10/22 Midwest Run

3.03 miles
31:12 min, 10:17 min/mile

Also ran, but didn't track, 3 miles while we were in Atlanta, but I have to say that the best run so far was today. 31 degrees when we woke up, threw on the warm layers and hit the road. Columbia, Missouri has some beautiful scenery, nice rolling hills with the occasional valley to run through. Before we leave I'll be running through a valley that would make Newell Rd in Gainesville look tiny and I can't wait! I'm not sure DW will want to do that with me, but that just means I'll run half the mileage that day with her and the rest by myself. We're still thinking about the Katy Trail down closer to the Mizzou campus, but a body was just found there by another runner so we might avoid it for now until all the spectators and police get done with whatever they have to do.

Ate way too much Shakespeare's Pizza so the run tomorrow should be miserable. We'll attempt a few miles on the treadmill tonight. Can't let the weight slip over the holidays!

Biggest Loser

Not many people know that during my senior year at Flagler College my weight ballooned up to 265 lbs, mainly because my only exercise was sucking in my gut.  Thankfully, I carry weight well and didn't look like a disgusting blob, but everything I did either had bad results or was harder because I was heavier.  Golf was out of the question. My flexability was shot, but I was still coordinated and strong enough to compensate and keep my scores respectably in the 70's and low 80's, but cracking 70 consistently wasn't going to happen.  Running caused pain, not just soreness, in my knees, hips and back.  Going to the gym was a commitment I didn't make at that time, and as a result I had the body I deserved.

After college I worked outside at a golf course supervising the cart guys and a lot of the weight fell off.  I was also living on the beach, and even though it was embarrassing to go, I still went with different roommates almost every day.  When a business partner and I started a small construction company, my weight got down to around 210, and ever since 2003 I've fluctuated between 210 and 235.  No matter how hard I worked, visited the gym, etc, I wasn't able to shed the weight.

Last year, She Who Must Be Obeyed and I joined Gainesville Health and Fitness, began walking and occasionally running together and had a lot of success. Despite completely losing focus for months on end which resulted in problems, the least of which was weight, the focus has come back.  On May 1st, weighing 235 again, I set a goal of getting back to a respectable weight, shape and lifestyle.  I assumed that 200 would be a reasonable goal, but after reading a few bio's on PGA Tour players with my same height and body type, I realized that that was a little short sighted.  With October 31st approaching and the 219 lb goal coming fast (plateau during the summer, change in job, excuses excuses), I'm realizing the gravity of the situation.  One of my favorite shows is the Biggest Loser, admittedly because I love laughing at some of the people on there, but watching and hoping that others will succeed.  Thinking back to me at 265, then 235 and now that I'm at 219, it's amazing to think that when I reach my goal of 180 lbs, I'll be 85 lbs lighter than I was at my heaviest.  That's almost one She Who Must Be Obeyed... or it is one...  I have no concept of her weight and she'll probably keep that number with her to her grave.

I heard somewhere that there's a greater accountability when you publicly state your goals.  Over time I'm sure I'll state several goals relating to golf, running or other life related things.  As for weight, I started at 235 on 5/1.  The goal is 180 by the time the next 5/1 rolls around.  That's 55 lbs in a year, just over a pound a week.  So far, the summer heat and a plateau hurt the progress.  When 11/1 arrives I'll either be 219 or a few lbs under that, but no matter the number I'll be behind schedule.  With cool weather coming up and the prime running season here I'm expecting big things.  Gainesville Health and Fitness is just around the corner, so I may look into renewing that membership as well.  It's time to get going. 16 lbs down, 39 lbs (ish) to go.

10/26 Run - UF

4.32 Miles
40:19 min, 9:20 min/mile pace

The usual practice is to go to UF (The University of Florida for all non-Gainesville readers) after my weekly guitar lesson and run stairs at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.  Tonight I wasn't in a stairs mood so I figured to change it up a little I'd run around campus.  My route took me from the stadium parking lot on Gale Lemrand to University to a side street that runs by a the law school and golf course down to 34th.  Right when I turned off University onto the side street, some guy in a car yelled "FUCK YOU!!!".  I'm not sure why, but then I can't explain the reasons why my college roomates and I decided to egg people a few times my sophmore year.  One of these days kharma will catch up to me from all the crap we did back then.

The rest of the run down 34th, by the Rec Center and down Museum Road went well.  The hills at the end on Museum and Gale Lemrand weren't great, but it was a nice way to end the workout.  All in all, pretty uneventful, though I'm betting that if I keep going that route I'll end up dodging an egg or some passenger seat projectile at some point.  Can't blame them though. Kids being kids.  God... 32 and calling 18 year olds kids... Help...

Review - Lloyd Clarke Sports

Located at 1504 NW 13th Street in Gainesville, FL, Lloyd Clarke Sports is a fixture in the local running community.  Despite larger stores such as Sports Authority, Dick's Sporting Goods and various Foot Lockers, Champs Sports, etc scattered around Gainesville and Ocala, LCS has the largest variety of running shoes for all running styles from minimalist to extreme cushioning in the area.  In addition to running shoes, they also have a wide variety of running and cycling apparel, hydration equipment from vendors such as CamelBak and Nathan, compression clothing from Zoot, Under Armour and 2XU, and an excellent inventory of baseball, softball, disc golf, volleyball and football equipment and apparel.

I realize that that sounds like anything you'd typically read in a newspaper review, but I had to get that out of the way first.  I will admit that I'm extremely biased, but I have an excellent reason.  As any man who has a shoe size over 12 or 13 will tell you, finding their size is nearly impossible.  We all understand that those sizes aren't a great seller and in the past larger sizes have collected dust for months only to be thrown on the clearance table and sold at a loss. We get that. However, because our sizes are so hard to find in anything other than basketball shoes, we as a group tend to not be the most discriminating buyers when it comes to running shoes.  I spent years wandering into a Payless and walking out with the most comfortable size 14 running shoe out of the few that I found.  While some were a great bargain, few ever fit right.

A year or so ago we walked in and were immediately greeted by a few different employees.  Seeing as how I'm not the biggest fan of being hounded by a salesperson (who is?) I was a little apprehensive.  As we made our way around the store nobody stayed on top of us or got in our way, but they were always close enough to answer any questions we may have had.  When we made our way back to the shoes, one of the girls who was working at the time asked several questions regarding our running styles, brands we've worn in the past, type of foot strike, etc and made her recomendation based on the information we gave her.  The shoes she picked out would not have been our first choice, but after walking around the store and especially after the first few runs at home, her picks turned out to be exactly right.  Yesterday was the third pair of shoes I've purchased from there, in addition to headbands, socks, 13.1 stickers and various other things over the past year, and the experience has been identical every time with every employee I've dealt with.

Recently, Lloyd Clarke Sports has installed two treadmills which allow them to examine your foot strike, gait and other key aspects of your style in order to be as accurate as possible in reccomending a shoe that fits your needs.  Despite having shoes ranging from $50 to $150+, their reccomendations are never based on price.  I don't have a rating system yet, seeing as how this is the first review for Fairways and Pavement, but if you're in the Gainesville area and you're a runner, jogger or walker, it's definitely a place to check out!