It's 5 o'clock Somewhere

Actually it's 5 o'clock here, but I'm waiting in the office for Jina to call so that we can coordinate meeting up to take the kids trick or treating at the businesses in downtown Jeffersonville.



We'll be escorting Elmo, Cookie Monster, and a traditional ghost. I guess we could have cut a bunch of holes in the costume to make him the holey ghost. I know that was bad. Hopefully this isn't....



Matthew 7:12-14 (New International Version)

13"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road
that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate
and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

While in Roanoke, I made it a priority to get in at least one run (a two miler on Sunday) so that I could add it to my "Places I've Run" list. As I left out of my hotel and merged onto a busy main thoroughfare, I quickly realized I wished I had more time to explore the side roads or the trails that run through the mountains surrounding the valley. (Check out Brian's blog http://baldpastorguy.blogspot.com/ to see what the mountains have to offer). But time was not on my side and Scotty had pushed me hard at the gym the day before. Ok, he didn't force me, but I knew he was waiting to see whether or not I had faltered in my conditioning without his guidance. Trust me, I know it. ;>)

Something tells me that while the air was clean, and the traffic light, I didn't get to experience everything Roanoke had to offer me as a runner. I stayed on the safe path, the paved road, the route that everyone else took. It left me wanting something more, knowing I had missed out on the best that was before me, wishing I had more time.

It can be scary to venture off the main roads, whether in life or when running. We equate safety with numbers, and going along with the crowd helps us feel secure. You know the feeling, "if everyone else is doing it, surely it's safe." But if we stay on the main roads we miss out on many of the joys life has to offer. Anyone ever get excited about the Walgreens they saw while out on a run? What will it be like if the only thing we ever experience in life are the things that everyone else experienced?

Walking with Christ isn't always the easiest route to take through this world, either in the 1st century or this one, but there are three things I know to be true. You never walk alone, you see a lot of interesting things along the way, and at the end you'll be glad you ventured off the main road.

Thanks to Scotty and Nancy for their friendship and hospitality. Scotty, whether intentional or not, thanks for sending us back home on the route you did, we would've never seen such beauty on the interstate. Brian, I can understand why you spend your time on the mountain trails instead of the city streets.

Home

We got back home late tonight. Right now I'm running on Diet Coke, refined simple carbs, and sugar.

We had a great weekend.

More later. For now the laptop's battery is running out, and so is mine.

The 5 minute Blog

Shout out to the girl next to me at the Gym today, mid 20's, prime candidate for all weight related illnesses, her run speed was my cool down walk speed, but she kept at it. I hope she sticks with it, but for today's effort, my hat's off to her, and in the words of that great tv show, "Hee Haw", "SALUTE!"

Headed to Roanoke in about 30 minutes. A new place to run, if the weather holds. A chance to run with a good friend (or at least a trip to the gym), and a chance to catch up. For the record, Pinocchio had a cricket for a conscience, I had Scotty for several years. You remember when Pinocchio turns into the donkey. Scotty helped me from being too big of "the Biblical name for a donkey". Except for once or twice on the church league basketball court.

Great song set for pushing a circuit training session hard.
Whiskey for My Men, Beer for My Horses - Toby Keith- "Because Justice is the one thing you should always find..."
Won't Back Down - Tom Petty- Fear NO Weights
Right Now - Van Halen - "Right now there's no tomorrow, right now it's everything..."
Why Can't This be Love - Van Halen - No, that's not what I was asking the girls at the gym! Just a good beat.
Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison - Great song to walk with a little pride and swagger after defeating the dreaded weights.

A verse to ponder: (bold emphasis is mine)
Deuteronomy 12:7
7 There, in the presence of the LORD your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the LORD your God has blessed you.

Have a good weekend. Hope to have something to say Sunday night!

James

Amazing...Simply Amazing...

Poor guy, his heart was in the right place. Now where'd he leave the lyrics.

Writer's Block

It has been a bit of a crazy week. I've been in a bit of a "fog" when it comes to running. I've been getting to the gym, and had a good workout today, but nothing has sparked any training notes that I think might be useful.

On the Faith front, we went camping Saturday, and missed Sunday morning worship at church. Instead, we had a family worship time while sitting in the camper waiting for the morning to warm up. It was a good time. We prayed, Jared made up a song on the spot for a solo (wasn't too bad, maybe a little off theologically, but hey he's only 6, and I've heard or read worse from trained theologians), we read a scripture passage and reviewed it, sang a song as a family, closed with prayer and then proceeded with celebrating the day together.

