Every Day I'm (Santa) Hustlin'

I know it's been awhile since I've last written a beautiful blog post for all you cool cats, but have no fear! I am still alive and kicking and running races - just at slower speeds than I should be...

Today I'm poking my head in to tell you about the Santa Hustle 5k that I ran in downtown Chicago on December 1st. It was an unseasonably 50+ degrees, which was warm enough for me to don a simple pair or shorts and a t-shirt. Over the years I've developed some thick, Wisconsin skin that helps me deal with the colder temps. Works wonders on days like that when you're outside from 8:00-11:30am!

Let me paint the scene for you - imagine standing atop a hill and looking out across a sea of 8,000 runners all decked out in red shirts, red hats and long, white beards. Huge, inflatable reindeer, snowmen and Santas also drape the landscape - not to mention the pen of REAL reindeer that showed up for the festivities as well! Welcome to the Santa Hustle - Chicago edition.

I find myself here because a couple months ago, a group of my co-workers decided to rally up some folks to run this all together. When all was said and done, 23 people had registered for this race! Some of which are avid, marathon and half-marathon runners, some of which are smokers who haven't run in who knows how long, and even some casual race runners who just want to have some fun.

Leading up to the race, I found myself flip-flopping on how I wanted to run this race. I could do one of two things. I could do what I do in every other race - push it and try to finish in the best time possible or I could fool around with my coworkers and not care what my time is. Up until the air horn blew, I was planning on having a fun time on the course. But once I started, I couldn't follow through with it. Too competitive, I guess.

Since I had made the decision to push it for this race, I abandoned the idea of visiting the sugar cookie and M&Ms stations along the route - which were fun, creative additions - but not something my body was really in the mood for. It was too busy getting angry at me for not training outdoors on concrete prior to the race - my shins really paid the price for that... I also ditched the beard at the start line and the hat around mile two.

I crossed the finish line a few seconds past 33 minutes - right around what I was aiming for. In part because I'd failed to run the entire week leading up the race. In the week before that, I would show up to the gym, hop on the treadmill and not have a training plan of any sort. So for me to expect anything faster than 11 minute miles would have just been straight up silly.

But I had a great time with my co-workers on this beautiful, Saturday morning! This is a race that was a lot of fun, and would definitely recommend it to everyone. They have a handful of these races all over the country in the month of December, so check it out! If nothing else, find the race near you and laugh at all the fools and their stupid costumes! I'm just glad our race was on December 1st and not the 22nd like in Milwaukee. Brr!

Come Along With Me

I hope this doesn't come off as being overly vain, but since I started my weight loss journey back in January of 2009, I've wanted to be able to document my progress (actual progress, not treading water) as I lose weight, and show people what I'm accomplishing, how I'm changing, and hopefully inspire some people along the way.

At first I tried doing weigh in updates on YouTube and then those eventually fell off when my progress slowed and eventually reversed. I tried joining challenges and contests on YouTube as well, thinking that it would provide a new kind of motivation and encouragement in an 'online community' sort of environment where like-minded people would push me in the right direction. Those would start off with enthusiasm and effort (and results!), but then also taper off before the contest would finish.

I've also joined weight loss Facebook groups with friends, hoping that our words of support and personal challenges would get me over the hump - but that just turned into a place for people to feel less guilty about admitting they had a terrible weekend (and gained 5 poiunds) and then still just recieved the "aww, you'll get 'em next time" type of response. Not helpful. And now finally, I've been using this blog as a means of sharing this part of my life with you.

To date, my progress during the life of this blog has been up and down at best. I'd sign up for races and then slack during my training, only to downgrade the race distance the week prior. I'd let you all know about how I'm embarking on this huge, 365-day transformation journey only to fizzle out in less than a week and hope you forgot about the original post.

So I don't blame any of you if you've stopped reading or paying attention to my sorry attempt at weight loss.

But this time it feels different.

Rather than trying to put myself on a diet that doesn't allow me to eat certain things (Atkins, South Beach, etc), I've begun making smart, lifestyle choices in my nutrition that I find to be much more sustainable and less restrictive and suffocating. Most of the time I try a diet, I find that the fact that I cannot eat certain things, makes me crave them even more. And as the pressure builds up, it's only a matter of time before I erupt and binge on things like fast food, soda, chips, etc. But now I realize the need for moderation and if I have chips, I just grab a handful, or I make a smart choice at the fast food restaurant (something I haven't had to face YET), or I just drink water instead of hitting up the break room fridge for Pepsi!

And making these smart, small choices every day gives me confidence in its potential sustainability. It also gives me a sense of pride that I can in fact do this without breaking, and momentum to keep moving in the right direction. And as you can see by my "Progress" stats below my picture on the right, so far so good!
The key will be to see how things continue once I'm two, three, six weeks down the road. It's been quite a while since I've been able to sustain constant weight loss for more than two weeks, so the moment of truth is still ahead of me. And if the day comes where I do end up binging on something, I need to have the control to realize it's only one day and get back on track right away. Unfortunately, I'm used to letting one bad day turn into a week of bad choices...

But I hope that your waning faith in me can be restored in the near future as you read about my progress - and hopefully see it physically as well (I'll be adding a stats page to this blog soon)!

Hyundai Hope on Wheels 5k - Chicago, IL

Sunday morning I made the frustrating trip downtown to participate in the Hyundai Hope on Wheels 5k, which was run in conjunction with the Chicago Half Marathon. The morning was complete with fanTAStic running weather, a decent course and a fun racing experience.

 

Now I say the trip was frustrating because parking was horrendous... Since the race started near Jackson Park, I was assuming I could park at the Museum of Science & Industry and make the reasonably short walk to the Start/Finish line. Well that's not how it played out.

Long story short, I thought I could easily get to the parking garage. After a half hour of driving around trying to access Lake Shore Drive, I was greeted with a "you'll just have to find a spot somewhere" answer from one of the parking monkeys rented out to direct traffic. I finally found a parking spot at 7:30 and had to hustle myself and my wife 1.2 miles to the Start line...

