I mentioned in the Random Thoughts thread that my wife ran in the Philadelphia RocknRoll Half-Marathon last weekend. I was there to cheer her on at the beginning, the middle, and the end. I was very proud of her (the last one she ran was 20 years ago). It gave me a lot of time to watch the other runners (almost 17,000). I saw young runners, I saw old runners, I saw a few teenagers, I saw skinny runners, I saw heavier runners. What I didn't expect was this underlying sense of motivation to bubble up to the surface. Not only was I proud of Mrs Tyke, I felt joy and admiration for anyone crazy enough to sign up and run in this race. And as I looked at this wide cross-section of runners, a thought occurred to me. Why not me?

Well that's crazy I said. I've been overweight for much of my adult life. I've never run. I used to race-walk in my mid-late 20's, but let that slip.

Why not me? Well I've tried several times to lose weight. Once I was successful, but gained it back, and then some.

Why not me? My knees hurt. I'm not in good shape. yada yada yada

Why not me? Well... why not?

But I'm not crazy enough to think I can jump straight from the couch to a Half-Marathon. So I did some research and found a Couch To 5K (C25K) program. This was mentioned in a couple of prior weight loss dynasty threads here as well. Since I've never run before, I don't have a good feel for pacing, so I've decided to use the treadmill version of the plan. For those that don't know, it's a 3/week for 9-week exercise plan that gradually increases the amount of running you do as you build towards running your first 5K race. By my calculation, if I start the program now, I should be ready to run one around the Thanksgiving timeframe.

So... I completed Week 1 Day 1 (W1D1) this morning! My plan is to run on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and then either Saturday/Sunday.

While I hope this will help with my battle of the bulge, I'm focusing more on the running aspect and not going straight to a strict diet at the same time.

I'm not posting this so much as a dynasty thread for others to read (although I hope that may happen). I'm "putting it out there" as some way to hold myself accountable.

Starting Weight = 231.4

W1D1 (30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 60-second runs and 90-second walks)
Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.57 miles

I'm on my way!

I want to also say that I mentioned my plan to my older son (14yo). He's very skinny, plays street hockey 4-6 months out of the year, but little else in organized physical activity. I asked if he would do this with me. He asked me this morning before school where the Plan was, so I hope that means he will...

I also asked my younger son (12yo and slightly overweight). He asked how far 5K was. When I said 3.1 miles, he quickly said "no thanks - I'll continue to be a couch potato". Ugh! I'll continue to work on him, but it would be awesome if the 4 of us ran a race together at Thanksgiving.

W1D2 is in the books - (30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 60-second runs and 90-second walks)

Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.60 miles

I know I want to bump the speeds up a bit, but I really want to succeed at this, so for now they'll remain where they are. Perhaps in future weeks I will slowly inch them up.

I completed W1D3 on Sunday - (30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 60-second runs and 90-second walks)

Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.616 miles

Week 2 started today.

Starting Weight = 231.4
Today's Weight = 229.4

W2D1 - (30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 90-second runs and 120-second walks)

Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.631 miles

W2D2(30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 90-second runs and 120-second walks)

Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.636 miles

Last night I completed Week 2 of the program:

W2D3 (30 minutes total: 5 minute warmup and cooldown, Alternating 90-second runs and 120-second walks)

Walk = 3mph
Run = 4mph
Incline = 1.5%

Total Distance = 1.631 miles

Well here's what I learned:

1. I suck at writing dynasties.

2. I had a few setbacks during my training. A nagging injury or two. Crazy work hours over the last month. So out of the 9 week program, I only completed 4 of them.

But... I did complete my first 5K run today! :D

Truthfully - it was a combination of running and walking. But that's OK. Pride got me to the starting line. My goal was to race in a Turkey Trot, and so I did. Once I started, my only goal was to finish. Didn't care how long or whether I was last - just cross the finish line. Mrs Tyke ran it in under 30 minutes. She came back and encouraged me for the last stretch. I finished in under 45 minutes.

I still have a long way to go with my training and losing lots of weight. But this was a great start!

/end of dynasty

Congrats on getting out there and doing it. Hopefully it fuels your fire to do more.