Couch Potato Retires!

I mentioned that I recently retired from being a couch potato for the second time. But how did that come to be? Am I the Michael Jordan (or more recently Brett Favre) of retirements? Well, in a word, yes. Here’s what happened the first time.

In November of 2004 (I think – though it doesn’t seem to be that long ago in my mind), Powerhouse Gym opened a location just a mile from our house. At 24, I had allowed myself to creep slowly up the scale from my approximately 175 lb frame at high school graduation to over 200 lbs. I’m tall, 6′1″ or so, so I may have been a bit ‘underweight’ when I graduated. But during my college years at Lawrence Tech, many a late night and all day study session took its toll, and the ‘freshman 15′ paired with the sophomore, junior, and senior versions, which all seemed to find their way to my stomach. Soon I was up to 220 lbs, and still climbing. L and I had tried the new fitness center that had opened about 15 minutes from home, in our city, which had plenty of exercise equipment and a pool for us to use. After a year membership with little change to our waistlines, we decided we needed an option that was closer to home. When the Powerhouse posted it’s ‘Now Open’ sign, we signed up near Christmas of 2004.

Within a few months of opening, the Powerhouse had hired a Personal Trainer to do sessions at the gym. I started training with Ryan around February of 2005. Over the course of the next year, Ryan and I worked together three times a week, toning and strengthening my body and getting me back to a healthier body composition near 200 lbs. One evening in early January 2006 I received a phone call from Ryan informing me that he was leaving Powerhouse, effective immediately, due to some disagreements with the management of the gym. Almost immediately my motivation dwindled; I no longer had someone to whom I had to be accountable in terms of fitness. My weight climbed back toward the 220 lbs I had been at when I started working out with Ryan. 220 became 230, 240… by December of 2007 I had reached more than 250 lbs. I had to something to stop the trend; heart trouble runs in my family, and I knew that the heavier I let myself get, the more at risk I would be for serious health issues.

On December 26, 2007 I went for my first run. My brother J and his wife L (interesting how we both picked someone with the same name huh?) had stayed with my wife and I on Christmas night, and had gotten me a brand new running log as a gift. I had never been one that was into running just to run; I had been an athlete in high school, playing basketball and baseball, as well as playing soccer on and off for about 20 years. but the thought of running just to run struck me as dull. But I new I had to do something to reverse this weight gain, and in addition to my brother and his wife, I had a couple of friends who were avid runners. I let the two of them convince me at some point to sign up for a half marathon that was to be run on April 6, 2008, just a few miles from my house.

As I look back at that first run on December 26, 2007, I really don’t know what on earth convinced me to go back for a second run. It was cold and snowy that day, and there was ice accumulated on the sidewalks in places that made the footing less than ideal. We went a total of 2 miles, and when we got back home, I threw up in my front yard. Oh yeah, I was hooked on this running thing. NOT!

As the months wore on my training for the half was less than ideal. I wasn’t putting in a lot of miles, because again, I had no accountability for my training. In the weeks before the race I doubted whether or not I was even going to run it, as I didn’t feel ready in the slightest. But I convinced myself to follow through on what I started, and established a goal of finishing the race in under 3 hours.

I ended up meeting that goal, finishing the 2008 Martian Half Marathon in 2:49:09, battling blisters the size of the Grand Canyon on each of my feet starting at mile 2. After I finished, I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment; a feeling I definitely wanted to feel again.

After the half marathon, I didn’t run again for about 3 weeks to allow my blisters to heal. Near the end of that healing period I was searching for some tips on blister prevention and stumbled upon the Runner’s World Online Website, and the Discussion forums contained within it. The support I’ve received from the members who post there has just been unbelievable; I’ve continued to stick with a running plan because of those wonderful people for the last 3 months so far, and I see no end in sight. I’m a runner now, and I’m proud of it!

In addition to my running regimen, I’ve also added back in the Personal Training sessions with Ryan, who has now joined the Personal Training team at Rejuvination Training & Fitness . I’m back on the right path to healthy living! This former couch potato is retired!