Half-Marathon Progress: Weeks of November 23rd & November 30th, 2025

Week of November 23rd

Here's how this week week. 

Sunday: I spent the day in the ER with my daughter. She was fine. She had an enlarged lymph node yesterday and today it was almost twice as big. She was having trouble swallowing and therefore trouble eating and drinking. The urgent care center she went to told her to get a CT scan. That's when I picked her up and we went together. Turns out, you can get  stones in your salivary glands. How weird is that? She'll be fine but it did eat up most of the day. At night, I was exhausted having not slept well the night before. 

Monday: Didn't do anything. Just laid around the house. I had no energy at all. 

Tuesday: Today was a travel day. We went to Atlanta for a little getaway. It poured rain and the traffic was crazy, but we made it.

Wednesday: Didn't exercise per se, but did do a LOT of walking. Probably 3-4 miles.

Thursday: It's Thanksgiving Day and we traveled home from Atlanta.

Friday: Didn't do anything. Another day of low energy. 

Saturday: It is now 8 weeks until the half-marathon. It was cold and dreary but did manage to do a short hike of 1.6 miles. 

Week of November 30th

On Sunday, I had planned to do a long run but never did. I have no idea why other than low energy. 

Monday I did manage to do some of PT exercises and I even did some Arm Curls with the dumbbells along with some side and front raises. Still no running. 

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday I did nothing. I wanted to run in the a.m. but again, I have no energy or motivation. I really don't know what is going on. Normally, I would think someone is overtraining, but we know that's not it. I know work has me stressed, but it's certainly less stressful than a Presidential  election year and a hurricane. This year should have seemed like a walk in the park. 

Saturday I woke up and even though I didn't feel like it, I put on my stuff and I was ready to get out there and do a run-walk if I had to for just 30 minutes. I ended up running the whole way and actually felt pretty good. it was 36 degrees when I started which I think is my sweet spot. A long sleeve t-shirt, shorts and a hat and I felt great. Maybe it reminds me of running in Minnesota in the fall or spring. Who knows. 

In Other News

Today, Saturday, December 6th is now just 7 weeks away from the Half-Marathon. I feel so unprepared, but I also have this weird confidence. Covering the distance by then I feel like I can do. Once I lock in on a run, I can feel like I can run forever. My concern is the cutoff time, which I believe is 3 hours. That will be the challenge. 

Since my birthday and through Thanksgiving, I've gained a lot of weight. In fact, I've been over 200 lbs for over a week straight. I think that has maybe got something to do with my fatigue and lack of motivation. I try to eat better and I'm fine until the evening and dinner. At dinner, we keep having pasta dishes and I do love pasta! Could I cut down on the sweets. Absolutely. Is it easy? No. There's so much candy, baked goods, etc around ALL THE TIME. My birthday, Halloween, Thanksgiving and now Christmas is coming with more and more sweets. I'm starting to sound like the Grinch on the top of Mount Crumpet. 

I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I have ordered a Testosterone supplement from Mars Men. I have no idea if it will work or not, but I will let you know. It should be here by Monday. Hell, even if it's just a placebo effect, I'll take it. I'm so tired of feeling tired all the time. I tell my doctor this stuff - that I'm worried that at 58, maybe I have low-T, but he doesn't seem to care or just isn't concerned. He's a young guy so he probably thinks it's just natural. 

I know I could lift weights, eat more protein, do HIIT workouts and raise my Testosterone naturally, but I feel like I need a jump start and that's what I'm hoping the supplement will do. I don't want to get TRT - Testosterone Replacement Therapy. From what I've read, your body becomes dependent on it and it shuts down the natural production. Basically, if you start it, you have to keep doing it and paying for it. The supplement I ordered is supposed to boost natural production. Once I have more energy, I really feel like I'll exercise more and therefore create my own. Naturally, I will need to change some things. Diet. Exercise. Motivation. But I really feel that will come naturally once I get into it. I just need that initial jump-start or boost to get going. 

Half-Marathon Progress: Nov. 2nd until November 22nd

 You know how I like to post weekly updates. Well, obviously that hasn't been happening, so I wanted to catch you up on how things are going - or in this case - how things are NOT going. 

Week of Nov. 2nd

On Sunday, Nov. 2nd, I hiked 3.5 miles with my wife. This was just under 12 weeks until the half marathon. I did nothing for the rest of the week. I was just slammed with work and by the end of the day, I was exhausted. both mentally and physically. I'm not sure if something happened when I turned 58, but my motivation and energy are in the toilet. I talk a lot about embracing the suck and just getting out there even if it's just to walk. I can't even get myself to do that. 

