Greg's Weight Loss Blog

It’s been over seven months since I have started this journey and I have been tweaking my transformation and modifying my plan along the way to get to where I am today. This week’s update also brings some changes.

1) I am no longer going to track waist size. My waist hasn’t changed a bit in the last 3 weeks. I’m still measuring 33″ (84 cm) around the navel and I’m wearing size 31 waist pants that are now getting a bit lose. But I think my waist size is stabilizing so there is really no point in charting it any more.

2) I am no longer going to track body fat percentage and lean body mass. Unfortunately my trusty scale that I had been using all along is now giving me grief. It actually has been giving me grief for the past two weeks where it puts up “Err.” instead of giving me an estimated body fat percentage. It is still accurately measures my body weight but I just can’t rely on the body fat percentage numbers any more. This morning it told me I’m 23% body fat which is clearly ridiculous. If I’m over 13% I’d be very surprised. Since I no longer have an accurate, not that it has been all that accurate lately, method to measure body fat I will no longer measure it or post the data as it would be mostly wrong. I know where I’m heading and I know that I’ll see it when I get there. Until then there is really no need to measure it with an estimate that is not right.

3) The daily calorie chart might show blanks. As you can see there is no chart for last Monday in the calorie chart. The reason being is that I simply stopped counting calories for the bigger part of the day. I ate pretty good but I just couldn’t get myself to log everything and measure every single potato chip that I consumed by the poolside on Memorial Day. So there might be days from now on when calories won’t get counted nor posted. I still feel like I need to track my calories if I want to shed the last couple of pounds but if I skip for a day it’s not like I would gain it all back so I will allow myself cheat days or days where I just don’t track.

With all these changes in effect my week still wrapped up nicely. I have lost 1lbs (0.4 kg) on the rolling average scale which I’m happy about. Average caloric intake was significantly higher this week than any other previous weeks. Not including Monday, I have averaged 2,644 calories per day with 141 grams of protein. The interesting thing about these two numbers is that 2,644 calories sounds like a ton of food but when you put it in perspective with respect to the amount of exercising I have done it’s not bad. The other interesting thing is that while i used to eat 40 grams of protein supplements daily before to achieve 140 grams of daily protein at the beginning of my diet, now I’m struggling to keep it under 140 grams without eating anything but whole foods. I love meat and I have no problem with keeping protein at a high level. It’s actually a bit too high for me with all the running, I should be eating a bit more carbohydrates instead. Regardless, it was a good week in terms of eating. It’s quite amazing that I had 800 calories more per day this week than I had when I was in the beginning phase of my transformation and ate 1,800 calories a day.

I don’t feel like talking about strength training this week as it has been non-existent. I really need to quit socializing at lunch and head for the gym instead. I’m also thinking about buying a pull-up bar for home so I can just crank out my upper body workout at home without the gym if I need it.

I have been concentrating on my running exclusively this week. I have broke 600 miles ran for the year and I also broke 45 miles ran for the week, the most I’ve done in a single week. I actually ran 45.3 miles (73 km) this week and I feel fantastic about it. I have also started tracking my mileage and workouts on dailymile.com. It’s another venue for me to find active runners in my community and for others to keep tabs on my workouts. I still have the lot more technical runs.gregstransformation.com database running which not only lists my runs but it shows my logged data for every run. I also had my first group run this week which was great! I really enjoyed running with the pack on the weekend and I will do a lot more of that in the future.

I’m very pleased with the way my week turned out, a couple more of these and I’m right where I want to be!

It’s been over a month since I last posted an update with photos. I was very diligent with the picture taking until I got down to the point where I started losing fat at a more conservative 1lbs/week rate. There was just really no point in posting an update since then. But I’m still tracking my progress and ultimate body composition goal based on looks so I’m going to stick with the one photo session a month plan until I get there. So here is June’s photo, taken on June 1st. It is not much lighter than May 1st, only 4.7 lbs (2.2 kg), but it clearly shows.

I’m definitely in the home stretch now. My veins are popping out on both my bicep now without flexing, my legs are getting really lean with strong definition in them, you can see details in my shoulders now, my back is certainly coming along nicely and finally I think my abs will start showing soon.

If you ask my wife she’d tell you that I not only finished my transformation but already ran the victory lap and started another race altogether which she’s not a big fan of. She thinks I’m getting way too skinny and there is just not enough meat on my bones. Well we just have to agree to disagree and hopefully once my transformation is complete in my eyes as well she’ll like the final results.

