Okay, so it's been a long time since my last post. At least I didn't wait a full two weeks! My lack of posting has come because of two W's: Work and World of Warcraft. Maybe that is three W's.
If you're a frequent visitor to my blog, you should recall that I've been mentioning off and on about my "big ideas" at work. Although I came up with the ideas well over one and half years ago, it wasn't until this summer that things really got off the ground. It started in May with the first opportunity to share my ideas to the right audience, which lead to a series of further meetings up the chain until I finally reached high enough to the decision maker level. Next thing I know, my ideas are picked to go full steam ahead as the next big project, and I'm given the opportunity to lead the project. Pretty exciting stuff. The flip side is that, it basically means I am always thinking about work. All the time. I mean, all the time. I've gone running more than a half dozen times since the marathon and every single one has been consumed with thoughts about work.
Mostly I'm working out technical problems in my head. Redesigning a major portion of 10 year old software isn't exactly straight forward. To add to all this, is the timeline. What I would have wanted 4-6 months to complete, I'm being asked to do in 3. Stress? Maybe. Okay, yeah. Just a little. On the plus side, I got to more or less pick the team by hand, and they are all very excited about doing something totally new and working with the latest technologies. It should be a rather fun (albeit stressful) couple of months.
Sometime around the beginning of Sept I started up a new WoW account. In part because the marathon training was coming to an end and also because I was winding down some other games I had bought. I honestly tried to squeeze as much gaming out of the single player games I had. In the end, the coming back to WoW ended up being a lot of fun and there is a new expansion coming out in a month. This has got to be like the 4th or 5th time I've come back to WoW after a year long break. We'll see how long I last this time.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Moving On
As much as I'd love to leave my marathon post up forever, it's time to put that event behind me, tucked away in a small list of things I'm truly proud about. Life keeps moving forward no matter how much you want to revel in today.
Good or bad, every experience can be positive as long as you learn from it. What did I learn from my marathon experience? I learned that with proper preparation, good planning, and hard work you can accomplish something you otherwise might not have. And as always, a little good luck doesn't hurt (good weather).
So what's next for Shawn? There are two things on my mind lately. First is my family, and specifically Megan. She's 5 years old now! I can't even begin to explain how weird that feels just saying it. Her birthday was last weekend, and it was a blast. Big thanks to my Mom for putting together such an awesome Spiderman theme birthday at the last minute. But Megan's having a tough go of things right now, particularly at night after I get home. We fight a lot, mainly about outside time and her running off or going into neighbors houses without telling us. It's been very frustrating and we've had a few big fights that I feel absolutely horrible about.
So despite any personal goals I might have for the next few months or how much my job is going to get in the way (next post will be about that). I think I've decided what's next for Shawn. It's going to be all about Family, starting with date night this weekend for me and Andrea and building on more Daddy and Megan time, better communication, and helping teach limits. Nothing too hard right? Basic parenting stuff? But parenting is like anything else. You need proper preperation, good planning, and hard work. Time to put those lessons learned to good use.
Good or bad, every experience can be positive as long as you learn from it. What did I learn from my marathon experience? I learned that with proper preparation, good planning, and hard work you can accomplish something you otherwise might not have. And as always, a little good luck doesn't hurt (good weather).
So what's next for Shawn? There are two things on my mind lately. First is my family, and specifically Megan. She's 5 years old now! I can't even begin to explain how weird that feels just saying it. Her birthday was last weekend, and it was a blast. Big thanks to my Mom for putting together such an awesome Spiderman theme birthday at the last minute. But Megan's having a tough go of things right now, particularly at night after I get home. We fight a lot, mainly about outside time and her running off or going into neighbors houses without telling us. It's been very frustrating and we've had a few big fights that I feel absolutely horrible about.
So despite any personal goals I might have for the next few months or how much my job is going to get in the way (next post will be about that). I think I've decided what's next for Shawn. It's going to be all about Family, starting with date night this weekend for me and Andrea and building on more Daddy and Megan time, better communication, and helping teach limits. Nothing too hard right? Basic parenting stuff? But parenting is like anything else. You need proper preperation, good planning, and hard work. Time to put those lessons learned to good use.
