I think, we just saw the most exciting game in the 2008 NFL season. The game between the NY Giants and Greenbay Packers, was a nailbiter till the last minute. The game went into overtime and the final score was 23 – 20. I loved the way, NY Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes, who missed two not so difficult goals earlier in the game, made a come back and scored the field goal in overtime to win the game for the Giants.
I should confess.. I am not a big sports guy.. But this game was exciting :).Â
I have been regularly working out for the last 4 weeks and man what a difference it makes :).. When I started off, I could barely run for 5 minutes without panting like a dog.. Am up to 35 minutes now and can run ~3 miles without stopping. Long way to go before I can do a marathon.. but a good start.
I also successfully lost 5 lbs as promised. Now the goal is to loose another 10 lbs before end of Jan 08. I should mention that it makes a big difference in energy levels and the way you consume food. Even though, you don’t go on a diet per se, just that fact that you are working out makes you eat less and more conscious of what you are eating. I guess, you finally realize, how difficult, it is to burn off those 100 calories from the small pop can :)..
Graph from Traineo showing the results of the last 1 months workout…
Most people make their resolutions around the New Year. My resolution to loose weight and get into shape came around when I went on vacation with my family over the thanksgiving weekend. We went to the Grand Bear Resort in Utica, IL for the holidays. The resort had a indoors waterpark and when I got ready to get into the water, I felt ashamed to undress because of my shape :). I came up with a resolution than and there to get into shape. I was never a fit person, but the two marathons I ran in 2004 and 2005 forced me to work out and as a result, feel good about myself. I want to take up running again and hopefully fullfill my lifelong dream of learning to swim and complete a tri-athlon.
My sister and brother-in-law were good sports and decided to keep me motivated by announcing that they were going to loose weight along with me. We have a small bet going along to keep us on our toes. I wanted to find a tool, which would keep us connected with each other about our progress. My search lead to several sites, that would do this.. and I finally decided on Traineo (http://traineo.com/). It is a web 2.0 site that allows you to keep track of your goals and progress. Very cool..
Now.. the real challenge is to loose those flabs :).. Wish me luck!!!
It was a blast to see the runners braving the 45F weather to run the 2006 Chicago Marathon. I signed up for the marathon, but didn’t run it because I didn’t get to train (something called a job took up all my free time 🙂 ). I took a ton of pictures, but the two below convey the spirit of the day
2005 has been nothing short of interesting..
I have completed my second marathon..
Got a promotion at work..
Met new and interesting people..
Travelled to my fourth foreign country..
Finally got my H1 visa approved..
And last but not least, got ENGAGED!! (yep.. no more of that bachelor freedom for me 🙂 )
Let us raise our glasses in wishing for a even more interesting year..
WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY NEW YEAR
HOPE THE YEAR OF DOG WILL BRING YOU LUCK, HEALTH, LOVE AND PROSPERITY.
It’s been a while since I updated the site :). Wanted to give some updates on my running accomplishments for 2005. After finishing last years Lasalle Marathon, I thought that I could train on my own this year. BIG MISTAKE!! :). Unless you are really (and I mean REALLY) motivated, it is very difficult to train alone for a marathon. So my training was pretty bad this year. I did manage to finish the marathon though. Only 30 minutes longer than last year :).
Here is a picture from the 2005 Chicago Half Marathon, I ran as part of my training
For my records.. here are some of the runs I participated in this year
April 9 | BADGERLAND STRIDERS SOUTH SHORE HALF MARATHON | 13.1 Miles | Chip Time : 2:12:31
May 26 | CHASE Corporate Challenge | 3.5Miles
Aug 7th | Chicago Distance Classic | 13.1Miles | Chip Time : 2:17:01
Sept 24th | Chicago Half Marathon | 13.1 Miles | Chip Time : 2:21:28
OCt 9th | Chicago Lasalle Marathon | 26.2 Miles | Chip Time : 5:14:41
As you can see.. it has been a very “slow pace” year :).
I received the official time of my Great Aloha run yesterday. I was wrong when I stated that I might have finished the run in < 75 minutes. My official time is 1 hour 19 minutes and 23 seconds. Still a lot better than I anticipated. I put in 1 hour 45 minutes as my expected finish time in my application :).
Official Result Postcard
Only bad thing is that I haven’t run much since the race. I guess one needs a target to be motivated :).
Have been pretty bad lately with the updates on the website. I was preparing hard for the Aloha Run. I finally finished it today :). I completed the race in < 75 minutes. I was expecting that I will finish it in ~2 hours. But what do you know.. :). Running with 22 thousand people seems to have given me some extra energy. I will add some pictures soon.
I did it. Crossed the 8.15 miles target today. Question of the day. Do I keep pushing or mellow down for the run?
