Week 42, Day 5

Weight (today's reading): didn't take (traveling)

Weight (weighted moving average): n/a

Today's blood pressure: didn't take (traveling)

Today's food: banana, 2 pop tarts, café rio (2 salmon tacos, beans, rice), cisero's (herb bread with olive oil, caesar salad, seafood fettucine, bite of gnocchi)

Today's exercise: none

in utah

Week 42, Day 4

Weight (today's reading): didn't take (traveling)

Weight (weighted moving average): n/a

Today's blood pressure: didn't take (traveling)

Today's food: banana, subway six inch tuna on wheat, 450ml orange juice, gummi letters, sunflower seeds, 2 hershey's kisses, fuddrucker's (buffalo burger, a few fries, 1/2 pepsi), gummi letters, 4 peanut butter cookies

Today's exercise: run 3 miles on hills

driving up to provo

Week 42, Day 3

Weight (today's reading): 190.0

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: 142/87

Today's food: yogurt, banana, burger king (2 tacos, rodeo cheeseburger), egg in the hole, pretzels, gummi letters, 1/2 banana, sunflower seeds

Today's exercise: none

Week 42, Day 2

Weight (today's reading): 191.2

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.9

Today's blood pressure: forgot

Today's food: yogurt, banana, panda house (chicken teriyaki, honey shrimp, lo mein, small pepsi), last of the bag of gummi cola bottles, coca-cola pot roast, mashed potatoes, green beans, bowl of peanuts

Today's exercise: 1 mile warmup, 3 miles @ 8:57, 1 mile cooldown

Week 42, Day 1

Weight (today's reading): 191.2

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: 139/91

Today's food: yogurt, pluot, banana, gummi cola bottles, salmon burger, pluot, 1/2 bag of pretzels dipped in frosting, one more pluot

Today's exercise: none

Week 41 Wrapup

Now that I'm deep into the taper, I find I'm hungrier than I have been in a while. I have no idea if these two things are related, but I do know this: WIth my caloric intake way up and my caloric expenditure way down, I have effectively halted my weight loss trend. I'll take at least a week or two off after the marathon, too, so I might put on a pound or two by the time I start running again.

I've also noticed something else about my diet as I look back over the individual days. Shane previously chastised me for the amount of "crap" in my diet, and he should be understandably concerned about the increase in the crap percentage in my diet over the last couple of weeks. I'm sure it's just because I'm hungrier and snacking on everything I can find, but it's probably not a good way to enter into the last week before a big long race.

I've also started hurting a lot more over the last week or so. I've got the shin splints again, this time mainly in my right shin. I've been icing it every day, and it kind of goes away after I've been running for a few miles, so I think it will be okay for the race. Still, it would suck to come so far only to drop out for injury at the last minute.

The idea of the taper seems to be to push yourself almost to the edge, then back off to let your body come back rested and stronger for the race. I think that since I was starting from such bad shape to begin with, I probably pushed myself way over the edge, and the taper's nothing more than some temporary breathing room until I do it again Saturday.

Week 41, Day 7

Weight (today's reading): 191.2

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: forgot

Today's food: 1/2 donut, 1/4 chicken pizza, watermelon, peanuts, pretzel coated chicken with cheese sauce, broccoli, 2 dum-dums, gummi letters, doritos, pluot

Today's exercise: day of rest

Week 41, Day 6

Weight (today's reading): 190.0

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.7

Today's blood pressure: 137/83

Today's food: hot dog, plum, ny strip steak, donut, small caesar salad, watermelon, 1/2 chicken pizza, mashed potatoes and gravy, donut

Today's exercise: run 8 miles

Week 41, Day 5

Weight (today's reading): 190.4

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: 142/85

Today's food: yogurt, gummi cola bottles, taco, 2 slices pizza, cupcake, tootsie roll, tootsie roll pop, popcorn, gummi letters, bowl of cherries

Today's exercise: none

Week 41, Day 4

Weight (today's reading): 191.8

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.9

Today's blood pressure: forgot

Today's food: yogurt, 2 plums, gummi cola bottles, hot dog estilo sonora, chicken and broccoli pasta