On the home front, my wife has taken offense to my "Old Lion" syndrome. She won't admit to it, but it's obvious. First she informed me that my new vehicle was still a family mover, and didn't help me at the gym. I fixed her and put the kiddo's car seat in the back when it's not needed. So she decides the best thing to do is to take the Trailblazer from me. Knowing that her scheme will not work while she is still in possession of the mini van, she proceeds with a plan to have her van rear ended and put out of commission. This forces me back into the old Bronco and squashes any chance of impressing the young lionesses. The jokes on her though. At the time of morning I'm going to the gym there's not any young lionesses around. If the mini van is done for, maybe a Mustang will do the trick....shhhhh! Don't tell her. Would it be unethical to take a sledge hammer to the rest of the van just to be sure? Just kidding.

AAARRRRGGGHHH!

One of those days. Need I say more.

Beginning tomorrow, I'll try to get back in the habit of posting my mileage daily. I tried a new work out this morning that was short on time, but high on intensity. I'll let you know about it after a few more trial runs. (No pun intended)

Hope yours is going better! Time for lunch and hopefully clear my head. Of course lunch will also include looking at a truck one of my folks wrecked, so maybe I want clear my head.

Note to James: You woke up this morning, you're breathing and walking. Hey dummy, you're ahead of the curve. How about a little gratitude.!

Performance

In my last couple of posts I've been practicing a new writing style. Instead of writing so that one topic builds upon the next, I'm working in reverse and expanding upon topics which were mentioned but not elaborated on in the previous poll.

Oh and by the way, I've got this really nice bridge in Brooklyn that I hold title to, and I'm looking to sell.

Actually, I reread my posts and go, "That was ok, but are you sure they know where your coming from on that point?".

In my last post I discussed the impact introspection can have on limiting your performance, and I'm sure some of you were saying, I'm not interested in performance, I just like running and exercising. So I wanted to explain what I intended in using the word "performance".

As I see it, performance is not just a product of competition, it is, or should be self induced and self motivated. Performance isn't just about running a fast pace, lifting a lot of weight, or winning something. Performance is the effort exerted to accomplish something. With that in mind, and keeping fitness as our topic, some performance measures might be weight loss or maintenance, improved cardio, improved strength, improved times, increased distances, or perhaps you are content with where you're at. If you are content with your current level of fitness, then your performance is measured not by improving but by maintaining your current levels.

What I'm trying to say, and seem to be struggling with this morning, is that anytime you read something or hear something about improving performance, don't discount it just because your fitness goals are based on non-competitive criteria and purposes. Instead, ask yourself, "How can this information help me to meet my goals." You may find something that breaks you out of an exercise "rut", allows you to cut down on your exercise time requirements, or just maybe you'll decide to ratchet your performance goals up a notch just to see what you're made of.

Introspection

Ok, to expand on yesterday's comment about introspection.

In well trained atheletes, introspection can be a good thing. Whether it be a swing, a shot, a sore muscle, a mental miscue, good or bad these individuals can quite frequently analyze what is going on with their body or mind, evaluate, and adjust. But you've no doubt seen some of the best in there sport struggle because they started "pressing", "over-thinking", or if you like, they just "CHOKE".

For the average athelete, introspection can be a slippery slope that prevents us from reaching our potential. How so?

First, we all need to be concious of our body and aware enough to know when pain is a signal to slow down or stop to avoid serious injury. With that said, too much awareness can be a serious detriment to performance or endurance.

When running, introspection can limit one's resolve and explode minor hurdles into major obstacles. If we turn our focus inward we start to find things wrong. We begin to evaluate our aches and pains, we begin to create alternate training goals, rather than push through to our pre-training objectives.

For most of us, focusing on external stimuli is much more effective. Ever got into a good set of songs on the MP3 player and had the miles just fly by? How about running with a partner, engaged in conversation, do the runs seem as harsh as a solo run? If we can keep our minds out of the way, our bodies can accomplish some really impressive feats.

Don't let your mind become your biggest hurdle. As my dad used to always tell me, "Can't never did do nothing!"

The Cost of Looking Sexy at the Gym...

Don't worry, I'm not going to bust into "Too Sexy", and in fact you'll have to read or skip to the bottom of today's post to see what I'm talking about in my title....

