Take care of yourself

I'm no different in that I got into running through a marathon, initially, but it's way overrated as a starter goal and counter-productive in a lot of cases. People want to go whole hog right off the bat. It's just the mentality. Thus, people invite the kind of overuse/pounding injuries that you (rightfully) fear. People also tend to use the Hal Higdon beginning marathon training program, which leaves people severely undertrained and makes the event an absolutely miserable experience. It certainly was for me - in 2001, I finished in 5 hours and 5 minutes. The last four miles were excruciating. Same the next year. It's why people think the marathon has to be this agonizing experience. If you're racing it, you should be in some discomfort down the stretch or else you left some out on the course. But if you are running it off a peak of 40 miles per week, per Higdon's program, you are pretty much guaranteed agony.

I have a co-worker who ran a half in 3 hours, 20 minutes, and then for some ungodly reason decided to sign up for an Ironman Triathlon. She can't even run an 11-minute mile. She did a local, shorter triathlon and the police had to chase her off the course because she was taking too long. Now, as far as I can tell, she has largely given up exercise altogether for now because she was discouraged. She's 30.

People have this idea that you have to go all-out, right away, or nothing at all. People also have the wrong-headed idea that longer necessarily means better or more challenging.

 

Day 40. I've taken off two days, one after day 30 and Valentine's Day.

It was hard to do a dozen pushups when I got to that day, but now I can crank out 20 without a problem. That doesn't sound like much, but it's a damn sight better than when I started this. I hope that as I go on, I can continue to get to half of that day's total in one set.

When it's over, I might continue to do 100 of each three or four times a week just as a little extra to regular gym workouts.

Weight today: 190.2, the best I've been in eight months or more. I'm trying to resist the siren call of our multitude of Girl Scout cookies.

 

I forgot. What weight did you start at a couple months ago?

 

Ate like a pig during 10 days in Europe but also walked a lot (as much as 15 kilometres a day) and still managed to lose weight.

Walking is good for you.

Here ends today's episode of "No Shit, You Stupid Head."

 

That's been my experience pretty much every time I've been to Europe.

 

Relatedly, I've booked my first pedicure for tomorrow afternoon. I got the "beer pedicure" for men. Please stand by.

 

You can probably get a mimosa if you ask.

 

Dick.

Apparently they soak your feet in beer. I'm assuming it's Coors Light. My feet will improve the taste.

 

Made a rare appearance at the gym and did some weight work for the first time in ages.

15 minutes of curls, forearm curls, shoulder shrugs and machine press.

5 minutes of ropes (6 sets of 50 — 3 slow, 3 fast)

10 minutes of sledgehammer/tire (6 sets of 25 — 3 right, 3 left; 2 sets of 25 one-armed — 1 each with left and right)

Finished with 8 minutes of walking with 20-pound kettle balls.

 

Dude, they're still called testicles even after you've worked out.

 

201, or slighly heavier. At my heaviest, probably 210 or a little less. Until a few years ago, I'd never been heavier than 180. Good fighting weigh for me is the 165-170 range. With my build at 5'10", I look gaunt when I weight less than that.

 

Just did 2 miles of incline walking. Day off so it felt good to get in two workouts. Will feel bad tomorrow, though. #old