As we were approaching our destination, I could hear the race starter saying "We'll be starting in 30 seconds!" Oh boy... Unfortunately, I had to sprint off to the start line, leaving my wife to fend for herself until I was finished. I arrived (winded) about a minute and a half after the gun went off - in plenty of time since half the racers still had yet to cross the start line.

As I waited to cross the starting line, I tried to get my iPhone set to play some music - only to remember that I had removed all my music to make room for my podcasts...which do little to pump me up on a run. So I found my wife further up the road and handed off my phone and headphones...leaving me sans music for 3.1 miles. Great.

The race itself semmed to go by very quickly. Now, don't get this confused with my actual speed - I said it SEEMED to go quickly! :-) With such a large crowd, you were always surrounded by people. There were a couple ripples in the street (one of which nearly caused me to eat blacktop), but for the most part the course was pretty smooth. But of course you always have to watch out for what I call the "Abrupt Stoppers" who just all of a sudden move from a run to a walk right in front of you. Maybe I should just shorten my race time so I'm not forced to run with these folks!

In the end, I finished strong and cruised hustled past some folks on my way to the finish line (which always feels great!) The clock above me read 34:12, but I figured the initial 1:30 or so would be subtracted to land me in the 32:00 mark somewhere. But after checking the standings this morning, I found they still tagged me with the 34:12 - not enthused...

As always, they had ample food and drink after finishing and 5k runners even got a finishers' medal! I won't lie - I wasn't expecting that! To be honest, it made me forget about all the frustration with trying to park and make it on time!

After my race, Karin and I stuck around for a bit and watched our friend Vinnie finish the half marathon - always fun to watch people turn that last corner and see their eyes light up as they spot the finish line! There's just something about seeing people down the home stretch - just a fantastic, emotional moment we get to share with them!

However, there was a somber moment as the paramedics seemed to cart off a runner while doing chest compressions on him... I haven't seen any report of a death in Sunday's race, so I'm hoping that means he's alright. Does anyone know anything about this?

 

September Goals

Well here we are, with yet ANOTHER month behind us in 2012, and ANOTHER month closer to the end of the world as we know it (if you're Mayan). That means we're also at that time where I lay out my goals for this coming month.

I know, I know... I still have yet to reach many of my past, monthly goals. Believe me, I'm more disappointed about it than you are! At the end of each 30 days, it really is kind of depressing to see the lack of progress in my weight loss journey. But the past is the past, and I can only focus on today! So here we go!

1. This may sound crazy to some of you, but I really want to be able to do away with soda this month. Some days it is a really big struggle to stay away from the carbonation when it's free for the taking (and unlimited) here at work, so I really want to buckle down and eliminate that. Going to be tough!

2. I also am going to start incorporating weight lifting into my workout routine this month. Once my race is finished on Sunday, I'm planning on focusing more on full-body fitness rather than just being able to log enough miles for a race.

3. I'm also going to work out 5 or 6 days per week (Mon-Sat). Even if I have weird work hours due to international shows, there's still no reason I can't find time to sweat a bit.

4. I also want to improve my stature as a blogger (see previous post). Instead of simply reporting on my progress, I want to improve my knowledge in the realm of health and fitness and therefore will be reading articles and such, and will be giving my response/thoughts on facts or articles I read. Let's get some knowledge, people!

5. Oh yeah, and let's lose 15 pounds this month, shall we? (would take me down to 260)

I also made a YouTube video today talking about these as well, enjoy!

Improving My Blogging - and Yours!

Since I've been kind of M.I.A. on the blogging front lines lately, I've decided to do some research on how to up my online game. Of course there's the obvious things like, I don't know... ACTUALLY BLOG, but I found out some other interesting things as well. Naturally, I first had to do the obligatory Google search for "How to be a good blogger."

Ah, good laugh. It's reassuring to know that if I ever want to drop my prime gig as a blogger that I could easily find out how to be a good bartender. Definitely would make more money! I also think babysitting is in my near future, but that will be a mandatory vocation - since the kid will be my own! (And no, mother, this is not me announcing that we have a baby on the way!)

Anyway, one of the things that I read was that your blog should be aesthetically pleasing. This made me wonder if I should try a different layout/design of the blog. Thoughts? I like this layout because it allows me to have all these nifty things on the right side here, but I definitely like the layout of some of the more dynamic layouts. I can't decide...

Another key to good blogging is writing about a topic that you know, and that your readers will enjoy or find useful. I think this is where I need to improve. I've been doing a lot of running over these last few years, and I can tell you how I did or how I felt, but when it comes to giving tips and recommendations, I really don't think I could confidently give you credible words.

In that same vein, I also feel that once I am more successful with my weight loss and can actually post some respectable times in my races (and my YouTube viewers start reading), that people may see me as more of a credible source as well, rather than a guy who can make you laugh here and there. The goal is both!

So while I take an introverted look at my own blogging highs and lows, feel free to do the same with yours too! But I must say, the blogs I've been reading lately seem to be doing pretty well for themselves! For now, I just hope you stick with me on this journey - things will get much better soon!

Company Generosity - Good or Bad?

Now that I've been working at my current job for almost six months, I've come to see many of the perks of working for the company. But one of the aspects that I first considered as the best thing since a comfy desk chair, I've come now to view as a burden and curse.

 

 

As you can see, the company is more than generous with their supply of free snacks and drinks... The fridge is also full or MORE drinks as well as string cheese - LOTS of string cheese.

But here's the thing - turns out that some of my biggest temptations / weaknesses come in the form of things like Mountain Dew, Orange Crush and Sun Chips - things that are not in short supply here.

Now I'm not going to stand here and blame the company for my lack of weight loss - that'd be silly. But let's be honest...it'd be much easier for me NOT to eat / drink all these things if they weren't sitting there ready to be consumed.

So this is one of my main goals heading into this next month of the year (September) and in the future. To walk right past this closet and only focus on my lunch in the fridge and the water cooler in the corner.

