I'm one of those guys that was always a little athletic, and a little heavy. I was the chubby kid that could hit a baseball real far or throw a football real hard. I was just big.
I believe my struggles with weight began because my mother was a bigger woman. She was the type that would offer cake and ice cream sundaes as a reward. She was also the type to offer cake and ice cream sundaes if you were struggling. I learned to associate sweets with both good and bad times and I ate like crap.
After high school I joined the Army Reserves. Basic training and AIT was an eye opener. With daily physical activity and planned meals I lost a lot of weight quickly. After going back to the civilian world my struggles continued. Infrequent exercise and drive through dinners added up. In the Fall of 2009 I was coming close to the 300 pound mark, had high blood pressure, and just didn't feel good, physically or mentally.
I decided to get in shape, beginning with baby steps. The first thing I did was eliminate fried foods from my diet. Then I started walking, a lot. My office was 2.5 miles from my home. I walked to and from work every day, even in the snow. I would go for long walks on the weekends. I lost some weight, getting to 267 by the New Year, but still not where I wanted to be.
In January a Planet Fitness opened about a mile from my house. I figured the $10 a month was well worth it and began running on the treadmill. "Running" may be a strong word. I could manage a minute or so and then need a walk break. I stuck with it and was able to extend the running time and reduce the walk breaks.
By springtime I ventured outside and was feeling much better. I completed a 5k race in under 29 minutes without walking. Not very fast, but a whole lot better than I was a few short months prior. By June I had completed several 5k and two 10k races. My 10k race was under very hot and humid conditions and I finished under an hour.
The roads and treadmill started getting boring so I started hitting the trails. Mostly smooth paths through the woods. The air was cooler and smelled better and I could stay out of the direct sun. This really felt much better than the roads. I got hooked. My mileage started expanding pretty quickly. In January I had trouble running for a minute straight. By July I was routinely running 10+ miles and feeling great.
I started looking at longer road races, but the thought of being on the road for over an hour just wasn't appealing. I wanted to start testing myself at longer distances, but I wanted to stay on the trails as much as possible. Then I started reading about these crazy people running absurd distances through the woods. The idea of running an ultra marathon popped into my head. I know it's way too early for me to run an ultra (my longest run is 18.5 miles), but I can't shake the thought. The only option is to increase my training and get ready.
My "plan" if you can call it that is pretty simple. Run four to six days a week for at least an hour, with one day going much longer. I'll try to mix up my hour runs a little bit, doing one on hills, on fast and the others easy. The long runs will be completed on he trails throughout the Rochester, NY area. I am planning to complete a 50K in the spring and use that to decide if I'd like to pursue longer distances.
