I decided to try this workout going into the winter season here in Denver because you just never know what the weather may bring you.  In, fact February was the second snowiest February on record in Denver.  So I order the video because I wanted to keep in shape during those dog days of winter.  Once I get it, I’m actually excited and looking forward to actually doing the workout.  First of all, there’s NO EQUIPMENT to buy.  It’s all cardio all the time.  The first thing you do is a fit test to see where your conditioning is at.  Being a runner, I felt that I was in pretty decent shape, but this test kicked my ass.  There are 8 exercises in which you have 1 minute to do as many of each as you can.  You have switch kicks, power jacks, power knees, power jumps, globe jumps, suicide jumps (or Burpee’s), push up jacks, and low plank obliques.  Of course you do get a slight rest period in between each exercise.  The idea is that the next time you do these moves, you improve, and there are 5 scheduled tests within the 60 day period.  The first time I did the test, I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I did slack a bit.  I know, I’m lame.  By the time the last test came around, I was looking forward to seeing how much I improved.  Here are my results from the first test to the 5th.

Switch Kicks – 100 / 135

Power Jacks – 34 / 58

Power Knees – 65 / 97

Power Jumps – 25 / 53

Globe Jumps – 8 / 13

Suicide Jumps – 8 / 12

Push up Jacks – 14 / 28

Low Plank Obliques – 52 / 60

When you see the video, there are 2 other people doing the test, and they are people that obviously know the program and have been doing it.  By my last time, I was beating them on some of the exercises.

So from there you 4 types of workouts for the first 30 days.  Each workout is designed to test your limits and to work different areas of the body.  It’s not all just jumping jacks and running in place.  When you turn on the first video and do the warm up, your thinking, “that’s the warm-up?  I’m exhausted!”  You definitely get your heart rate going just doing the warm up.  Speaking of that, if you have a heart rate monitor, you should wear it.  I used it and relied on those readings to tell me how hard I was working.  If I was huffing and puffing, but my heart rate was only 125, I knew I wasn’t working that hard.  If I got to 150, I knew I was working it.

After 4 weeks, you get a recovery week.  Some of you may get to this point and say that you don’t need it, but take it anyways.  Your body needs to build itself back up, and you are actually getting stronger while resting.

The next 30 days you have 5 new videos to test your limits and abilities.  Although they are not any easier, by this time your body has adapted to pushing itself and you actually look forward to seeing how well you can do.  But beware, you will have setbacks.  Everybody does.  Everyday life gets in the way whether it’s your kids, your job, your ex-wife, bills, etc.  You may have to take 2 steps back, but that’s OKAY as long as you get back in it.  I actually got sick for a couple of days and didn’t work out at all.  But once I felt better, I got right back in it.

If you stick with it, it will be worth it.  If you push yourself, you will see the results in the mirror.  If your eating a doughnut while watching the video, then this is obviously not for you.  If your interested in getting the video, contact me at BeachBody and I will be happy to help you get the results that you’ve always wanted.

Running community – Ohioan’s are serious about their longer distance runs.  I ran in a 5K last week, and there were about 25 of us!  I signed up for a half marathon that is on May 5th, and last year they had over 6,000 runners!  I was told that 5K’s don’t do well here, but that is a big number for a half marathon.  I joined a running group that’s sponsored by the local running store, and they run every Saturday morning and they even provide water out on the course!  And it’s free.  They also do a Thursday night run which I haven’t been to yet, but hope to make it soon.

Dogs – When I was out for my run last Saturday, we went through some neighborhoods where people were out walking their dogs.  And every single dog was black (and every single person walking the dog was white).  In Denver there seems to be more of a mix.

People – speaking of people, I have noticed that people are friendlier here and will actually look at you and say “Hi” when you walk by.  In Denver, they have their earplugs in and pretty much ignore you.

ATM’s – Had to make a withdrawal the other day from the bank, and the ATM did NOT give me the option of instructions in English or Spanish.  English only.  Wahoo!

Medical Marijuana – There isn’t any here in Ohio.  Now where do I go to get my fix MS symptoms under control?  They say Colorado leads the nation in healthy people, but they have the most medical marijuana facilities per capita.  Is that why they are so healthy?

