2011 - what a year!!

Can I just start by saying WOW! 5000 hits is more than I could ever dream of when I started this blog, part of me thought I would give up training and revert to my useless unhappy self within a month or so anyway. I've started training before and given up pretty quickly for a variety of reasons, none of which I am sure about as this time it has been entirely different. I've maintained a motivation level required to keep going for most of the year and for that I am grateful. Most of this challenge is a mental challenge rather than physical, in my opinion.

I can only say thank you to ALL of you who have kept reading, kept supporting, kept commenting. The support has been fantastic! I definitely hadn't come this far without all your help. I've got some way to go yet but I definitely feel like my goals are achievable! So as it's the end of year I thought I would summarize 2011 and give a mention to a few people that have helped me along the way.

It was March 2011 when I decided to train for a marathon, when I came up with the idea. The biggest thank you for this has to go to my best friend in the world and brother-from-another-mother Jonny Keeling. I jokingly came up with the idea of running a marathon and he said "I'll do it if you do it". That was the biggest kick for me initially. We then planned for a years time and collaborated training plans etc. It's a great shame that he can't be there in Barcelona but I know he will do a marathon himself one day, I hope to run it with him!

I then spent March - July training really hard and I even worked my way up to a half marathon! This is where I got a bit complacent. I had applied to the London Marathon, I was already at 13.1 miles after a few months... I can relax a bit, this stuff is easy! How wrong was I?!

I spent July-September doing a few bits but nowhere near the required rate to improve. I found out in September that I found out I didn't get a space in the London Marathon, motivation was at an all time low.

Here is where the 2nd mention comes in: Dave Knight came up with the idea of a foreign marathon as an idea which would be much cooler than London. Dave has ran some marathon's before himself and so he's been giving me invaluable advice throughout the  but he even went as far as to sign up for the race in Barcelona with me! This has given me the biggest spurt of motivation this year.

Since October I have trained really hard. Much of the help has been from Jamie Seward who has done several runs with me and dragged me round when I haven't wanted to go, and gone at a faster pace than I was comfortable with. He too is racing in Barcelona. The final person in the quartet to race is Scott Robson who has been supporting me from afar (Munich, Germany). He too signed up for the race and has been going through a similar training plan to me (as he is also a beginner unlike the other two). His support has been great, we've spent many a nights on Facebook chat discussing our training.

It was also in October where I decided to start going to the gym once a week to compliment my running training. Mark Anderson is single-handedly responsible for all my great progress in the gym, it really has helped me tone and I owe Mark a lot. I will hopefully start training with him more than once a week once the race is done! 

Other mentions has to go to all my friend and family who have all commented, encouraged and listened to me bang on about my training. It's taking up a massive part of my life at the moment and so I probably spend way too much time talking about it. Their constant reminders of how well I am doing, how much weight I've lost, how good I'm looking makes me feel better than anything.

Another tool which has helped me through the year is www.myfitnesspal.com. It's a fantastic place to get advice on diet and exercise. I have 140+ friends on there who are a massive part of the support network when it comes to my training. Anyone wanting to lose weight or train for a physical challenge should sign up - it's free!

So since March I've lost 21lbs, gained some muscle (for the first time ever), spent countless hours on the road and will after and 8 mile run tomorrow have run 400 miles. I've got a LOOOOONNNNGGG way to go but thanks to all these people above and others I feel like it's achievable.

I am taking Christmas and New years off and going to my home town in Sweden for some rest and relaxation. Ready to re-charge the batteries for the new year - the hardest work physically is still ahead.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

-Erik

Good news just before Christmas

I've not been as active on the blog recently but that is probably because I am so busy all the time! I have however had some good progress in the last week or so. I did a few runs and was still feeling a bit under the weather but yesterday I actually felt decent for the first time in a while.

I set off at a super-slow pace as I wanted to run for at least 2 hours, that was my goal! I ended up doing 2½ hours and 14 miles. The pace wasn't the best I know but the distance is fantastic considering my running in December hasn't been much to shout about until now.

I then weighed myself and found I'd lost 3½ lbs in 1½ weeks which made me very happy. I'm now at my lightest yet at 13st 5lbs or 187 lbs. I only want to lose another 10-12lbs, I can taste success :-)

I'm taking Christmas and New Years off, I deserve it. I'll come back in January ready to hit it hard. I'd love to be at 175lbs or so by race day and it should be achievable!

All the best

Erik

Coldest run yet

A tip to myself. Run in the cold! I went faster than normal and finished 4 miles in 37:13 which is nearly 9 minute miles and a record!

Now for a nice warm bath, I deserve it!

Random weigh-in!

So I realized I hadn't weighed myself since the 19th November and I decided that I needed to do something about that. I was very nervous due to the fact my last run was nearly 2 weeks ago and I'd had 3-4 drinking sessions and terrible diet in that time. I was expecting to put on like 5-6 lbs.

I only put on 1! Can't wait to get healthy and start running again. Keep pushing that weight down until Barcelona!

-Erik

Sick and frustrated

So I took some time off when I went to Vienna which means I had done 0 miles in December when I came back on the 1st. Then due to ill discipline and pre-arranged party plans I didn't run at the weekend. Now thanks to some flu-like illness I still am on 0 miles!

It's very frustrating! I hope I can get better soon so I can get back on with increasing my mileage!

100 mile month!

Yesterday I completed a 12 mile run in the FREEZING cold which wasn't as far as I had originally planned but I was freezing and joints started to ache! Nevertheless a 12 mile run in under 2 hours (1:59:39) is good in my eyes! It also means I took the total for November to:

104 Miles!


I feel like it's a massive achievement and I'm very proud of that number, I doubt I will have many more months in my life where I run that much. I've pretty much not missed a training session in 8 weeks and so the last 2 months have been great for me!

I am now taking 4 days off from running as I am going to Vienna with work. I'm still taking gym gear so I can do a few bits whilst we're out there but I think I deserve a 4 day break from running, something I've not had since September and it's now nearly December.

Have a good week all!

