Thanksgiving Cometh...and Goeth....Thankfully!

Well, another Thanksgiving holiday has come and gone! Which means that Christmas is just a few weeks away and yes, we all probably gained a pound or two. As a mental health professional myself, I don't quite understand the psychology of eating that involves Thanksgiving. If you decide to eat healthy on Thanksgiving, you feel TERRIBLY deprived. So I decided this year that at that special meal on that special day, I was going to enjoy myself. But this mental attitude is hard to just cut on and off. It led me to indulging at other times the last few days: Huge bowls of cereal, frequent snacking, and watching a movie last night, I felt like I ate a half bag of Hershey kisses. Heck, I don't particularly care for those mints at weddings but I've been eating them by the handfuls because my wife has been keeping them around the house. For most of us growing up, we associated Holidays with eating, and when this time rolls around, it's hard to ... just say no. I haven't quite figured out how to splurge at on meal and jump back on the wagon. But I'm trying! I'm trying to use all of my Cognitive behavioral counseling techniques on myself to get back on track but.....what is that I hear? mmmmmmmmm.......a COLD Hershey kiss beckoning from the refrigerator. I'll let you know when I figure this all out!

20 Miles in a week!

Well, I believe that this is the first time in my life I have ever ran 20 miles or more in a week. Even when I could run faster in college, I didn't run this far. If you check out my running log in the links to the right, you'll see all of my runs and times. I ran 21.4 miles this week with a long run of 7.40 miles this morning. I wish I had kept this running log when I couldn't run a quarter mile in March of last year! Just a brisk 30 minute walk got my heart racing, my back hurting, and left me gasping for air.

If any of you read this who are in the same shoes I was in 20 months ago, stick at it! Just realize that it didn't take you a couple of weeks to get where you are now, and it you can't get where you want to go in just a couple of weeks either. Think "lifestyle change". Therefore, if you miss a night of walking or splurge for one meal, it's okay. You are making progress and making changes for a LIFETIME. Don't get discouraged - just get back after it! Persistence pays! Good luck!!!

The Globe and Mail: Marathon threatens to bar JeansMarines

The Globe and Mail: Marathon threatens to bar JeansMarines

In the article linked above, a group of women called "Jeans Marines" cut off about four miles of the Marine Corps Marathon so they could make the "cut off" time and receive a medal for finishing the race. Someone should have told them that making the cut-off time doesn't mean cutting off part of the race! The race director asked them to return their medals and is considering barring them from future races.

There has been a raging debate over the last several years as more and more walkers are getting into the marathon scene and entering races. The debate goes like this: If you took seven hours to finish the race, are you still a "marathoner" and deserving of the same medal of the runner who trained for months and ran it at a clip of 7 minutes a mile?

Now, I am no marathoner. The longest I have ever run is only 6 1/2 miles. But if I do ever decide to complete a marathon, for me anyway, I won't feel like I have really "run" a marathon unless I actually run the majority of the course. Personally, I don't think walkers should be excluded from marathon races. These groups often have great fundraising causes and generate a lot of buzz for the sport. But maybe there could be two categories of medals. One that is given out with the title "Marathoner" embrazened on the medal. It is for those who finish at a certain pace for their age and gender category - kind of like Boston does for qualifying times but at slower paces. The other medal could have "Finisher" on the medal and is for those who "went the distance" at any pace above the cut off.

To me, this would ease a lot of the confusion over who is a "marathoner" and who isn't. I think it is shameful that anyone would cut off a significant distance of a run and I hope the director does take a hard stand with these folks so that everything a marathon stands for will not be tarnished. After all, those medals mean something!