Week 8

My time on the 3.5 mile course wasn't my personal best, but I was only 11 seconds off the time from last week, and still under 30 mins. I'm still losing weight at a good pace. Hoping to maintain the 5lbs a week pace at least until I get below 250lbs.

I cannot believe the energy I have. Nothing sucks the life out of you like being overweight. I eat a lot less food each day, but I really don't go hungry. I played in a basketball game on Saturday where only 5 showed up. I had to play all 40 mins and I was fine. It was so much easier to move and jump and run. So with less food, I have more energy. And I'm still 30 pounds overweight, so I'm looking forward to all the energy I'll gain as I lose.

Week 8 - Keeping at it

Basketball Events: 2

Strength Training: 2

Running Events: 3 (2 on the treadmill)

Best Time:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 29:34
• Minutes per mile: 8:27

Weight: 265 *LOST 5 POUNDS*

Week 7

I used to eat for non-nutritional reasons. You know ... something to do when you're bored. And eating crap makes you feel like crap, which strangely makes you want to eat more crap. It's kind of like a fat cycle. What I'm experiencing now is that improvement boosts morale, and a boost in morale leads to improvement. It's a much better cycle.

But when you start out, it's hard to see improvement. That's why I'm so glad I tracked my running times because I saw improvement in the running times before I saw progress on the scale. And now I'm so glad I see progress on the scale because I don't see it in the mirror. You remember that robust double chin. I still got one of those. You see? Robust double chin:

But that robust double chin just beat his personal best for 3.5 miles by 40 seconds, and that robust double chin averages better than a 8.5 minute mile over that distance. This week, I could argue that my robust double chin was to my advantage because it was much colder and windier than last week. And my thin ... well okay, mildly thick ... layer of blubber kept me warm. But imagine what I'll be able to do on a nice day in a body that isn't 25% fat. Let's just go ahead and say it. We're looking at a Presidential Physical Fitness Award. But enough of that, I don't want to jinx it.

It's a there-and-back course that I run. And now that I'm losing weight, I'm seeing improvements on my "there" times, which as I demonstrated in week 5, have been fairly steady. On my run on Saturday, my average minute per mile pace "there" was just UNDER 8 minutes. There are a lot of people that can't even run 1 mile in under 8 minutes (I know because I was one of them 7 weeks ago). I nearly ran 2 miles at that pace. Seven weeks ago, I could barely keep a 10 minute mile pace. I've said it once and I'll say it again: The best way to improve your results, is to track them.

Week 7 - Plugging Away

Basketball Events: 1

Strength Training: 3

Running Events: 4 (3 on a treadmill)

Best Time:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 29:23 *NEW PERSONAL BEST* **First time breaking 30 min!**
• Minutes per Mile: 8:24

Weight: 270 *LOST 4 POUNDS*

Week 6

I've slowly been seeing progress while running, but have yet to see progress at the weigh in. Well this week was a good one. I lost 5 pounds and destroyed my previous personal best time of 31:52 by 1:40! I blew past 9 minute miles to nearly 8.5 minute miles. Imagine what I'll be able to do when I get this 40 pound bag of weights off my butt?

I started utilizing Intel's on-site gym. The two other guys on my team go with me and we work out 3 times a week. It means the three of us have to log in at night and answer emails we missed from 4pm-5pm on those days, but I prefer being able to be home with my family and not make this weight loss adventure the focus of our lives. The advantage is I've started strength training which I think is going to be huge. It's easier to lose weight when you drive an F-150 than a Prius, if you catch my meaning. But I hate treadmills. They are so boring, and hard to get excited about. But I somehow suffer through the 25mins of running in place followed by a brisk 5 min walking in place.

Week 6 - Losing Weight!

Basketball Events: 1

Strength Training: 2

Running Events: 4 (3 on a Treadmill)

• Best Time:
• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 30:12 *NEW PERSONAL BEST*
• Minutes per Mile: 8:38

Weight: 274 lbs *LOST 5 POUNDS*

Week 5

This is the first week where each run wasn't my personal best. Last week's record of 31:52 still holds, but I ran three times this last week and started using a great tool to help with my diet. It's called My Fitness Pal and you can join for free too at www.myfitnesspal.com. My brother, Trent, told me about it. I started using it and have logged my meals ever since. If my soul-less pursuit of financial analysis has taught me one thing, it is that the very act of tracking behavior, improves behavior. Record your life and you'll live one worth recording.

Week 5 - Counting calories

Basketball Events: 1

Running Events: 3

BEST Time:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 32:13
• Minutes per Mile: 9:12

Weight: 279 lbs

Let's analyze some data:

This is a graph of all my 1st laps to date. I run a 3.5 mile course, which is a "there-and-back-again" endeavor. I log the lap time there and obviously the final time when I finish. This graph shows that with the exception of 2nd event, which had icy conditions, my 1st lap has been around 15:40 consistently.

This graph is more interesting. It demonstrates the improvement of my cardiovascular strength in the short time I've been running. On the left y-axis we have the total time for each event labeled on the x-axis. In the secondary y-axis we have my 2nd lap times.

Look at how strongly correlated they are. I actually did the regression analysis and the r-squared value is 0.92. So the math proves what is obvious visually. My 2nd lap got better as my cardiovascular endurance improved, and this improvement led to better running times. Eventually the difference between the 1st and 2nd laps will decrease and then I expect to see decreases in my 1st lap.

I should note that the last run of this last week was terrible. It was the worst time yet. I ran it on no food. And I felt it on the second lap. Don't run without eating.

Week 4

I ran twice this week, getting personal bests each time. On my run on Saturday, I very nearly broke 9 min/mile goal I thought would take me several months to break. I'm only a month into this, so that is promising. Seeing rapid progress in my running ability is also making me feel better about not losing weight just yet. My first run of the week I ran 9:18 min miles, and finished the 3.5 mile course in 32:44. My second run nearly shaved a minute off that time.

Week 4 - Making progress

Basketball Events: 1

Running Events: 2

BEST Time:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 31:52
• Minutes per Mile: 9:06

Weight: 280 lbs

My goal for this week is to run twice and to get the average below 9 minute miles. Stay tuned for next week. There will be graphs and data analysis!

Week 3

I was pretty busy with work this week; I even had to work on the weekend. I think my goal strategy is wrong. Instead of shooting for three running events, I just want to get two. Once that becomes a habit, I can get to the end goal of three events per week. The good news is I slashed my per mile time by more than 25 seconds this week on my 3.5 mile course. 15 mins to get to the midpoint and 18 mins to run back. I suspect that as my fitness improves the delta between there and back will decrease. It's one piece of data I've been tracking in my spreadsheet. I'll start posting graphs when I feel the sample size is large enough.

Week 3 - Busy at Work

Basketball Events: 1

Running Events: 1

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 33:04
• Minutes per Mile: 9:27

Weight: 279 lbs

Week 2

I didn't do as well as I hoped because I was so tired. Not as tired as Claudia, but little Henry has day-night confusion. So I never had energy. But he's gotten better. I bet if you make fun of my being overweight in the comments, I'll be more motivated this week.

Week 2 - Very Tired

Basketball Events: 0

Running Events: 1

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 34:36
• Minutes per Mile: 9:53

Weight: 280 lbs

1 second better than last week, but I think I lost at least 30 seconds on account of the icy conditions on the boardwalk.