Homeless people on the corners – there isn’t any here in Ohio that I’ve seen.  In Denver, there wasn’t a corner that didn’t have one.

Weather – nothing beats the weather in Denver.  If it’s 45 degrees in Denver, it feels warm.  If it’s 45 here in Ohio, I’m freezing.

Tattoo’s – not a whole lot of people here sporting tattoo’s, unless they are Ohio State football players, and that’s only because they get them for free.

I’m still getting used to being here, and although I loved Denver, I think I’ll like it here.

At some point, I got a helper.  Kay emailed me to say that she needed to get a new shirt for some reason.  She said that she would do ANYTHING to get a new shirt.  I can’t remember what the reason was, but it was flimsy so I said I would if she would help out doing the Snug stuff.  Soon Kay was helping out by entering all the new runners in the database and eventually she entered all the returning runners also.  She was awesome and we worked together quite well.  I think that was back in the fall of 2007.  She worked with me until the fall of 2011 and then she hung up her shoes.  I had told her that since I had lost my job, I would probably be moving out of state soon, so she quit because she said that she didn’t want to do the Snug stuff unless I was going to be there.  She just quit a lot sooner than I did.  I miss her a lot.

While Kay was still there, we got another “helper” to help out with the data entry.  That would be Abigail.  Abigail took on as much as we would give her and she always did it with a great big smile on her face.  After Kay left, Abigail took her spot and thankfully did an awesome job.  She has a Golden Retriever dog named Dixie, and my dog Miles and Dixie would have run “dates” together.  Miles never ran so well as when he does when he’s running with her.  But Abigail will also be leaving the Snug in May because she enrolled in school to become a Physicians Assistant, and that is going to take up almost all of her free time.

So the old regime is leaving.  First Kay, then me, and soon Abigail.  The new regime will be taking over and I hope that they have as much fun with it as I did.  I will miss the Irish Snug and the Irish Snug Running Club.  It is a chapter in my life that will be forever on my mind and in my heart.  In this picture from left to right is Ted, Abigail, Jericho, me, and Kay.  The Snug Crew.

But anyways, back to what I really want to discuss.  Was Pre the greatest American born runner ever like most say he is?  I think he gained cult hero status by dying therefore he is look upon as the greatest (just as James Dean is).  But what about other guys?  And I don’t mean to be sexist by only talking about guys, but that’s the way it is.  The first guy that comes to my mind is Jesse Owens.  On May 25, 1935, at the Big Ten championships, Owens had the greatest single day in men’s track history, He tied the world record of 9.4 in the 100-yard dash, set a world record with a 20.3 second 220-yard dash, set another world mark in running the 220 low hurdles in 22.6, and also long jumped 26-8 1/4, a mark that lasted 25 years.  In the 1936 Berlin Olympics came Owens’ greatest accomplishment: he totally enraged Hitler as he won four gold medals. He tied the world record of 10.3 in the 100 meters, won the 200 meters and long jump while setting Olympic marks, and was on the gold medal 4 x 100 relay team, which also set a world record.  In Pre’s only Olympics, he came in fourth in the 5000 meter race.

Two other guys on my list are Carl Lewis and Jim Ryun.  In high School, Ryun ran a mile in 3:55.3 setting a record that stood for 40 years!  In the 1984 Olympics, Carl Lewis won 4 gold medals which tied him with Jesse Owens.  Lewis made 5 Olympic teams from 1980 to 1996!  Amazing longevity.

So who is on your list?  And where do you rank them compared to Pre?  Is Pre an overrated cult hero, or a true champion that if he lived would have been the greatest ever?  Tell us what you think.

Another life changing moment was getting fired by a major retailer and having to seriously try and figure out what I wanted to do with my life.  I kind of went on a 2 day bender and spent another day laying in the bathtub with the shower running.  I ran out of hot water shortly, but the cold water felt good anyway.

Now I’m in another point in my life where depending on which way I go could have major consequences.  I haven’t had much luck in my job search, so do I lower my sights and just take what I can get so that I have a job, or do I stick with my guns and hold out for what I want?  I guess I could always take a job even if I don’t want it, and then still look for the job that I do want.  But I would feel bad about that.  I know that I would be pissed if I had hired someone and they immediately started looking for another job while I was spending time and money training that person.  So I don’t really want to do that, but I may not have a choice.