Today's exercise: 1 mile warmup, 3 miles @ 8:57, 1 mile cooldown

Week 41, Day 3

Weight (today's reading): 190.4

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: 130/82

Today's food: yogurt, peach, gummi cola bottles, gumbo, microwave popcorn, watermelon, becki's heath bar dessert

Today's exercise: none

Week 41, Day 2

Weight (today's reading): 190.0

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: 128/79

Today's food: yogurt, 2 plums, casino buffet lunch (salad, chicken, red chili, carne asada, mashed potatoes, etc.), butter toffee popcorn, gummi cola bottles, chicken and broccoli pasta, becki's heath bar pudding dessert, big bowl of popcorn

Today's exercise: run 2 miles

Week 41, Day 1

Weight (today's reading): 190.2

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.9

Today's blood pressure: 121/76

Today's food: yogurt, 2 plums, half a banana, huge handfuls of butter toffee popcorn, gummi cola bottles, 1/2 a steak, watermelon, bowl of cherries

Today's exercise: none

Week 40 Wrapup

Starting the taper now. I had made a miscalculation in scheduling, and ended up having to do my speedwork right after a big dinner on Wednesday. By the third interval, I really felt like I might puke, so I cut it short by one interval so as to avoid that.

The big news is this: A few hundred feet from the end of my long run (12 miles), I looked down and saw a red streak on my shirt. Initially I had thought I must have brushed up against something and got a streak of dirt on my shirt. After a second, I realized that I had got my first bloody nipple. I was surprised, because I was wearing exactly the same thing as last week's 20 miler, in nearly the same conditions. I've felt a little chafed on every long run for the last few weeks, but didn't think it had progressed to this point.

Either way, I was really proud. If I keep this up, I could be mistaken for a real runner. I've now shaved my nipples preparatory to band-aids or NipGuards™.

Week 40, Day 7

Weight (today's reading): 193.8

Weight (weighted moving average): 191.0

Today's blood pressure: 142/86

Today's food: yogurt, barbeque pork sandwich, 1/2 ear of corn, bowl of cherries, pot roast, green beans, mashed potatoes, watermelon

Today's exercise: day of rest

Week 40, Day 6

Weight (today's reading): 193*

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.7

Today's blood pressure: 133/72

Today's food: 1/2 clif bar, 2 gels, a handful of almonds, 1/2 t-bone steak, potato salad, small cup of gumbo, 12 oz pepsi, las cazuelitas (cheese crisp, sour cream shrimp, sopapilla, fried ice cream), gummi letters

Today's exercise: run 12 miles

* before running. 189.4 after running (total fluid intake: 2 liters)

Week 40, Day 5

Weight (today's reading): gone

Weight (weighted moving average): gone

Today's blood pressure: gone

Today's food: 2 donut holes, gummi cola bottles, 2 donut holes, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn, 3 donut holes, tang, popcorn

Today's exercise: none

Week 40, Day 4

Weight (today's reading): 188.8

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.4*

Today's blood pressure: 131/82

Today's food: yogurt, banana, chow mein, orange chicken with fried rice, french fries, chili burger, many donut hole

Today's exercise: none

* new low

Week 40, Day 3

Weight (today's reading): 189.2

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.6*

Today's blood pressure: forgot

Today's food: peach, gummi cola bottles, gummi alphabet letters, large piece fried chicken, potato salad, 3 donut holes, 2 glasses tang, 2 donut holes

Today's exercise: 1 mile warmup, (run 1 mile @ 8:27, jog .5 miles) X3, 1 mile cooldown (total of 6.5 miles)

* new low

Week 40, Day 2

Weight (today's reading): 190.6

Weight (weighted moving average): 190.8

Today's blood pressure: forgot

Today's food: yogurt, medium mountain dew, sun chips, quizno's large bourbon chicken sandwich, peach, a few bites of 3 different panda express dishes, glass of tang

Today's exercise: none