Business Trip Highs and Lows

For my job, I sometimes get to take 2-5 day long trips around the country. Who knew being a webcasting engineer was so posh? Well, before you start ooh-ing and aah-ing, let me tell you that this latest trip was to the 'metropolis' of Bloomington, Minnesota. Hold your applause, please.

While the short trip (Wed - Thurs) was mostly work (who woulda thunk it?) - setting up cameras, checking microphones and testing our webcast stream, my coworker and I were able to get out of the hotel and visit the Mall of America for a whopping 5 hours! We walked around for the first two hours simply looking at all the different restaurants, shops and amusement park rides and logged almost 12,000 steps! Makes me wish I would have thought ahead and worn my running shoes rather than flip flops...

But unfortunately, the temptation to eat crappy food was prevalent due to the fact that we get a $50 a day just for meals - not to mention that one of the two lunches was paid for by a separate client... So while we were at the mall we stopped at Famous Dave's for some nice BBQ and  then moved onto Buffalo Wild Wings for some beverages - and sports, of course! And don't get me started on how tasty (and probably unhealthy) the other few meals were...

We also stopped at the Nike Store so I could check out a few things and drool uncontrollably over the running gear they had stocked to the celing. I could have walked out of there with a few, full bags of shoes, shorts, shirts and everything else they had! They also had a sweet decoration on their ceiling - dozens of racing bibs from all over the place. So cool!

But now I'm home and back to reality where I don't get to sleep in a king-sized bed by myself and my meals aren't paid for. And I'm also getting back to the gym! I'm looking to have another 365-Day Transformation update to you later this week! See ya then!



I'm A Cartoon!

So after selling my car this past weekend, I bought my wife an iPad. She's a graphic designer, so it's a huge asset to doing her work - and let's face it...these things rock! 

Well, the first day she had it she decided to do some doodling, and here's what she came up with!

That's me!!

It's always awesome to have supporters :)

365-Day Update - Day 8

Well it's been a little over a week since I started my 365-Day Transformation efforts, and there's been some progress to speak of!

Unfortunately I didn't get to the gym as much as I'd have liked to (or needed to with the half marathon coming up soon!), and I also ate more of the cruddy snacks at work than I wanted to. But when I stepped on the scale this morning, I had a pleasant surprise!

Day 1 Weight: 275.6
Day 8 Weight: 272.4*
(I'll take scale pics from now on)

Weight Lost (so far!): 3.2 pounds

In the Starting Blocks

On the heels of the Men's 100m Finals - all hail Usain! - I think the title of today's post is quite applicable.  By the way, can we all just stop a second and admit that he is ridiculous? Any time I watch his run my jaw just drops - so impressive.

Anyway, if you read my post from yesterday, you know that I am now 28 years of age and am embarking on a year-long journey (a la Chris Powell) to get to my sub-200 pound goal. So before I get started, I want to establish where I'm starting. I'm adjusting my feet in the blocks and getting ready to tear up the track. (But of course this isn't being treated as a sprint!)

This morning I took stock of where I find myself after a week of vacation and a week + of slacking on my half marathon training schedule. And it was worse than I thought.

If any of you follow me on YouTube, you'll know that I also just joined a couple of challenges - so to speak - that require me to make regular update/progress videos. In my initial videos for #CHANGE and "Hot 4 Halloween" I made a guess before vacation that I weighed around 270 despite having not seen a scale for a week prior to that. Well...I must have been wrong. Here are my starting numbers as of today:

Starting Weight: 275.6

Measurements (in inches):

I took some 'before' pictures that I will show you at the end of each three-month "Phase" (again with the Chris Powell comparison). I will also be giving short, weekly reports each Monday letting you know how my last seven days went - mostly statistical with a little analysis. I'll also have a running, weekly, weigh in tally in the upper-right portion of the blog.

I also want to note that I don't want to stray too far from the running focus of this blog, but that shouldn't be a problem since I'll be continuing my half marathon training this next month and using it as a huge part of my weight loss. My ultimate goal after all of this is done is to become a hardcore runner (like some of you!) and maybe even dabble in some du- or triathlons. Hmm? Hmm?

But let's take this one day at a time, k? I'll have my first progress post for ya on Monday.

A 365-Day Transformation?

On days such as this (my birthday), I find it hard not to evaluate the year that was, and the potential of the year to come. Unfortunately - and only due to a result of my own efforts - I haven't seen much progress in the health & fitness arena since I turned 27 last year. But I'll get back to this in a second...

The rest of my life, however, has changed quite a bit! Back in September of last year I married my wife and best friend, and in March I started my first, official full-time job in downtown Chicago (after a few years of freelance/part-time gigs). Even scored a new car last month! Just about every other aspect of my life has improved since my last birthday. So why not this last part?

Now don't get me wrong - this isn't me lamenting about how bad my life is AT ALL. I am so happy for all the blessings I have received between 8/6/2011 and 8/6/2012 and I wouldn't go back and do a single thing differently. As far as weight loss goes, the past is the past - and now it's time to only look at today and set goals for this next year of my life.

My primary verse for the next 365 days

I'm a big fan of Chris Powell and his show Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition on Sunday nights. Instead of a 'ranch' format of group training a la Biggest Loser, he takes on a client one-on-one for an entire year to completely transform them. Now I'm not looking to lose half of my body weight (thankfully I haven't let myself go THAT much), but I am going to aim for my goal weight by my birthday next year - so I have 365 days to do so.

So beginning tomorrow, I will weigh myself, take pictures and measurements and establish my official "starting (over)" position. More details will come in tomorrow's post pertaining to my plan on how I will approach the next 365 days.

Let me know what things have worked for you that you think I should include in my plan!

Out With the Old - In With the New!

If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen some of the recent pictures I posted about some some of the latest changes in my life - some small, some large - but all exciting! So let's walk through some of them, shall we?

1. New Glasses

Don't be decieved by the handsome decent picture on the left, but there is only one "ear thing" to those glasses and they're balancing on my nose. They were a couple of years old, falling apart and they'd fall off my face if I looked down. They were light as a feather, got broken quite easily and my astigmatism had already rendered them obsolete. It was time for a change - and I'm happy with the results (as you can tell by my smiling face on the right?)