06/01/2010 Transformation Picture

• Watching Boo hit one on the 1st fairway. Colonial invitational is fun in person. #
• @reconstruct30 Good job! Keep at it bro! in reply to reconstruct30 #
• My co-worker just failed to BQ. 8 minutes short of the 3:30. It really sucks! This just shows that a BQ is tough even with proper training. #
• I had BBQ Turkey and sweet potato for dinner. Great before my 10K RT @iamconrad: bbq chicken. enough said. #
• @keeponrunning @iamconrad Sounds like everyone had some form of BBQ tonight… in reply to keeponrunning #
• Ran 2.61 miles in 22 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/cwsDB Instead of taking the bus back from the finish line we j… http://bit.ly/bN64rv #
• Ran 2 miles in 17 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/cwsIB Ran an easy 2 miler tonight just to get the kinks out of my… http://bit.ly/aNKZdQ #
• Off to run the American Heroes 10K #
• @devkl I had that day happen to me already. $1k+ later I'm a happy owner of an entire new wardrobe! in reply to devkl #
• Ran 6.18 miles in 39 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/cxxFZ Ran the American Heroes 10K event today. It was a toasty… http://bit.ly/aTbfWa #
• It's 95 degrees outside yet I'm sitting in my office with a space heater running. There is something wrong with this picture. #
• Heading out the door to run in the rain. This is dedication! On the other hand I probably should have run in the morning… #
• Ran 4.05 miles in 31 mins and felt great. http://is.gd/cAu7n I was going to run 5 miles today but due to the weather… http://bit.ly/dsrCgH #
• I had bison burger for dinner Monday and Tuesday and for lunch on Tuesday. I had bison sausage for dinner tonight. I <3 bison! Awesome meat! #
• Ran 7.07 miles in 54 mins and felt great. http://is.gd/cB4C0 This was my fastest easy run by far. I attribute it to … http://bit.ly/94ydJE #
• Ordered another pair of the obnoxious red Brooks Launch. I think they're getting discontinued for a more toned down black color. I <3 red. #
• @virtual4now I just finished my spring race schedule of 5K and 10K races. I'll have a half marathon in 2 weeks and a 25K mid-summer. in reply to virtual4now #
• Ran 4.02 miles in 30 mins and felt great. http://is.gd/cClOD Another easy run for the week. It really feels good to … http://bit.ly/cUwLJz #
• It's tough to find a running partner for 8:00/mile long runs in Fort Worth, TX. Let me know if you're one of them! H… http://bit.ly/cddGVF #
• @virtual4now I plan on breaking 1:30 on the half. The 25K is a night run in the heat on a 5K loop so we'll just have to see. in reply to virtual4now #
• @virtual4now The 50K does the loop 10 times! It's a night race in the Texas heat of the summer. Course closes at 7:00AM. http://is.gd/cCvpS in reply to virtual4now #
• I'm already up to 2,000 calories for the day and I haven't even had dinner yet. There is something wrong with this picture… #
• Just in case I get shot dead tonight in my house: http://is.gd/cD7wL #
• I don't think I'll try to give unsolicited advice to anyone on Dailymile ever again: http://is.gd/cD7wL #
• @devkl Thanks! Yeah, my legs are finally getting ripped! Sorry about the url, I screwed up the post title and that screwed up the link. in reply to devkl #
• Of to run a long run. 12-13 ought to do it…. #
• RT @DaveTweets: Real athletes #run others just play games #quote #
• Ran 12.07 miles in 1 hour and 29 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/cDTkd Today I went and ran with the Fort Worth Run… http://bit.ly/9SFlvu #
• RT @devkl: Sam Harris: Science can answer moral questions http://youtu.be/Hj9oB4zpHww #
• @reconstruct30 I see you updated your twitter pic! Looking good! #

Last Saturday I ran a truly great 5K race that I kind of knew was going to be close to impossible to top on Monday in the 10K just two days after that 18:13 5K.

Monday morning I drove to Arlington, TX to run the American Heroes 10K race. There just aren’t that many 10K races around to enter so I have to pick the ones I can run and go with them. This made for an interesting weekend with the double races but I think I came out alright.

The race setup was nice, it was fully chip timed from start to finish, the only thing I didn’t care for was the fact that both the 5K and the 10K started and finished at the same place at the same time which meant that at the start I was running with guys who were gunning for a 5K PR and I was finishing with the 40 minute 5K crowds. This means that the starters will drag you along for a fast starting pace and the finishers will slow you down as you try to zip by them. Certainly not a good combination. Another thing that bummed me out was the fact that this race had a great 1 mile fun run/walk unlike the one my family ended up doing Saturday. I really wish they had done this race instead.

Weather was hot and humid. We started out at 80 degrees and 70% humidity. We finished in the same conditions with some wind thrown in for good measure. It was not PR weather to say the least.

The race took place in Arlington, TX right by the Texas Rangers Ballpark, Six Flags over Texas amusement park and the brand spanking new Dallas Cowboy’s stadium. So the venue was nice with a lot of eye candy.

