Motivation
One thing I forgot to add. During the run, there were a couple of times when I really just wanted to stop. Take a break, walk, get my breath back. But I didn't. I know now, more than I did a year ago, that I have ...
Running Towards Fitness
Personal AwarenessThe ancient Greeks used to believe that a healthy mind and a healthy body not only went together, but were both critical for happiness and a successful life. They were also intertwined, meaning that a weakness in either area would affect the other. When I started this transformation I was overweight and full of excuses. And by overweight I don't mean just a few pounds - I weighed over 70 pounds more than I do now. I finally took my life into my own hands and started exercising. At the time, I had no idea where it would lead - to a stronger body, a happier, more nimble mind, and a chest full of race medals. Healthy mind, healthy body, indeed! It hasn't been easy, or without issues, but I wouldn't trade the experience for the world.
Just a run in the park
Well, I had time to run, but not until this evening. Which of course meant that I was running in the heat - not too bad this time, 87 degrees but only 37% humidity. I walked down to Mary Moore Searight park, and hit the trails. Today ...
Cleared to Run
I just got back from the doctor, and its official - I'm fully cleared to run. Cool! My kneecaps are still not tracking perfectly, so I need to work on my strength exercises more dilligently. Also, I still won't be doing my quad extensions until my right ...
Lance Party
Alright, so this isn't technically fitness related. I mean it is, but its not my fitness. Right now I'm listening to the Steve Miller band do their sound-check for Lance Armstrong 2004. The stage is about 5 blocks away, and I'm in an office building. Its ...
Workout
Hey, my second workout this week - and this month - and this quarter. Cool. And a good way to spend a lunch hour.
Started out doing about 15 minutes on the bike. I was on a progressive resistance program, and once it got up to about 25 ...
Fitness Eval
Well, I was at the gym from 6-7 this morning, but didn't really do much. I had my body fat measured, etc but forgot to get a copy. My weight was 169, and my fat came in at 16.5% on the Tanita scale. Mary took me around ...
Chocolate Flan Cake
This is completely random... and may even be considered anti-fitness. But its really, really good so that's okay.
Serves: many
Serving size: one or more large slices
Calories: also many
Difficulty: trivial
IngredientsCaramel topping
Premade caramel toppingCake1 box Chocolate Moist Deluxe cake mix
Whatever else it says on the boxFlan3 eggs
1 can condensed milk
1/2 can evaporated ...
Little Run
Well, I'm officially back in the swing of things, I hope. Did a quick run with Bear today since I missed my morning outing (trying to find a balance between sleeping, running and daylight). So we headed out to the park at about 8pm for a brisk jog.
My ...
I’m back!
And - how can I put this? I'm sorry I was gone for so long. If I had kept it up, my stamina probably wouldn't have suffered as much as it has.
First of all, let me fill in the gap a little bit. Since my last entry, ...
About
I'm Richard Stanford, a fit, happy runner. Of course, that wasn't always the case. Dip into the archives to follow my progress from couch potato to sub-four hour marathoner.
I also like to cook, write, code, and play with power tools...
Personal Records
| Distance | Race | Time | Pace |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marathon | 2006 Freescale | 3:54:07 | 8:56 |
| 20 Miles | 2006 RunTex | 3:00:08 | 9:00 |
| 30K | 2005 RunTex | 2:42:44 | 8:45 |
| Half M | 2006 3M | 1:42:57 | 7:51 |
| 20K | 2005 Decker | 1:40:42 | 8:06 |
| 10 Miles | 2005 Pervasive | 1:20:13 | 8:01 |
| 10K | 2005 Dublin Dr Pepper | 48:43 | 7:51 |
| 5 Miles | 2005 Turkey Trot | 37:01 | 7:24 |
| 5K | 2005 Margarita Run | 22:32 | 7:15 |
| 4K | 2006 Fila Relays | 17:24 | 7:15 |
| 1 Mile | 2006 Congress Ave | 6:23 | 6:23 |
2007 North Trail Half Marathon
I'll start out by saying that this wasn't a PR. Not even close. It was, however, a really fun race, taking place in the middle of a fun weekend, surrounded by fun friends.
Fun!
Going into it I knew that I wasn't going to PR. To be honest, I was more than ...
Update
Well, so much for keeping the blog current, eh?
I've been doing pretty well, most of the time. I'm currently in Dallas just a few hours away from running in a small half marathon (400 people, give or take) - and I've only managed to get up to 10.5 miles ...
Lunchtime Ladera
This was my third time to run Ladera Norte, and its actually getting easier. I walked once, about 3 minutes into the hill, for a minute (timed), then ran the rest of the way. Not that I was fast - the remainder took me a solid 5 minutes - but I ...
2007 BagelFest 5K
I'm very glad that I did this race. I almost didn't - the idea of doing something where I know that I wasn't going to come close to a PR was not terribly enticing - but I've done it every year since I started running, and its been a whole ...
Unplanned 3 Miler
Well... I know that I said that I wasn't goint to run today... but I did anyway. You see, at lunch today Thon offered to run his 3 mile hill loop with me this evening. Naturally I stuck to the gameplan and told him that I wasn't running until Saturday. ...
Rollingwood Revisited
I went to Rollingwood for the second time - or at least the second time since my recovery - and while ended up running a slightly different course due to inattention, it was a fantastic run. Last time I averaged a 9:41 pace (9:54, 9:30, 9:46) around the hills, and it felt ...
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Working Out ... and a Book14 miler
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Famous Marathon Times
| Runner | Time | Pace |
|---|---|---|
| George W. Bush | 3:44:52 | 8:35 |
| John Edwards | 3:30:18 | 8:01 |
| Carrie Sapp | 3:29:06 | 7:59 |
| Boston Qualifier | 3:10:59 | 7:17 |
| Lance Armstrong | 2:59:36 | 6:51 |
| Gilbert Tuhabonye | 2:23:07 | 5:28 |
| Paula Radcliffe | 2:15:25 | 5:10 |
| Paul Tegat | 2:04:55 | 4:46 |