2. New Running Shoes

This is a change I'd wanted to make a few months back, but I just had to wait for the right time. Every July, the local downtown area (it's a suburb, so downtown is relative) holds a Sidewalk Sale, and lots of the shops have some really good deals! So I visited the local running store ("Running for Kicks"), got fitted for some shoes, and came out with some sweet Mizuno Enigmas 20% off! I've only worn Mizunos since I started running in Jan '09, and I wasn't about to buy the Brooks that they were also offering me! And plus - who doesn't like a nice, flashy shoe?

3. New Car!

Alright, so this change is on a totally different level - we got a new car! Ok, it's pre-driven, but it's new to us! Unfortunately, I don't have a corresponding picture of my old piece of junk, but it's a black, '99 Nissan Altima with a roughed up head gasket, tires that need balancing (it shakes fiercely if I dare flirt with 60 mph) and A/C that only works at Level 4 (gale force winds) while Levels 1-3 don't deliver as much as an exhale. Either way, we needed the upgrade!

4. New Mindset

For these last three + years, I've always tried to convince myself that despite 'off' days, weeks or months, that I can always knock out my goal in a few months "if I just really went to it." Well obviously that's not the case.

With weight loss, it doesn't matter what you 'could do' - it only matters what you DID or ARE DOING. Nobody cares what you're going to do next week, they want to hear what you did at the gym this morning. So statements like "I should be 15 pounds lighter by my birthday next month" is worthless unless I can stand there on my birthday and say, "I just lost 15 pounds!"

Anyway, what I'm trying to drive at is that I'm abandoning my false pride about my ability to simply lose weight at will. When writing out weight loss goals, I would usually plan on being able to lose 6-10 pounds a week - HA! So the new mindset is aiming for 2-3 pounds a week and being ecstatic if the scale shows me more than that.

Once I get back from a week-long, outdoors vacation (filled with walking, swimming, canoeing, etc) my weekly video updates will be popping up again. So stay tuned!

Also, congrats to all those who knocked out the Rock N' Roll Half Marathon in Chicago this past Sunday. It's been fun reading your reports!

And So It Begins...

Well now that we've given away another half marathon registration, it's time for me to turn my focus elsewhere - training! Yes, I will also be running the Chicago Half Marathon (as I've mentioned), and my training schedule kicked off this week!

Now I won't lie - I'm a little more excited about this September 9th race moreso than the June 9th one I registered for (I ended up downgrading to the 5k due to imminent heat and lack of training). Don't get me wrong, the Allstate 13.1 Marathon Series was a fantastic event, I just wasn't as excited to run the actual race due to my lack of training -  the reason I'm more excited is because I have PLENTY of time to train for this race as opposed to the shorter timeframe I got before the June race.

This time around I'm trying a different kind of training schedule. In the past, I've used a schedule more or less derived from the Hal Higdon model. But this time I thought I'd try my hand (or feet?) at the Runner's World half marathon training schedule. I'm looking forward to it because it doesn't just give me a straight-up number of miles to run every day, but it incorporates interval running and different stamina exercises.

I've adjusted it slightly so that my longer days are on Saturdays, and I'm already looking ahead to the summer to make sure that I get my miles in despite some vacations and busy weekends. I'm 100% in on this program and I look forward to getting my miles logged, losing weight to get the pressure off of my worn out knees and PRing this race in September. Not to mention that it's been awhile since I've gotten to run a nice, long race in downtown Chicago!

What sort of half marathon training regimens have you used in the past, or are currently using? There are TONS of different things out there, and I'd love to hear about them!

Chicago Half Marathon Registration WINNER!

First off, thank you to everyone who entered the contest to win the free, Chicago Half Marathon registration giveaway! And thank you for letting me know what your favorite Summer Olympics events are! Unfortunately, I will be gone the whole, first week of the Games, so my DVR is going to get a work out! Here are some of your responses:

I loved some of your responses! Overall, I enjoy the Summer Olympics MUCH more than the Winter Games. I mean, come on - the pole vault beats figure skating any day of the week! :)

Anyway, here's the video that I made picking a winner. I had to overdub some audio since the sound didn't record on the first try... I'm an idiot...

Congrats to Carissa for winning the free registration! I'll get in contact with you via Facebook with the registration information. 

Stay tuned for more giveaways in the future!

July Goals!

Well, now that you've seen how I did on my June goals, I think it's time to step it up for the month of July. Some say I may have set my bar a little too high out of the gate, but I still think I underperformed and can do much better in July.

I think I'm really going to like this infrastructure I am setting up for myself - weekly (give or take a day) video updates/weigh ins coupled with monthly goals and report cards. I'd start looking forward to yearly events, but let's hope that I'm not fighting this battle for another three years and am just blogging about all the races I'm doing and PR's I'm setting! :)

But without further stalling ado, let's ring in the new month of July with another set of attainable goals (both fitness-related and otherwise)!

- Weigh 250 (or less) by my b-day (August 6!)*
- Drink at least 100oz of water per day
- Read one Runner's World & one Men's Health
- Start saving $$ for a new car
- Complete every day of my 1/2 marathon training schedule
- Join the "Plank a Day" movement
- Bigger social media reach

* NOTE: I will be gone on vacation from July 28-August 5, so I won't be able to weigh in until Monday, August 6th - my birthday!

For vacation, my wife and I will be heading up to Silver Birch Ranch in Northern Wisconsin. A place like this has rock climbing, kayaking, swimming, horseback riding and acres of land for hiking and exploring. I really want to get some of this weight off so I can enjoy some/all of these activities!

Anyway, let me know your thoughts on my second round of goals! What are some of your summer goals?