The start corral was done nicely, they had a separate place for the non-chip timed walkers and the chip timed runners. I started from the front as usual and I was talking with a lady about my goal pace which was going to be 6:10 for the entire race. Little did I know…

Once the gun went after a 3-2-1 countdown, 20 seconds of fiddling with the gun and then finally the old lady firing in the air the race was on. I had to hold myself back not to try to stick with the 5K lead pack. I recognized some familiar faces and I even had time and energy to say hi to them while running the first quarter mile. My plan of slowing it down kind of worked, I clocked a 6:00 even pace for the first half mile and 6:09 for the second half.

First mile: 6:04

After the first mile we got into our first slight climb and I started to feel that a 6:10 was going to be awfully difficult. We split off from the 5K pack and I found myself motoring in 5th place overall.

Second mile: 6:13

So far so good. Still within target but then we hit an overpass that went above I-30 and we caught up with the sole wheelchair racer on the course. Once you lose momentum it’s pretty tough to push that wheelchair up the hill. There is no coasting in a wheelchair uphill. My pace dropped as low as 7:30 on the climb but I managed to recover somewhat after the climb and got back in the groove again. A long stretch of straight running was coming and I finally caught up with the 4th place runner. He gave me a “go ahead” as I ran by him, he did not look too good.

Third Mile: 6:26

At this point I knew that any hopes of breaking 39 were dwindling fast and based on how I felt I thought a 40 minute run would be also in strong jeopardy. I kept inching up on the 3rd place guy, slowly but surely. At this point I picked a new goal; instead of trying to break 39, which I knew wasn’t going to happen, I tried to get on the overall podium. Just before the turnaround point I passed the 3rd place guy and I saw the first and second place runners pass us by on the way back. The first place guy looked rock solid and really far out. The second place guy looked like he wasn’t all that hot and he was younger kid, under 18. After the turn I thought this is where I should start pushing it and shoot for that negative split. I stepped on it and if felt like we were cruising downhill a bit and things felt OK. I also received crowd support from the slower runners who were still on the out part of the course as I was coming back. It felt pretty good. I kept looking back to see how far the 4th place guy was, I did not want to give up 3rd place.

Fourth Mile: 6:24

We had to cross the interstate again which meant one more climb over the bridge. As I got to the top I saw the second place guy in front of me grabbing water from the water station and walking a bit. I thought I had a chance of catching him but he started running again. At 4.5 miles we turned away from the outgoing course which still had plenty of people running/walking and went for what I’d call the place that separated men from the boys.

It was a quarter mile 4% incline through a parking lot that almost killed me. I was so ready to throw in the towel by the time I hit the top it’s not even funny. I thought my 3rd place was gone and there was no way I could hold onto it. But then I looked back and I actually saw that the distance between me and the 4th place guy actually increased. I wasn’t the only one who was suffering on the hill, it was everyone else too. My pace slowed to 8:00 by the time I hit the top.

The guy in front of me hit up the water station at the top again, then stopped, then started running again.

Fifth Mile: 6:40

At this point I didn’t know how things were going to shake out. My new goal was just to finish the race. Forget PRs, forget placing, forget about anything else. Just finish the damn race. I kept looking at the Ballpark and that thing was so friggin’ huge yet it was so friggin’ far.

At this point the 5K and 10K races merged together again and I was in a river of 40 minute 5K walkers. I had to stay outside of the cones so I could get past them with their iPods blasting and them not paying any kind of attention to anything else around them. The 2nd place guy slowed down significantly along with me so I still kept him in sight and at this point I felt that I was actually inching up on him even though I felt we came to a screeching halt in terms of pace. I was right about the pace. When you’re passing people that are on the 14 minute/mile pace a 7 minute/mile will feel downright speedy. But in reality our pace was cooked and done.

Sixth Mile: 6:39

Once I had the finish in sight and I felt confident that I could kick it I went for it. My rabbit was done, he was so far gone that when I kicked it he didn’t even lift a finger. After the race he told me he threw up twice during the race and he needs to work more on his pre-race diet. I didn’t see him barf but he still posted an impressive time and gave me a tough time to beat him even with the GI issues he’s been having. I saw the clock above the finish line just turning over 40 minutes which made me feel really sad in terms of time but I kept on kicking it strong until the very end. Once I stopped my watch it read 39:59 but I knew that it had at least 20 seconds extra on it due to the lame start with the old lady who failed to work the starting pistol right.

Last 0.2 mile: 1:09 (5:36/mile)

Official time: 39:35

I finished 2nd overall and since the winner took the overall win I also won my age group once he was out of the picture. If I could have done anything different it probably would have been towards the end. I think I got influenced and caught up in other people’s pace around me which caused me to slow down instead of trying to push it. I’m not saying I had anything left in the tank but I think I could have done a bit better had I had a faster rabbit to chase at the end.

Considering the hot weather and the brutal hill in mile 5 I think I did pretty good. This was certainly not a PR course for me but my race time is still a good indicator of what to expect in my future training for longer distances. It would have been nice to get a sub 39 10K to go with my 18:13 5K this season but that will just have to wait until next fall as I am done with the shorter distances, at least for now.

