How To Take A Cold Shower

1. Start the shower at a comfortable lukewarm tempaturee
2. Slowly remove more hot water about once per minute
3. Once the shower is cold, stay in at least 5 more minutes

After trying this chold shower methods for two weeks, I’ve decided I would rather be sweaty. The good news is that our weather should be getting cooler soon.

I was surprised to learn that today is my 50th consecutive day running. What’s better is that I’m beginning to feel like it’s easy. I’ve been aiming for at least two miles jogging every day, but in a pinch I’ll settle for one. The second miles have been magical and have really accelerated my fitness gains.

Tonight I stuck with one mile for several reasons.

• It was 10 PM and I need to get to bed before midnight
• A campfire was smoking up the neighborhood
• A big dog tried to kill me yesterday, so I would rather fight him in the daylight
• I need to run at 5:30 AM tomorrow
• I was in a hurry to get back to my ice cream

So, this is the end of my self congradulatory running post. If all goes well I’ll be back on 2 miles in the morning. Plus, I’m wanting to move up to 3 miles each day in September. Thanks for reading - now go out and run a few miles.

So, I’m thinking about the Pareto Principle and how it might help me get the most effectiveness out of my dieting. I also found this article on applying the 80/20 rule to your diet.

The basic ideas is this: some things make a much bigger difference than others, if you can focus on the most efficient tactics you can do more for less energy.

Bottom line for me: my diet is affecting my total weight loss much more than my jogging. This makes sense if you look at estimated caloric burn versus caloric intake.

• Running a mile burns something like 125 calories
• McDonald’s double cheeseburger 440 calories
• So, running off that sandwich takes about 3 ½ miles or 40 minutes of jogging.
• But, I can eat that burger in 3 minutes or less.

Added to all this is the fact that I have many opportunities to overeat everyday, while I typically run only once. So, if I can get control of my eating I’ll be that much closer to loosing weight. Right?

• Rule #1: Avoid “white” carbohydrates
• Rule #2: Eat the same few meals over and over again
• Rule #3: Don’t drink calories
• Rule #4: Take one day off per week

Any thoughts?

Have you tried this weight loss plan? Will it kill my running energy?

I got my new running shoes about 45 days ago. Buying them was a part of my running comeback. So, I though I would give some credit to Saucony for the shoes.

The Saucony ProGrid Guide has been a great running shoe for me. I’ve had zero problems with shin splints or other weird pains. That’s really strong considering I’ve run everyday and I weight around 240 lbs.

My last pair of shoes were Grid Omni from Saucony, but the guys at the running shoe store wanted me to try these. They run smooth and are very breathable.

I just compared my shoe with the close-ups on GridPro Guide on the Saucony website. I’ve put about 100 miles on the shoes so far, plus wearing to my office sometimes. The blue material in the heel is slightly compacted and I am getting some tread wear on the bottom. The indented letters “XT – 900” are completely worn down. Overall the tread wear is in a normal pattern, at least it’s what the running shoe guys said should happen.

I’m not sure if the compacting and tread wear are at a normal pace, but I’m very pleased with the Saucony ProGrid Guide running shoes.

1. It works for me. Bottom line – jogging everyday is working for me. It gets me out the door and keeps the tally marks growing on my running log.

2. It kills every excuse not to run. Overeating, not feeling good, too late, too rainy, too hot, etc. etc. etc. None of these are as powerful as my desire to keep the running streak alive.

3. It gives me something to lose. Off days come too easy when I don’t have anything to fight for. With consecutive days running, starting over would be too painful.

4. It gives me a running goal I can achieve. Mileage and time goals are fine, but I needed to start with something more attainable. If I can run today I’m a winner, it’s that simple.

5. It makes me feel like a runner. Even when people don’t believe me, or think I’m too big to be a runner. It doesn’t matter, because I know I’ve run everyday for the last month. No question – I’m a runner.

6. It guarantees weight loss. This was a bad month for my diet and eating habits, but I still stand to lose a few pounds. That’s the power of jogging everyday. It also makes me pay (by feeling terrible) when I have to run after eating a giant dinner.

7. It makes jogging part of my lifestyle. While loosing weight is a goal, I’ve always wanted to become a part of the running lifestyle. It’s about living a better kind of life. Doing it everyday makes that a reality.

8. It gives me something to blog about. Yes, blogging helps me run. Especially when I get those emails on weeks I haven’t written (usually when I’m not running well). So, jogging everyday gives me time to reflect about being a runner. That gives me something to say.

What do you think? Are you into jogging everyday? Have you ever tried it, and how did it work out?

I’ve never liked running in the rain, although I refuse to let it break my consecutive running streak. Jumping over puddles can be fun, but not all the time.

The worst part is the wet feet and water running down my nose. I definitely avoid thunderstorms, for obvious safety reasons.

So, this morning was a short run and a head start on my shower.

What about you? Do you like to jog when it’s raining?

Wow . . .

Things started getting serious just over a month ago. I saw a recent picture and thought, “Am I really that fat?”

So, I bought the new running shoes and taped a piece of printer paper up in the kitchen.

There have been some hard days, especially after overeating every night on my family vacation. Other nights I didn’t run until 11 PM.

I had some good days too. Once I knocked off three miles with hardly an effort.

Now the bad news . . .

• I’ve hardly lost any weight. I expect the monthy total will be around 5 pounds.
• I’m not running much faster, still solidly over 10 minutes per mile.
• I have no guarantee that I’ll run tomorrow.

Now the good news . . .

• I’ve built a solid base of fitness
• Jogging is getting easier
• I have something to lose if I don’t go running

Thanks for all the encouraging emails over the last few months. I know the blog has been a little bit of a let down, but I’m optomistic that things are going to get much better.

Then two weeks ago I bought a new pair of shoes. It was a reality check to talk to some of the guys at the shoe store about the hard times my running career has been on.

So, I decided to start a streak. My rules are simple and things have been going well:

• Run at least one mile a day
• I’m aiming for 2 miles each day for July
• Then add the 3rd mile in August
• And the 4th in September

I’ve went for some extra walks and big rides, but the focus is to keep running. The weight loss is coming slow - mostly beacuse of failure to diet. Stay tuned.

• My immediate goal is to run 2 miles every day and build some fitness back.
• It’s very discouraging how much my latest 5 months of laziness have set me back.

Check out this photo from Joe Thorn