Erik

Happy Friday everyone

Hi all,

I hope you're well! I've had a good week so far, I feel like I've gotten over my minor calf problem. That will be tested out when I run 4 miles tonight but it definitely feels better than it has done all week. It could be down to Tiger Balm (MAGIC) or compression tights or stretching or probably a combination of all 3.

I also broke another PB for the bench press yesterday with 75kgs - an increase of 12.5kg! - not sure how that works but I'm very pleased. My best mate and partner in crime Jonny came along for the first time to the gym for a gruelling work out which lasted about 1½ hours. I'll be interested to find out how he feels later.

I'm going to Vienna, Austria with work next week and so I won't be running Monday-Thursday, I'll take some gym stuff with me so that I can keep active. Anxious about not doing enough but I'm sure it will be fine.

Have a great weekend everyone.

-Erik

Ran past two 11-13 year olds tonight... "Run fatty, run!!" followed by continued abuse until I turned the corner.

All the motivation I needed to smash my PB for the distance. Cheers lads!

Progress - some stats!

Personal Bests:
March 2011
Distance in 1 run: 2 miles 
Distance in 1 week: 5 miles 
Bench press: 30 kgs


Now
Distance in 1 run: 16.8 miles (3h 5min) 
Distance in 1 week: 29 miles 
Bench press: 62.5 kgs 
Half marathon time: 2h 10mins (November 19th 2011) 
Miles in 1 month: 87 (October 2011) 

Feeling the effects

I am writing to you this Monday morning feeling slightly beat up. I had a really good run on Saturday morning, again with my friend Jamie and we ended up doing a half marathon. We did it in 2:09:46 which is averaging under 10min/mile. I'm very pleased with this as we ran up a massive hill after about 10 miles and did the last mile in 9:07.

Since then I've rested as Sunday-Saturday I had done a total of 42 miles and my body feels like it too! I have a sore shoulder (probably from my weight work in the gym), a sore left calf which was feeling cramp-like towards the end of the run, a sore right ankle and generally I'm feeling a bit leggy. I'm happy with the rest and the soreness isn't too bad. I will try to run again tomorrow, let's see how I get on.

Also, I put on a pound this week which I'm not to fussed with. I was good all week and so I think it's mainly muscle.

Got to keep powering on!

-Erik

Running with somebody helps!

In the past 2 days I have run with my friend Jamie who's at a more advanced level than me and he's ran marathons before. It's great insight because he is also coming to Barcelona for the marathon and so can give me tips along the way.

When you run with somebody it definitely helps! It makes the time go a lot quicker and especially if you run with someone that is a bit more advanced - it forces you to pick the pace up at all times which in itself is good training. I did 4 miles instead of 3 on Tuesday and 8 miles instead of 7 yesterday, both in very good time - mainly because of Jamie. The run yesterday was the first run where it has been FREEZING cold and so for the first 2-3 miles I did not enjoy it but in the end it turned out to be a good pleasurable(ish) run.

Let's hope the decent week continues, gym session tonight as per usual and then another run with Jamie on Saturday. We've said minimum 10 miles but let's see how far our legs will take us!

Good recovery!

So Sunday and Monday I was in a lot of pain. My legs and my right knee were hurting quite bad so I tried to do as little as physically possible and as it turns out, I recovered well! I was tonight supposed to do a 3-mile recovery run and I ended up doing 4 miles at a very good pace 9:30min/miles. I felt great and could have carried on a lot longer and so I'm very pleased with this.

I am due to do a 7 miler tomorrow and so I am going to aim for 8 miles just to get ahead of plan. I am cheating a bit this week because I am going to move the long run from Sunday to Saturday and miss out Friday's run all together. This is because Saturday is 1 of my allocated drinking days (I set 5 days between Oct 1st and Christmas where I could drink) and so I only have 2 left after that before Christmas.

Let's hope this week goes well! Onwards and upwards!

New PB and more weight loss!

Hi all!

As I write this I have some very achy legs! I broke a PB this morning and ran 16.8 miles in 3 hours and 5 minutes. I was supposed to run 12 according to my plan but I decided to run til fail and I did just that about 2 miles from home. My legs were really tired and I am just pleased I managed the distance... I am also very pleased as I finished the week about 6 miles ahead of plan!

I then stepped on the scales and I had lost 3½ lbs this week! That's 9lbs lost since the 16th October, great progress!

-Erik

New Jeans!

I've done well this week with the running and so I thought I'd treat myself to a new pair of jeans - I've dropped 2 sizes! Can't remember the last time I was this size, I think I was about 14/15 yrs old. Chuffed!

Another great run yesterday - 6.8 miles in 1h 6min which is faster than 10 min miles and that's great news for me! Never done that far that quickly! Much needed and deserved day off running today but not resting - heading to the gym as per usual to be put through my paces! Need to buy some new clothes - all the ones I have are too big! Great feeling!

-Erik

4.8 miles yesterday but I am going to count 4 as I only deal in full miles and I'm rock&roll. Motivation at an all-time high at the moment. Got to keep it up.

Going for it!

So this week I am due to do 3,6,3 and 12 mile runs as you can see on the last post. I want to try and push ahead of the schedule as I felt so good during my 11-miler on Sunday. I want to do 4,6,4 and 15miles - aiming for a PB in terms of total mileage for the week and total distance for 1 run (The furthest so far is 13.1 miles which I did in June). I'll let you know how I get on!

I'd also like to point you to my new fundraising page. ----------->

It's a really great charity that I volunteer for as well in my spare time, any donations are hugely appreciated as I know they go to something good.

Wish me luck!

Erik

Good few weeks!

I've had a good few weeks! I wanted to illustrate this by showing my training plan in the past few weeks and the next few weeks coming up. All the ones highlighted in green are ones that I've completed

You can also see the total mileages for the weeks and also the total mileage since March (when I started my running training seriously). I am pleased with the progress - I haven't missed a single session that has been planned in 5 weeks.

As you can see though, the next few weeks I get in to some serious mileage and so I just hope I can keep it up!

