Well I know its been forever since I posted and I also know I was supposed to review how running in my Vibrams was going, but I decided to not run in them currently ... long story but still loving them and love wearing them.

I did need some new running shoes though and so this week I will be trying out a couple pairs ... they should arrive Friday.

Brooks Ghost 4  

Saucony ProGrid Triumph 9 




Cannot wait to try them ... running a race next week and going for a PR so hopefully the ones I decide on  will give me the edge I need.

Be Blessed!!!

Have you heard of Vibram FiveFingers?

So my Christmas wish list included some Vibram Five Fingers Shoes 


If Santa brings them I will review them here. Stay tuned. If you want a pair and know how incredible they are already click the link below.





MyFiveFingers.com Year-Long Giveaway
http://www.myfivefingers.com/win-fivefingers/?awt_l=FUMTI&awt_m=KYWgt21POsJKRQ

Thanksgiving Day - 2nd Annual
Father in-law / Son in-law Turkey Trot

Ok so thats not the official name but my father in-law has enrolled me for the second year to run the Turkey Trot with him and I already love races but a free race is even better ... lol.  I am very proud of him because he does not run regularly and he beat the time of my 1st 5k last year where I had run for 9 weeks to prepare for it.

WAY TO GO RICHARD!


Even though this is my most dreaded course because of the hilly ending mile, its fun and the challenge is still exciting at the same time.

Last year this was only my second race and I completed it in 34:54. This year I ran it in 28:03. A great improvement from a general perspective but of course my competitive nature always finds reasons maybe it should have been better. The race was very congested at the start and so after crossing the start line it was still not possible to run at the speed I wanted for about a quarter mile because I was constantly dodging and tip toeing around the crowd of people. Next year I will definitely be near the front because I think this cost me at least 15- 20 seconds off my total time. My personal best for a 5k was the race in October where I ran 27:45 in Charlotte but it was a very flat race so I had no expectations of beating that on this hilly course but after seeing how close I was I cannot help but to think had I not got caught up in the congestion that I may have actually beaten my Charlotte time. BUMMER :( ... but all in all I am very happy with my progress and time.

I think I want to really focus on improving my 5k time because I really feel my competitive nature kicking in and I am a person that usually just jumps into things with both feet and so I want to find out what I am really made of.  Last year I ran a couple races with my sister and she beat me badly.  I was just beginning to run and very overweight then so I hoped to be able to keep up with her one day.  This year I ran 2 races with her in October and beat her twice and she seemed unaffected; however, I wondered in the back of her mind if she was planning on stomping me in the next race. LOL!   Well this was the next race and she definitely kicked it up a notch and after the first half mile I never saw her again. She beat me by 43 seconds. Does not sound like a lot but in the race world thats about a tenth of a mile.  All I can say is its on now sis! LOL.

This blog used to really be about my struggles and how to stay mentally tough and overcome them but I am happy to say that it is turning more into celebrating victories and looking onto the horizon for a more successful and bright future of fitness.

Thanks for reading and be Blessed!

Runway 5k 

10/29/2011 @ 8:05 AM

RunningAHEAD.com

Distance: 3 . 1 mi

Duration: 27:45

Pace: 8:58 / mi
5k PR

So its about 4:15am October 29, 2011 and I just could not sleep anymore. I woke up at 3:30am and finally decided to just get up.


Well today is the day!
Its been one year since I ran my first 5k race, in September 2010 I decided that it was time to end my battle with weight.  Mentally I was an athlete just like in high school, but physically was a whole other story. A sad one. A story of man that now 100 pounds over weight and pre-diabetic.   It was a weird 10 years of my life being overweight. Feeling active and athletic mentally but appearing and physically feeling overweight was very awkward and frustrating. Then the transition to complacency began and before you know it you almost accept this new place in your life. I say almost because I do not think anyone ever is ok with being overweight but you get darn close to accepting it once you have tried so hard for so long and just cannot seem to get a grip on it. Well my grip came one day last year where I said " this is it,  I am tired of being an obese person! I WANT TO LIVE AGAIN!"

I was not sure what do but I knew what I felt like doing. I wanted to run as far away from the feelings of defeat and low self esteem as I could. So thats exactly what I did. I started running.  If your interested you can begin reading my journey by clicking here, but it has definitely been a journey that is for sure. Today is one year since my first 5k race (3.2 miles) and I am so excited to see my progress.  There have been struggles that only this blog can explain and then some not ever posted here. I will say this though, perseverance always pays off. Set a goal and go for it.

I will return later to post the results.

Be Blessed!


Updated 11:30am ..... for results of today's 5k go to my Facebook page. 

"What I've learned from running is that the time to push hard is when you're hurting like crazy and you want to give up. Success is often just around the corner." Sir James Dyson, Inventor of the Dyson vacuum cleaner _______________________________________________________ This was not my quote but sums up how I felt in my journey from couch potato to runner. It really is an eye opening experience to push when it hurts. I encourage you to try pushing through when it gets tough and you just feel like you cannot go further. Go past that point if only briefly just don't stop when you first feel at that breaking point add a quarter mile or 2 minutes if your timing yourself. It really will be monumental growth later on and will give you new perspective on yourself. For new readers of the blog you can read my journey from the beginning by   "clicking here"  Be blessed everyone.