with me at the start and pick up extras (like my water bottle and sunscreen) from my husband when I saw him at Mile 11/12. 

The Start Line

It's always emotional for me at the start line. I was alone with my own thoughts this time, so it was an opportunity to really think about all the choices I had made that led me to that moment. From a guy sitting on the couch to a man about to run a marathon, it has been quite a journey. 

After crying my way through the National Anthem, we were off.

What A View

The Long Beach course was overall not the prettiest, but parts of it were spectacular. I really enjoyed the sunrise shining down on the water and the Queen Mary. It was so gorgeous, I stopped for several pictures and didn't care one bit about how much time it was taking me. Always notice the scenery, folks.

On Pace

After running a seven-hour marathon in San Diego, I set a goal for myself of 6:30 for Long Beach. I knew that sub-15:00 miles were easy enough to maintain and that would bring me in right around my goal time. My second 5K was actually faster than my first and I still felt strong after hitting ten miles. But me being me, that was all about to change.

Don't Talk To Strangers

Maybe I need to add Rick Springfield's song to my running playlist, because talking to strangers seems to be impacting my finish times. (I tease, I tease. I will always talk to people on the course. That's half the fun of entering a race.) 

I met a man named Rich while we were still finishing our run along the water's edge. He was a friendly guy, running by himself, and we struck up an easy conversation as we ran/walked. Turns out he is normally a sub-four hour marathoner, but he was not prepared with his training for Long Beach and he was paying the price. I opted to slow down a bit to stay with him, since he seemed to be struggling and hadn't yet fully committed to sticking with it and finishing. What can I say? I'm a sucker for helping other people.

Meeting Ric

This race was unusual in that my husband had come along. I expected he would be meeting me near Mile 11/12, and that's right where he was. Seeing him gave me such a boost of energy and momentum just when I needed it the most. I introduced him to Rich and explained that we were going to run the rest together, and he wished us well and sent us back out on our way.

The Long Miles

If you have never run a marathon, let me tell you about the "back miles." They are the ones that you have to run after the half-marathoners have peeled off for their own course. They are miles 14-19, where you have been running for a long time but still have so, so much to still run.

I felt pretty good on these miles, but candidly, Rich was really having a tough time. His body did not want to be out there, and he was physically sick a few times. But he dug deep and refused to quit, so I just kept pulling him along. And by the time we cleared the Cal State University Long Beach campus and hit Mile 20, he was finally convinced that he was going to finish.

No Regrets

I crossed the finish line with an official time of 7:20:XX. It was much slower than I thought I would be, but I am absolutely proud of the race I ran. I could have left Rich and stuck with my original race plan, but that wasn't the point of being out there. I was supposed to catch up to Rich and make sure he finished, and that's what I did. There will be other marathons for me to improve on my last time.

Fun Fact: When we took off at the start line, a Jet Blue Airlines (the marathon sponsor) jet was taking off from Long Beach to La Guardia. The challenge to each runner was, "beat the jet." The scheduled time was 6:20:00, so most people felt confident they would finish before the plane landed. But the unexpected twist was the phrase, "if you can't beat the jet, join it." Several of us that finished AFTER the jet landed were rewarded with a free, round-trip ticket anywhere Jet Blue flies non-stop from Long Beach. Yep, I won a ticket to New York just because I chose to stick with a slower runner.

Who's awesome now? This guy. 

To Full or Not To Full?

In less than eight days, I will be standing at the start line for the Long Beach Marathon. And honestly, right this moment, I can't say if I will be running the full or the half marathon.

A Little History

In 2012, I started a marathon training program that I called Project One Five. Over one hundred days, five tasks each day, I trained to run the Pasadena Marathon. And I was successful. I ran my fastest marathon ever - 4:40 - even taking twenty minutes off of my previous PR. It was a good program and a great performance.

By comparison, I didn't train at all for the 2016 Rock 'n Roll San Diego Marathon. I had an amazing race day experience because of my race companions, but it wasn't a very impressive running performance. The course limit was seven hours and I used nearly every minute of that.

I've run seven marathons so far: 2011 Marine Corps, 2012 Pasadena, 2012 Hercules, 2013 Carlsbad, 2013 Marine Corps, and 2016 Rock 'n Roll San Diego. I know what it takes to finish them. More importantly, I know what it takes to be ready to even start them.

Run The Half Marathon

There are so many good reasons to run the half. I have trained, yes, but not as consistently as I could have. My longest run was seventeen miles, which is enough to know I can finish the full distance but not enough to make me feel comfortable that I'm ready. If I switch to the half marathon, I know I can deliver a solid performance and finish strong.

I also have more events ahead. One week after Long Beach, I am running the Road Runner Sports Craft Classic Phoenix Half Marathon. That is an event with my From Fat To Finish Line team, and it's important to me that I am ready to run another distance event right after. Run the half in Long Beach and I'm more likely to run strong in Phoenix.

