My goals for myself

6 weeks ago I was weighed at least 192 pounds (it could have been more but I didn’t check regularly) and looked like it. I didn’t feel good about myself and I had little energy for exercise until something kicked me in the butt.

Since then I have lost at least seven pounds to find myself at 185 and probably about two inches off my stomach – which I measured at 40 inches relaxed (disgusting I know). My goal here is to lose at least five inches off the stomach and to reach 165 pounds, an ideal weight for my height. I have a long way to go but I can achieve it with regular exercise and a healthy diet. One thing that has always gotten in the way is that I like to drink Pepsi or Coke – lately I have mostly stopped and switched to Diet Dr. Pepper but still have indulged myself too often with a Pepsi. This has to stop and I am making that commitment now. I will write about it if I break it. Hopefully you won’t be reading about it at all.

With this weight loss I will feel better about myself and look better as well. As a bonus it will help me get into shape, something sorely lacking. E and I are enjoying the time that we spend together running, typically Saturdays, and we are planning on possibly doing a few 5k events together.
In addition to that I want to plan on running a few races of my own.
Next Memorial Day weekend will be the Salute 5k that I walked in this year. I hope to do their 10k run next year as a launch for a summer full of running.

I also walked in the Des Plaines 5k and would like to do their 10k run next June or July (can’t quite remember which month).

A friend of mine has talked a lot about the Quad City Bix Challenge – a seven mile race that draws a lot of good runners from around the world. I would enjoy participating would like to set a goal of just under 50 minutes. I am quite sometime from that but it is something to work towards. This year’s winner was Edward Muge from Kenya in a time of 32:16. WOW! So a time under 50 minutes would place me in the top 700. Its 321 days away so I have time for it. (End of next July)

Then we get to the culmination. If and when (it should just be when) Nike brings back the Nike+ Human Race I am going to run in it. Seeing it this year was inspiring and I want to be apart of thousands of people with one goal – finishing a 10k race. For this race I have a goal of under 45 minutes – 4:30 kilometers, something I am still a full minute off.

And the real fantasy? The 2009 Chicago Marathon! Hey anything is possible if you put your mind into it.