Farewell to Summer: My Half Marathon - Photos and Results

A few weeks ago, I completed the annual Frederick Running Festival for the third time and I'm just getting around to posting the photos. Unfortunately, this year they only offered a half-marathon (13.1 miles) as opposed to the full (26.2). I was able to finish the full run with a completion time of 5:20 last year and 4:58 the year prior.

Apparently they cut the race back to a half this year because the back leg of the full marathon was deemed "too dangerous" since it was run along the non-existent shoulder of a 4-6 lane super highway. It's a shame, because I always considered that danger kind of like a "bonus" since it kept my "fight or flight" response fully engaged [NOTE: perhaps that should be changed to "fright of flight?"].

3 Keys to Beating My Addiction: Caffeine

Last week I decided that I wanted to stop drinking caffeinated coffee and diet soda with caffeine as well.

I realize that caffeine in moderate amounts actually has been proven to have healthful benefits for a variety of nasty disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and some types of cancer, but I still needed to stop.

The problem was, that I couldn't drink the stuff in moderation. Each day, I would practically polish off a pot of coffee by myself before heading to work during my morning reading time - leaving enough in the pot for the wife if she happened to feel like a cup that day.

At work, I would then easily have two more cups throughout the day and at least three 20 ozs. bottles of diet Coke or Pepsi.

My addiction to all things caffeine started after college with my first job as a morning radio news anchor, where I would single-handedly finish a pot between 5-9am each day. Then at each subsequent newsroom I worked at for the next 10 years, my blood caffeine level probably hovered around a 50-50 split - I may be  exaggerating on that last bit but it's safe to say I was hooked. That is until last week.

My wife and girls were visiting friends, and I had to work, so I decided it was a good time to see if I could shake the caffeinated monkey off my back.

It's been a week now, and during that stretch I've had three cups of de-caffeinated Joe - that may not sound like quitting to you but it's monumental to me. And it wasn't easy. I had pounding headaches from the base of my neck across the top of my skull for three solid days - not fun.

That symptom clearly showed I had a physical dependence on the stuff - not good.

I can only imagine what withdrawal is like for someone trying to kick harder substances or alcohol. Regardless, here are the three things I've learned that were instrumental:

1. Ritual - aside from consuming the coffee there's the ritual of making it and smelling it brew. I found that if I change the ritual, specifically walking on the treadmill while I do my morning reading, it helped break the cycle of addiction for me.

2. Association - we've had house guests and friends who have a pot of coffee brewing 24/7 with the previous pot refrigerated for cold coffee. I loved that but it fed my ready addiction - in an evening I could easily down three 32 oz. jugs of cold coffee. No more. Going forward when we have these folks over I'll have to plan in advance and gain their support of my new, under-caffeinated lifestyle.

3. Locations - despite this freedom from caffeine, I find that a week after breaking the cycle I'm leery of entering a Starbucks because the temptation might be too strong for me to resist "one innocent cup." Don't laugh, but for now I'll have to steer clear of coffee houses and shops it seems.

I'm not saying coffee is evil. I love coffee, but once I assessed my dependency on it I knew something had to change.

Question: Have you ever had to quit something that was a challenge for you to quit?

My Worst Addiction...Finally, Redeemed

This work of art may help
my addiction to salt.....

I have a problem, an addiction of sorts.  Most people who know me (or have shared a meal with me) know about it.

That addiction is salt. Forget smoking, booze or gambling - none of those can touch salt for me.

Sodium is the one habit I can't break. I literally can put it on everything, watermelon, apples, pizza, naturally-salty-clams, sodium-infused soups...etc. In fact, I'll often take Frank's RedHot and pour salt directly into the bottle, then furiously shake it to create a salty-spice slurry to slather over food. My apologies, my mouth is watering even as I'm typing....

As I said, I've got a problem and EVERYBODY tells me how wrong I am and how unhealthy it is to eat so much sodium. Yet, despite those warnings, I still manage to knowingly nod my head in shame as I reach for the salt shaker to pour some of that white crystalline mineral on a raw lemon wedge or stalk of rhubarb.

But I am no longer ashamed and science is on my side, thanks to a recent online article I came across from Scientific American, titled It's Time to End the War on Salt by science writer Melinda Wenner Moyer.

If your are a salty zealot like me, or an anti-salt fanatic like most, I would encourage you to read this enlightening article regarding dozens of studies that have found virtually NO correlation or causation between high sodium intake and an increased risk of a variety of conditions including: heart disease, high blood pressure and strokes.

