I won, I really really won!!!!

I suggest if Julie Berg posts a recipe and says it is an outstanding dish on her blog…I suggest trying it out! 

 

I stole her Halushkis recipe that she posted in December for a crock pot contest we have at my office.  My girlfriend and I spent the hours shredding potatoes (knuckles and fingernails safe), boiling and preparing the crock pot dish to be in the contest.  As we made them, I must admit, I tasted one and thought I was about to be close to last again…  There were 20 entrants.  I have never scored in the top 15 in this event in past years.  (6 past attempts in 13 years…)  But not this year… IT WON BRONZE!  Eating them after you add the bacon and cabbage mixture was a whole lot different…

 

 Of course the awards are paper medals but as an additional award, I got a bottle of Balsamic Vinegar that I will have to give to Julie someday. 

 

Cool is all I can say…  Everyone loved them and when they heard how healthy they were, they loved them more!

 

Carry on…

Under 250…. Over 30…

Well, Sunday was a good day, I think….  Nice weather, nice runs and a weight of 248.6…  Cool…  I also am back over 30 miles.  Not much for the people I hang out with but I am going to build slowly.  I am still lifting three days a week and biking 50-70 miles.  But the runs, and half the miles outside, totaled 34.9 miles.  I found going 5 plus miles easy which was not true just weeks ago.  I have had no pains and that is good.  I think I was more emotionally screwed up over quitting at 77 miles at the Superior 100 than anything else quits. 

I feel good so I registered for the 50 PsychoWyco race on February 9.  Should be fun and hope to make is an easy 8 hour run.  Never ran the race there before but there's a 10-hour limit, which unless there is a challenging course that will surprise me. 

Ran outside for 10 miles today.  It rained.  Holy crap, rain in January.  It was big drops, not just a little rain/sleet, but real rain.  You could see it on the sidewalk as I finished my run. 

I recently found a new website that allows me to download my Garmin 305 onto and share data.  I ran Sunday with my girlfriend and it can be seen at: http://allsportgps.com/Data/ActivityDisplay.aspx?tripId=129710.  I love this watch, if they only had a plug that would allow accessory charging without a cradle.  Oh well, it is as near as perfect as I can expect. 

Carry on…

Seems like a little, but it is a lot….

A Sunday came and a Sunday went with only ½ pound weight loss this week which is strange as I feel lightener and stronger.  Could be I really beat myself up with the weights, bike and ran hard and I could be a little swollen.  Sometimes, a good day of rest results in a 5 pound weight loss.  Always baffled me when that happens.  I am not going to get hung up on the weight.  It will come off once I get the base back up to 40 miles or more a week.  Right now, staying healthy and shaking this cold is the priority.

 

While many of the ultra group snowshoe and love it, I never caught the knack…  Could be at 250 pounds, I would sink anyway (ha ha) so I run outside when I can.  Mostly on the roads.  As I said, I am still trying to shake this cold I started the year off with.  The coughing and wheezing are annoying, but I will keep plugging on.  I have my mileage up to 27 miles last week, not much compared to many but I also had 100 miles biking.  Slow to build back up but I found from years of experience that slow is good.

 

I am anxious for the upcoming races.  At this time, I will plan on the 50K in Kansas City on February 9.  My girlfriend has a lifelong friend she will visit while I complete the race.  Should be quite a bit of a challenge, from what I hear.  All I can keep doing is working out, increasing the pace and miles and waiting for the days I can be back on the trials. 

Getting in the groove...

This past week has been filled with ups and downs, almost like the weather. I am not one to brave the cold and have been outside less as I still have a slight cold. The dry weather is worse than I ever recall. The Humidifier has been placing two gallons of water a day into my place and I am still below 30 percent humidity...

Training indoor has been going well. Did get outside for a few runs including a 6 miles run which was only planned as three. My girlfriend and I ran from her place in Apple Valley and got lost in the night. It was my first road run in a while. I have never got so disoriented in my life that I actually stopped and asked a person walking their dog how to get out of their neighborhood. The twists and turns were like I have never seen. The Street names were not in any recognizable order and I felt so stupid. Although, I blamed my girlfriend as it was her neighborhood, I live in Bloomington…

I am getting excited at my success. Doing the 4-6 mile runs are again just part of the day. I have been mixing in the exercise bike in the mix. I have been riding 25 to 30 miles on the bike at least 4 times a week as well as getting my miles consistently above 20 miles a week. Taking it slow as I increase the miles again. In addition, I add weight lifting in the formulae at least three times a week.