The weekend before last I ran a 5K on a whim and ended with a PR of 19:05 that was 24 seconds better than my last one.

Last weekend I had a planned 5K and I hoped to beat that 5K time. I had high hopes due to the nature of the course. It was an A to B course with 140 ft of elevation drop in mile 2 on an otherwise pretty much flat course which kind of lends itself to a PR. I also knew that the race was a well established race, this was the 12th year for it with some pretty good times and good turnout so I knew that pace would be set for me by some other runners.

It was another one of those gun time start, chip time finish races so I made sure to start from the front of the pack. Since I also had a 10K race coming up on Monday I knew that I wanted to keep my legs intact as much as possible and I promised myself that I would not go out too fast at the beginning. I certainly tried to stick with that plan but I still clocked my first half mile at 5:40 minutes/mile pace. It was most definitely faster than anticipated even though I let a whole bunch of people go early on. I have decided to run my own race instead of trying to keep up with the front runners early on.

My second 0.5 mile split was ran at a more modest 5:54 pace which was exactly in the ballpark for my target goal. It felt pretty easy actually even though this was the one segment in the race with a small climb. My split for the first mile was 5:47.

My second mile was the one that contained the huge elevation drop of 140 ft and it certainly showed in my pace as I have managed to eke out a 5:41 for the second mile.

By the time I hit the third mile my legs started to feel tired and worn out. But I was proud that no one has passed me since the start and I have picked off a couple of guys every mile. It clearly showed that I have paced myself well when compared to the other runners around me. I kept on motoring and reeling in some people. This segment of the course was pretty much flat with just a tiny bump around the 2.8 miles mark. That was actually the point where I have decided to start my final kick and I averaged 5:38 min/mile for the last quarter mile. My third mile split was a 6:03 which was still not too far off from my otherwise great pace.

I crossed the finish line 13/517 overall and got 2nd out of 18 for my age group. 16:36 won the race and my AG winner got 17:25 and finished 7th. My time was still a great PR at 18:13 which is a new PR by over 50 seconds from last weekend. It really felt awesome to break 19 minutes as well as run a sub 6 minute pace for the run. Granted that the course was super fast with the steep decline but I still think I would have PR had it been a flat course without the drop.

The best part was that unlike after last weekend’s 5K where I got some pretty bad calf cramps after the race, this time I felt great and rested. Instead of taking the shuttle back to the start I just jogged back with the winner and the master’s winner and had a great talk with them. They were some really nice guys and quite inspirational to see them kick my buttocks at age 40 and 48! There is certainly something to look forward to!

I wasn’t the only family member who raced this weekend. I have signed my son up to run the 1 mile fun run again and while I was going to let him do it by himself my wife didn’t let that happen so she and my daughter also came and they all ran the 1 mile event. My son had a blast all the way until the end of the 1 mile. Unfortunately the race was not very well organized and they didn’t really have a 1 mile finish, the 1 mile people were just simply supposed to run up to the 1 mile mark on the 3.1 mile course and stop in the middle of the road. The race director should go and try to explain to a 5 year old why he needs to stop while everyone else is zipping by. I don’t envy my wife for having had to deal with that situation at the 1 mile point. But I’m still very proud of my family that they came out and ran/jogged/walked the race.

This week has come to an end and I had been too busy to post up the update on time. So what have I been busy with? Mostly running and family stuff.

Eating was spot on again, I really don’t know what else to say about it any more. Food is a non-issue for me at this point. I think 7 months is definitely enough to build new eating habits. I’m certainly not dieting any more, it does not feel like a diet. It feels just normal eating. I only ate above my 2,400 calorie allocation one day and I ran 13.1 miles that day and burned 1,500 calories in the process. So eating a whopping 2,700 calories that day were more than justified. Thanks to that day I have averaged 2,446 calories for the week as my daily intake. Protein was at 131 grams, which is a bit more than I’d like but unlike most people who have problems with not eating enough protein, I’m quite the opposite and I tend to eat quite a good amount of protein. And I eat all this without protein shakes. I don’t remember the last time I had a protein shake.

Running has been great this week. If you look at the chart you will see that I had two days where I didn’t run and I only had a measly 2 miles on Sunday. This is because of my race schedules. I had a race on Saturday and I ran a really fast 13.1 mile run on Wednesday so I needed two days to rest and get my legs ready for the 5K race. On Sunday I only ran 2 miles to keep my legs moving and ready for the next race on Monday. So I only ran 31.4 miles this week which is much lower than last week but it is actually still a pretty good mileage and it is a lot of hard miles. This weeks mileage was about quality vs. quantity. Calorie wise I have burned 3,464 calories with the running this week.

I skipped the gym altogether this week. I performed no strength training. I feel bad about it but I just couldn’t find the time or motivation to go.