TRAINING GOALS

This has been a week of introspection, and to be honest, too much of that is a waste of time. Sometimes it is best to just put your head down and plow ahead. I know it goes against popular culture, but I'm not convinced that staying in touch with your feelings is a good thing. I'll address that in tomorrow post, and yes it will be about running/training. For now, let's stick with Goals.

My favorite story to tell people who say they could never run as much as I do (which isn't really that much), concerns my introduction to running. A friend/mentor/pastor introduced me to running. To this day I'm not sure if it was a)An attempt to end our friendship, or b) a way to get me to spend quite time reflecting on the wisdom he imparted each Sunday morning. Regardless, my first runs were 1 milers that accomplished at the blazing speed of 16 minute miles. I vividly remember collapsing on the hood of my car the day I ran a 14 minute mile.

My story, and others I've heard relayed, should be a reminder to us all to set attainable goals. Here are my guidelines for goals:

1)Must be attainable and sustainable
2)Must Require work above you current level to obtain.
3)Must have a defined time frame.
4)Must be a building block for another goal or objective.
5)Must be "Reloaded" periodically. NO Jan. 1 year long goals. Reaccess monthly.

This week has seen me reorganize some of my goals. As related to fitness and running, here are my targets.

1)Reduce Body Fat % from 14.4% to 10.0% by end of November 07
2)Shift running training focus from endurance to intensity in preparation for Polar Bear Grand Prix series (Dec,Jan,Feb Races). All training runs under 5 miles at 8 min pace max.
3)Increase intensity of weight training.
4)Reduce Carbonated/Caffeinated drink consumption to no more than one serving per day.

My goal of "training for a marathon" became stagnant. The dates were too far in the future, the fact that I had accomplished that distance once, and the reality of my time constraints made the goal unsustainable.

So my encouragement to you is to reaccess where you are at. If you are not happy with your progress, or perhaps desire to push yourself a bit, reaccess and reset your goals. If you would like, comment on this post and let us know any new goals you set.

One last important note. Do not measure your goals against other people's goals. I'm learning to be more impressed by the people I see struggling to change their life each day at the Gym, than I am the elite marathoners who run those races at sub 6 minute pace.

...a while back I blogged about my "Old Lion Syndrome"(if you haven't read it, please do before drawing any conclusions about what I'm talking about). In it I relayed an incident in which I had driven my '88 Bronco to the gym and my only other options for impressing the young female sports car driver that parked next to me was my Chevy Cobalt or my wife's mini-van. Well now I can be sexy at the gym, at least my ride can be. My Cobalt was exchanged for a Trailblazer. I hit the gas pump this morning to fill it up for the first time. OUCH! $50 to fill it up. To be honest I don't think I could afford to be on the prowl again. ;>)

Labels

Back in the day, when I was working in grocery stores, there were still products on the shelf that were packaged in black and white generic boxes or bags. Now, if you're under 30 years old, you probably don't remember them, but trust me, back then Kroger's store brand was sold in a plain yellow and black "Cost Cutter" package. Well somewhere along the way, some marketing guy or gal got smart and decided that if they spruced up the store brand label, to look a little more upscale, they could move more product.

You see, Americans judge things by their marketing and packaging. We love pretty labels. That is until we start getting labeled ourselves. But are labels really a bad thing? Who we are, how we market and present ourselves, don't they give us our identity? They not only identify us to other's, but they also help us define who we are.

For two weeks now I've been long overdue for a hair cut. Heaven forbid, my hair had gotten long enough to part, and long enough to show that I now have more gray hairs than brown ones. Tonight I got a hair cut, yep, my standard cut, skin on the sides and only slightly more on top. Now my hair cut is not going to win any awards for a local stylist, but it fits who I am and more importantly who I want to be. I'm sure that as Samson's hair grew out, he remembered who he was. For me, getting it cut is much the same.

This topic, Labels is one I would like to expand on, but my mind is racing with a myriad of ideas and directions to take this. Bottom line, I've spent the last several days trying to resolve the question of who am I. Here's my list, in no particular order.

Father, Husband, Friend, Son, Brother (tack on "in-law" where appropriate), a boss, a subordinate, a runner, a Christian, a sinner, a professional, and a redneck.