Despite the decades of studies involving hundreds of thousands of patients, costing millions of dollars in research using ever-improving technology - the salt-health issue seems to be more politically driven than anything else. It's one of those non-offending, easy, feel-like-we're-doing-something non-issues that politicians love to focus attention on.

So until we get clear proof that salt is actually a risk factor for health (or until I collapse in a sodium-induced coma) I will continue to consume and champion the cause of salt in its very forms be they flake, sea, Fleur de Del, Kosher, coarse, finishing, Kala Namak or plain ole' table salt.

And while we're waiting, I've gone ahead and ordered a salt lick for my office. Don't worry it won't be an obvious square foot cube of compressed sodium that would easily offend anti-saltists whom I may work with. It'll be discreet. I'm having it sculpted into a desktop likeness of Michelangelo's Pieta [see photo insert], which will be sweet!!! Check that, the edible sculpture will be salty!!

Question: Are you a salt enthusiast or Fascist anti-salt freak?

Weighing myself and holiday weekend options....

Yesterday was my weekly scheduled weigh-in at WeightWatchers and I'm happy to report that I was down another -1.6 lbs. for a grand total weight loss of -28.4 lbs. Things are trending in the right direction. 


However, I know myself and from past experience a small speed bump - such as a holiday weekend fete - can grind to a halt my efforts to eat healthfully. 
Yesterday's meeting suggested two options to choose:

1. Strive to maintain your current weight.
2. Stay on track and continue efforts to lose more.

There are challenges to both, but I'm going to work to continue to lose by committing to the following:

• Running at least four miles every day this weekend (Friday through Monday);
• Overload on grilled vegetables as a first option - this should make me feel fuller, so I'm inclined to eat less of less healthful options;
• Choose only fresh fruit and fruit salads as dessert options - this is the toughest for me, but because I'm writing here I have to follow through.

So that's my plan, hopefully I'll be able to stick to it and there will be less of me to write about next week!


Do you have any similar eating plans or suggestions for this holiday weekend? Are holidays the time you can "legally" cheat?


Read why I'm fighting to lose weight -> click here

WeightWatchers Weigh-in Update...

It's been a while since I've given an update regarding my weight loss efforts - so I'll try to squeeze one in here (I'll just pretend I'm squeezing into a pair of skinny jeans.)

This past Thursday I was able to get to a much needed WeightWatchers' weigh-in, and I am happy to report that I was down -1.8 lbs. for a grand total weight loss to date of -26.8 lbs.

Oddly, whenever anyone finds out that I'm on WeightWatchers they give me the business about being vain or being fixated with my body due to the fact that I'm trying to lose weight.

At which point, I politely educate them about the fact that both my parents (who died before they were 65) were diabetic, hypertensive and genetically predisposed to other circulatory maladies (e.g. hardening of the arteries, high cholesterol, HDL/LDL imbalances...etc.).

The bottom line is that I'm fighting against killer genetics and I need all the help I can get.

I choose WeightWatchers to ensure I have balanced and healthy LIVING habits the rest of my life, not just healthy eating habits. Additionally, I want to pass those habits along to my two preteen daughters. That's why I'm doing WW.

Hopefully my schedule will allow me to make it to weigh-in this coming week and there will be less of me to write about next week.

Mid-Year: New Year's Resolution Update.....

Last December I made a bevy of New Year's resolutions that can be viewed in the post I'm a Living, Breathing Weight Loss Cliche, which is dated 12/29/2010. Now that we're at the midway point of 2011, I thought it might be useful to grade myself on each of the bulleted resolutions in the excerpt below from that post: 


In the waning hours of 2010 there are several achieveable, personal resolutions that I purpose to pursue in 2011 including:

• making five blog posts each week; GRADE: C+ (I started out slow, but I'm gaining steam in this area)
  •  
• finishing my first book; GRADE: A (This bad boy is done and will be launched this November)
• finally eliminating all of our credit card debt; GRADE: B+ (So far, this year we've paid down more than $30K in consumer debt including my car. We're on track to be debt-free in 2011)
• spending one night a week playing games with my family; GRADE: C- (While I do spend a lot of time playing with my daughters, it's not specifically playing games - I need to improve) 
• going on a date with my wife at least once a week; GRADE: D- (Nuts!!!! This is a glaring weakness that I need to focus attention on, we've only had a handful of date nights this year and that just won't cut it)
• running at least 20 miles every seven days GRADE: A (Now this is a problem, I'm logging hours on the road - sacrificing dates with my wife and games with my girls. That's got to change.)
• and striving to walk an average of 10,000 steps each day. GRADE: B (I'm averaging about 8.5K steps a day - not great, but not bad) 