June 2012 Report Card

A few weeks ago I wrote a post listing some of my goals for the month of June 2012. Now that we've found ourselves in July, I figured it'd be a good time to step back and look at how I did! I'm going to be doing something like this each month using the title of "Report Card" - I think it'll be fun! Well...unless I end up with a big, fat "F"

Below I have listed the goals that I stated back towards the beginning of June. I've graded each individual goal (kind of like as if they were their own class in school). *GULP*

1. Lose 15-20 pounds so I can get myself back into the 250s - D+
2. Avoid all non-diet soda - B+
3. Be able to run 5 miles without stopping - C-
4. Gain 50 combined Twitter followers/YouTube subscribers/Facebook page 'Likes' - A-
5. Blog at least once a week - A
6. Read one Runner's World and one Men's Health - F


OVERALL: C

So let's walk through these in a little more detail, shall we?

1. I gave myself a D+ for losing weight because I have lost about 5 of those 15-20 pounds. Percentage-wise that probably warrants an F, but I know the effort I've been putting in lately. Definitely room for improvement!

2. I've been doing pretty decent on the soda, but a few times in the last month I gave into the orange Crush in the fridge at work. Free stuff is so hard to pass up sometimes!

3. I'm just kicking off my half marathon training, so the endurance isn't quite there yet for five miles. I've logged a lot of treadmill time in June, but wasn't pushing myself hard enough to increase endurance. Kind of just settled for the running/walking pattern.

4. These numbers SHOULD be easy to track, but then again, I failed to take note of where all the stats stood when the month started...whoops! I have, however, upped my Facebook and Twitter 'likes'/'follows' quite a bit, because I've seen all the notification emails that have come through my inbox. Thanks to everyone for joining me!

5. I think I've stayed pretty on top of this one. I think things here at the blog are really gaining some momentum, and I'm really looking forward to seeing the opportunities that come from this here site.

6. The closest I got to reading my mags was packing them in my backpack last weekend when we went camping. I have them on my person a LOT, but have never found myself unoccupied enough to bust them out and flip some pages.

Looking back, this month hasn't been anywhere near a TOTAL loss. I've made some solid steps forward, and plan to carry the progress over into July. And don't worry, I'll have a July Goals post up REAL soon! (Probably later today)

Half Marathon Giveaway 2.0

Well, well, well, what do we have here? By the title of this post, it looks like I have another free, half marathon registration to give away! So I'm guessing that's why you're here!

The folks over at the Chicago Half Marathon have graciously given me a free registration to hand out to one of my faithful readers. If you like downtown Chicago, the lakefront and running, then you may want to get your name in the hat for this (if you're not already signed up, that is).

The race takes place on Sunday, September 9th at 7:00am in Jackson Park and is the second leg of the Windy City Challenge (click for details). That means if you've already run the Allstate 13.1 Marathon Series race back on June 9th, you're elligible to get a THIRD medal for running that race and this one!

All you have to do to get your name in the running for this FREE registration is leave me a comment letting me know what sport you're most looking forward to in the upcoming Summer Olympics! I find it hard to narrow down one event, but after Beijing how can you not be looking forward to the men's 100m dash?! Usain Bolt is a beast!

Can't wait to give this away - I'll pick a winner on Sunday, July 8th!

Update + Camping Trip

So if you've "Liked" my Facebook page, you've already seen that I posted a picture today showing yesterday's read-outs from my Nike+ Fuel Band, my LiveStrong calorie counter, and my WeightBot app as well. This is something I want to do on a daily basis to keep myself accountable and also to show people my progress. I'll probably only be posting these pictures on my Facebook page (so all my Facebook friends don't get uber annoyed after a week and a half).

I've decided to do this because I have a tendency to avoid calorie counting on days that I mess up. I don't want to put numbers to the amounts of snacks I'm eating and the ounces of soda I'm downing. This way, I feel that I'll be forced not only to count my calories everyday, but to keep me more disciplined (since I have to report!). If you missed it, here's the picture:

I have a daily goal of 3,000 "Fuel Points" set for myself. Fuel points are more or less just a measurement of movement that Nike made up. (The band also counts calories and steps.) For me to hit my 3,000 goal, it usually needs a 30-60 minute jaunt on the treadmill in the morning, a couple pointed walks around the office and maybe a little extra walk or something at night. With a desk job, I feel this is a good number.

As for calories, I currently have my goal set at 1,800 calories per day. If that's averaged out over my three meals and snacks, it comes out to be about 450 calories each - not too shabby. Add in some burnt calories from exercise, and I'm in good shape! Definitely a number I can stick with.

Also, I get the privilege of going CAMPING this coming weekend! It's going to be fantastic to get away from the city and work for a while and just enjoy the great outdoors with my wife and some of our friends. Unfortuantely, the temperatures for the Indianapolis area are forecasted to be between 95-100 everyday...guess we'll be swimming a lot!

I'm really looking forward to being outside and utilizing the opportunity to be active and burn some major calories. A great majority of my workouts have been in the gym (except for a few outdoor runs), so it'll be nice to take advantage of it. I'm bringing a football along, we'll be swimming, and hopefully some hiking as well! Once I get back I'll make sure to share some pictures and stories! And the amount of weight I lost in the process!

P.S. Stay tuned for another HUGE giveaway today or tomorrow!

Weekly Update #2

If you haven't heard, I'm doing weekly progress updates on my YouTube channel. Now I've tried doing this type of thing before, but I would just cowardly fade away once I started doing poorly. Let's not let that happen this time around, shall we?

Anyway, I'm just about done with quite the whirlwind of a week, and unfortunately it took a toll on my activity levels and discipline along the way. Had a wrench thrown in my routine - had to take a personal day off of work due to a death in the family, was asked to work from home twice this week, and even worked from a different office for a day. All these things threw curveballs at me and I wasn't ready.

When I can settle into a routine and know ahead of time what I have coming up, it gives me a better chance to plan out my meals and gym times. When things get kind of hectic and are thrown off-kilter, it gives me less time and warning to plan things out. With less time to plan, I'm more susceptible to giving in to spontaneous temptations (snacking, sleeping in) and therefore sabotaging my goals.

But the B-Side of that is that when I DO give in to the temptations of immediate gratification, I continue to give in the next time, and the time after that - each instance where I display a lack of discipline makes it easier to give in the following time. That's where the change needs to happen.