11.1 miles run and 3lbs lost

The title sums it up very well!

A good 11.1 mile run yesterday, all though my GPS tracker (which was VERY kindly and unexpectedly bought for me as a birthday present on Thursday) logs 11.1 but when I log it on to the software on the PC it says 12.7 miles. Not sure which one to believe but I'll count 11.1 as if I am doing longer then I'll be pleasantly surprised when I do the race and find it easier.

Either way a very good run, and I lost another 3lbs even though I had one of my 5 allocated drinking days on Friday to celebrate turning 25 on Thursday. I'm starting the 26th year of my life in good form!

-Erik

Best run yet!

So yesterday I went on a 6.5 miler with my mate Jamie who is running the marathon with us in Barcelona. I think it was my best run to date. We kept a good pace - about 10 min/miles and we also took the course past 2 gruelling hills! The 2nd of which was right at the end. I managed to sprint up that hill and finish really strong! The last mile of the 6.5 was the fastest and so it was great!

This is how I looked immediately after :-D

Good week!

I've had a decent week so far and kept up with my running! It felt good to do the 5 miles on Wednesday and a nice 3-miler yesterday.

7 miles tomorrow which is a bigger challenge but I've done 8 and 9 milers in the last 2 Sundays so I should hopefully be ok!

Have a good weekend all!

Still on track!

I had my first minor setback yesterday all though I don't see it as a setback. I've always read and been told "LISTEN to your body" so when I set out for my 3 mile run yesterday I really wasn't feeling it. I ended up doing 2 miles instead of 3.

With that being said today I was back on track with the scheduled 5 miler which I completed in 53:42 which is a fairly decent time, about 10:40 per mile. It feels good to have midweek break in the running on a Thursday because it doesn't seem so monotonous that way. Gym session tomorrow, 3 miles on Friday and 7 miles on Sunday. Should be easy-peasy (Hoping I haven't jinxed myself).

Ploughing on!

Another 3lbs lost!

I'm waking up this Monday morning with my body aching all over the place. It's with no doubt due to my 9 mile run yesterday which I found much tougher than the 8 mile run last week! I was very pleased to finish the 9 miles without stopping even if the last couple of miles were slow.

I then weighed myself to found I lost another 3lbs last week which is pleasing as I was very strict with my diet. That's about ½ stone lost now in 3 weeks so I hope I can keep this going. I'm going to try and be strict again this week even though I have a meal out on Friday and Sunday.

Loosing all the weight makes the aching more bearable! I'll also pass 250 total miles this week which is a bit of a milestone!

2 weeks down - 5½ months to go!

I set a goal 2 weeks a go to not eat crisps or chocolate for 6 months. Today makes in 2 weeks success!

I've not really struggled as much as I thought all though the temptation has been there. If the remaining time is as easy as these 2 weeks have been, I should be able to achieve my goal no problems.

Great run, great progress and new weigh-in

Today has been an excellent day.

I ran 8 miles but felt good doing it. The first mile was very slow - around 12 minutes as I wanted to pace myself but after that I upped the pace and even managed a 9 minute mile on my 7th mile of the run. I also overcame a stitch around 3 miles and so I'm very pleased. It's the first time I've manage to finish stronger than I started and I'd like all my runs to carry on that pattern if I can.

The only negative from the run is bloody nipples and a rash where I wear my iPhone to track the run but it hasn't bothered me too much.

When I got back, as I told you a few days ago I wanted to weigh myself to start tracking my weight again and I was pleasantly surprised to weigh in at 197.5lbs - the lightest I've been in years! Let's hope I can keep loosing weight and keep upping the distances. More days like today please!

Protein shakes

I've been going to the gym with my mate Mark who is a man mountain for about a month or so. The training is very intense and so I am now doing this 1 time per week to couple my running. It's weight lifting focusing on shoulders, arms, chest and stomach muscles and I'm hoping I can tone these up along side my running training.

The owner of the gym is a bit of an expert (he's a bodybuilder) and so I explained my marathon training scheme and my diet etc. and he suggested I don't eat enough protein. He therefore suggested protein shakes to supplement my diet. I've decided to give it a go.

I'll let you know if I feel a difference.

All the best

Erik

Weight progress

As some of you eagle-eyed readers have spotted - I haven't updated my weight progress in a while. I intend to start updating it again. I was thinking every Sunday after my run would be a good time to do it as it's at the end of the week once I've done all my exercises for the week. I shall start this Sunday... I'm a bit worried as I have slacked off recently and so hopfully I'm not too far over 200lbs (14st 4lbs).

-Erik

Training plan!

Feeling positive

So the first week back in proper running training ended well, I really enjoyed my 5-mile run all though the route I have is a tough one and there is about a mile between 3-4 which is steep uphill. I struggled through it and felt really good afterwards - I'm beginning to think a marathon is actually possible if I stick with this training plan!

Also, on Saturday and Sunday I had some really nice comments about my weight loss, one of my mates was stunned when he saw me and said he couldn't believe how different I looked... Not that I can tell myself but it's those sorts of comments that spur you on to train even harder. I've still got a long way to go with the weight loss but when you hear from others that it's making a difference, it makes you more determined to go further.

All in all I'm feeling very positive at the moment. This week consists of 3,4,3 and 8 mile runs as well as a gruelling hour in the gym on Thursday. I think it's those Thursdays that have made the biggest difference in my appearance so far.

-Erik

Another milestone - 200 miles!

I know I've only just started back properly and today was my 2nd run since I booked the marathon (flights, hotel and place in the race). Even so, I still feel a sense of achievement that on my little 3-mile run today, I passed 200 miles!

I was also very pleased with the time, I did it in 29 minutes which is faster than what I normally do for that route. I bought myself some proper running shorts which felt better to run in and I also think the motivation of Spain in 6 months drove me to push myself that little bit extra.

A day off tomorrow followed by a 5-miler on Sunday.

Have a nice weekend!