Week of Nov. 9th

This week, I forced myself to do something. Anything. On Sunday, Nov. 9th, I went for a hike with my wife. Another 3.5 miles which was nice and relaxing. 

On Monday, I ran 1.5 miles and did some arm curls along with front and side raises. 

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday I did the same arm curls, front raises and side raises. 

On Saturday, I hiked 5 miles with my wife. This was a really fun hike because there is a new Troll exhibit at the NC Arboretum. Trolls: A Field Study. It is awesome if you're in the area. 

Week of Nov. 16th

Sunday thru Friday I did nothing. I did have PT on Thursday night, so I guess that's something, but just a wasted week. 

On Friday and into today, Saturday, Nov. 22nd, my calves are insanely tight. I'm not sure why. We did a lot in PT work on my calves so perhaps it's delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). Today, I did manage to hike 3.6 miles. Today is also officially 9 weeks until the Half-Marathon. 

Half Marathon Training Update: Weeks of October 19th & 26th

 Started out Great, but Overall - Two Bad Weeks! 

Week of October 19th - Started Great but then...

On Sunday, I had a great hike with my wife. We hiked DuPont State Forest and covered about 5 miles. We saw Triple Falls, Hooker Falls and High Falls, plus the really cool covered bridge at the top of High Falls. I weighed in at 197lbs which was .2 lower than last week, but .2 higher than two weeks prior. Frustrating to say the least, but my wife just keeps making really yummy pasta dinners. 

On Monday, I went out for my long run and ran 6.2 miles. A 10K! I had purposely picked the hilliest course I could think of in West Asheville and ran it in 1:34:28. This is not good. Not good for where I need to be. The Half-Marathon will be hilly for a good portion of it and at the very end. This was an average of 15:14 per mile. I need to be at or under 13:44. I have some serious work to do. I felt good. But the hills really kicked my butt. I ran the whole way, so that wasn't the issue. Just slow. 

Tuesday and Wednesday I was just exhausted from work. I did nothing. 

Thursday night I had physical therapy and felt great after the session even though work was crazy today. I did some arm curls, side raises and front raises before bed. 

Friday & Saturday I didn't do anything. My Birthday was coming up and my wife and I just went sightseeing, did a whiskey tasting, and other fun stuff, but no exercise of any kind.

Week of October 26th - Birthday = Great Time, But After...What a Sh!t Show!

Sunday was my birthday. And it was a great day!! My wife and I went for a hike at the Arboretum. We did a long one too. We started at the pond and took Wesley Branch to a smaller trail that hooked up with Hard Times. We went up Hard Times and then to Owl Ridge, Rocky Cove, and then Bent Creek to the Carolina Mountain trail, through the gardens, and back to the pond area where we parked. That night we went to Outback with my step-daughter and daughter so that was awesome. We then went back to the house and they surprised me with a GIANT Double Doozie Cookie from the Great American Cookie Company. 

A great weekend, and then the world blew up. Work became insane with pre-election crisis after crisis. I was on the road constantly and one night, I didn't get home until almost 11 p.m. This continued, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. On Saturday, the 1st of November, I had some energy and managed to do 12 push ups before bed. 

Half-Marathon Training Update: Week of October 12th, 2025

This week started off great! On Sunday, I went on a 4.5 mile hike with my daughter. She even joked that I was flying up the trail and she was "fighting for her life". That made me feel good. My weight didn't go down so that was a bummer. I was 197.2 which was about a half-pound more than last week but nothing to really worry about. Weight loss is not linear no matter how much I want it to be. I realize that. 

On Monday, I went for a 5 mile long-run and just ran for fun. I was totally aimless and just ran around West Asheville turning down a street when I felt like it. I averaged a 13:43 pace which is what I need to keep if I want to break 3 hours in the half. If felt pretty easy so that was a good sign. 

Tuesday, I went to Gold's Gym and worked out and then ended with a mile walk on the treadmill at a 16:40 pace. I have to say, I do like the gym and I do like Gold's more than planet fitness. There's just something about the free weights that I like. Maybe it's the old-school nature of them as opposed to all the fancy machines. Although, I will say that I like doing the Leg Press machine more than actual squats. I get nervous I'm going to hurt my back by lifting wrong. 

On Wednesday, I took a rest day which at the time was a good idea. I had done something active, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Way more activity than this old guy had been used to doing. 

Thursday I didn't do anything either. Work had been getting crazier but I felt like I should have squeezed in something so I did do some arm curls, front raises and side raises at home with my adjustable dumbbells. 