I mean, let's face it - no one rarely anyone can keep on point 100% of the time. We all mess up at one time or another! It's how we respond to that lapse in discipline that defines our journey and self-control. For me, it's been a week of good, followed by a bad Saturday, followed by a bad week, which turns into two weeks... You get the point.

That is the piece of the puzzle that I need to figure out for when these lapses come. Once I learn to stop the bleeding once the cut occurs, I'll be in great shape when the next temptation comes around.

90 Degrees Ain't Got Nothin' On Me

So if you leave in, near, or around Chicago, you'd have to be an Eskimo living in some wonder-of-technology igloo to not know that it's mighty warm this week. I'm talking it's so hot, that you have no choice but to learn how to drive with two fingers because your car steering wheel is so hot. It's brutal.

Yeah, that's the kind of day that I decided to do some track runs at the local high school - out of doors. I got this grand idea on my drive home from work, for some reason, and fueled it by looking up some different types of workouts one can do on a track. Here's the one I decided to 'go' with:

1) Walk one, warm-up lap
2) Jog three laps very easy
3) Walk one lap
4) Run two laps at a fast pace
5) Walk one lap
* Repeat entire thing twice
6) Walk the curves and sprint the straights
*Repeat for two laps

So this routine looked mighty good on paper when I was sitting in the comfort of my home, but once my feet hit the track and sun beat down on me, things kind of changed. Here's what I ended up doing instead...

1) Walk one, warm-up lap
2) Run 3 laps at a pace faster than I'm used to (since I can't run a steady pace outdoors)
3) Suck down some water
4) Walk one lap
5) Run 2 laps at the same pace as #2, maybe slower
6) Walk one lap
7) Down more water
8) Run one lap
9) Walk one lap
10) Walk straights and "sprint" curves (for 3 laps)
11) Run one lap at 7.5 mph
12) Drink more water
13) Stumble to car and drive home
14) Take freezing cold shower

Ok, so maybe things didn't work out as I had planned, but I was glad to do something different for a change. Running on the treadmill day in and day out gets a little monotonous after a while, and apparently running in the comforts of a building with AC was getting old too.

This was also the first time I synced my Nike+ GPS app to Facebook and had friends 'cheer' me on as I ran. It was kind of cool that whenever someone commented on my post online, it played applause and cheering into my headphones - so thanks to those who did so!

Also, I made a stop at the local Jewel and scored some protein powdah (Boston accent). Looking forward to seeing what benefits I can reap from using that!

I know some of you have been braving the heat to get some runs here and there - more power to you! I now know what that all entails - whew!

Win Free Mizuno Shoes...Maybe

So Mizuno contacted me and sent me a link about this new project they're doing. Instead of spending millions in advertisement dollars, they're going to be giving away thousands of pairs of Mizuno running shoes to runners from now until the end of the year in hopes of giving runners a "mezamashii" feeling while running (Japanese for 'eye-opening, brilliant').

They're also wanting bloggers and social media enthusiasts (like me) to get the initial word out about the project.

My current running shoes - Mizuno Wave Inspire 6

Since the only pairs of running shoes I've ever owned have been Mizunos (no, seriously), I applied for a free pair in hopes of being a part of the project. And you can too!

If you're interested in possibly scoring a free pair of shoes (I mean really, who wouldn't?), here is the link to follow: www.mezamashiirunproject.com Also, those who receive invites into the secret club and get some free shoes also get to send out invites to others!


So really what I'm trying to say is, "If you've already received an invite, PICK ME, PICK ME!"

15 Down, 65 to Go!

Let's say you're on a cross-country road trip. It's a long drive, right? So naturally you find little things along the way to make the trip feel shorter. For me, I would celebrate whenever I crossed a state line. A few summers ago I took a three-month road trip for my alma mater and covered 18 states and one Canadian province. And along the way we took pictures of each, new state sign we encountered. It broke up the trip, made it more fun and made it MUCH more manageable.

And there's something to be said about this for weight loss as well. When you're staring down the barrell of a huge number of pounds that you want to lose, it's quite easy to feel intimidated, hesitant and scared. But when you set checkpoints along the way where you can celebrate, it makes the journey (as I said in the last paragraph) more manageable.

Which is why I'm writing this post! I hit the 15 pounds lost mark this morning, and it makes me feel really, really good. Sure, I've been lighter than this before during my weight loss efforts, but it's very affirming to see that my hard work is paying off once again. Now I just can't wait to see 20! Hopefully I'll have a good update for you on that number again next week.

Every five pounds lost is definitely something to celebrate, and I hope you're able to do that as well if you're on a weight loss journey. Heck, every pound is a success! What are some of your checkpoints and 'state signs' along your way? How do you celebrate these smaller accomplishments on your way to your final goal? Or if you've already reached your goal, what tools and rewards did you use to keep yourself motivated and moving in the right direction?

Setting Up My Summer Plan

Well now that my 'big race weekend' is behind me, it's time to focus on what REALLY needs the appropriate attention - losing the weight.

I've actually set sort of an 'unofficial goal' of September 1st as the date that I'd like to really make strides in my weight loss efforts. I don't want to assign a specific goal weight to this date, but since that is me and my wife's anniversary weekend, I'd love to be able to look back on our first year of marriage and see the healthy changes that I was able to make - for the better. And I want to be able to share a 'before and after' comparison with you using my wedding photo!
So what kind of plan am I going to put into place to make 'skinny Jordan' a possibility? That's a good question...

I think I've gotten to the point where I've almost read TOO much material on workout plans. Like dieting, it seems like everyone has their own method that's worked for them, and swears that it'll 'work for everyone!' So understandably, I'm kind of confused as to what might work best for me.

My goals are to not only lose six dozen pounds, but also to slim down my wasitline, flatten my gut, deflate my thighs and get some solid arms and shoulders. I also want to vastly improve as a runner!

But first things first. One day at a time. Sure, I have lots of goals, but they're all going to take time to accomplish. Another goal is to make weekly videos updating you on my progress. I'll videotape my weigh in, talk about my week's accomplishments and failures and give you an insight into my mind and how I'm handling the hard work that lies ahead of me. I'll also take measurements every few videos and post them here as well.