All of those seem doable to me; however, the most difficult resolution that I have not mentioned is my inability to keep my weight within a healthy range for my age, gender and height. GRADE: B+ (For the year, I'm down a total of -25.0 lbs. even though I was -0.0 lbs at WeightWatcher weigh-in today. Regardless, I'm keeping on)

When you average all of those together, my total New Year's resolution GRADE is a B , six months into the year.  That's ok, but I'm totally bummed about date night with the wife (whom I deeply love) and gaming with the kiddos.

Any tips on good date night ideas would be appreciated and games that would be fun for kids ages 7-10. Thanks!

That'll do it until next week's update, hopefully there will be less of me to write about!

Patience is Still a Virtue – Even in an Age of Instant Gratification

Patience Personified
First Lady Martha Washington

Went to weigh-in today as part of my weekly WeightWatcher ritual and held steady with a big ole’ zero pounds lost or gained.

While one week of weight neutrality does not a plateau make – it offers an opportunity to talk about patience. It took time for me to gain my weight in the first place and it’ll take time to lose it.

The same concept applies to all of us who seek to pursue other worthwhile endeavors whether it’s growing a customer base, completing a college degree, reducing debt, getting a certain type of license or building a relationship.  As unfashionable as it sounds, those efforts require patience.

The trusted saying “Patience is a Virtue” seems outmoded and outdated to our current expectations, which have been sharpened by immediate downloads, microwave meals, a 24/7 news cycle, on-demand media, frenetic flash animation and any other example of instant satisfaction you can imagine.

When we don’t get something we want now, we tend to get ticked off.

Name My Blog Contest!!!

Help Name My Blog!!!

I’ve been writing this blog fairly regularly for more than a year now, and I’ve shared a host of thoughts, feelings and opinions regarding a range of topical areas.  But now, I need your help….

The title of this blog is EXTREMELY clunky – “Comments and Questions of Faith, Family, Finance and Fitness” (yuck!)

I intentionally made the title so unwielding, after I read an article by blogging guru Chris Brogan who stressed the need to, “…write about what you like and include as much of what you like in your blog’s title…” – his rationale at the time was that an overstuffed blog title would help people find it when they typed words in various Internet search engines.

With all due respect to Mr. Brogan, I think it’s time for a grown-up title to help tighten the focus and purpose of this blog.

So, please reply with your suggested blog title in the comment section here or on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/tor.constantino) for the next seven days.  If yours is selected, I’ll send you a $25 gift card to Amazon and a free copy of my new book due later this fall.

Here are the blog title criteria:

1. The title MUST be G-rated;
2. It should complement the topics I typically write about: Family, Faith, Fitness, and Finance;
3. You can submit as many suggested titles as you’d like.

Once a winner is selected they’ll be ceremoniously honored befitting their accomplishment – meaning I’ll write a quick blurb or somethin’ about ‘em.

Be part of hisTORy and please help me name my blog!!!!

Why I Run Full and Half Marathons…

Tomorrow morning, I’ll wake up at about 5am to make it on time to the Frederick Running Festival where I plan to run a half marathon – which is 13.1 miles.

When I started this blog, nearly a year ago to the day, my very first post was about the completion of my third full marathon. Since then, I’ve completed two more full and several halves.

Often times, friends and family say they understand my desire to run a few miles – but they completely don’t get the rationale behind running 26.2 miles or even half that distance. They think it’s crazy.

Maybe it is.

While I originally started running to reap the benefits for my physical health, I recently came across an article that nicely articulates the mental health benefits running provides – so maybe I’m not crazy after all.

The excerpt below was originally published in the spring 2011 issue of The Trail magazine, a supplement publication I get from Runner’s World.  The article was written by Shannon Farar-Griefer, 49, who is a mother of three kids and started running in 1997.  Since then she has completed 25 ULTRAMARATHONS – which is running 100 miles straight through.

Now to me – running 100 miles is crazy.  So I thought it might be worth reading her justification for such supreme lunacy.  Here’s the article in full.