On Friday, I was pretty busy with work again and it was date night, so I didn't do any running. But what a great date night.

Today, Saturday I didn't do anything. Not sure why. I can't remember what happened that I didn't do anything. No run, no hike, nothing. That's weird for me. 

As you may notice, not once did I mention doing my physical therapy stretches and routine. Very unhappy about that part of my life. I feel so much better when I do them and after my sessions. I have to get a sense of discipline. Motivation just ain't doing it. 

Half-Marathon Training Update: I've Suffered from LBS the Past Three Weeks

Training is not going well. Apparently with work and bad ankles, I've suffered from LBS, or Little Bitch Syndrome. Thanks to my son Christopher for this technical term that best describes my lack of activity. 

Where do I even begin? Let's just go week by week to get caught up. 

Half-Marathon Training for the Week of Sept 21

I woke up and weight in at 197lbs. I think I mentioned this last week since I wrote the post on Sunday. I didn't run on Sunday, the 21st but I did go out on Monday for a long run. I ran 4.08 miles and fine during the run, but the next day, my ankles hurt like hell. On Tuesday I felt like crap but I did do some arm curls and military press exercises with 20lb weights. I skipped Wednesday but did arm curls again on Thursday as well as went to a Physical Therapy session for my ankles. On Friday, I walked a mile on a treadmill at the hotel we stayed out for our weekend in Charlotte, NC. I did nothing but sight see Saturday or Sunday. 

I have a set of exercises that I'm supposed to be doing to help my ankles. Am I doing them? Did I mention doing them? The answer to both is "no". Again...LBS. It hurts to do them so I don't want to. They do feel better after doing them. But then I'm sore the next day. Somebody get me a glass for all this "whine". 

Half-Marathon Training for the Week of Sept 28

I weight in at 199.6lbs. Not happy about this, but it was a fun weekend with the wife. For whatever reason, I didn't do anything Sunday or Monday. On Tuesday, I managed to knock out 10 x 20lb arm curls. That was it. On Wednesday, I went for a 2.4 mile hike at the Arboretum and did some more arm curls that night before bed. On Thursday, more arm curls since those are easy and quick. Friday, I was back to hiking. I did 3.5 miles at the Arboretum. On Saturday, I did another hike of 3.9 miles in Bent Creek doing the Deerfield Loop trail.

Did I do my exercises this week to help my ankles? No. Do I suck? Apparently so. 

Half-Marathon Training for the Week of Oct 5: Only 15 Weeks Remaining

I weighed in this morning at 196.8. A big improvement over last week and a slight improvement over the 21st. I started the week by hiking Graveyard Fields for 4.5 miles. On Monday I did 10 x 20lb curls - my old standby but nothing else. Tuesday was Election Day, so I worked all day from 5 a.m. until 9:30 p.m. I was exhausted and couldn't even muster up the energy to do my arm curls. I skipped Wednesday as I was still super tired and my ankles were killing me. On Thursday, I went for a hike at the Arboretum. On Friday, I did nothing. 

Once again, I did not do my ankle exercises this week. What is stupid is that it will not only help my ankles feel better, but it will help my running...if I ever do any. So what's wrong with me????

Saturday - Today, October 11th, I got up early as my wife was heading out of town for a few days. She left early so I stayed up and hit the gym for a total body workout. I did chest, back, shoulders, biceps, triceps, quads, hamstrings and calf muscles. I even walked a mile on the treadmill in 17:23 after the workout. In the evening, I went for 30-minute run and covered 2.45 miles in 30:45 for an average mile pace of 12:30. It felt O.K. I was definitely trying to quicken my cadence for the first mile. On the way back I kept giving it some gas here and there, almost like a fartlek. 

The Half-Marathon is in 15 weeks exactly as of today. I am nowhere near ready, but I believe I do have time. I really want to beat 3 hours, but I'm running out of time for that. This week will be better. It has to be. 

Half-Marathon Training Progress: Week of September 14th

This week was a little bit of a slow start but things are rolling well overall. I had mentioned last week that during the Marathon, I actually gained weight. Not all that uncommon, but for me, it was frustrating. So one thing I want to focus on this time around is weight loss. Not just because I want to run faster, but because I want to look better doing it :)

The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

Sunday: I didn't do anything last Sunday. My wife wasn't feeling well and I felt guilty for wanting to go for a run when she needed me. She would have wanted me to run, which I why I didn't mention anything to her about it being my long run day. Of course, my long run would have been may 3 miles, but still. I chose to stay at home. 