In the meantime, I’m trying to do some things that may take off, or it may not.  First off I’m starting my own business as a Running Coach.  I can coach and train you to run a half marathon or a full marathon.  I’ve learned important lessons from the coaches that I’ve had, and I’m taking the best of what I’ve learned and am applying it to my own style.  I’m also a BeachBody coach.  Most everyone has heard of P90X, Insanity, Hip Hop Abs, and there’s many more.  I can sell you those videos at the same price that you see them on TV.  I can also provide you with free coaching and training.  You sign up for a free account and take it from there.  Free coaching, free training log, support and much more.

But I wouldn’t change anything that I’ve ever done in my life.  Each decision or event leads to something else, and if things had been different, I wouldn’t even be writing this!

It is time however to move on with your life and get over it! No one owes you anything and you must make the time now to figure out how you can live your own life. Forget about what happened last year, or 2 years ago, or 8 years ago that is making you miserable. All it is doing is making those around you miserable and not want to be around you. What’s done is done and there is nothing you can do to change that.  Stop trying to tell others how they should live their life. The only way they will make it is to learn from their own experiences and mistakes.  History cannot be changed and it is how you deal with it that makes you who you are.  Embrace the new year and seek new challenges, and try new things, and make new friends.  Life is too short to be stuck in the past and not moving forward.  Learn from the past, but don’t bring it with you.

That being said, I hope everyone has a great New Year!

That’s the good news. The bad news is that I’m still unemployed. Sometimes I feel like somehow I’m blacklisted in this industry. I even Googled myself to see what came up. I remember on my last job when they did a background check, they got a hit on someone with my name that was a sex offender living in Virginia. The fact that he was 20 years younger than me didn’t make a difference. They questioned me big time on that.

So what is my problem? I’m guessing age. I’m 56 and I believe that most companies are looking for someone in their 30′s or 40′s. It’s not like I would only work another 6 years and retire. Hell, I plan on working until the day I have to carrying a drool bucket around my neck.

I do have something going on the side that I just started, but it’s strictly commission and I haven’t made any money yet. It’s called Beachbody and they are a distributor for many of the video’s you see on those infomercials, P90X, Insanity, Hip Hop Abs, Brazilian Butt Lift, and so on. They also have some great nutritional products that they sell to promote a healthy lifestyle. I’ve been doing the Insanity program for a week and a half now, and it is a hell of a workout! If your interested, go HERE  and check it out, or click one of the ads on this site, or just ask me.

Last week I ran the OBX Marathon in North Carolina with my 2 sons.  That was the first time that we had ever run a marathon together.  It also was a great opportunity to bring the whole family together, and I got to meet my new grandson, Liam!  We rented a house on the beach and there was me and Diane, my son Jason and his wife Megan, my son Michael and his wife Heather and their son Liam, and my daughter Kari and her husband David along with their daughter Payton.  I also invited along my friend Melissa, who used to live in Denver and run at the Irish Snug.  She now lives in North Carolina and I asked her if she wanted to run the marathon with us.  She wanted to, but she knew that she wouldn’t be marathon ready at that time.  So I asked her if should would run with me the last ten miles of the race to push me across the finish line, and she said yes!  I was shocked that she said she would, and actually kind of nervous.  If she was going to go through the effort of helping me out, I better do good!