-Erik

Diet goals

So in order to do well with the race and in order to get to a stage where I believe I can complete the race I have set myself so goals in my diet. I'm not going to count every calorie I eat but I hope some simple rules will help me on my way:

1. No crisps or chocolate consumed until March
2. A limit of 5 days where I can drink alcohol between now and Christmas - then 3 days between Jan-March
3. 5 takeaways between now and March - I'm not including meals out but simply trying to cut out the random Wendesday night Pizza or KFC on a Saturday lunch time.

I don't have too many takeaways as it is today but I think some simple rules will help. The biggest test for me I think will be crisps - I can't get enough normally. Alcohol is another test but the motivation of running the marathon should hopefully see me through - it's not like I'm cutting it out all together.

What do you all think?

Erik

New goals, new start, EXCITED

So most of you regulars will notice that I haven't updated the blog in a while and there is a reason. I was going off running - it was getting very boring and so I didn't keep up like I should have! This was made worse when it was confirmed to me that I didn't get a space in the London Marathon and there were no more entry places for the backup plan - the Brighton marathon either.

So what I was in DESPERATE need of was a new goal to re-ignite all the early initiative that I had toward my running and the inspiration and the idea came from my friend Dave who's got some experience in running marathons. He suggested doing a European city marathon as it's so much cooler than London and it will also give me a chance to visit somewhere I haven't before.

The choice was very much impulse but I've decided to run the BARCELONA marathon on 25th March 2012. My friend Dave agreed to run it with me and so I'm now very excited and flights, hotel and spot in the marathon is booked!

So, to the training. I've drawn up a similar plan to take me up to March 25th. It's very similar to before but the difference this time is that I don't have to start from scratch! I have 199 miles under my belt to date and I think that could only be a good thing. I'll update with the training plan in a few days or so, so that you can see what I'm doing.

I can also say I'll try and keep the blog more up to date!

All the best!!

Erik

Cracking on

So I know I haven't updated the blog that much but it doesn't mean I haven't been exercising and running. Yes I'm not running as much before but I've done a few bits, coupled with other exercise to keep me going.

I haven't weighed myself in a while, I think I would have put some back on as I slacked off in July and some of August but I'm gonna try and monitor the diet in the coming months to try and get back down.

I did a 5-mile run yesterday and the time it took me was an hour. Frustrating as it was so slow but I'm very glad I made it round in one piece. I'm going to do the same today if I get time and see if I can improve my time from yesterday.

All the best

Erik

Time to re-ignite

So I'll be the first to admit I've been slacking recently but I do have some half-valid excuses but I should have tried harder to make time for my running. I went to the US, then had visitors over, then went camping, then had Bronchitis.....

But - all that aside it's time to re-ignite and start over. I'm not completely starting over as I'm still fitter than I was before I started this adventure and I just hope I can carry this on through til April when I will run the Reading half-marathon and hopefully then the London marathon. So I've decided to start over with the training plan, I'll start small again and hopefully won't wear myself out too much, and I'm also hoping to progress at a similar rate to last time, without major injury.

Wish me luck!

-Erik

Lack of posting

Apologies all for the lack of posting really, the main reason being I haven't had much to report on. I'm trying the new program and so far it's been a bit up and down as I've failed on a few sessions but I have stayed the same weight.

This will no doubt when I go to the US with work next week.

Have a nice weekend all!

-Erik

All change

So I decided to go with the change. It's going to be very strange initially but I've designed a program which gives me a good mix of running and weight work and fartlek training.

Monday: Gym
Tuesday: Football
Wednesday: Run/Gym/Badminton
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Short fast run - typically 2 miles
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Longer run

Hopefully this should give me the variety and I've left Mondays and Wednesdays as days where I can vary it depending on how I feel.

What do we think people?

Erik

Do I need a change?

I had another bad weekend last weekend. My legs were really sluggish on Friday so I decided not to run, I then had 3 days in a row of drinking which is both unusual and REALLY bad. Because of my drinking on Saturday - I therefore also decided not to run on Sunday as I wasn't feeling too good. I really need to get back on it today!

I've been thinking a lot about my training program in the past few days. It's becoming a bit mundane with the LONG runs during the week, I don't mind if it's a long run at the weekend because I have more spare time. My local football team start pre-season training next Tuesday so I may substitute one of the runs for a Tuesday training session. I may also start playing Badminton on a Wednesday with my good friend Eddie as a substitute for another run.

I figure if I run 2-3 times a week instead of 4 it would be a LOT more interesting as long as I do something in it's place. I also think it would be good to mix the training up, fartlek and more stop-start exercise will help my muscles become more explosive.

Another thought I have had - is to try and incorporate some weights in to my weekly schedule. I've lost a fair bit of weight - not enough in my opinion but I already feel like I could do with 'toning'.

I think I will do this week as normal and then re-evaluate. What do you guys think? I still think 2-3 runs per week would allow me to increase my mileage sufficiently to complete the marathon. Hopefully mixing my training up will allow me to run faster miles as well.

All the best

Erik

New experience

Yesterday I had a hard time of it, and experienced something I haven't before. I went to do my 6 mile course, and I wanted to really push on so I did the first 2 miles with both miles being 9 minute-somethings. I then got to a massive hill which I normally run up but I struggled. I had to walk for a large chunk of the hill. This has never happened before.

I think it's partly due to the (relatively) fast opening pace and also some fatigue from my 13-miler on Sunday. I was still a bit annoyed. I had to cut my route short and I still did 5 miles in 55 minutes at 11 min per mile as average. If you take into account I walked for 3-4 minutes of that, it's not a bad pace.

I have a cross day today which means Gym and so hopefully I will fare better on my run tomorrow.

Lowest ever and speedy recovery

So I weighed myself this morning to find I've lost another pound and I'm now at my lowest 14st 2lbs or 198lbs which is good news. I really want to push on and go below 14st (196lbs) in the few weeks!

When I did my long run on Sunday which was 13 miles - I really suffered with my knees on Sunday night. They were really sore due to the pounding they took during the long run. I had Monday off - I could still feel them but they weren't too bad. Yesterday I did a 4 mile run and they felt fine - even afterwards and today. This is a sign that my body is recovering quicker.