“Running 100 miles is about the challenge of pushing your body and mind to places where someone who’s not a runner – and maybe even a marathoner- might thing unimaginable. It’s not about running all-out fast, like you might do in the other races; it’s about finding a consistent pace that makes sense for the terrain and keeping your legs moving , no matter how much they might want to stop. To me, it’s like a metaphor for life. You’ve got to take the bad with the good, because there are times you are going to hurt and feel horrible out there. It’s going to hurt – just like hitting the wall in the marathon, but in a 100-miler that hurt might last for two hours or four hours or 10 hours.

The Bad News and the Good News

It’s been a couple of weeks since my last WeightWatcher’s update, and I decided that it was high time to make a post.  The past few weeks were very busy with various commitments – that we’re all accustomed to – which kept me from weigh-in as well as tracking my food intake.

In keeping with the theme of the headline for this blog post, I was expecting to be up when I stepped on the scale this week, and I was.

Weekly WeightWatcher Whatssup....

It's Wednesday, so here's my weekly WeightWatchers weigh-in update.  Due to travel and unavoidable scheduling conflicts, I missed weigh-in for the past two weeks.

So I wasn't really sure what to expect when I stepped on the scale during lunch break today....

I'm a Creature of Habit....

This is a busy time of year at my fulltime job, I work at a biotech company that produces medicines for a few different types of infectious diseases.  The respective seasons for those respiratory conditions are winding down. However, the ramp-up and planning for vaccinations that begin this fall are already underway.

The resulting work-related meetings have occupied my lunch hours for the past few weeks – and that’s my feeble excuse as to why I’ve not been able to attend the two most recent WeightWatcher weigh-ins.

Usually, I go to the WW meetings during lunch on Wednesdays but me schedule is so tight that if something is added on my plate then something else has to fall off. Such was the case with the weigh-ins.  Again, I’m a creature of habit - are you???

Are Witchcraft and Karate Similar???

Check out OUR family's
karate photos below!!!

Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to earn a black belt in some kind of martial art. I think it all stems back to the early 1970’s when Kung Fu legend Bruce Lee was still alive, and I saw a TV commercial for his movie titled “Enter the Dragon.” I remember being 4 or 5 years old begging my parents to take me to see the movie, which they refused to do.

It wasn’t that they necessarily were opposed to the violence but they were rabidly opposed to the inter-mingling of Eastern religions with the various martial art styles. My parents (God love ‘em) were staunch, fundamentalist Christians who were rigidly against any type of exploration, discussion or questioning of our particular faith tradition.

So, no spinning back kicks for me. Again, all I can say to that is God love ‘em. And with that, my childhood dreams of karate mastery went down in flames – or hellfire to be more precise. A similar situation occurred when I was about 15 years old. We had returned to the states after living in the Middle East for nearly two years where we were exposed to all the major world religions firsthand.

Once we were stateside, one of my first trips was to a bookstore where I bought a bunch of books on Eastern faiths to better educate myself. Again, my parents flipped out when they found out stating that I was tempting fate, potentially jeopardizing my immortal soul and opening myself up to spiritual confusion by entertaining such ideas that were patently contrary to the truth of Christianity.

Their rationale and justification was that they knew of several families who had let their teens read whatever books they wanted – including texts of other faiths and corresponding commentary – and those kids ultimately abandoned the faith and their respective families altogether.

Official Marathon Photos and Video

I was able to access the actual photos taken by photographers spread throughout the course at this past weekend's Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach.  Also, here's a snippet of video they offered of me crossing the finish line which I thought was pretty cool. 

Crossing the Finish Line in 4 hrs 34 min

Final hundred yards of the marathon

Mid-race by the lighthouse at Ft. Story

Driving With the RearView in Mind....

It's Wednesday, which means it's also time for my weekly WeightWatchers weigh-in update. As an aside, I was a bit concerned heading to weigh-in today because this past Sunday I ran my 5th marathon and I wasn't really sure what impact that type of "forced trauma" might have on my body.

I'm not going to lie, continuously moving for 4-5 hours takes a short-term toll on someone's physique and I've been drinking water like a fish the past couple of days to replenish lost fluids - alot of which I've been retaining.

The bottom line was that I wasn't sure wht to expect when I stepped on the scale with a mid-size aquarium worth of liquid sloshing around...

 

It's safe to say that I'm hooked....

I used to think that I was a fairly balanced person overall, but it’s clear that I continue to exhibit a certain pattern of behavior that is clearly out of balance in most people’s minds. 

That being the fact that I’m a marathon and half-marathon junkie….

Yesterday, I completed my fifth full marathon – this one was the 39^th Annual Virginia Beach Shamrock race.  Here are a few pictures that my wife took of my daughters and I after that event – I’ll post official photos from the race organizers as they become available over the next few days.

