Quick Update

Got sick in the middle of the week so didn't get as much work in as I wanted.  However, I did finally get back to it with a nice long 8.5 mile yesterday. 

I also entered my first full stand alone marathon.

 

 

Ain't That a Kick in the Teeth?

My wife recently picked up one of those at home blood pressure monitors.  Since I hadn't checked mine in a while, I did a reading.  150ish/110. Hmm.  Must be something wrong.  Were my legs crossed? Cuff too tight?  So I did it again.  Similar result.  Getting a little worried.  But not much I could do on a Sunday evening.

Monday morning, I had to run to the store for a couple things so used the pharmacy's blood pressure machine.  168/112(!!).  I immediately called my doctor and had an appointment a few hours later.  140/100 with a nurse taking it.  Not as killer as when I first started this journey but still disappointing.  He was pleased with the weight loss, finishing the Ironman and all that and told me that sometimes you can't fight genetics. 

So back on the lowest dose of Norvasc.  Upset but what can I do except keep working hard? 

Some Thoughts on the Last 2 Years and 9 Months

I went shopping today for some cold weather running gear and as I was trying on some size large pants (I used to think about XL v. XXL) and nearly fitting in a medium, it really hit me how far I've come.  Since January 2009, when I got the shock of my life with massively high blood pressure...

Lost about 60-65 pounds.
Off blood pressure medication completely.
Completed several sprint triathlons.
Ridden over 5,000 miles with the Louisville Bicycle Club and several hundred more on my own or with training partners.
Completed an Olympic distance triathlon.
Swam over 100 miles.
Ran over 1100 miles.
Completed 2 half-marathons.
Completed a half-Ironman.
Completed several other smaller running events.
Completed an Ironman.
Signed up for my second Ironman.
Fit in a jeans size I used to wear in high school.
Contemplating a stand alone full marathon.
Made some great friends or strengthened the relationship with friends I already had.
Inspired others and got inspiration from them.

Now I need another event on my calendar.  Trail running?  I've never tried it but that didn't stop me from trying all that crazy stuff I listed above, right?

Maybe?

Louisville Half-Marathon

First of all, I'm on a one-man crusade to stop calling these "minis."  There is nothing mini about 13.1 miles.  A mini implies a 5K or something similar.  Call them what they are:  HALF-Marathons.

My achievable goal heading into today was to best my previous PR (2:20).  This would be a 10:41/mile pace.  My stretch goal was to go sub-2 hours or a 9:10 pace.  I decided to use music for the first time in a long time as I wasn't running with any of my normal running partners.  I did see several familiar faces, however, including Jeff and Pete from V02, Carlos, Bill, Shay, David and others from the Landsharks, etc.

Temp at event time was a perfect 55ish degrees with a decent breeze.  The route would take us from the River Rd/Mockinbird Valley area down to the Belle of Louisville and on to the bike path.  Course was a straightforward out and back and nearly all flat with a couple small hills.  A good course for my goals. 

My plan was to use a run/walk strategy from the very beginning.  Run 9 minutes, walk 1, repeat.  I was a bit disappointed with the aid stations, but then again, it was to be expected with the company putting it on.  When will I learn?

My mile splits:

1 8:42
2 8:48
3 9:22
4 9:28
5 9:46
6 9:06
7 9:44
8 9:34
9 9:38
10 9:34
11 10:14
12 10:38
13 10:36

The grand total was a 2:05:58.  You can see I probably started out a bit too quick.  I blame Metallica as my playlist was Master of Puppets, Ride the Lightning and part of And Justice for All.  Lack of nutrition finally caught up to me about mile 11.  Yeah, yeah, I should know better by now!  My hamstrings were also very tight.  This is why my sports massage therapist has basically ordered me into a yoga class, which I'm doing tomorrow evening for the 2nd time.

Overall, a good day, a new PR and more lessons learned.

One More Time!

I promised a full Bourbon Chase report.  I'll keep it short.  I got a finisher's medal and worked my ass off including my fastest run ever at an 8:17/mile pace.  That's about all I want to say and if I do it again it will be with some different peeps.  (If you're on my FB friends list, you know I'm not talking about you.)

I've also signed up for my 2nd Iron distance event.  It's being put on by a different company, Rev3.  Friends have told great stories about their events and competition with more events is only good for the sport.

I'm doing their event on September 9, 2012 at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. 

So I guess this makes it the Ironman Journey, Part II?

The Bourbon Chase

Today is the start of the Bourbon Chase.  If you don't remember, that's a 200 mile/12 person overnight relay that stops at several distilleries along the way.  Couldn't ask for better weather:  mid-80s during the day, mid-50s at night. 

My 3 legs:

Leg 1
Leg 2
Leg 3

Full event report on Sunday!

Week in Review

Still training in all 3 disciplines and have 2 official events on the schedule, The Bourbon Chase and a half-marathon.  I will be posting a full report on the Chase next Sunday.

The highlight of the week was a 10.3 mile run.  It was one of those days (see the next paragraph) but I survived.  

Since part of the reason for this blog is accountability and honesty, I had a big wake-up call over the weekend.  I was running around on Friday, doing errands, etc. when I decided to grab something quick for lunch, McDonald's.  I hadn't eaten it in quite a long time and paid for it.  After 3 days, my stomach is finally back to normal.  Unrelated?  Causal?  Bad luck?  Not entirely certain, but I've stayed away from that stuff for months and it just reinforced my resolve to keep doing so.

Finally, a friend asked me to post a link to his cancer fundraising page.  My pal and training partner, Ken, is raising money for prostate cancer research.  You can find information and a link here.  He'll take any donation, no matter how small.