Weigh loss has been steady this week, my rolling average indicates a 1.2 lbs (0.6 kg) drop for the week which would mean my BMR is 2,551 calories. It is higher than before so I’m either not counting all my calories burned or I’m counting too many calories for intake. This is quite the opposite problem than what most people make when they start counting calories. They tend to underestimate the calories in and overestimate how much they burn. It’s nice to have this problem for myself.

Overall I’m really pleased with the way the week went, I think it was a great week. A couple more is all it will take to get to my target!

• Is it weird that I find the sweat beads on my forearm glittering during my long runs beautiful? #
• @265andfalling Congrats! It's great to see you run 13.1 miles! Impressive stuff! in reply to 265andfalling #
• @devkl You hip bones are not dense enough yet. Take it easy with the running, don't overdo it! You need to build bones and tendons! in reply to devkl #
• Today I ran 11 miles in the morning then rode the bike with the kids in tow for 12 miles. It was a good day. #
• My 19:05 5K Race chart is up: http://is.gd/cmuQV #
• Today's 11 mile long run under 1:30. No negative split, running uphill and into the wind for the second half. http://is.gd/cmuY6 #
• This week I ran 40.5 miles (65 km), a new record! Average pace just under 8 minutes. #
• @virtual4now For my neutral gait it's the Brooks Ghost 2 for easy/long runs, Brooks Launch for tempo and Brooks T6 Racer for speedwork. in reply to virtual4now #
• @virtual4now Started in a NB1224 with mild overpronation at 200 lbs. Since neutral gait, only the Brooks. Launch is an awesome lightwt shoe. in reply to virtual4now #
• @virtual4now I'd go to a LRS and have my gait evaluated again if I were you. Too much stability/support is just as bad as too little. in reply to virtual4now #
• @virtual4now It's a shame pedometers are grossly inaccurate for a running gait though… You might still pick up a couple of clicks. in reply to virtual4now #
• I had one just like it today too! http://is.gd/cnePy RT @virtual4now: Nice run! RT @iamconrad: Ran 3 miles in 23 mins. #
• @iamconrad Very nice tempo run! Mine was a bit shorter, only 30 minutes, 4.5 miles with an average pace of 6:52. http://is.gd/coEXy in reply to iamconrad #
• Great Movie! RT @virtual4now @runs2eat Just about to watch "Spirit of the Marathon" with @DaveTweets. Maybe it will inspire us on Sunday #
• Ran 4.5 miles in 30 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/coEXy #
• @iamconrad Joined @dailymile. One more place to post my ramblings… Like I needed one. in reply to iamconrad #
• @AndrewENZ Nice VR Photo! I love making those myself! in reply to AndrewENZ #
• Ran 3 miles in 22 mins and felt good. http://is.gd/cplo5 Decided to run a double tonight. It was supposed to be an e… http://bit.ly/c4Eo7g #
• Pretty impressive! RT @iamconrad: baby jogger mile haha pretty impressive: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjUO5dZKiOg #
• Ran 13.1 miles in 1 hour and 41 mins and felt alright. http://is.gd/cqHY7 . I went ahead and ran a half marathon ton… http://bit.ly/desb8G #
• @reconstruct30 Good job! That is just great! in reply to reconstruct30 #
• I spent today at the Colonial Invitational PGA Tour event. It's awesome to see those guys play up close and personal unlike any other sport. #
• No running today, taking a rest day after yesterday's half marathon. #
• Registered for the weekend's 5K race. Also entered my son into the 1 mile fun run. I'm getting excited already! #
• This morning I finally broke 165 lbs! 164.9 (74.8 kg) for the first time! How much more do I have to lose before the six pack will show? #
• I'm getting tired of my Homedics SC-540 scale. It is a great scale but the BF% and other measurements are way off. #
• Good luck with the taper! Get rested! RT @AndrewENZ: time for an 8 miler. Hope the wind dies down. Next week the marathon! #
• I just ran 1 mile in 13 minutes with my son tonight. He's training for tomorrow's 1 mile fun run! He's getting very excited! #
• Wow! Impressive! You're a real runner! RT @TheRightFitBlog: I spent 1 hour running. 520 calories burned. #LoseIt #
• Ran 3.12 miles in 18 mins and felt great. http://is.gd/cv3P7 Ran an awesome 5K race today. I got a new PR out of it,… http://bit.ly/96EvH0 #

I wasn’t going to race this last weekend but I ended up running a 5K.

After last Saturday’s 10K my 5 year old son, expressed great interest in wanting to run with dad. So last Sunday I took him to the local track after my 8 mile long run where he promptly got side stitches after about 100 meters.

I told him to run slower but he was pretty set on trying to run a 7:25 min/mile pace for 100 meters, get stitches, slow to a walk for 200 meters then try again. He was really killing me with his pace I could not keep up myself; my calves were burning from the 10K and the 8 mile long run. We kept it up for about 2 laps at which point we did some runs across the field and called it a day. I have tried to tell him to slow down but he didn’t want to listen. He was pretty cute to try running with dad and I was really proud of him.