The impact on my joints will be lower, the lighter I get and so I can't wait to push on and lose some more weight soon.

All the best

Erik

Training plan - updated!

I thought it might be good for you guys to see the training plan. The pink is completed sessions.

As you can see I've got a tough few weeks coming up - no rest for the wicked!

HALFWAY THERE :-) !!!!

So I've reached a couple of more milestones yesterday; 150 miles total as well as the halfway distance of a marathon - 13 miles.

I was only due to do 11 according to my fitness program but I thought if I am going to run 11 I might as well squeeze out an extra 2 and reach this milestone. I am very pleased I did all though I was VERY tired in the last 2-3 miles.

For the first 8-9 miles I felt good and even though my route has a LONG stretch of uphill running (which I pass twice) I still felt like I managed it very well - even on the 2nd time round. In the last 2-3 I nearly felt like giving up and it was will power that kept me going.

Since I got back yesterday - My knee and legs have been hurting so it will be interesting to see how the recovery goes.

I am already looking to the next milestone - 15 miles which I am due to do in 3-4 weeks time. Until then I hope to push on and lose some more weight.

All the best,

Erik

Run in the rain

Out of all of my 137 miles of running I can't remember ever running in the rain - until today. I really enjoyed trying to get back into the swing of it. The rain was actually quite nice as it kept me relatively cool and I managed 6 miles.

I just want to keep it going over the next few weeks without interruptions as the last few weeks have been very stop-start.

-Erik

Back and ready for it

So I've got the 2 weddings and the festival out of the way and I haven't really put any weight!

Now that I'm back it's really time to put some miles in, I went for a 3 mile-run yesterday and it felt painful! I am due to do 6 miles today but I don't know if I'll manage that. I'll definitely give it a go!

All the best!

Erik

Tough week, then time to push harder

I have been a bit frustrated with the last few weeks. A few trips abroad, weddings and days out have meant my eating and drinking habits have not been the best and so I've stayed around about the same weight with no real progress for the last 3-4 weeks.

This week coming up will be no different - in fact, I am going to a music festival up north which means camping for 5 days and so probably a lot of junk food. When I come back I think it's time to find some new drive to really try and get my weight down a bit more.

According to my training program I've got some really long runs to do in the next month or so, and so I hope this will help. I just need this festival out of the way and I can start again in a way.

Until then - all the best!

Erik

Running with a hangover is no fun

So I've been a bit sloppy recently and had more alcohol than I probably should have and I've even missed a couple of sessions. A similar story where last night I was a little bit on the drunk side - and this morning I was due a LONG one at 7 miles.

I was determined to not let my sloppiness affect my run this morning and so I got up and ran 7 miles in one of my best times of 1h 13mins so just over 10min per mile. I was very impressed and I pushed myself the whole way, even drawing up a route that would mean finishing on a long punishing uphill just as punishment for myself for being sloppy. I hope this is motivation to be a bit better in the long run. It certainly wasn't enjoyable on the run as I could smell and taste the alcohol from last night.

This week coming up is another sloppy one as I am going to Download festival and camping for 5 days. I will catch up with you guys when I'm back.

All the best.

Erik

I'm back baby!

My 5 miles today went ok! I did it in 55 mins which to me is acceptable and I felt great, nowhere near as tired as yesterday! Let's hope I can keep it up this week as I am away for some of next week.

It feels good to be back in the swing of things!

It's been a while

Apologies for the lack of activity folks but that's due to the lack of running activity. I've been abroad a couple of times in the last few weeks and so last week I only managed 7 miles but this week it's business as usual.

I forgot to weigh myself yesterday but I weighed myself this morning to find I'd lost ½lb which I am very pleased and surprised about. I went to go for a 3 mile run yesterday but was completely shattered after 2. I think it's because I tried to run a faster pace. I will see how I get on with my 5 miles today!

1st run for a while

Possibly the toughest run yet! I really suffered on the last 1½ miles of a 5-miler and ended up doing it in 55 mins. I was pleased with the first 3 miles all in under 10 minutes but then I hit the wall! Just under a week of doing nothing has really taken it out of me and so I need to try and make sure I don't drop off too much again!

Got 1 more run this week - tomorrow before something else on Thursday. Fri-Sun I am away again and drinking and eating bad so I will try and be extra good before then so hopefully I can stay the same again.

Latest weigh in

I weighed myself this morning after a week of not doing a lot in terms of exercise but rather a lot of bad eating and drinking and I was pleased to find I stayed the same. Today it's time to get back in to the swing of things and I am in a strange way looking forward to exercise again as it's been since Wednesday when I last went for a run.

Let's see what this week brings!

Bad few weeks coming up

I weighed myself again today and I lost ½ a pound which is ok - I did hope for more as I managed my 10k run but my eating wasn't the best and I had some beers last Friday so that's ok. I am also the lightest I've been for a few years so I can't complain too much. I am also under the 200-mark again which is good.

I am worried however how things will go in the next few weeks. I'm not going to run as much as I've got 2 weddings to go to and with weddings comes alcohol and I'm not willing to sacrifice that either at the moment. I like to enjoy myself and I feel like I deserve it so I just hope that I can recover the weight gain quicker once the weddings are out of the way. I'm also going to a festival at the beginning of June and so I can't wait until all that is over so that I can get into the swing of things.

Damn proud!

So 2 significant numbers to report on today - 10 and 100!

10 - miles I ran today!
100 - miles ran in the last 7 weeks!

I am very chuffed to reach what I believe is a huge milestone! I didn't run on Friday which was a bit naughty and I had 9 miles scheduled for today so I thought - why not round it up?? I also have a 5 mile route that I like and so I decided to run that route twice!

It feels so good to know I've gone from struggling to do 2 miles, 7 weeks ago to running 10 and feeling like I could have carried on if I had to! I want to thank you all for the words of encouragement and also the words of advice - it's helped a lot!

Onwards and upwards! I actually feel like I will be able to do the marathon now if I carry on training. That's the first time I've had that realization. Thank you all!

