A Piece of Humble Pie....

So a few weeks ago, I was all jazzed on here as I talked about my PR in the Half Marathon in Dallas....Was boasting about my 1:49 time...which I found out later put me 6th in my age group and 101st overall...Not to shabby...The following weekend I had a 16 miler, followed by a 12, followed by an 18 last week...I will not lie the 18 hurt, but I felt alright...Was still feeling in the zone...Then came today.
I was supposed to do 20...lets just say that I barely, barely did 14.45....It may have been the worst run of the last two years and you know why?.....Because my inner athlete needed to kick my ass....and he did...

He said:
You are not hydrating enough during the week and the night before.
You are not preparing the night before for your long runs(both mentally and physically)
You are letting work stress you out to much adn it is affecting your running.
Quit eating the Peanut Butter M&M's, sure they taste good and you burn them off at the gym, but on the long runs they are going to come back and haunt you AND THEY ARE...
Stop drinking the Energy Drinks...What the hell are you thinking...You know better...If you were hydrating right you would not need the help with energy in the first place.
You are starting to take running for granted...Sure it gets easier but it is always something you, especially you need to work at.
Eat the right portions...You are eating well, just eat the right amount...
Quit snacking at night...You were doing so well....Drink water, Drink Water, Drink Water.
Keep your confidence up...You are still doing it...I just needed to kick you down so you could get up, brush yourself off and push forward...

So those were the ingrediants for my Humble Pie, I am positive that we have all had a piece of this pie a time or two, but today it burnt me like no other...

The good news is I had not weighed myself in over 2 months...part of me was afraid that I was going to gain weight back since I had not been eating the best all fo the time...Well I hadn't...sure some of it back, but 211 is pretty darn good...and with 2 months till the start of the Race in Eugene...plenty of time to get back down to my racing weight (198, Marine Corps Marathon)

Book Recommendation:  Personal Record: A Love Affair with Running by Rachel Toor
It is short, sweet, to the point and I highly recommend it to all runners...

Another Personal Best....

So at the end of my last post I discussed the trip I was about to take to Dallas for the Navy's Annual Child and Youth Conference.  I am not one to lack in outward confidence(so says Vanessa and my brothers), but any of you that read this blog know that I struggle with it on the inside.  Constantly wondering if I am looking fat, feeling fit, wondering how I look in that shirt, or this shirt etc. 

When I arrived in Dallas it was the new Chris through and through...I got off of the plane boarded the shuttle to the hotel and immediately upon arriving went right to my room...Saw some folks that I knew but did not visit...Why??  Any guesses?  Yep it was long run day, and I had to get my gear on and log my 12 miles before the reception that evening, which was only 3 hours away...So I headed out for a 12 miler in a city that I had never been to, and was running in a part of town that....hmmm, how do I say it...not great for running ALONE....but thank goodness it was Sunday...no one was out and about...The best part of the run was when I stumbled upon, accidently, the Grassy Knoll...Yep, that Grassy Knoll...I would like to say that I solved the mystery while there...nope not a chance...but it was amazing to run through the tunnel where the car came through and look up at the Depository window.

So after the run, I got back to the hotel and got ready for the reception...Now I will not lie, this was a big deal for me...There were going to be people here that had not seen me in 5-6 years...or as I like to say 100 pounds ago...The reception was one of the most Ego Boosting evenings of my life...It felt great to have people come up to me and say things like WOW, or we heard it from so and so, but we had to see it to believe it, or you are the talk of the night....and I do not put this in the blog for personal joy, I do it so that others can read this and if they are struggling with weight know that when you do bust your ass, and work at it...PEOPLE WILL NOTICE AND PEOPLE WILL TELL YOU HOW GOOD YOU LOOK....who doesn't want that.....

So the week continued and I had more amazing conversations with some very special people...Folks that I had inspired with my trainings in the past, and folks that have inspired me, and continue to inspire me.

The last night of the conference was spent at the banquet which concluded with a dance...Heres the funny thing...Weight loss or no weight loss...I still sweat like a pig when cutting a rug....But who gives a @#$%, it was fun as he$%...

The Friday after the conference I was fortunate enough to get a private tour with some close personal friends, of the new Cowboy Stadium....Yes, it is amazing, and yes that TV rocks...Best comment of the tour by one of my buddies as the big tv had cheerleaders on it...."I think I just saw a mole..."

The following day was race day...Yep another half-marathon...and this one was advertised as a flat, warm race, ideal for this time of year...So, I figured what a great thing to be able to do at a training...Run a race, and run in warm temps....Warm temps my rear end....It was 28 degrees with a 20 mph headwind in some places...None the less, I still set a PB, with a 1:49:56...3 minutes faster then Seattle in November....

My week away concluded with a trip to Melbourne Beach Florida to help celebrate the life of my dear friends Father.  Papa Phil was an amazing man who fought a courageous battle against Cancer...HE was a true family man in every sense of the word, and I was fortunate enough to be able to celebrate his life. 

So now I am back home, I celebrated my 35th B-day last week, attended the Daddy/Daughter Dance with Emma and I am in the heart of Marathon Training with the race on May 2nd...I hope to do a better job of keeping this bad boy updated....

I have to share one last quick story that just happened as I was writing this...Camden came upstairs and grabbed one of the Hot Tamale Extra Hot Candies....HE must have Grandpa K in him....it did not phase him a bit....and it was hilarious to watch...