Monday I went and bought him some running shoes, shorts and a wicking t-shirt. I figured if he wants to run at least he should look the part. Monday we went and ran in the neighborhood just up and down the street as we felt like and we probably put in another half a mile. This time we slowed down and he finally listened to me. We took breaks but he had no side stitches.

Wednesday we did a repeat of Monday’s training and Friday we ran probably close to a mile with very little stopping. I felt he was ready to run a one mile fun run this weekend so I took him to a race this Saturday.

I was not going to race this weekend, I had a 30 minute fartlek on tap for Saturday and a 10 mile long run for Sunday. But since I promised my son to take him I figured I’d jog the 1 mile with him and I’d video him as he ran.

My son has a rough time getting up in the mornings; we have to kick him out around 7:30 every morning to go to daycare. Saturday by the time I was ready to wake him at 6:55 he was already up, all excited about the race and ready to go.

So I fed him some yogurt and granola, got dressed and we took off. I wore my racing singlet and 2.5″ inseam split pants which were most definitely overkill for the 1 mile I was going to run but I wore my Brooks Ghost 2 shoes that I use for long runs and recovery runs. I did not sport the T6 Racers which are my shoes of choice for 5K and 10K.

We got there right at 7:30, just in time for registration to open. We got our bib, paid $50 for the two of us and they even gave us chips for the timing even though the 1 mile race was a non-timed event. It made my son feel important with the chip dangling around his laces, just like daddy’s shoes do. I have the foot pod on my shoe for pace cadence and distance information and he’s wanted something to be attached to his shoe too. The chip was just perfect.

$50 for a one mile fun run seems excessive. It was for a good cause, the Fort Worth Can Academy so I didn’t feel that bad about forking over the money. The lady at the registration said “you know you could just run the 1 mile with your son and you can run the 5K afterward if you feel like it”.

At this point I wasn’t sure if I should run the 5K, I mean I had my son with me and I had no idea what I would do with him until I’d be running the 5K. We get up for the 1 mile fun run and there are less than a dozen people lining up at the start. It wasn’t a heavy field to say the least; my son and I were the only ones who really showed up just for that, the other people were using it as a warm-up for the 5K. I was a bit disappointed that my son’s first race was such a weak turnout but he didn’t care.

The air horn for the start really got him pumped and we were off! We settled into a good steady pace of around 11 minute miles and we didn’t stop! My son ran the whole one mile. It was actually 1.12 miles in 12 minutes and 9 seconds! I was very proud of him! He ran a 10:58 average pace. It really felt great to see him run and not stop for the whole way. Even though there was zero crowd support and zero competition support the fact that he was wearing a bib made him run the whole thing. I’m one proud daddy!

After we finished the 1 mile “race” I found two nice ladies at a vendor booth and pawned off my son on them with my RoadID wrapped around his bicep in case he got lost and I decided to go for the 5K race.

The race wasn’t anything big, it had 80 finishers but I wanted to see just how fast I could run it. The air horn sounded and we were off!

As with every race I have ran there are some crazy young guys who go out way too fast at the beginning then they fatigue about a quarter mile into the race when they realize that it’s a but longer than a quarter mile. Or there might be some crazy fast people that you just simply shouldn’t even attempt to keep pace with. But the problem is that these crazies tend to drag you along for the ride if you’re not careful. I have been guilty of trying and hurting myself in the long run.

My problem today also has been that my foot pod was not calibrated right. I only run long runs with these shoes so the calibration was way off. So what I assumed was a 6:14 pace based on my watch for the first mile was actually a 5:44 pace. It felt hard but I didn’t realize that it was that fast. We were running into some pretty strong winds so I just assumed that it was the wind that was holding me back and I should be picking up some good pace on my return.

After the early crazies fell off I found myself in first place at around the half mile point so I had to dictate the pace. There were no rabbits in front of me and, luckily there were no real chasers behind me either. The course was not marked very well and I was running off course at one point heading way off course when the guy behind me yelled at me which helped me to find the right trail.

At the turnaround I felt pretty wasted, I kept checking my watch for pace and I have seen numbers in the 6:25-6:45 range for my pace. I was thinking there is no way I could run any faster but I kept wondering why my pace was so lousy. I mean it wasn’t super slow but it was slower than my pace at last weekends 10K yet I felt a hell of a lot more tired. I chalked it up to running on tired legs as I haven’t tapered one bit for this race and it was unplanned plus I thought that I wasn’t pushing myself because I had no one to catch up to and there was no one really chasing me.

After the turnaround the wind situation didn’t get better and now it felt like it was blowing from the other direction. My pace deteriorated even more, now my monitor dipped down to 7:15 min/mile paces at times. I could not believe it! I was still in the lead the second place runner was about 20 seconds behind me but I just couldn’t keep it together. I could not believe how slow my pace was and how badly I was hurting yet I was still in the lead.

