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.

Miscellaneous Gym

Hit the gym with Marcus this evening for a light workout. We started out on the treadmill, not very seriously on my part. Warmed up a little, then ran a couple of 6:00 pace 1-minute intervals. Its surprising how much of a difference it is for me ...

Another workout

Today's workout was fun. Hooked up with Marcus and Jason at Gold's, and did some simple upper body stuff. Did a little running to start, including a few spurts at a 6:00 pace which felt really fun. I want to do that more, and soon. Kept ...

Upper Body

Took a late lunch and hooked up with Marcus for the Friday Workout. We went back to the basics, and had a pretty good time - we decided to stay with dumbells for the most part. So after a quick 10 minute elliptical warmup (137 cal) I did: ...

Pathetic Workout

Alright, so its been a few... weeks... since I've done an upper body workout. But even so, I put in a pathetic performance today. Bench press: 10x25, 10x35, ~3x45 Incline press: 10x25, 6x25, 6x20 Lat pulldown: 3 of 10x110 Row: 3 of 10x80 Flys: 10x100, 10x90, 10x90 Delts: 10x100, 10x90, 8x90 Medial shoulder raise: 3 of ...

Leg Workout

Alright, so its another quick workout. I almost didn't do any lower body strength this week, but I had about 45 minutes after my Town Lake Trail Foundation meeting and Stephanie getting home, so I hit the Gold's on 290. Gold's may not be a great gym, but ...

Wednesday Leg Workout

We took off for a (very) late lunch and did 10 minutes on the elliptical (at resistance 12) followed by a pretty brutal leg workout. But you're not interested in the timing, just the weights, so here they are, with sets of three: Seated leg press: 200 lbs (+20 from ...

Upper Body II

Did you know that the last time I did this workout was three weeks ago? Neither did I. Turns out that I didn't lose much of anything during that downtime - but I didn't gain much either. Go figure. Lat pulldowns, narrow grip: 3 sets, 110 lbs Lat pulldowns, ...

Short leg workout

Did a really short leg workout today: Single leg lifts (hamstrings): 90 lbs (+5 from last week) Single leg extensions (quads): 80 lbs (+10) Single leg calf raises: 70 lbs Standing calf raises: 260 lbs (+20) Seated leg press: 230 lbs (+50) Then went back to work, forgetting to do the abductor/adductor additions. I knew ...

Leg Workout

Today, Jason and I met up at the Gold's on 183 at lunch for a quick and dirty leg workout. The idea was to be done in under an hour. We started out with 10 minutes on the elliptical, then hit the floor for some exercises, doing 3 ...

Concrete Work

Well, I spent about two hours today busting concrete with Marcus, one of my usual workout buddies. You know something? This is hard work! We alternated between using a 10lb sledgehammer and what feels like a 40 lb "breaker bar" (a 6 foot spike that you pull ...


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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November 9th 2008
Tags: Running

One Comment

2008 Marine Corps Marathon (long)

I'll say its long - 26.2 miles when you haven't run more than about 16 all year is way too long! Let me recap my training schedule for the last two months, just in case you haven't been paying attention (or I haven't been posting it): September 6: 60 mile ...
November 9th 2008
Tags: Running, Races

No Comments

2008 Gazelle 10 Miler

It was great getting to see everyone today. I wasn't sure that I would race - hell, I knew I wouldn't race, I wasn't sure I'd even bother to show up. Packet pickup had come and gone without me, and I was out 'til late last night getting ...
October 26th 2008
Tags: Running

3 Comments

2008 Marine Corps Marathon (quick)

Turns out that yes, I was ready. Kinda. This was my first marathon since I started triathlon and the cardio benefits really showed - my breathing was always under control and my HR stayed low. My legs were really feeling the fact that I only ran ~25 miles in the ...
October 25th 2008
Tags: Musings, Running

One Comment

Am I Ready?

Tomorrow morning, at 5AM (EST of all things), my alarm will go off. It will go off again at 5:15, 5:30, and 5:45, just to make sure. And its not just one alarm, its a combination of the hotel clock radio, the wake-up service, and my iPhone. I think that, as ...
October 22nd 2008
Tags: Workouts, Swimming

2 Comments

Swim Clinic

My swim times have been, well, let's be nice and just say "abysmal." That's fine for now - at the beginning of the year I could barely make it to the other end of the pool, and just a couple of weeks ago I did a half Ironman. ...
October 5th 2008
Tags: Races

4 Comments

2008 Longhorn Ironman 70.3

Wow.  That was the hardest thing I think I've done - certainly including my first marathon.  The big difference was that I went into this knowing that - if I made the cutoffs - I was going to finish.  No question. And I did - some 45 minutes slower than I'd ...

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Famous Marathon Times

RunnerTimePace
Al Gore4:58:2511:23
Oprah4:29:3010:17
P. Diddy4:14:549:43
Sarah Palin3:59:369:09
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
Haile Gebrselassie2:03:594:44

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