So I would love it if you checked back here on a weekly basis to see the progress that will be happening on this site. I'm excited to share my journey with you and show you what I'm capable of. And if you have any workout program tips, please let me know!

Karhu 5k - June 9, 2012

Well race day was Saturday, and as some of you may know, I decided to downgrade to the Karhu 5k, which was the partner race of the Allstate 13.1 Marathon. While I use the heat warnings as my first reason for switching, the reality is that I simply wasn't prepared to run a half marathon - heck, I even struggled at the 5k. And while I may say that I was given short notice that I would be able to register for the half, the truth is that I didn't put in as much time/miles as I could have.

But I'm also using this weekend as a learning experience.

When a challenge is thrown your way, sometimes you can't afford to doubt, second-guess or delay. Sometimes you need to get your helmet on, lower your shoulder and plow forward towards whatever challenge awaits you. When I registered for the half marathon, I knew it was less time than the 12-week training plan I have, and I knew I'd have to bust my rump to get my miles in.

So I think I caved under the knowledge that I'd have to work hard, which isn't a good thing. I seem to have treated my training as a lost cause - even before I began. Reality is that I definitely could have gotten in shape to run 13.1. Maybe not well enough to run a good time, but to at least finish.

So what's the answer to this problem? I think I'm just going to 'simply' work my tail off to get this weight off, get my running legs in good shape and be ready for whatever challenge is thrown at me next.


Mark (30:05), Jacob (30:13) and I (33:21) before the Karhu 5k

But enough of my rambling introspection, I'm sure you're wondering how the 5k went, right? Well, I didn't set any records by any means, but I finished in 33:21. And all in all, I had a great time with Mark and Jacob - the two guys I was able to give the free registrations to (Mark: half marathon but also switched to 5k; Jacob: 5k). The race course was so-so (we literally flipped a U-Turn on the sidewalk/running trail), but the after-race party was fun! The cover band was entertaining, the free Michelob Ultra was tasty and the Lou Malnati's pizza was a great breakfast!

Once I edit it together, I'll post my video from the day as well.

On the negative side, I was quite bummed that I missed the blogger meet-up by only a few minutes! I was hoping I'd be able to add a picture of all of us in this post as well, but alas... it didn't happen. I also wasn't able to catch any of you on the course in the half hour I stood around and watched more runners come in. Seems like you all had a great time, though! (Also, it turns out that Sara finished about 30 seconds ahead of my wife's uncle!)

My congratulations go out to everyone who finished the half marathon or 5k on Saturday! And I hope to meet up with some of you sooner than later!

Time to Get A Raise!

I was reading this article on Yahoo! and I knew I just had to say something about it, especially due to recent observations at an on-site gig I had for work. I won't go into everything in the article because I think it's an interesting piece to read for yourself, but I'll touch on a couple things.

First off, I went to a Chicago company this week to do an on-site video gig for work. (I obviously am not going to give details since what we do is 100% top secret and confidential...not really.) The is my second time we've visited this company, and the first time I was there a co-worker and I both commented on how fit and attractive 90% of the employees are.

We wondered: "Are there health/fitness incentives at this business?" "Do they only hire beautiful people?" "All they do is sit on the phone all day, why does it matter how attractive the employees are?"

We were baffled at what we saw. But after reading this article, maybe this company knew a thing or two about who to hire and why.

Fit, attractive people tend to be more confident than overweight, self-conscious people. FACT. Being healthy boosts mental function. FACT. In shape people are usually in a better mood. FACT

So why wouldn't a company want to hire people like this? It makes perfect sense! And it makes sense that if someone were to go from "flab to fab" while employed at a company, that their productivity and attitude would increase, thus possibly earning them a raise.

Not that I'm complaining concerned about how much I'm currently making (especially since my amazing wife just landed a great job of her own - so proud of her!), but if getting to the gym and losing some weight magically makes the numbers on my paycheck higher, than I think it's worth trying!

What do you think? Do you think that this supposed link between fitness and salary is legit? Or even better, have you been a beneficiary of this study as a result of your fitness?

My (Slightly Belated) June Goals

One of my reoccuring downfalls on my weight loss journey has been setting all my final, big picture goals up front and then rarely setting smaller, more bite-sized goals along the way. As a result, every time I stumbled on my diet or gain a few pounds here or there, I saw my progress through the lens of the larger goal and found myself getting discouraged because I had "such a long way to go", and would forget that one, bad day doesn't ruin everything and that I just needed to forget yesterday's failure and focus on winning today. I've never been good at that...

So in an attempt to combat this cycle from rearing its ugly head anymore, I'm going to take some time at the beginning of each month to set some goals for myself for the upcoming 30 days. I think I'll give a few, different kinds of goals: weight, nutrition, activity and maybe something unrelated to weight loss.

Before I get into my June goals, let me backtrack a little and talk about May. My efforts - on a scale of 1 to 10 - probably registered only about a 4.5 last month. I had a couple weeks where I ate well and got to the gym 4-6 times a week, but the other half of the month I avoided the gym, at donuts for breakfast and enjoyed way too much soda. However, I still managed to lose 8-10 pounds last month despite my efforts not to, haha.

For June, I've found a new source of motivation to help me through the summer. Some of the women at work started a Biggest Loser type of contest and asked me to join! The prize is yet to be determined, but I'm still really excited about it. I'll get more into that at a later date. On to the goals!

By July 1st, here are some things I want to say I've accomplished:

- Lose 15-20 pounds so I can get myself back into the 250s
- Avoid all non-diet soda
- Be able to run 5 miles without stopping
- Gain 50 combined Twitter followers/YouTube subscribers/Facebook page 'Likes'
- Blog at least once a week
- Read one Runner's World and one Men's Health

I like the list I've put together here! They encompass a lot of the different areas I want to work on and allow me to make smaller steps forward in all of them! I'll lose weight, develop healthier habits by dropping soda, work towards my goal of 'being a runner,' improve my online presence and gain knowledge my reading! Man, I love these!