There have been some crazy life distractions that have sidelined my training. They aren't excuses, just real-world things that have demanded more of my attention. My husband's fall and concussion meant trips to the hospital/doctor and watching over him, of course, but that took time away from long runs. Starting a job nearly thirty miles from my home took time away. And my own personal drama with depression and anxiety didn't exactly make me want to leave my home, let alone go for a double-digit run.

Most importantly, I have nothing to prove with this marathon. I'm not running it with anyone. I'm not running it for a personal record. And while it is the first in a series of three events in the Beach Cities Challenge, a half marathon qualifies just as well as a marathon. Running either is considered completing the event.

Obviously, running the half marathon is the only choice that makes sense.

Run The Marathon

And yet, there are so many good reasons to run the full marathon. Even with no training, I finished the San Diego marathon in June. I'm more trained now, which means there is no chance I don't finish Long Beach. I signed up for it, I've (kind of) trained for it, and I should run it.

I also owe it to my running coach to give this my very best effort. Dropping down to the half sends a message to him that perhaps I am not the runner he thinks I am. Or worse, maybe I just don't have the commitment that I claim to have.

Why else should I run the full distance? Because maybe... just maybe... I am looking at the half because I'm being lazy. Why go 26.2 when I can run 13.1 and people will still write nice things on my Instagram and Facebook posts? Have I really been taking all the compliments ("Wow, you are running a full marathon?! That's amazing!") without really intending to run it all?

The answer seems obvious. If I can run the full marathon - and we all know I can - then I have an obligation to myself, my coach, and everyone who has ever cheered me on to get out there, suck it up, and do all 26.2.

The Verdict

I'm not a quitter. I'm not sandbagging. And I will push myself as far as I can as long as I can until I can't go any further.

I'm running the full marathon. Let's do this.

Let's Talk About Last Week (08/15/16 - 08/21/16)

or How It Feels To Make Good Choices

It's Monday, and once again I'm reviewing my workouts, runs, and food choices over the last week. Overall, I'm happy with my actions and my results. So let's get to the details.

Running
I was scheduled to run four times and I got them all done. I completed one 4-miler, one 3-mile speed run, one 5k all-go, no-walk run, and a grueling ten-mile long run. I was going to be out of town on Saturday, so I switched my long run to Friday. Life conspired to keep me from getting to the gym, so I took my run outdoors. It was hot and humid and I was out without sunglasses or water, so my pace fell off quite a bit. But I stuck with it and was super happy to get the miles completed.

Strength Training
The weight training was great, but my Friday/Sunday switch meant I missed one of my four scheduled weight workouts. I compensated with additional miles, but I need to make strength training as much a priority. I'll get them done this week.

Yoga
This was a bit week for yoga. I took my Wednesday morning class at my local gym again, but I took advantage of my out of town trip to take a Saturday glass in Santa Barbara. It was nearly 90 minutes long and definitely NOT an easy class, but I did the best I could and really enjoyed it. I know I will get better, and it's just a matter of committing to the classes and allowing myself the time to improve.

FitBit Steps
I am finding that hitting my ten thousand steps each day is pretty easy. I even hit 10k+ today, Sunday, which is supposed to be a complete rest day. When it comes to this part of my goal, I am killin' it.

Nutrition and Fuel
This was a little tougher for me this week. I indulged a bit more and I was away from home for more meals. That made healthy, low-calorie eating more difficult... but not impossible. I also enjoyed a few beers while I was out over the weekend, and that meant a lot of empty calories added to my totals.

The good news? I tracked every single thing I ate, stayed under my possible calories, and made enough good choices that my few splurges didn't wreck my training.

I have also discovered just how much I love a homemade smoothie. And that is even more delicious when it tastes like a shake. Here's what I do:

• I have precut, pre-weighed frozen bananas and strawberries. They were measured before freezing and each plastic bag holds about 5oz of each fruit. I add one bag of strawberries and one or two of the bananas, depending on how hungry I am.
• I also add two cups of the Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk. Each cup has only 30 calories, so it is a great way to add volume without heavy calories. (No, this is not a sponsored post. I really do love this stuff.)
• Add all of this into a blender and whip it up. The frozen fruit means that this is more of a shake than a smoothie.

The overall calorie count is 330, give or take, and well worth every single one of them. I had to eat mine with a spoon since it was so thick.

Delicious. Healthy. And totally in my calorie range. It's become my post-run meal of choice and I have not even started experimenting with other fruits in the mix. I'll let you know if anything tops this basic recipe, though. It's easy enough that even I can make it.

