a little meet and greet

It was suggested that a blog may also be a good idea so here I am. This will blog will be a companion to our Facebook page Running after our Youth, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Running-after-our-Youth/347607825261137. This is not an organization trying to help kids through running, this is about the attempt of two guys, one in his 30's and one in his 40's, trying to make their lives better through running and exercise, more specifically by training for the 2012 Chicago Marathon. Some content will be the same, some similar, and some unique. Here I will discuss how training for the marathon is progressing, how we/I are feeling, diet, exercise routines, races, successes, failures, and little motivational ideas and tools we/I have or use.

I can't promise I will always be interesting or stay on point but I will do my best to be honest, forth-coming and genuine in the content posted. You probably won't read anything here that hasn't been said before. It will just be in my voice. I hope the familiarity of experience will help make the content more interesting and as this continues both the reader and I will find a little motivation, a little joy, and see two fat middle age guys, get it together and become healthier individuals in body, spirit, and lives.

After the first week the best thing to come out of it other than the fact that it is finally underway, is that we have a ton of support from family and friends. We/I are still eating and/or drinking too much still but we are mindful. Changes to diet and habits are already being made. We feel this real and we haven't felt that way in a while. We have been running twice now, three miles each time although not without walking. The first time it felt great to be on The Lakeshore Running Trail. The second time, I hated it. I was sore, I was angry, and I was grateful for my running partner Andre. I would have already quit if he wasn't there to help me keep going, I strongly suggest a partner in whatever goals you set in life. The right one can help you keep going or start again when you fall and want to quit. Now, don't think that when the run, and the suck of the run, was over that it wasn't worth it. It paid off tremendously. Not only did we feel great physically, we didn't feel quitters, we felt like winners, like doers. That was huge and the biggest thing I got out of the week

We will not win the Chicago Marathon. It is highly unlikely we will ever become elite runners. I probably never qualify for the Boston Marathon. What I will do, is become someone who follows through, works hard towards his goal, overcomes setbacks, and finishes, finishes his race.

thanks,
John