December 29, 2005 - I love rock & roll - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

It's 7:11pm here in Toronto; tired after a long, frustrating day at work. I'm working on a big file and feel like I'm just spinning my wheels and getting nowhere fast.

My workout this morning felt great; warmup, 3 sets of 10 min, 1 set of 5 min with weights and sit-ups. While I was running, I listened to some new tunes that I downloaded last night to my IPod. I can't imagine running without tunes! I'm forever thinking about the playlist that I am going to create for my first marathon run. It just sends me when I feel like I am running strong and inspired by some piece of music that reminds of another place and time in my life - all the while totally connected to the precise present.

Recently, I have been considering the concept that my running life is equal to prayer. As I write though, I'm not sure how to articulate what I mean by this.

I have signed up on a website that I learned about from Ultraclyde's blog - Fitday.com. I'm still playing around with it but I think that I will be able to use it to my advantage with respect to counting calories. I need to lose a minimum of 20 lbs. and hope to lose as much as 50 before the Fall. Christmas was just (&)($*& dismal from a dieting point of view however, I am relieved that things seem to be getting back to normal. I had lost 25 pounds but gave 10 (ish) back over the holidays. Were it not for my running, it probably would have been 20. I have struggled with weight issues my whole life. I might be kidding myself - but if I succeed with this weight loss and finish a marathon, I think that I will be prepared to put this one behind me for good!

and.. it its about time.

December 27, 2005

This is a new blog and I am a new blogger. It is a blog about a fourty something gay man who wants to run a marathon... original huh!

My goal race is the Marathon at the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago on July 22, 2006 (perhaps a technicolour dream but I hope to do it in 3:20). This blog is a work in progress and I have no idea how I plan to use it or whether I will use it at all. The road will be long... I have weight to lose and many miles/kilometres to log.

I'm currently doing all of my training on a treadmill which sits in the middle of my living room (nobody understands) and expect to start running on an indoor track next week. I don't see myself running outdoors through the snow and ice in Toronto. As the weather clears, I will gradually move from indoors to out.

I really hope that I can connect online with others who are training for their first (or hunredth) marathon. Until my next clinic starts at the Running Room (early February) there aren't many in my life who understand - most think that I am delusional... So drop me a line.