Once we got to the last half mile I was trying to give it a good kick which I thought I did but my pace didn’t really show it. I took one glance back and saw the second place guy still 15 seconds back I figured there was no way I would not win this one. I have given it one final kick once the finish line was in sight and as soon as I saw the clock I could not believe it. It was just rolling over 19:00. Based on my paces I knew that was no possible. But it still didn’t occur to me that it might have been my monitor and my paces that were wrong.

I crossed the finish in 19:05.7 a new PR for me! Second place was 12 seconds back; he clearly gained some time on me on the way back but luckily not enough.

So the lesson I have learned from today’s race is not to trust my monitor for paces blindly, especially when I’m running in shoes with incorrect calibration values. After I have corrected my downloaded data for the calibration my mile paces were:

1.0: 5:44

1.0: 6:17

1.0: 6:20

0.1: 6:19

It is obvious that I had killed myself on the first mile because of some crazy fast starters and my own stupidity of trusting the monitor for paces. Bottom line is that I still won the race and got a PR from it. I was really hoping to get under 19 minutes but that goal will just have to wait a couple more races…

Sunday I went and ran my usual long run, this time it was 11.1 miles on the Trinity Trail. I did it in 1:29. A lady caught up with me after 4.5 miles and we ran 2 miles together. She had 15 on tap and had a 3:30 marathon PR. It was nice to run with someone but she was clocking 7:40 miles so she dragged me along. It’s a good thing she stopped on the way back after 2 miles so I could settle into my own pace again. Then I went home put the bike rack on the car and drove back and repeated the same route with the family on the bike. My son in tow on a trail-a-bike and my 2 year old daughter in front of me sitting in a baby seat. My wife rode her own bike. We rode for 5 miles, stopped for lunch at Panera Bread then rode over to the playground and let the kids play. Then we rode back to the trail head. Total was 12 miles. We did it in 1:29. Kind of funny that our pace on the bike was almost the same as my pace while running.

I’ve been working on my transformation for 30 weeks now and I think I can conclude that I just had another successful week.

Eating is really on auto pilot at this point. I don’t think a whole lot about what to eat, how to it, how much to eat. It really comes pretty darn naturally now. This weekend We went to the Chinese buffet and I just naturally gravitate towards the green bean stir-fry, the broccoli beef and the steamed rice while before I’d fill up on sweet and sour chicken with fried rice, a couple of cheese won-tons and egg rolls. Granted I ate 1,100 calories worth of food in one sitting at buffet but I was stuffed afterward. I could not have eaten another bite even if I wanted to.

Now you might think that 1,100 calories in one sitting is excessive. And I would agree with you. I certainly don’t do it every day. But Sunday I ran 11 miles in the morning and burned 1,200 calories. Then I went and rode the same 11 miles and then some with my family on a bike burning another 600 calories. So Even with the 1,100 calorie dinner and close to 3,100 calorie daily intake I was still in a severe caloric deficit for the day. This is the beauty of diet and exercise working in harmony. When you put in the amount of exercise I put in you can get away with eating like a crazy pig every once in a while. But what’s still beautiful about those 3,100 calories today is that they were extremely well balanced: 20% protein (152 grams), 58% carbohydrate and only 23% fat. On a regular day I actually find it quite difficult to eat 2,300 calories, I have to resort to making two servings of oatmeal at 9:00PM just to get in my daily calories. Once I stop my weight loss I’ll have an even harder time to stuff my face with 2,700+ calories a day on average.

In terms of numbers, I have averaged 2,438 calories a day which is mainly due to the well justified 3,100 calorie Sunday. I have averaged 128 grams of protein a day which is a bit more than I need but nothing extreme, I’m gladly taking those numbers.

Strength training is still a struggle. I did put in one exercise on Wednesday but I had to skip Friday again as I had to take my son to soccer right after work which left me no time to go to the gym. I just really need to quit eating out so much and trying to knock out the gym at lunch time. I sound like a broken record with this statement though. Maybe I should actually do it instead of just talking about it.

Running was phenomenal this week! I broke another record, I ran over 40 miles (65 km) in a week for the first time! I actually had to adjust the scale on the chart to fit all this mileage. I also ran my longest run ever with 11 miles this weekend which felt fantastic. And to top it all off I ran a personal best in a 5K race on Saturday morning with a 19:05 time. More on that later. All in all I have burned a whopping 5,149 calories doing running and that one 12 mile outing with the bike on Sunday. That’s a lot of calories!

So based on the calories in vs. calories out where do I stand in terms of weight? The rolling average indicates that I have lost another 1.4 lbs (0.6 kg) this week which is right where I want to be. 1.4 lbs of fat equals 4,900 calories which means that my BMR is 2,402 calories. It means that I have been eating pretty darn close to that maintenance, within 35 calories of it and I have generated all of my weight loss with the exercise that I had put in. It means if I were to quit running today and I would stick with a 2,400 calorie diet I would be able to maintain my current physique. But we all know that I’m not quitting the running and I’m not stopping with the weight loss either until I see some abs.