Overall, it's been another really good week. And I'm feeling good about myself and about the results I am seeing. Today is Monday and I am already starting off with good choices. Let's see where another seven days of healthy eating and increased physical activity take me.

Who says a guy has to use a boring straw?

Let's Talk About Last Week (08/08/16 - 08/14/16)

or How I Learned To Stick With A Training and Nutrition Plan

It's Sunday, and I'm resting comfortably while reviewing my workouts, runs, and food choices over the last week. Overall, I'm happy with my actions and my results. So let's get to the details.

Running
I was scheduled to run four times and I got them all done. I completed two 4-milers, one 3-mile hill run, and an 8-mile long run. I have been running intervals and they really seem to be working for me. I run .40 miles, then walk for .10. Then another .40 running, another .10 walking. I also increase the speed throughout the run so I finish with negative splits. I know this sort of pacing isn't for everyone, but I'm finding that I feel strong when I run and I recover quickly when I walk. And my overall per mile pace continues to speed up run after run, so I'm going to stick with this.

My 8.0 mile summary from Saturday

Strength Training
I have finally started strength training and I successfully completed all four scheduled workouts. I'm starting easy, working chest and triceps twice a week and back, biceps, and shoulders twice a week. My weights were fairly light this first week, but I plan to add on slowly every week going forward. (Don't worry, folks. Proper form and technique are more important to me than heavy weights. I don't need any injury to sidetrack my marathon training.)

Yoga
This is new for me, but I am adding yoga into my training routine so I can strengthen my core and help stretch out my back. I have two yoga classes on my schedule each week, but work interfered and I was only able to make one. Instead, after missing the second yoga class, I opted to take a leisurely three-mile walk, instead. Not the same thing, I know, but I felt good about still getting some physical activity and not just blowing it off.

FitBit Steps
This is the hard one for me, but I have to make good decisions that will help me with my overall training plan. I am choosing to let my 10kEveryDay streak end today. I am purposely NOT going to get in 10,000 steps today. I could do it, sure, but I am supposed to have one complete day of rest each week. And as my Saturday long runs get longer and longer, the rest day will become more and more important.

So, I choose to let the streak end. I will likely get 4000-5000 steps in, and that's plenty. It's been a good week and I'll take an overall 100k and consider it a win.

It's been a good week for FitBit steps.

Nutrition and Fuel
I am most excited about this recap of the week. Hitting my fitness goals are important, sure, but it's the calorie intake that most impacts my overall health and weight loss. As they say, healthy bodies are made in the kitchen.

Having all the extra activity really increased my number of available calories, but I didn't use that as an excuse to go crazy. I ate very well, making conscious and healthy choices nearly every time. I've rediscovered how much I love eating fresh fruit (watermelon, grapes, pineapple, strawberries). I've worked up a few go-to quick meals that I can make easily. And I've been able to walk away from the less-healthy choices.  I stayed within my calorie counts all week long, even when I indulged a bit and when I went to a potluck party with snacks and treats in every direction.


Overall, it's been a very good week. I'm proud of myself for sticking with my plans and I'm very happy with the results. The extra pounds continue to come off and my energy levels are through the roof. It feels good to be me right now, and I'll take that as a win.

Fueling The Machine

I'm nearing the end of my second week of my full commitment to training and nutrition, and I'm feeling pretty good. I've hit all my scheduled workouts and I'm still enjoying them. That's a good thing.

And the nutrition? That's really made a difference for me. I've made some pretty drastic changes and I don't know that I'll continue them long-term, but they are helping me as I train for my marathon, definitely.

I know that I need to track my food consistently if I want to lose weight. This training evolution, I'm relying completely on my FitBit and logging every single thing I eat. It was a bit cumbersome at first, but I tend to repeat meals often and it gets faster to log things as I build up my own list of "recent foods."

Overall, I'm not having any problems staying within my allotted amount of calories. That's because FitBit calculations automatically adjust all day to reflect the extra calories I've earned through exercise and motion. Of course, I realize that these numbers are all estimated, so I want to make sure I am burning more calories through each day than I am taking in.

Here's what the last two weeks look like. It doesn't appear that I am taking in nearly enough each day, and that is also a concern for me. Starving and depriving myself isn't a healthy way to lose weight, because the body needs fuel to perform. So I need to eat more, which is kind of cool to discover.

Notice that there are two days when I splurged a bit on the calories. In week one, I indulged with a bacon cheeseburger and bacon cheese fries. Week two, I ate a ham & pineapple pizza and sweet potato french fries.

Neither of those meals put me over my calories allotment for those days, because I had plenty of extra activity to cover them. They were little rewards and I earned them. So I don't feel bad at all about them.

I am (once again) discovering that if I choose the right foods, I can eat a lot more of them. For example, I was craving a salad yesterday afternoon, so I decided to make one myself instead of buying one out somewhere.