The morning of the race didn’t start out too well.  First off, I forgot to bring my prescription sunglasses on the trip, and all I had was a regular pair of sunglasses.  I can see distance without my prescription glasses, but I can’t read too well.  So checking my Garmin and pace band was going to be a challenge.  The we underestimated how much time it would take to get to the start of the race because of some of the road closures, so when we finally pulled up, there was about 2 minutes until the start, and I still had to go to the bathroom.  Luckily there were no lines but before I got over there, the gun went off for the first wave.  Being that this race had chip timing, it wasn’t that big a deal to start right away, but you really don’t want to start out bobbing and weaving through all the “slower” runners.  By the time I got back to the start line, the best we could do was get in the 4th wave, which wasn’t too bad.  I checked my Garmin, and to my horror, it said LOW BATTERY.  WTF??!!  I have no idea why that happened, but this was not going to be good.  My goal going into this race was to break 4 hours.  I had never broken that magical barrier and I was determined to do it this time.  My training went really well so I was really hoping to do 3:50.  I got a pace band that had me starting out slowly for a few miles and then settling down to a 8:40 per mile pace.  But without my Garmin, how the heck was I going to do that?  I knew that my son Jason was going to try and be around 4 hours, so I thought I would stick with him for a little bit.  After a couple of miles I looked over and was going to say something to him, but the guy next to me wasn’t Jason.  Great, I lost him.  I actually did spot him at about 3 1/2 miles and ran with him a little bit, but soon I pulled ahead.

So things seemed to be going well, and for the first 10 miles it was nice scenery and pretty much flat.  But around mile 10 we hit trail.  The first part of the trail wasn’t too bad except for the stones.  It wasn’t like it was all stones, but there were plenty of them.  Then a short while later, it turned into a double track trail where you could only get 2 runners wide.  Then it started getting all these rolling little hills!  Ugghh!  I really hate trails and I did not train at all for this.  There was actually one incline that I walked up.  Luckily it wasn’t a long one, but still, that sucked.  I believe the trail portion was about 3 1/2 miles, but it seemed more like 10!  Once we finally hit the road again, my legs were sore.

At mile 13, my cheering section appeared.  There was Heather and Liam on one side of the road, and Diane on the other.  Diane was snapping pictures so of course I had to do some posing.  The nice thing about seeing them was that it boosted my energy levels and my legs started to feel better.

At mile 15, Melissa was waiting for me.  I felt really good and with her by my side, I felt my confidence soaring.  I needed that confidence later on and I was glad she was there.  Around mile 20, I got a vision stuck in my mind from my first ever marathon of me stopping at a water station and having my legs cramp up so bad that I couldn’t run anymore.  So when I saw the water station, there was no way I was going to stop!  I was carrying my own drink anyway, but I did think about how nice it would be to stop and rest a minute.  NO!  Don’t do it.  I passed it by and said to myself that I only have a 10K left to run.  Piece of cake.

And then there’s mile 23.  That’s where you cross the Washington-Baum Bridge.  It is 1.05 miles long, 82 feet high, with a 650 foot climb at a 4% grade.  Nice.  I knew that going up would be slow.  According to Melissa’s watch, we were at our slowest at about a 9:20 pace.  Going back down was no picnic either.  My quads were screaming at me and my feet were jamming into the fronts of my shoes.  Perfect.  But Melissa told me not to think about anything but that the last 3 miles were going to be like running at the Snug.  She was even describing it for me.  “Okay now we are entering Cheesman Park, and now we are going down 8th Ave.”, and so on.  Picturing that in my mind surely helped.

The last mile seemed to take forever though.  We entered the town of Manteo, and the nice thing was that there were a lot more people to cheer you on.  The last quarter of a mile I could see the finish line.  I kicked it up a notch as best as I could and felt the joy of knowing that this damn thing was going to be over soon!  We crossed the finish line and the clock said 3:55.  I knew that we had to have started at least 5 minutes after the start, so at that point I knew that I had accomplished my goal.  A little while later they posted results and my official time was 3:48:03.  A 21 minute PR for me.  I was stunned.  But most of all, I was exhausted.  I even got mad at one of the volunteers who told me to keep moving so I don’t get in anybody’s way, and I told him, “you try running 26 miles and then keep moving!”

I don’t know if my son’s want their times posted, so if they do, they can post it themselves in the comments.  I know that Jason didn’t reach his goal, but hey, he finished!  And I’m so proud of Michael.  This was his first marathon, and he did not have a chance to train much because of baby Liam being born.  I even thought that he would drop down and just do the half.  But he wanted to try, and he did it!

Thanks go out to  everyone that cheered us on (David, Kari, Payton, Megan, Heather, Liam, and especially Diane, my biggest supporter)  Also, thanks to Melissa for getting my ass across the finish line.  I really don’t think I could have done that well without her.  I would love to return the favor Melissa, just don’t make me do Pikes Peak!