All the best!

Erik

Closing in on 100

I did the 3 miles today which felt good and I did it in 29:30 which is a decent pace and I was pleased with it. I couldn't have gone much faster. I've now got a total mileage in the last 7 weeks of 94 miles!! I will break the 100 mile barrier 1/3 of the way through my run on Sunday and that is an incredible and unbelievable mile stone in my mind!

Going further - again

So yesterday I had 3 miles scheduled in but as my mate Jamie was running with me I thought "why not do his usual route?" which is about 5 miles.

Halfway round I felt ok and we'd done the first 2 miles in 20-odd minutes so I suggested to go on a bit of a de-tour and run down by the canal/river. It was really nice and scenic but I definitely started to feel it in the legs after about 4 miles - we then had a 3/4 mile stretch of uphill running (which for some reason I find easier than running on flat) after which I was exhausted. We ended up doing 6½ miles in about 1 hour 8mins - just short of 11min per mile.

I was pleased as it was only 2 days since I did the furthest distance I have ever done and my knees etc. feel OK today. I will do the 3 miles penciled in for yesterday this evening instead - let's see how fast I can go!

2½ months - 1000 hits

A massive THANK YOU all for reading - it's providing me with plenty of motivation to keep going!

Thank you all for the positive comments too!

The difference is a year

So the local football team have a presentation do every May and it so happened that I wore the same clothes last year and this year and I think I can see the difference is my size from last year to this year. Judge for yourselves and let me know:

2010:

And then this year... 2011:

What do you guys think??

Week 7: Weigh in

Weighed myself this morning and I lost 1½ lbs from last week which is pleasing. Not quite enough to take me below the 200lbs mark but enough to take me to 200lbs exactly.

Let's hope I can have another good week and go below the milestone next week. I have a tough week coming up with a 9-mile run on Sunday. My knee is still quite sore from the run on Sunday so I'll see how I get on with the run today.

8 miles - really pleased

So last week (which finished yesterday) was a very good one in my opinion and I'm very pleased. The swimming was a disappointment but the running was more positive. The Friday run was supposed to be 3 miles but I went to run with my best mate (who's also running the marathon) for the first time to see how we kept pace together.

We had a similar pace and instead of the 3 miles, we did 4! Hopefully we'll be able to run the whole thing together.

And then yesterday I had the massive challenge of 8 miles. I drew up a route that was 8.2 miles which I thought was close enough. I also for the first time had some music whilst running and I think that made a massive difference, it really helped. I managed to do the 8.2 miles in 1h 28m which is just faster than 11min/miles and considering it was the furthest I've ran so far - I am really pleased!

Onwards and upwards :-)

Bad groin muscle

So yesterday I went for a swim and I was hopeful that I could do the full mile as last Thursday I only did about 20 lengths, then had to stop due to a painful groin muscle which doesn't hurt at all when I run. I managed 32 lengths before again having to stop.

It's really frustrating and I'm thinking I may do something else for the cross training next week rather than swimming just to rest the groin muscle for a couple of weeks.

On a more positive note - 900+ hits now, thank you guys for reading!

Erik

Week 6: Back in the swing of things

So after my bad weekend I'm back in the swing of things. I really suffered with my 3-mile run on Tuesday and it took me a long time - something like 33 minutes. I think it was a hangover from the weekend just gone.

Yesterday however, was a lot better and I managed to do my 4-mile run in 40 minutes which is my ideal speed and is what I want to complete the marathon in if I can. I'm hoping in a few weeks that I will be able to run even faster across these shorter distances and be able to keep the same speed for the longer ones. I got an 8-mile run to do on Sunday so let's see how I cope with that!

All the best

Erik

Slacking!

So I've had a really bad long weekend in terms of exercise and weight. On Thursday my groin muscle was hurting when I swam so I only managed 15-20 lengths before I had to give up. That's not the worst of it.

I went out and had a drink Thursday night and so wasn't up early enough of Friday and ended up skipping my run. I also had a drink Friday, Saturday and Sunday so 4 days in a row! I did do my 5 mile run on Sunday but I was aching the whole way round as I'd been drinking a lot the 3 days before.

The result is a 2lbs gain on the weigh-in this morning. Not very happy but expected and so now it's time to get back into the swing of things with a 3-mile run today. Let's hope I can loose that 2lbs to go back under the 200lbs mark.

Erik

Week 5: Tricky weekend

This week has been good so far. I weighed in and lost weight. I had really sore knees from Sundays run but overcame that on Tuesday with a 3-miler and yesterday I managed to improve my speed on a 4-mile run. I did it in 38 minutes which I think was partly due to help from my friend Matt who ran with me, he was pulling me along and so in the end we went at 9.5 min/mile which I'm very pleased about.

This weekend is going to be a bit trickier. I am due to be at a party all day tomorrow which means I need to get up and do my 3 miles in the morning. I'm working late tonight which means my swim will be later than usual and so I feel it's all in a bit of a rush. I am also due to be pre-occupied most of Sunday so again I'll have to get up in the morning and run my 5 miles.

I'm sure I'll squeeze it all in but it's going to be a bit trickier than usual.

Have a good weekend everyone!

-Erik

A bit more about the charity

So not all of you will know but I've started doing some voluntary work in the past 2 months. Part of the reason for this is that all (most) of my friends were there for me in December when I broke up with my wife. I was going through a torrid time but they helped me pull through.

I thought - not everyone is that lucky to have a natural support network around them. Some people are left to fight adversity on their own. One of the most influential people in my life over the past 5+ years has been my mother-in-law who has and is battling cancer and so I asked her advice for some charities that had helped her.

She suggested the Duchess of Kent House which is a local house/hospice for cancer patients in Reading and surrounding areas. http://www.dokhc.org.uk/Pages/Default.aspx?pid=MQA=

After looking on their website I saw that they were looking for volunteers to help with their bereavement support visiting service which helps the friends and families of patients at the house with their grief after they pass away. I must point out that not all the people that go to the Duchess of Kent house to die, they have day-care support and support groups for people at different stages and they do see people come in and then leave again.