While I didn’t set any land speed records, I managed to finish the 26.2 distance in 4 hours and 34 minutes.  That marked a personal best for me and netted out to 5.75 miles per hour or an average 10:45 per mile pace.

I understand that those numbers might not mean much to anyone, but my slowest marathon took 6 hours and 20 minutes – so this race was a major improvement. 

Statistically speaking, fewer than three percent of Americans will run or train for a marathon – and there’s good reason for that – namely, a marathon is controlled, self-induced trauma and pain to your body.  That’s reason enough to avoid distance running altogether.

A Modestly Monumental Success...

Today was my weekly WeightWatchers weigh-in. As you may have seen last week, I was within striking distance - losing an additional 1.5 lbs. - of losing a total of -30 lbs.   

This past week, I was focused on achieving that goal by sticking to the PointsPlus Values plan, closely tracking my food intake as well as "moving" for at least :30 minutes every day.  As a result, when I stepped on the scale before today's meeting....

 

"As My Waist Turns" - the Dramatic Saga Continues...

Let's face it, we all have drama in our lives. Mostly such drama is driven by our personal unmet expectations.

Today was my weekly WeightWatchers weigh-in, and to be honest - I was completely prepared for a large dose of drama in the form of a weight gain because my activity was down from the week and my eating was up. 

So I was shockingly surprised to see that I was actually down -2.2 lbs. for the week, for a total loss to date of -28.6 lbs.  

Granted, it's not as dramatic as Luke and Laura getting married, but today's loss had a whiff of drama for me. [NOTE: Yes, I am a guy who just tossed out an obscure General Hospital reference from the 1980's - see photo insert. But I digress...]

The only thing I can figure about this surprisingly dramatic weight drop, is likening it to the requisite 7-day delay that occurs with a third-party check deposit into your bank account. The bank needs the extra time to ensure that the check is not "hot" and that it truly conveys the promised funds. 

[NOTE: As a complete non sequitur, the only thing I can think of that drives more drama than a bounced check was perhaps when we found out that Rodger Thorpe from the Guiding Light was NOT actually dead - that was a shocking revelation! But I digress....] 

A Friend of Mine Has Published a New Book!!!

I have a friend and colleague, Caryn FitzGerarld, who is a dynamic and gifted writer. She recently completed an inspiring anthology that features 30 Ordinary People Sharing their Experiences Living EXTRAordinary Lives!

This book is a must have if you want to be inspired by some amazing stories of people who have gone from ordinary to EXTRAordinary!

Introducing: "Living the Life of My Dreams: Essays & Interviews with 30 Ordinary People Living EXTRAordinary Lives"

Featuring People Such as:

• Nora Dunn, The Professional Hobo
• Shelly Rachanow, Author of “What Would You Do If You Ran The World”
• Sally Shields, Speaker, Radio Personality and Author of #1 Amazon.com  Bestseller “The DAUGHTER-IN-LAW Rules”
• Pablo Solomon, International Artist
• Shirley Cheng, Blind at 17, Author with over 25 book awards a decade later
• Achayra Sri Khadi Madama, Yogi, MMA trainer with 4 black belts earned after age 50!

ORDER NOW!  http://tinyurl.com/4mq499a

A Major Mental Milestone Achieved!

Most people will tell you that there are several factors that drive success in life, regardless of the endeavor you seek to pursue.  Those factors typically include: perseverance, ambition, education, potential, desire, creativity, hard work, luck…etc.  However, one success factor that is very often overshadowed by the other factors is mental toughness.

I personally, believe that mental toughness and the ability to rebound from adversity are two critically important factors toward successful weight loss.  I think anybody who’s struggled with their weight, or any addictive behavior for that matter, can relate to that observation because setbacks will occur during the journey.  I know this first hand because I’ve shared similar setbacks throughout my personal weight loss journey.

Today was my weekly weigh-in at my local WeighWatchers’ meeting, and I was down -1.4 lbs. for a total loss of -18.8 lbs. since I re-started the WW program on 12/29/10. That averages out to -1.88 lbs. per week since then. 

This was a major mental milestone for me, because I finally surpassed the weight I was before I abandoned my first WeightWatchers attempt last November and managed to aggressively gain +18.6 lbs. in two months. 

Since that extra +18.6 lbs. has been erased, I can now in good conscience include the additional number of pounds I lost before I willingly flung myself off the WW wagon as I track toward my goal weight.