A big impediment in my training is I am a United States Tennis Association Official as my second hobby. This takes many weekends and some weekends are long. This past weekend, I officiated 40 out of a possible 52 hours. Sure is great training to keep functioning on little or no sleep, but normally means I do not exercise at after the lunchtime run on Friday to Sunday night. But then again, we all have bust lives. But I am off this weekend and think I am getting out the dancing shoes… I love live music. Two nights in a row we have great local music and I am looking forward to attending. On Thursday, January 17 Allison Scott and Pamela Mcneill are at Famous Dave's, Uptown. If you want to hear a great set of pipe and see some fun artists perform, this is hot… Goggle them for myspace pages and music samples, but I assure you will not be disappointed. Then of Friday, January 18 Kurt Jorgenson is at Minnesota Music Café. If you do not know him he is a solid guitar plays with a Rob Thomas sound. Love his work!

I am getting excited for a crock pot contest we are having at my office. I am stealing a recipe from Julie Berg. She posted a recipe for halushkis. She describes them as "a wonderful potato-flour dumpling, mixed with bacon and cabbage." If I win the contest, I will have to send the measuring spoon prize. If you have not experienced Julie's recipes, or just her great stories and uplifting thoughts, take a look at http://julieberg.blogspot.com/. Just reading her accomplishments and success makes me want to jump off the couch… There are so many fun people who run the 100 miles races (of aspire to) who have blogs. At times, this is the best reading. Once I figure out how to link these (I know it is easy, I should say as soon as I quit being lazy), I will link to some very good blogs for your enjoyment.

Hard to believe that in about 5 weeks we can bike outside regularly. My girlfriend got me a used Cannondale SR 400 street bike with lots of enhancements. Looking forward to getting out for some long rides again. Last year, I went long periods without a car and it was great. That was on the old, heavy and clunky mountain bike. This new bike should feel like heaven, after the beast I have been riding.

Anyway, my Sunday weight was 250.5 pounds meaning my planned loss of 2.5 per week is happening. At this pace, I will be ready for the 50K in Kansas City in February… Getting excited and feeling great… Carry on!

Who said I was smart?

It was a great way to start out the New Year.  A run.  My girlfriend called and told me how nice it was out there.   Who cares it was below zero wind chills! The sun was out and I was going to run the Minnesota River Valley trails.  I never gave it much thought that there was all the snow in the past month.  I assumed walkers had forged a great trail.  I was wrong.  The beauty was one thing, the mid-shin deep snow at many locations was another. I was not going to let it ruin my day.  I forged on at a 13-minute mile, which I felt was good given these conditions.  One hour rolled by and I was cold.  I had to make a choice to continued with my loop or turn back.  Mentally I wanted to quit, physically I was fine.

I trudged onward and that was not a bright thing to do.  I was not thinking that the second half of the planned lop had little protection.  The wind was atrocious!  I was an ice cube.  It was ten miles in just under 2.5 hours and I knew I would get sick.  I did. I tried to run through the cold I got on the treadmill and was able to do so for 4 more days.  Then Saturday, I was done. Breathing was hard.  I took the next 4 days off and finally can breathe again.  Hope the warm weather lasts for a few more days before the cold returns. 

With this setback, I am rethinking the Psycho race in February….  Lets see how the next two weeks go!  Carry on….

A New Year

Well, it is time to quit pouting about not making 102 miles at Superior in September. I know 77 miles on that course is not a failure but is sure is a monkey, or shall I say a elephant, on my back. I have gained 25 pounds since the 100... Currently 255 pounds. Part of the blame was a pinched nerve and 5 weeks of limited activity.

Enough already as I am ready to move on with the sting effort to conquer the Superior beast in September. I need to drop 55 pounds as the first goal. This is doable. I plan on running the wyco 50k in February. I may do the 50 or 100 mile in April with other steps along the way. Since the the first of the year I have worked out each day for at least 2 hours each day for the first three days and feel great. I decided I will only weigh myself on Sundays with a minimum goal of 2 pounds per week which puts me near my 200 pound goal at Grandma's Marathon where it WILL be my 24th finish in a row. I allways had a goal of 25 consecutive years and am so close.

Amazing to have 23 years in a row which saw me through grad school, through fatherhood, through marriage, through divorce, through 11 homes in four States, and ballooning to 296 pounds (2005) from a low of 176 pounds (1988). I joke I must have the record for times at Grandma's which ranged from 3:24 to 6:05 over the 23 years. This year I have a goal to be under 4 hours.... With the help and support I have from my girlfriend and running friends I have no excuse for not achieving my goals, except laziness.... So carry on...