This run was exciting!  I ended up with bib #76, and finished in 33:25, which is a 10:22/mile pace (the course was actually around 3.2 miles).  This was a PR for me for distances greater than 3 miles.  I actually passed and came in ahead of one of the NCO academy instructors.  (I don't think she was racing me, but I was racing her - heh)

Not sure what my next run will be.  We'll be out of town for the Cherry Garcia run, so it may be the Chunky Monkey.  It'd be cool to do that a year after I did it the first time, and see how much faster I could get it done.

p.s.  Sorry this this is a little delayed - I couldn't get logged in to Active.com over the weekend.  I figured Monday morning would fix the problem, and I wasn't wrong. 

Sponsorship Needed - see paragraph 2!  My next race will be the 1st Annual Kirtland AFB Top 3 Fundraiser 5K.  This volunteer organization is made up of the top 3 enlisted ranks in the Air Force, and does volunteer work to benefit the entire enlisted population.  They offer scholarships, put on programs such as Supper and Stripes (a dinner where volunteers sew new ranks on junior enlisted members' uniforms for free), and encourage professionalism for enlisted members.  The race itself is a 5K that meanders through the streets of a former base housing area.

This is my first race that I've run that needs sponsorship.  They have a specific goal in mind, but I won't put that out here because I don't know how many runners they have; that will impact what they need per runner.  If you are interested in sponsoring me, please e-mail me and let me know.  Once you do, I can get you further information on how to get those funds through me to the Kirtland AFB Top 3.

This past year has been a year of change for my fitness and health.  Nearly a year ago, I began a military training class at 211 pounds.  Over the course of the 6-week class, I got down to 195.  I lost another 4 pounds a month later when I had some wisdom teeth removed.  In September, I injured my back, and put those 4 pounds back on.  Through the winter holidays, I put on another 3 pounds.  I lost a few pounds, but I was stuck between 195 and 197.  In April, I did a two-week liquid diet (protein shakes and soups), which broke me out of that rut, and took me down to 186.  As of this morning, I'm now down to 184, and the liquid diet has shrunk my appetite so that I'm eating at most half of what I used to at each meal.

Over the course of this year, during the periods of training, my focus has been on short-term goals - lose 1-2 lbs/wk.  I've been thinking about what I wanted to select as a "high-water mark" - a weight that I do not want to ever be over again.  I'm not planning on making any major changes in my training and diet, and I'm sure that my weight loss will slow.  I've selected 175 as my first high-water mark, and set as a goal being that weight by my birthday, September 14th.  That will put me at 3 lbs/month loss; along with running speed work and endurance, and body-weight-resistance strength training, I believe that's a reasonable rate of loss.

I also have performance-related goals for my running.  By July 1st, I want to be able to do 1.5 miles in 14 minutes.  (That's a requirement of my employer.)  As long-term goals yet without dates, I'd like to do a 5K in 30 minutes, then a 10K in 60 minutes.  All 3 goals involve running approximately the same pace, just for a longer period of time straight.

Why am I making this public?  Well, first, I'm excited about the progress I've made; I'm in better shape than I've been in 10 years.  Second, by making it public, it makes it a lot tougher for me to change them (to make them easier, anyway).  So, to summarize, my fitness goals as they currently stand:

• July 1st - 14:00 1.5 miles
• September 14th - 175 lbs (-9 from today)
• Long-Term - 30:00 5K
• Long-Term - 60:00 10K

I'll post updates as these deadlines arrive.

I completed my second 10K this morning, running the inaugural Dam to Dam Run to benefit .  Brent's Place is a set of apartments in Denver, Colorado, meticulously maintained to prevent infection, where families with children with severe medical conditions (cancer, transplants, etc.) can live together during important times in their life.  I had never heard of them before signing up for the race, and hadn't really heard about them until the start of the race.  It was nice to know that most of my registration fee goes to helping these folks do their great work.

On the performance side, I beat my Chunky Monkey (CM hereafter) time by 3:22.  This was especially exciting because the CM course was pretty much flat, and this course was more like a cross-country course.  I ran sub-12 minute miles at this distance for the first time.  It wasn't an easy run, but I was exhilarated when I turned the corner towards the finish line and saw the clock.

Starbucks, Keva Juice, and Great Harvest Bread were three of the sponsors of the event.  I felt better after this one than I did after CM, and the water, bread, 1/2 pint of chocolate milk, and bold coffee really hit the spot.  Plus, during the awards ceremony, they picked some runners at random to give a door prize.  When they called out 102, it took me a second to realize that was me!    I got a pair of sport socks that are themed from Brent's Place - a picture of them is at the end of this post.

Up next, I'm still undecided.  The next Athlete's Edge run is a trail run - not quite sure I'm ready for that, but not unsure either.  We'll have to see how that goes.

Come 1 Sep, I'm going to register for the Dam to Dam Run 2009.  This route for this run starts at Tramway and Academy, and goes north along the dams on the arroyos coming down from the Sandias.  There's a 200-foot gain throughout the run (and a 200-foot loss, as the course is an out-and-back), so this should be a bit of a challenge, especially the hill between miles 2 and 3.

I'm looking forward to this, as I had to miss the race I was going to do on August 16th due to my wisdom tooth extraction.  You Albuquerque people, come out and join me!  Registration is open until September 3rd.

I have now finished my first 10K!  It was quite warm, though a little wind and cloudcover made it not quite at hot as it could have been.

I had settled in to my place in the group, and then the 5K runners caught us.  It wasn't particularly pleasing to be passed by hundreds of people who weren't even sweating yet!  However, I told myself that my goal was to finish, and I did.  I didn't feel particularly excited or pumped when I crossed the finish line, which surprised me - this morning, though, I do feel much better about it.

My oldest 2 sons also did the Kids K - both of them ran the entire way.  I was very proud of them.

My next race will probably be the Albuquerque Cross-Country Classic 3 on 16 Aug 09, assuming my wisdom tooth surgery recovery is as quick as they've said it should be.

I got registered for the 10K I had decided to attempt first! I tried to register online yesterday, but the 10K wasn't showing available anymore. Through some research, I saw that you could register in person. I went by The Athlete's Edge, and there was room! I was able to pick up my materials right there as well. Here's the t-shirt that I got...

And, I feel so official - my number!

The race starts at 1900 (7pm) tomorrow evening. I'm excited, and a little nervous.

Welcome to my new fitness blog.  This will be a spot for me to record happenings in my continuing adventures in fitness.

I've had a love/hate relationship with fitness - I enjoy the way I feel when my fitness level is up, but I don't always feel motivated to keep myself in that shape.  It's had a negative affect on my career (I'm military), and I've decided that enough is enough.  I recently got myself within the standards that my branch of the military has set, but I'm not going to stop there.  My goal is to be able to pass their test any day they come to me and tell me that it's time.

To keep myself motivated, I'm going to register for a 5K - 10K  at least once per quarter - this will help me make sure that I always have a goal no more than 3 months away.  I'll be doing my first one before my birthday, which is September 14th.