So there ya go! Let me know your thoughts on my goals, and I want to know what YOU want to accomplish in June! I'm real pumped about this, can't you tell? :)

5k Giveaway - For You!

UPDATE: Congrats to Jacob Smith (no relation to Will) on claiming the free 5k registration for Saturday! Hope to see you there!

So I'm not kidding when I say that this needs to be taken care of A.S.A.P! If the title drew you to my post, then you're obviously interested in running a FREE 5k - so read on!

On this Saturday, June 9th, not only will the 13.1 Marathon Series kick off in Chicago at 7:00am, but the Karhu 5k will follow soon after at 7:40am! And I have one, free registration coupon for anyone who is up for the challenge!

So if you're interested in grabbing up this free and fun race, I will give the registration away to the FIRST PERSON who sends me an email at jordan.huenink@gmail.com - so hurry! Once I receive your email, I will promptly send you the registration site and coupon code so you can sign up. Keep in mind - you must register before Wednesday! So do it right away! Here's a short clip from last year's Karhu 5k in Chicago. I'm not sure how this guy (I'm assuming it's a guy) could run a race in that costume. It's gotta be muggy in there!

Also, not only is the half marathon and 5k occurring this weekend, but Allstate's partnering with the non-profit organization Give Your Sole to give runners a chance to touch others' lives by donating moderately-used running shoes. The shoes will then be passed on to Breakthrough, an organization that provides shelter, meals and other services to homeless men, women and families throughout the city.

If you're interested in donating some shoes, you may drop off your old 'kicks' at Fleet Feet Chicago when you pick up your race-day packet, or at the Finish Line Festival following the half marathon. Also, if you're a Chicago Bears fan (which I am not - Go Pack!), rookie Shea McClellin will be at the Finish Line Festival encouraging donations from runners and spectators.

All in all, Saturday is gearing up to be a great day! Although, I do see that the forecast does call for upwards of 90 degree heat... As a not-in-good-enough-shape guy who has to trudge 13.1 miles, this forecast is quite scary and daunting. But as always, that temperature number could change before then!

Can't wait to see who I can give the free 5k registration to!

Wacky Wednesday Post (on Friday)

NOTE: I began writing this post on Wednesday and didn't finish it until today (Friday). So get off me about it, alright? :) Now on to your regularly-schedule programming...

Don't be alarmed - there will be a minimal amount of wackiness in this post. I just wanted to use my alliterative (?) genius in my post title. And I'm pretty sure I achieved my goal. However, I promise you that no whack will emerge because I am deciding that before I really get into my post.

Now some of you may be thinking (if you're still reading), "So what if there's a little wacky in this post? It's hump day!" Ah, but you're missing the point. The point isn't that this is a wack-less post. The place of emphasis is that I determined that fact ahead of time.

I see some of you still haven't gotten it. It'll come around soon. Promise.

I've found that a giant part of weight loss is having a plan. It's about anticipating a curve in the road, and effectively preparing your vehicle for what may lie ahead. It's about deciding things ahead of time. (Ding! Light bulb!)

Staying with the analogy, sometimes despite all planning you get a flat tire on your journey. Here's where determination and keeping your eye on the final goal is crucial. At this time you have to make a decision - fix your flat tire and keep on moving forward only slightly hindering your momentum and progress OR slash another tire...or two...or three on your own by feeling defeated, sad or angry about your one flat tire. I am very much guilty of doing the latter...it's part of my cycle actually.

So I suppose it all comes down to mindset. When that first tire gives way - be it in the form of sleeping in vs. a morning run, a burger vs a turkey sandwich, or a donut for breakfast vs a granola bar - it's very important not to give in to the setback and create further setbacks (as I've been doing this week). The key is taking a step back and reminding yourself why you're on this road in the first place and remind you of how gorgeous your final destination is going to look once you get there.

So why not fix that one, flat tire and get back up to speed? Maybe I should take some of my own advice sometimes...

Half Marathon Training - Week 5

Apologies for not keeping y'all updated on my training, but to be honest, there isn't a ton to update you on.

I've been approaching this round of training as, "I need to lose the weight to be able to build up my endurance, but I need to run for long periods of time in order to lose the weight." Kind of a fun, cruel Catch 22. But I just finished up a solid week of running & nutrition, and it showed on the scale. Now the ever-present struggle to have a second, consecutive good week and keep decreasing that horrid number on the scale. Not one of my natural strengths. But I'll address weight loss more later!

As far as running goes, I'm probably taking it way too slow as I step back and take a look at it. I've been trying some interval training in efforts of zapping fat and getting my heart rate up; I've been trying to knock out longer chunks of mileage at a slower pace just to say that I got my miles in; and some days I just jack up the incline on the treadmill and walk up hill on days that my energy is low. And some days it feels like I'll never be able to run long distances at a consistent rate...but I'm used to fighting my defeatist self.

Last night was the first time ever that I thought about giving away a race registration to a runner more prepared than myself. But after taking a minute to contemplate it, I felt I should continue since this registration was given to me - and I was able to give a fellow runner a registration as well. Wouldn't feel right to back out at this point, even if I foresee this race being a rough one...

Weight Loss: I had a good week last week, as you can see by my numbers right under my picture. However, this week hasn't started off the greatest, and I only foresee temptation rearing its ugly head more and more as this week goes on. Some days it just comes down to me knowing what to do yet neglecting to do so - but I've been there and talked about that already.

In other news, an acquaintance of mine (who also just became a trainer at my gym of choice) offered to help train me this summer for what I understand as free. He used the words "I'm not in it for the money" and "I can see you're very committed since I see you here everyday" and even offered to take the sessions to the nearby college campus (which I attended and where he currently coaches soccer). I think I'm going to take him up on his offer hopefully starting the week after the half marathon. Hope the offer still stands in a month!

All in all, this whole journey is just one, big cliche about taking it one day at a time and keeping my eye on the prize. Some days and weeks it comes easily with great reward while other weeks it seems almost impossible to attain and discourages the heck out of me. Hopefully I can turn this week into Door #1 by week's end.

Hope all is well in the Chicago running-verse. Talk at you later!