I thought the bereavement support service was perfect for me as I want to help others and so in March I spent 30+ hours training for this. It was a bit of a roller coaster emotionally as we had to visit some of our own demons in terms of loss - I lost my dad in 2007 and so it wasn't too long ago I was going through the early stages of grief.

I've now finished the training and I was referred my first client the other day - who didn't want the service. I hope I can make a difference to someone's life soon, we'll have to wait and see what happens.

This is the charity I want to try and raise money for when I eventually do the marathon race. They're a fantastic, local charity that help a lot of people and so I want to help them if I can. I hope some of you will sponsor me when I do the race as it's a fantastic cause.

Thanks for reading!

Erik

An inspirational video

I've just entered the ballot!

I've just entered the ballot for the London Marathon 2012, the chances of getting in are slim - about 1 in 5 so I'm almost planning to run Brighton or Blackpool already! They are both in April every year too.

Wish me luck!

Erik

Racking up the hits

So I know who some of you are that read the blog and I'd like to know who the rest of you are!

I was very pleased to reach 500 hits on Friday and I've today hit 600 - another 100 in 4 days!

Kindly leave a comment and let me know who you are (only if you want to) as I really appreciate all the hits, they're keeping me motivated.

All the best,

Erik

Week 5: Weigh-in - under 200!

Hi all,

Feeling very positive this morning as I weighed myself and I've lost another 2lbs and that's taken me under the 200 mark! It has inspired me to try extra hard this week to get down to my next goal which is 14 stone (196 lbs) in the next couple of weeks!

My knees were really hurting yesterday after my long run on Sunday but they feel ok today so I'm hoping my 3-mile run won't cause any further problems. Let's see how I get on.

All the best,

Erik

Week 4: DONE!

So I'm very tired but very pleased! I managed to do 7.25 miles this morning, the extra .25 because I took the wrong turn but that's ok! It felt surprisingly good! I really struggled for the last mile but I managed to do it in the end!

So I've now broken the 50-mile mark in total miles, it feels like a bit of a milestone and I'm very pleased!

Let's see how my legs recover for another run on Tuesday - if things go as well as they did today, I'm excited for the rest of my training.

All the best

Erik

Week 4: Just the big one to go

Hi all,

So first of all thank you all VERY much for reading the blog! I've had 500+ hits now and it makes it feel worth wile actually writing the damn thing.

So this week has been interesting, 3 x 3-mile runs and a mile swim so far. The 3 mile run today was painful because of the heat and I also chose a route that goes past the Guide dogs for the blind (for those of you who know Burghfield) which is a steep uphill stretch which nearly took it all out of me.

So, what I have left now is a 7 mile run on Sunday which is further than I've ever ran so that should be very interesting. I am hoping I can do it, I'll certainly try and stay off the beers on Saturday night to help me as last Sunday I was slightly hungover as I did my 6.27 miles.

Sunday means I will also break the 50mile mark in my training which I see as a bit of a milestone. I just hope I can keep all this up!

All the best,

Erik

Week 4: Some stats added ----->

Hi all,

So I thought I would add some stats on the right hand side about total mileage. It will be interesting to see how many miles I do in total once it's time to race! I am discounting the 5-6 miles I did the week before I started the program and I am just adding the ones from this training program together.

Apart from that - I did 3 miles yesterday where I really pushed myself but it was well worth it, I managed to keep it to under 30 minutes so I was very happy with that! I got another 3 today - the legs feel a bit stiff but hopefully I'll be able to do the same.

All the best,

Erik

Weigh-in: Stayed the same

Weigh-in time today and I was excited to if I could get below the 200 mark but it turns out I stayed the same. I can completely understand why as I had a lot of beer at the weekend. It may be time to try and stop the alcohol again. On a positive note, I didn't gain any weight and I feel better in myself so we go again this week and see how that works out!

-Erik

Training plan - updated!

Week 3: DONE - longest run yet!

Hi all,

So yesterday I was due to run 4 miles according to my training program but my best mate (who's running the marathon with me) is going straight into the training program that I was due to start in 2-3 weeks which required a 6 mile run.

So I decided - I should go for it as well! And I did...

I really struggled on a long uphill section after about 4 miles which lasts for about a mile. When I was running I chose to go a slightly different route which would have got me about 7 miles if I had finished it but after 6.27 miles I was out of steam and had to walk home. I still managed the 6 miles which I'm very pleased about, the time of 1h 8m isn't great but then I'm only 4 weeks into my training and so I'm pleased I managed that.

I've had quite a bad weekend in terms of food and drink so let's see how that's affected my weigh-in tomorrow morning.

I'm going to have to adjust the training program now as well as I am ahead of schedule. I'll post the new on once I've done it.

-Erik

Week 3: pushing myself

Hi all,

It's been a very good week so far and I've been psyched up to do really well after loosing 6½ lbs in 3 weeks. I went for my regular run on Wednesday expecting to do 3 miles but as I went with my friend, he told me to push myself that little bit more. I ended up doing 4.7 miles which is the furthest I've run so far. I think I could have probably done 6+ miles so that's a good sign.

I also did the standard 1 mile swim yesterday without any problems and so this week is looking good so far. I've got 2 miles scheduled in for today but I may go further depending on how much time I have. I then have my 4 mile run on Sunday and week 3 will be complete.

Keep reading.

All the best.

Erik

Weigh-in: Another 2lbs lost

So I am writing this morning to say I am very pleased with another 2lbs lost last week. Hopefully next week I go below the 200lbs milestone.

I was a bit naughty on Friday and Saturday of last week and went over my calorie limit and so I'm pleased that I've still lost. I'm going to try and be extra good this week to make sure I go below that 200lbs mark.

Week 2: DONE!

So I've completed week 2 and I'm starting to feel as if I'm improving which is nice. I did 11 miles running and 1 mile swimming in total in week 2. The only hitch was that I had a drink again on Friday and Saturday after 3 weeks without. The weather was just too glorious and I couldn't resist a Pear Cider in the sunshine.