Monday, October 04, 2010
18 weeks - 38 seconds
Two apparently completely unrelated times. But for me, they are tied directly together. 18 weeks of training. Week in and week out. Not a single day skipped, not a single mile left out. I did all sorts of running I've never done before, speed training, distance training, heart rate training. The end result? Reaching and exceeding my goal by 38 seconds.
Official chip time: 3:29:22
When I started the race, I told my buddy who was about to finish his 6th marathon, that I honestly couldn't say how important reaching my goal was to me. This was my first marathon, I had no clue how I would feel at the end. Turns out, reaching that goal was a huge thing for me. I feel so lucky to have everything come together so perfectly. I can honestly say that if it wasn't for the near perfect weather, I probably would have fallen short.
The first part of the race was exactly what I expected and hoped for. Around mile 8 I sunk into my groove, running 14 straight miles with a pace variation of only 7 seconds (7:45-7:52)!! My family all saw me during this time, speeding along at my strongest between miles 14-16. Exactly at Mile 18, I had a minor scare, as my left plantars (good foot) had a huge twinge. Luckily, I had experienced this during training, so I knew it wouldn't be something to worry about, but I did have to adjust my stride for a little bit as the kink worked itself out.
Mile 22 is where the real fun began. This is where you make a final large uphill climb to Summit Ave. I made the climb in a solid 8:20 pace, which was great. I started down Summit easing back into my 8:00 goal pace, finishing mile 23 at 7:58. I was tired for sure, but at no point during this did I feel any type of "wall". However, somewhere between mile 23 and 24 is when the "weird" stuff started happening.
Weird is the best word I have to describe it, because it wasn't painful and it didn't seem to slow me down. First, my legs muscles felt really loose. The sensation scared the crap out of me initially, because I didn't know what it was, and I had never felt anything like it during training. Were my legs going to give out? Could I finish the last few miles? Next, they tightened up, so I figured they were cramping. This scared me even more. Cramping up legs could be the end of my running and I'd have to hobble across the finish line. I pushed it all out of my head and focused on keeping my form, landing softly, and I slightly slowed my pace back around 8:10. If this was my "wall", I wasn't going to let it stop me now.
The stuff going on with my legs combined with the final small uphill on mile 25 hit me hard, and I slowed to an 8:30 pace. After rounding the corner and seeing he final stretch, everything melted away. I honestly don't know if it was the downhill motion that fixed my legs or the pure mental side of knowing the finish line was just around the corner. But once I started that decent, my legs were feeling normal again. I sped up again, letting gravity do most of the work. As I entered the last few hundred yards, to my left my family was there, and Megan was cheering me on. It was the best feeling ever. I checked my watch: 11:29am. Holy shit, it was going to be close. I pushed harder. I could see the clock but I didn't have glasses on so I couldn't see the time. Did it say 3:29? Did it say 3:30? I got within 10 feet and saw the clock read 3:29:50. I had done it! I yelled out a victorious "YES!" and charged across the finish line. If you watch the video of me crossing the finish line, you can just make out the little yelp.
Official chip time: 3:29:22
When I started the race, I told my buddy who was about to finish his 6th marathon, that I honestly couldn't say how important reaching my goal was to me. This was my first marathon, I had no clue how I would feel at the end. Turns out, reaching that goal was a huge thing for me. I feel so lucky to have everything come together so perfectly. I can honestly say that if it wasn't for the near perfect weather, I probably would have fallen short.
The first part of the race was exactly what I expected and hoped for. Around mile 8 I sunk into my groove, running 14 straight miles with a pace variation of only 7 seconds (7:45-7:52)!! My family all saw me during this time, speeding along at my strongest between miles 14-16. Exactly at Mile 18, I had a minor scare, as my left plantars (good foot) had a huge twinge. Luckily, I had experienced this during training, so I knew it wouldn't be something to worry about, but I did have to adjust my stride for a little bit as the kink worked itself out.
Mile 22 is where the real fun began. This is where you make a final large uphill climb to Summit Ave. I made the climb in a solid 8:20 pace, which was great. I started down Summit easing back into my 8:00 goal pace, finishing mile 23 at 7:58. I was tired for sure, but at no point during this did I feel any type of "wall". However, somewhere between mile 23 and 24 is when the "weird" stuff started happening.
