Yesterday I completed my first 14 mile training run for the Bayshore Marathon on Memorial Day weekend. One word can describe it. OUCH! The 11.5 mile trail run was much kinder to my body than this run was. Sure the trail run showed me the instability in my ankles by tweaking my medial ligaments in my right foot but the slower pace and longer breaks allowed for a lot less Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). My big sister(in-law) Bridget paced me the entire way which was truly a Godsend because I would have quit at multiple points after hitting nine. The DOMS is mostly in my hamstrings and adductors. Now I know what I need to strengthen in my workouts. I also know what I need to massage for the next few days.  Lots of time to be spent with my roller and The Stick. On the good side is the fact that I completed the run with little to no problems with my right ankle and I finished my half marathon split with a respectable 2:20:20. Not friggin’ bad for the first time I ever ran that far and also considering that one year ago I could not complete 1 mile without a break. Its nice to be at a point a where I can look back and see truly large improvements in my physical capabilities. Its incredible how simple it is to decide to just work through the pain and boredom once you can convince your mind that it is for the greater good. Then once you have busted through that wall it is much easier to do again because you have done it once already.

It is kind of sad when I think back to how painless it was to let myself go into that would of sloth and laziness. All of the fast food restaurants and large agri-businesses make it so easy to sidestep good nutritious eating and it is so convenient to stop exercising it is ridiculous. We just don’t look at the pain that we pay at the end of the day with living our lives like that. The two things in my life that I have treated with disdain are my body and my money. There would always be time to save for my retirement later on because I was going to be making millions by the time I was thirty. Then thirty five. Then forty. Well, here we are at forty one and I don’t see the millions anywhere. And look at where I let my body go to. “My genes are fantastic so I know I can turn my body around in no time and be like the ‘after’ pictures in all those magazines.” Yeah right shithead. I have been busting my ass for months to get back into even slightly decent shape and I am still a mess. But I am on my way in the right direction. Eating better(lost 15lbs this year so far. Thanks Paleo!). Exercising better. Educating my family and my clients better.