• @ChrisPolarUSA, what monitor would you recommend for a 5yo boy? My son wants to run with me and the S210 is just not right with the old T31. in reply to ChrisPolarUSA #
• "26.2 Quest: Sony's New Wearable Walkman® MP3 Player – Giveaway!" – http://bit.ly/aGiMuv (via @Apture) #
• @DaveZinczenko Not mine! I only drink water! Liquid calories are just plain dumb unless you're in the middle of a multi-hour endurance event in reply to DaveZinczenko #
• My 5yo son has been eating nothing but yogurt and granola for breakfast for the last 4 days.Like father like son. I guess I'm inspiring him! #
• I bought a $80 pink shirt at Banana Republic last weekend. Size SMALL! It's ridiculous that I need size small and that I can wear pink now. #
• @virtual4now I also love inspiring people! At work I've made the difference for at least 3 guys now. Feels pretty good to be a role model. #
• @ChrisPolarUSA I ran a 10K in 38:08, new PR 2nd in AG 4th OA. Course was short so real pace was 6:18/mile. I'm posting a race report tonight in reply to ChrisPolarUSA #
• Study suggests processed meat a real health risk: http://1url.com/ng2 I'm not sure I buy it. I'll keep eating my bacon I think. #
• I just entered the @RoadID Spring Giveaway to win an iPad, HED wheels & more. You can too: http://bit.ly/anFoF9. #
• @reconstruct30 Hey, At least he was running which is a lot more than you could say about a lot of people! in reply to reconstruct30 #
• My favorite half marathon road banner: "Half of crazy is still crazy!" Gotta love it! #
• Last night I had the perfect interval run. 10×400 average 1:16.9, fastest 1:15.3 (8th) and slowest 1:18.3 (1st). All others in between. #
• RT @virtual4now: RT @TurtlePower1: There's no easy button in running. #
• Great run! I like the negative splits! RT @virtual4now: Six miles before Six am http://bit.ly/9xO9Jr #
• Stepped on the scale this morning: 166.7 lbs, 75.6 kg. That's over 70 lbs (31.9 kg) lost so far! Finally broke 70! #
• @virtual4now They seem to elude me: http://www.gregstransformation.com/elusive-negative-split/ in reply to virtual4now #
• @TheRightFitBlog Nice going with the running Carla! Isn't running fun? in reply to TheRightFitBlog #
• Morning! Off to run a 45 minute fartlek. #
• Fartlek went great! 6.3 miles at 7:06/mile average pace. http://is.gd/chzE6 #
• Good Job! Just keep on running RT @virtual4now: Awesome 2 mile run with second mile faster than 5k target pace http://bit.ly/asxHgY #
• @reconstruct30 I dunno what's so "blisfully perfect" about 33 grams of sugar. If you crave orange, eat an orange. At least you'd get fiber. in reply to reconstruct30 #
• 7 Inspiring Weight Loss Transformations: http://is.gd/chPTi #
• Just broke 500 miles ran for the year this morning. 500 down another 1,300 or so to go for 2010. #
• RT @virtual4now: Big list of runners that tweet – http://bit.ly/twitterrunners #
• Ran a 3 mile easy run this morning. First time to break 8:00/mile on a recovery day. http://is.gd/ciZch #
• @reconstruct30 RT @virtual4now: I received a FREE Spicy Chicken Sandwich from Chick-fil-A. Go to http://www.getspicychicken.com to get yours! in reply to reconstruct30 #
• @devkl I have over 3,000 photos of my children. I have about a dozen of me when I was a child. That's just the way things go. in reply to devkl #
• Nice, you're running more and more! RT @TheRightFitBlog: I spent 40 minutes running. 346 calories burned. #LoseIt #
• Congrats! Good job on the distance! RT @devkl: just ran 5.5 miles in 80 mins. slow, yes, but distance is new personal record. Woot. #
• @265andfalling Good luck at tomorrow's race. Just remember to take it easy and run your own race. Don't let others dictate your pace! in reply to 265andfalling #
• Went to run a 1 mile fun run event with my son this morning. Ended up winning the 5K with a 19:05 PR instead. I also ran the fun tun though. #
• @virtual4now Sounds pretty good! You're running these faster than I do my long runs. in reply to virtual4now #
• @virtual4now I run 10 mile long runs right now around 8:10 – 1:15 pace. I actually run all my non tempo/speed/fartlek runs at that pace. in reply to virtual4now #
• @reconstruct30 Sweet! Buying clothes is both fun and expensive as hell. My new wardrobe cost me over $1k. But it was worth it. in reply to reconstruct30 #
• @virtual4now Thanks! Considering I wasn't even going to race today, I take it! I was really hoping to break 19 but that will have to wait. in reply to virtual4now #