Weird is the best word I have to describe it, because it wasn't painful and it didn't seem to slow me down. First, my legs muscles felt really loose. The sensation scared the crap out of me initially, because I didn't know what it was, and I had never felt anything like it during training. Were my legs going to give out? Could I finish the last few miles? Next, they tightened up, so I figured they were cramping. This scared me even more. Cramping up legs could be the end of my running and I'd have to hobble across the finish line. I pushed it all out of my head and focused on keeping my form, landing softly, and I slightly slowed my pace back around 8:10. If this was my "wall", I wasn't going to let it stop me now.
The stuff going on with my legs combined with the final small uphill on mile 25 hit me hard, and I slowed to an 8:30 pace. After rounding the corner and seeing he final stretch, everything melted away. I honestly don't know if it was the downhill motion that fixed my legs or the pure mental side of knowing the finish line was just around the corner. But once I started that decent, my legs were feeling normal again. I sped up again, letting gravity do most of the work. As I entered the last few hundred yards, to my left my family was there, and Megan was cheering me on. It was the best feeling ever. I checked my watch: 11:29am. Holy shit, it was going to be close. I pushed harder. I could see the clock but I didn't have glasses on so I couldn't see the time. Did it say 3:29? Did it say 3:30? I got within 10 feet and saw the clock read 3:29:50. I had done it! I yelled out a victorious "YES!" and charged across the finish line. If you watch the video of me crossing the finish line, you can just make out the little yelp.
Saturday, October 02, 2010
What's Next?
Obviously my thoughts this week have been focused on the Marathon tomorrow. But even with that, in the back of my mind is that nagging thought that won't go away. What's next? What goals will I set for myself next on the fitness front? I still don't know exactly what the plan is.
Originally I had this grand scheme of finishing the marathon and then finding a personal trainer to help me learn weight training and just go with that as a 2 year goal. But financially right now it doesn't make sense to be spending money on something like that. I still want to get into lifting, but I'm not sure the best way. Maybe a few hours of Internet research is in order.
Anyway - Marathon - focus Shawn - no distractions. I'm ready for this, and I'm ready to hit my goal. Years of healthy living, discovering running, tons of races and training, all leading up to this. Will I be a one-and-done person? Never to run another Marathon in my life? Not sure... but for now, just need to focus on tomorrow. And then focus on one mile at a time, one step at a time.
Feel free to track me online - yet another way to watch my progress tomorrow. Click the picture/link below and it will take you directly to a map of my progress.
Not that I think anyone reading this is going to come cheer me on, but if you do, here are some spots I expect to be, at various times:
9:04 AM - W. Minnehaha Pkwy and W. 50th Street
9:36 AM - Cedar Ave, south end of Lake Nokomis bridge - Lake Nokomis
10:00 AM - E. Minnehaha Pkwy and Minnehaha Ave
10:56 AM - Summit Ave and S. Cleveland Ave - HOME STRETCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
11:28 AM - Summit Ave and Cathedral of St. Paul - FINISH DOWN HILL!!!!!
Originally I had this grand scheme of finishing the marathon and then finding a personal trainer to help me learn weight training and just go with that as a 2 year goal. But financially right now it doesn't make sense to be spending money on something like that. I still want to get into lifting, but I'm not sure the best way. Maybe a few hours of Internet research is in order.
Anyway - Marathon - focus Shawn - no distractions. I'm ready for this, and I'm ready to hit my goal. Years of healthy living, discovering running, tons of races and training, all leading up to this. Will I be a one-and-done person? Never to run another Marathon in my life? Not sure... but for now, just need to focus on tomorrow. And then focus on one mile at a time, one step at a time.
Feel free to track me online - yet another way to watch my progress tomorrow. Click the picture/link below and it will take you directly to a map of my progress.
Not that I think anyone reading this is going to come cheer me on, but if you do, here are some spots I expect to be, at various times:
9:04 AM - W. Minnehaha Pkwy and W. 50th Street
9:36 AM - Cedar Ave, south end of Lake Nokomis bridge - Lake Nokomis
10:00 AM - E. Minnehaha Pkwy and Minnehaha Ave
10:56 AM - Summit Ave and S. Cleveland Ave - HOME STRETCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
11:28 AM - Summit Ave and Cathedral of St. Paul - FINISH DOWN HILL!!!!!
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