The long run for the week was 4 miles yesterday which to some extent felt easier than the 2 miles I did on Wednesday. I am part anxious and part excited about the weigh-in tomorrow. I should hopefully have lost more weight as I put the miles in.

Week 3 is starting tomorrow after the weigh-in. I feel my legs are tired today and so the rest will do me good, ready for tomorrow.

Hope you keep reading - all the words of encouragement I've received have been amazing. Any advice on how to tackle the task of running a marathon is welcome.

All the best

Erik

Week 2: Day 2 - DONE!

So I'm nearly 10 runs into my health kick now and I'm starting to feel better about it all. Especially when you go out and it's glorious sunshine and 20 degrees! So far, I haven't missed a session on my fitness plan. Let's hope I can keep that going for as long as possible.

Some more advice needed: I am thinking of getting a timer/tracker/heart rate monitor or similar. Does anyone know of any good ones? I don't mind spending a bit for decent quality but I feel like I need it to track the pace of each mile and do some more analysis (bit of a science nerd, I like the facts and figures).

The blister on my foot isn't looking great but it doesn't hurt when I wear a blister plaster so I will keep running for now. I have a swim penciled in for tomorrow so I guess it will get some rest then.

I'll keep you posted on my progress

All the best

Erik

Week 2 weigh-in

So I weigh myself every Tuesday before the week's exercise starts. I have been actively using www.myfitnesspal.com for 2 weeks and that's also how long I've been exercising and trying to lose weight for.

Not sure I want to share this but I started out at 14st 12lbs or 208lbs.

Today the scales said 14st 7½lbs or 203.5lbs so I've lost 4.5lbs in 2 weeks.

Let's hope I can keep this up! It's definitely got me psyched up for week 2's training which begins today!

All the best

Erik

Week 1: DONE!!

So after a tough 4 mile run (which I am very pleased I completed without stopping) I have finished week 1 of my training program. I feel really good aside from a massive blister on my foot, anyone got any tips for blisters?

In total then, I have done 10 miles running and 1 mile swimming this week, much the same planned next week aside from one of the shorter runs is 3 miles instead of 2.

Overall - very happy I managed to complete week 1 without many problems, let's see how I feel on Tuesday when I got the first run of week 2 to do!

All the best.

Erik

Day 4: still feeling up for it

So - coming towards the end of week 1, I did a 2 mile run on Tuesday, Wednesday and today coupled with a mile swim yesterday. Today was the hardest by some distance but I still kept the pace up which felt good.

My shoulders hurt slightly from the swim but that is to be expected when I'm not used to swimming a mile. The biggest test for me now will be Sunday's 4-mile run. If I feel like I did today it's going to be tough but if I can do it, it will give me lots of encouragement for week 2 next week.

2 days in - everything feels good

So I've done Tuesday and Wednesday according to my training plan - Wednesday felt a bit heavier than Tuesday but overall no big problems. My biggest concern is the injury factor as I am quite heavy, I feel like I need to lose weight quickly so that I can ease the strain on my knees/ankles. That's also why I have decided to stop drinking alcohol until 2 weddings I am attending in May.

 I am running at about 10min/mile which for me seems a good pace - if I could keep that up and just further the distances, that would be ideal. Today is a swim day so I hope that will work some different muscle groups and give me enough rest for my run tomorrow all though in my body I feel like I could run today as well.

The other thing I want to do is to head into Moti - a running shop in Reading where they measure you're feet, analyze your running style and suggest some decent running shoes. I will do this on Saturday.

The Training Plan

So I was in Munich a couple of weeks ago to visit an old school friend and I made it my goal to make it "the final blow-out". I think I can safely say that was achieved.

I figured in order for me to take this thing seriously I would cut out alcohol completely from the time I got back and so far (in 1 week) I am doing ok. I am known as a bit of a drinker so this in itself is going to be a tough challenge as well but I figured it will help me lose weight quicker. I need to lose weight in order to decrease the pressure on my joints when I'm running and hopefully that will come with time.

So last week I was back and not drinking and I started designing a training plan. I found an online article called "Tackling the big one" by some magazine or site called ultra fit, and so I have designed a training programme from that. I ran 5.5 miles in total last week and swam another 1.5 miles so that gave me an idea of where to begin. From that, I have designed the following:

I did some light swimming yesterday - which is not in the training plan but I wanted to get some pointers on my technique to make my swimming more effective, that was done and so into the plan we go!

The 2 mile run today was fairly good. It felt easy for the first 1.5 miles or so. Let's see how I feel towards the end of the week. The training programme does extend to Sept/October for a full marathon so my aim is to get there ASAP then keeping it up until next year. This way I can compensate for injury/holidays etc.

Feel free to give me some advice on the programme, I'm hoping it's going to work out.

All the best,

Erik

The goals

So after reading the intro, I realized I hadn't exactly spelled out the goals properly. So here is what I aim to do:

Me and my best mate (Jonny) are aiming to run a marathon in April 2012 - we therefore have 1 year to train. I want to try and get into the London one but if that doesn't happen, then I will try Brighton or Blackpool which I believe are in the same month.

I will be running for a local charity - the Duchess of Kent House in Reading which is a cancer charity which I also do volunteering for.

I will update you all with my training plan at some point as well.

-Erik

Couch potato to marathon runner

Hi all,

Welcome to my blog - I'm a bit new to this so it will probably be somewhat uninteresting to begin with I am hoping in time that I become better at this, part of the reason for writing a blog is to hold myself accountable to achieve the goal I have set myself.

So, a bit of background; for those of you who don't know me I am a very goal-oriented person and I need goals in most things I do in order to actually achieve something. I've recently gone through a big break-up and so I guess part of the reason for doing this is because I feel I need something HUGE to aim for and what better than to train for a marathon?

Again, for those of you who don't know me - I am a bit overweight (see picture below) and so this is going to help with that too.

Hope you keep reading - feel free to offer some words of encouragement, it will be much appreciated.

All the best

Erik