And that matters. Not only did I save a lot of money, I also was able to control exactly what went into my salad. There were no hidden calories and I was able to track it exactly.

I started with the basics - yellow pepper, carrots, and a cucumber. I used a huge bowl and a big pile of spinach leaves, and the salad looked big enough to feed a family of four. But no, it was all mine.

I added seasoned croutons and an incredible, low-calorie pear gorgonzola dressing, and my lunch was complete.

And here's the calorie count. Considering how much food was in the bowl, I'm super happy that the whole meal was under 400 calories. 

I also discovered yesterday that I can make my own fruit smoothie at home using Silk soymilk, frozen bananas, and fresh strawberries. Talk about a winner! I absolutely loved it. I made one for breakfast with vanilla soymilk and a smaller one for dessert with the chocolate soymilk. Both were right around 200 calories and worth every bit of that.

And I'll end with a positive note. I blogged earlier about how easy it is to drop into a slump. One bad choice leads to another, and another, and before you know it, your entire workout and healthy eating routines have fallen off.

But the reverse is true, too. One good choice can be the inspiration for the next, and after a few good choices, you're back on the right track and ready for more. That's where I am right now. I am wrapping up week two of my #LongRoadtoLongBeach training and nutrition plan, and I already feel better.

It's not about the pounds. It's not about the number on a scale. It's about feeling stronger, healthier, and more in control of my life and my actions. That's how I feel right now, and I want that feeling to continue. So the good choices I've made over the last twelve days are now motivation for me to keep making those choices today... and tomorrow... and on and on.

I'm feeling more like me each day. And that makes me very happy, indeed.

The Long Road to Long Beach

After the emotional experience that was my San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, I really struggled to find any motivation. And as has happened before, I fell further and further into a spiral of bad moods and bad choices.

You know how that works, right? You don't feel like working out or going for a run, so you don't. And since you already feel bad, you give in to the food cravings. And since you overate junk food, you don't feel like running. And since you skipped your workout, you eat more crappy food. And on and on it goes, a spiral of poor choices and worse results.

That's been the last couple of months for me. There's more to the story, of course, but that's for another blog. I'll just say that these have been very dark days. But they haven't been the end of me. Nope, that's not happening.

So I had to find a way to get myself back on track. An unexpected invitation to run the Marine Corps Marathon was just the push I needed. And though I am not going to be able to get to Washington, DC, this October, I found another local event happening about the same time and signed up for it.

My next big race will be the Long Beach Marathon on October 9th. I'm not looking to set a PR at the event, but I do want to cross that starting line feeling confident that I am ready for the full 26.2 miles. That means I need to be focused and committed for the full nine weeks available for training.

Good news. I'm off to a fantastic start. Turns out, that spiral can work the other way, too. One good choice can lead to another. I went for a run and completed a simple 5k. That made me want to make better food choices afterwards. And eating a healthier dinner made it easier to wake up the next morning and go for another run. And there it was again, the "one thing leads to another" effect, but this time it was a positive chain that has had an immediate impact on my mood.

After gaining way more weight than I ever imagined I would, I have turned it all around with a few healthier choices. I have:

1. Engaged Rik Akey as my running coach
2. Begun tracking every single thing I eat on my FitBit
3. Committed to four runs each week
4. Added strength training
5. Started Yoga (for stretching and relaxation) 

But this, friends, is perhaps the single more important thing I have done. I made a promise to myself that I would write this blog, honestly and openly, and that I would post it before I had the chance to over-think it or worry too much.

And here it is, the whole ugly truth. I'm featured in a documentary about weight loss yet I've gained the weight back. I'm cited as an inspiration for others but I've been feeling like a complete fraud. And I'm trying to encourage others while I've been completely falling apart myself.

Sometimes, the truth sucks. But if I've learned anything over the course of nearly fifty years, it's that there is a big difference between being down and staying down. I've been down for a very long time, but I'm finally seeing the way back.

So here's the good news. After only one week of healthy eating and consistent workouts/runs, I am already feeling better. The numbers on the scale are better. And most importantly, I am looking ahead to what's coming instead of dwelling on what has happened behind me.

In one week... seriously, one week... I have lost 5.4 pounds. It's not something I was actually trying to do, and it is not a weight loss I expect to repeat week after week, but it's a nice affirmation that the basics are still the way to go.

I'm not starving myself. I'm not overdoing it at the gym. I'm just making good choices. And I'm seeing positive things happen because of them.

Eat healthy. Be active. Repeat consistently.

I have a lot of work ahead of me. I know that. But it all starts with a decision to change the things that are making me unhappy. So I am.

And that's how I am going to successfully complete the #LongRoadToLongBeach.

This is me on Monday, Aug 8th. And that
might actually be a smile on my face.