This past weekend was the Denver Rock N Roll Marathon and Half Marathon.  I did the half as part of my training for the OBX Full Marathon that I’ll be doing in November.  My goals for the race were to break 1:50, and not hurt myself.  I was pretty sure I could break the 1:50 mark, but it wasn’t like I was really racing.  The day started out pretty nice with temps in the low 30′s.  A little chilly, but not too bad.  I bought my obligatory outerwear at the resale shop for $3 so that I could wear it until the race started, and then throw it off to the side once I got going.  I found my buddy Ted at the start and so when we did get started, I hung with him for a bit.  There were quite a few other people that I saw that I new, and that’s what makes local runs that much nicer.  Going to a destination run is fun and exciting, but most of the time you don’t know anybody.  I like the comfort of seeing my other running peeps as I stumble down the road.

As the race went along, I felt great…..except for the fact that I had to go to the bathroom.  At least it wasn’t the dreaded “I hope to GOD there’s toilet paper!!!  I only had to pee, but the fact that I had to stop really pissed me off. Ha ha, get it?  After that, it was back on the road and feeling lighter.

Prior to this race, my friend Abigail had reluctantly  agreed to run with me the last 3 or 4 miles.  I’m not real sure how I feel about pacers like that, but it wasn’t like I was going to set any records or win the damn thing.  Abigail has been running with me most weekends, and she is great company to be with.  So at about mile 9 I saw her and she joined in.  At this point I was still feeling pretty good and thought that I should be running by myself.  But it was soon after that that I started to slow down and I felt like I was getting worn out.  One thing I didn’t mention, is that after mile 4, I stop looking at my watch and just run based on how I feel.  I do that most of the time so I’m not constantly looking to see how I’m doing.  So anyway, at the point where I was slowing down, Abigail says to me, “you better pick it up”!  It was like she slapped me and woke me out of my trance.  I have a tendency to stop focusing and basically go into a trance to where I’m running, but really I’m not focused and I lose track of where I am or how I’m doing.  Once she said that to me, I re-focused and started to feel a bit of adrenaline happening.  It wasn’t like I was running bad (I was doing an 8:06 pace), it was just that I know I can do better.  With 2 miles to go, I stepped it up to where I did a 7:35 and a 7:12 my last 2 miles!  I ended up at a 1:46:28 which is a huge PR for me.  My best half marathon prior to this was the OBX Half which is at sea level.

So anyway, I’m really feeling it this week as for as the soreness goes.  But it’s a good soreness, right?  4 1/2 weeks to go until the marathon, and I think that this is going to be a good one.  Running with my 2 boys will be awesome.   How many dad’s can say that they have run a marathon with their kids?  Probably not many.

Sometimes I forget to shower.  I know, gross.

I don’t have to shave.  Unless I have an interview, what’s the point?

I go for days without checking the mail.  It’s mostly bills that I cannot pay anyways, so why bother?

I really don’t have enough wife beater t-shirts.  Okay I don’t have any, so I need to get my butt over to WalMart  and get me some of dat stuff.

I don’t feel guilty when I see someone begging for money on the corner and I don’t give them anything.  I just say, “I know how you feel brother.  Now get out of my way cuz I’m going to Starbucks”.

I’ve got my torn cardboard sign all made up and I think I’m going to hit the corner this week.  Mine is going to say,”I need money for Bronco tickets for when they play the Lions.  God Bless”

I have a lot more time for running.  It used to be that I dreaded having to run long during the week since I still had to go to work.  I hate running in the evening after work, so I would have to go running at 5 in the morning so I could come home, eat breakfast, take a shower and go to work.  Now I just get up when I want, run, eat breakfast, skip the shower, and skip working.

I get money from the government for doing nuthin.  So this is what draws the illegals over here. I like it.

On something totally unrelated, has social networking replace texting?  I see so many couples talking to each other through FB and Twitter.  “I love you poopsie!”  I don’t care and I don’t want to see it.  Don’t couples talk anymore?  You know the cell phone is there for more than updating your status, or playing Angry Turds Birds.  You can actually call people and talk.  I know, pretty crazy.