Iron News Man - April 14th, 2009
Why blog? To inspire others.
Simply put, two years ago I was overweight! At 6’1” I weighed 252, and wore size 40 pants. Few people really noticed, but I did. In pictures, on TV, I was not happy with my appearance. Covering the 2007 LA Marathon for NBC4 was the last straw. Every picture I was in highlighted just how out of shape I had become.
No more! Since that time, the guy who could barely run around the block has slowly built-up his endurance and completed both the 2008 Long Beach International Marathon and the 2009 Surf City Marathon in Huntington Beach.
However, something happened along the way. After my first marathon, I fell into a funk. I asked myself, “Why do you feel such a let-down after a marvelous achievement?” The answer I have since learned from my coaches, I failed to set the “goal beyond the goal”. Thus, my quest for Iron was born!
I’m registered to compete in the Ford Ironman Arizona on November 22nd, 2009. Along the way, I will compete in various road races (LA Marathon) and triathlons (Vineman Ironman 70.3 in Sonoma) to fuel my passion and push my training along. The intense and at times brutal training will happen after my duties as 5 a.m. to 7a.m. and 11 a.m. anchor for NBC4 have finished. The sacrifices I will make will be substantial, and for that I thank my beautiful family and friends in advance.
I invite you to share this journey with me.
April 14th, 2009
I’m back from my family vacation in Mexico and ready to rip-it. I had all the typical fun one would have in Cabo San Lucas (and more), but I’m happy to report I kept my fitness routine on-schedule. That routine included a 22 mile run last Saturday (along the main highway from my resort into Cabo and back), the longest training run leading up to the LA Marathon!
My thoughts are focused like a laser on the LA Marathon. Delightfully, I have two other events to prevent me from getting what’s known as “restless legs”. The first is the 18-mile “Friendship Run” put-on by Students Run LA this Sunday at Hansen Dam Park. The second event is the Big Rock Olympic Distance Triathlon at Lake Perris on Saturday, May 9th. Those two competitions should provide welcome distraction as my mind excitedly awaits the LA marathon! All of it propelling me toward Ironman Arizona!
Today’s training begins with weights. Jordan plans on hitting my chest and triceps, hard! Jordan is once again heading out of town to work with actor Taylor Lautner as he films the next movie in the Twilight series. As a result, I fully expect him to throw in some other muscle groups, knowing I may not hit them as hard while he’s away.
Per my Triathlon Coach Jason Healey, my second workout of the day will be a 15 miles ride on my triathlon bike. The weather is going to be windy, so we’ll see how this feels. I always look at wind as good training for the bike section of Ironman, which is notoriously windy!
It feels good to be back and focused on my training routine. The vacation clearly did me some good. My batteries are recharged!
Make it a great day!
Click here to read my previous posts.
-Chris