You see, the blessing mentioned in another post forced me to take a look at who I am, who I want to be, what I'm willing to change and what I will not allow to change. I haven't sorted it all out, but a few things are clear. I love my family, so all Family related labels stick. I've lost contact with many friends since taking my current job, traveling makes it hard to keep up with what is going on with everyone and staying connected, but they are my friends and I'll keep trying. A job is a job, and in my profession, no matter what I do, I'll be giving and taking orders, so that's a label that isn't going away anytime soon. As a Christian, I recognize that I'm a sinner, so despite the fact that other's may see the labels as conflicting, I know these are both labels that I will carry to my grave. A professional and a redneck, or perhaps a professional redneck, or a redneck professional. I don't mind this label. My parents were depression era share croppers, my father would have preferred to have been a farmer, but placed putting food on the table over this less than certain career path. So, while I was raised in the suburbs, I can fit in with small town America, and hope to soon. And while my career in management requires me to "dress the part", both literally and figuratively, know when you talk to me that I've got no problem with old jeans, a sleeveless T, a tin of snuff, and a cold beer after a long day of putting up hay. "These are my people, this is where I come from..."

Now to the part of this post that has to do with running. I haven't ran since last Friday. I've since discovered I needed the break. Physically and mentally. Running and training had become a task, instead of something I enjoyed. I'm ready to get back in the saddle. Wednesday morning will find me at the "Y", cold or no cold. I'm a runner. It doesn't control me, but it is a part of who I am. It's a label I've put on. Perhaps someday I want be, but for now, I want to do this, it's part of who I am.

I hope this post made some sense. I hope that if you read it, you can connect with it on some level. Then again, it may have been mindless ramblings at the end of the day. Either way, I'm ready to go again. I'll see you on the roads soon.

James

Choices

I'm wrapping up a great weekend with the family, and it's late. I made a decision on Friday night. I laid out all my clothes for a long run on Saturday, filled up my camel back with Gatorade and then managed to get into bed at 11 pm.

As I laid down, I realized I had to make a choice. You can not train for a marathon, even if your only goal is to finish, on 5-6 hrs of sleep a night. Ok, you probably can, but forget about being effective at work, not to mention the lack of energy to devote to your family.

When I started this blog, I indicated to some that part of my goal was to document my training so that anyone wanting to train to complete a marathon would know what the time requirement was like. My time ran out. I could no longer justify the time I was spending training, more so the resulting impact it was having on my personal life.

I enjoyed a weekend of no training, camping at my parents farm with the kids and eating stuff that maybe wasn't the healthiest stuff. I'll resume my exercise in the morning, and return to trying to eat the right stuff, maybe even learn to sleep a little more. But that has never been my strong suit, I always try to stretch every day.

The Tecumseh Trail Marathon is still in my sights, but I need to evaluate how I'm going to train for it. Right now, part of me is saying, "I've done a marathon, no one can take that away, I don't need another one. Half marathons and 5Ks are fine from here on out." For now, I'll play it by ear. Quite honestly, I need to examine a few things in my life, shuffle the deck and figure out what cards I'm going to play. There's too much riding on the game to make a bad play.

Thanks for listening and caring, I'll keep you up to date as I sort it all out.

What are your plans?

Jeremiah 29:11 (New International Version)
11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and
not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

This verse was written on a wall section that we installed at the Habitat House project. It stuck with me throughout the week. Well sort of. Bible verses are like good songs to me, I hear them, I like them, they strike a chord with me, and then I can't remember where they are written or, in the case of songs, who sings them.

As this week has gone by, I finally got an opportunity to use http://www.biblegateway.com/ to look up the verse, and I learned something I didn't know. When I read the entire chapter, I discovered that the message was for the Israelites in captivity in Babylon. The message was a promise that God would make sure they prospered and was followed by a much different message for those who remained in Israel.

I'm sure that the captives thought they had gotten the raw end of the deal. They probably prayed that God would set them free and return them to their land. Quite possibly they were jealous of those who got to remain in their homeland.

Why is this important? Well for me, I was one of those captives, hoping and praying for what I wanted God to give me. God answered my prayers this week; by not answering them. What I received was something completely different, and when it came, this verse seemed to sum it all up. I'm not sure how this is all going to turn out, but I've decided he has a plan for me, not my plan, but his plan.

As I thought about sharing this with you I thought about all the "what ifs" we hear about. I'm sure someone was annoyed because they were late for an appointment at the World Trade Center on 9/11. I'm sure someone became upset that they were caught at a red light and didn't make it to the Minneapolis bridge at their normal time. In my life, this just might be that point in time when what I thought was a curse turns out to be a blessing I never could have imagined.

Perhaps Garth Brooks had it right when he sang, "Sometimes I thank God, for unanswered prayers. Remember when you're talking to the man upstairs, just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care, 'cause some of God's greatest gifts, are unanswered prayers."