Below is a repost from my 2015 Week 18 Weigh-In blog, icanrunaminute.com
Two weeks ago we had an anomalous reading of 248.0 but my week 18 weigh in is now solidifying the 240's as a new reality for me.
246.8 is 2.4 pounds from the lowest weight I've recorded in the past 2 years. Last year at the end of a 12 week contest I hit 244.4 for my final weigh in but that was a bogus and very temporary & manipulated weight. Just a few hours before weighing 244 I was 248 and told the office staff where I was weighing in that I would be back in a few hours. There's always zero eating or drinking on the final day of a contest weigh in so I just walked for a few hours and came back about 4 lbs lighter.
My average weight for April is now officially 12 pounds lighter than my average weight in March - from 266 to 252.
May should be pretty interesting. My average weight for this month should be solidly in the 240s and that will also bring my yearly 2015 average weight below last years average weight. My initial goal at the beginning of this year was to weigh in the low 240s so, anything under 245 will give me that. There's also a good chance of hitting my lowest weight ever since initially tracking my weekly weight since Jan of 2014. Anything below 244.4 will give me that.
As enamored as I am with my weight in the 240s - I'm looking at my Calendar and the fact that as of this morning (Sat 5/1) I only weigh 246.6 so there is a strong likelihood of dropping down into the 230s by the end of this month.
This month is going to start out with more board reviews - from Sat 5/2 to Wed 5/6 so that means I'll be sitting on my butt a minimum of 11 hours per day - 9 for reviews and another 2 each day for commuting. I'll be playing hooky again on the first day of reviews to squeeze in a local 5K but overall, I may be lucky to maintain my weight this first week - thinking I may have to make friends with Queeny Park which is near where I'll be taking my reviews and plan ahead of time to stop there each night after reviews to get some miles in .... I know there's a decent 4 mile loop at that park which should help offset all that sitting. I also really need to think ahead of time about my lunches. Traditionally I have a favorite little Chinese restaurant I like to "reward" myself with everyday during my reviews but, maybe I can change that mindset and look forward to rewarding myself with a sub 245 lb Week 19 weigh-in.
The second Saturday of this month will consist of knocking out my 20th half marathon up in Springfield, Illinois - The Moonlight 1/2 Mary. There's also a *really* fun looking Fat Ass 5k that day which starts at 10 a.m. - the water stops along that 5k feature ice-cream, corn dogs, donuts and beer! no joke - it sounds like a blast. There's even a 1/10th mile "Fat Ass Detour" route which takes runners straight to a bar! :) I checked last years race results and some people take up to 3 hours to finish the 3.1 mile route. I think i have a picture of the flyer....
To me, the most appealing part of that race are the corn dogs! I love corn dogs :)
The Fat Ass 5K street party ends at 3 p.m. and I think the half mary starts at 7 p.m. idk - it would be easy to rationalize but, I'm also considering how much fun it might be next year when I don't actually look like a fat ass and have a half mary to run afterwards, maybe even book a hotel room for the night so I have a place to stay after all the festivities. So ...skipping the corn dogs might help but, I'm not all that restrictive with my eating overall. With the DietBets there's always plenty of time available to eat whatever I want. I've had no shortage of pizza's this year, just smaller and less and sometimes if that's what I indulge in say, for lunch, then that may be all I eat for that day.
The third week in May is a biggie - My third full marathon up in Ottawa, Illinois - The Starved Rock Full Mary. I'm only about 5 months off from a goal I set 20 years ago to run a full marathon every 10 years so, that's not so bad and then I'll be able to restore my original icanrunaminute tagline to "Can a man who can barely run a minute complete a marathon" and be able to answer with a Hell Yes! :)
I got an email regarding the Starved Rock marathon today and the Chicago pacer, Christina Chapan will be pacing a 6:45 group and there's another guy by the name of Walter Evans who will be pacing a 6 hour group. I'm not sure which group would be a more prudent choice. Do I start out with Walter then if I fall behind I can always join up with Christina's group? Do I start w/ the 6:45 group and stick it out the best I can? A 6 hour time equates to a 13 min 45 sec pace ....for 26.2 miles so, it's a tad faster than a very brisk walk. a 6:45 finish time equates to about 15 min 27 sec per mile. I think Walter's 6 hour pace would include a mix of jogging and walking which would inherently stress the muscles differently due to the mix of paces. That could be a benefit over a more static type of pace which will arduously keep stressing the same biomechanics relentlessly. Overall, I'm guessing I have close to an 80% chance of being able to cover the distance. I know there are cheerleader positive thinking type people out there who want to say "you can do it!" but, I know the stark realities of a full marathon. It's bear - a beast - an 800 lb gorilla that can crush you. I know what it's like after mile 20 to have your legs stop working the way they did for the first 20 miles. But, as long as I can move I should be able to finish. I suppose if I knew there was a 100% chance for success then it wouldn't be as interesting so part of the intrigue is to flirt with the 20% that may challenge me to stop - or, just flat out break me. We shall see.
For some dumb reason - I am registered for a 5K the day after my full mary. It's a run at the St Louis zoo. Oh, I do have a picture of the full mary medal. I kinda thought it sucked at first but, it's starting to grow on me :) It's actually part of a 5 medal series - the first medal was last year and if you run all 5 years then all the pieces fit together like a jigsaw puzzle and kind of represent the history of Starved Rock State Park.
One thing is certain, I will be creating an indelible memory on Saturday, May 16th and I won't be forgetting that run for the rest of my life.