Running Towards Fitness

Personal Awareness
The 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.

Ten in the Dark

You ever have one of those days? Everything was going pretty well until I got home and plugged in my computer. Pzzt! I’ve never actually seen a power supply spark before - guess I can’t say that any more. Its not the end of the world since I have another one up at my old office, but I really didn’t want to drive 45 minutes to go and get it, especially since a) I was running late already and b) there wasn’t anything hard and fast scheduled for this evening.

So I went running instead. It was absolutely beautiful outside: clear, dark, and a little over 60 degrees with a very light breeze.

Well, I say it was dark - the moon is almost full, so there’s a fair amount of light to see by, but its not exactly bright out there especially underneath the trees. I went to my local park and did 9.6 miles in 1:29, starting out pretty slowly and speeding up as I went. My first half lap was around 10:00 to warm up, my last was down at 7:45.

Add in the warmup and cooldown to and from the park, and that’s right at ten miles. I love the fact that doing an unplanned ten miler is fun and relaxing, even when I have let my conditioning slip.

Oh, and its pretty cool that my 9:16 average pace (over 9.6) is slightly faster than my 9:18 10 mile record pace. Even if this was an easier course. I’m just sayin’. At least something went right today.

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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

DistanceRaceTimePace
Marathon2006 Freescale3:54:078:56
20 Miles2006 RunTex3:00:089:00
30K2005 RunTex2:42:448:45
Half M2006 3M1:42:577:51
20K2005 Decker1:40:428:06
10 Miles2005 Pervasive1:20:138:01
10K2005 Dublin Dr Pepper48:437:51
5 Miles2005 Turkey Trot37:017:24
5K2005 Margarita Run22:327:15
4K2006 Fila Relays17:247:15
1 Mile2006 Congress Ave6:236:23

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Activity

6 total comments, leave your comment.
  1. BD1
    Mar 22nd 2005
    10:48 PM

    Ah, the beauty of a night run. I haven’t done that in a while. And during grad school I used to go rollerblading at night around a nearby lake all the time. Fun times.

    That’s too cool about your 9:16 pace.

  2. vj
    Mar 22nd 2005
    11:11 PM

    The power supply sounds like too much excitement, but at least it wasn’t your computer making the spark and pop! And I’m envious of your evening run. I love walking after dark. That just sounds so lovely, Richard!

  3. So, are you saying that another PR may be on the horizon? Don’t you love it when all 8 cylinders are firing right? :)

  4. It sounds like you had a fun run! ~ I guess I’m the odd one out. Running at night scares me death. Last summer I ran at night once and I was so afraid that I nearly sprinted the whole time to get the run over with. My mind starts thinking about strange people who might be hiding in the woods or really hungry animals that want to eat me. You just never know what is out there. ;)

  5. Roel
    Mar 28th 2005
    8:38 PM

    Hey there…I ran across your blog on the comment you posted on Joglog (http://joglog.opencoder.org/).
    Nice BLOG, by the way!
    Are you running the Cap10K?

  6. Sounds like a pleasant run. Good for you. You turned a computer problem into a fun run.


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Famous Marathon Times

RunnerTimePace
Al Gore4:58:2511:23
Oprah4:29:3010:17
P. Diddy4:14:549:43
Will Ferrell3:56:129:01
George W. Bush3:44:528:35
John Edwards3:30:188:01
Carrie Sapp3:29:067:59
Boston Qualifier3:10:597:17
Lance Armstrong2:59:366:51
Gilbert Tuhabonye2:23:075:28
Paula Radcliffe2:15:255:10
Paul Tegat2:04:554:46

People I Train With

Alex - Addicted to Exercise
Carrie - Tri to be Funny
Erine - Thousand Miles
Frank - Running Blog
Gilbert - Gilbert's Gazelles
Jay - Leotian Blog
Mike - BROTH