Monday: Monday is the day my wife works late so I planned on running my long run Monday night after work. Looking back, I don't know why I didn't. I know I was on the computer doing some work and I also wanted to try and get my car running again or at least cleaned up. This is a long story but basically, some varmint has chewed the fuel supply line AGAIN (3rd time) and it's really expensive to fix. So the car has been sitting there getting dirty and gross and the tires lost air from all the sitting. I hand washed the car and it looks great. But I realized there's a mold issue on the steering wheel and I didn't have the band-width to deal with that night. But that's enough about that. 

Tuesday: I went on a 2 mile hike and I did 10 Arm Curls with 20lbs. I was supposed to do a full body workout, but I wasn't feeling it at all. I tried the atomic habits trick of just doing something small and seeing if it went anywhere. After 10 reps, I set the weights down. Didn't do anything else, but at least I did that. 

Wednesday: Wednesday, I went for a 30 minute run and actually felt good. I ran the whole way out and back. I did another 10 reps of Arm Curls with 20lbs. 

Thursday: Thursday was a rest day since I ran on Wednesday. I should have worked out with weights but I didn't. 

Friday: I went for a morning run. I overslept and got up late and almost decided to stay in bed, but then I thought of Atomic Habits and decided to put on my running clothes and just go for a mile. I knew I had time for that. Well, once I was out there, I realized the time crunch wasn't nearly as bad as I had made it in my head. I ended up running just shy of two miles and felt really good and had plenty of time. I was so happy with myself, I made an Instagram post about it. 

I was really glad I went for the run because I had thought that I could always run at night. I rarely do that when I have that thought, but on this night, I ended up having to work late. Almost until 10 p.m. and by the end of the day with traveling and such, I was absolutely spent!

Saturday: This day was a 4.75 mile hike. I also was good and did my PT exercises. I can't recall if I mentioned it or not, but my ankles are doing something weird. It's like they've lost their flexion. They haven't, but it feels like it when going down stairs or even walking after sitting for a long time. 

This morning, Sunday, Sept. 21st, I weighed in at 197 even. Only a .2lb loss, but I'll take it. Tune in next week for this coming week's progress. 

Getting Back at It: My Road to the Asheville Hot Chocolate Half-Marathon in 2026

Goal: Be Half-Marathon Ready 

As you may know from previous posts, in March of 2025 I ran my first marathon. I would love to say that I used that to launch myself into a great level of fitness and kept all those gains. However, what was supposed to be two weeks off turned into 5 months. Let's just say I feel like I'm starting at square one again, but you know what? That's not the worst thing that could have happened. 

So here we are in September, and to motivate myself to get back to running, I signed up for the Asheville Hot Chocolate Half-Marathon scheduled for January 24th, 2026! There is also a 5K, 10K and some kids runs too, but I opted for the Half. Why? I had been thinking that I would love to always be Half-Marathon ready. Meaning that any given weekend, I could roll out of bed and run a half. About a week later or contemplating this, I read an article - somewhere online - that said a great goal for distance runners was to be...you guessed it...Half-Marathon ready at all times. That sealed the deal for me. 

I signed up last Sunday, so that gave me approximately 20 weeks to get into half-marathon shape. Once again, I'm not looking to do anything too crazy. I just want to finish since I've lost all the endurance I had built up. Back in 2021, I ran a virtual half - actually, it was the Asheville Chocolate Half-Marathon - and ran it in 3:04:55. In my marathon, I crossed the Half-Marathon point in 3:01:13. 

My Half-Marathon Goal

I believe I can break 3 hours. I really do. I think going sub-3 for the half is very achievable. I would have to average a 13:44 per mile the whole way. My fastest half ever was in 2012 when I ran a 1:56:54. While I would love to be that guy again, I don't think I'll make it by January. ;)

Here's my Training Plan. 

I will repeat my training strategy from the marathon as it served me well and kept me injury free. Meaning, I will run 3 days per week with a long run on Sunday's. 

I will be better about nutrition this time around. Last time, I trained for and ran the marathon and GAINED 3.5lbs. I like to think that it was lean muscle I put on, but who knows. The issue was the same as most runners have - I felt I had earned the chocolate, or the slice of cake, or whatever. Since the marathon, I actually have gained even MORE weight and recently topped the scales at 205lbs which for me was a hard NO! I'm back down to 199 with just some basic changes to eating: Cutting out sweets and sodas, but also trying to be better about how many calories I'm taking in. I believe they call it "Mindful Eating". 

I will also be better about strength training. I had done a little of it for the marathon, but definitely could have used some more strength in hindsight. My plan is to do 3 days per week of strength training. I have a set of adjustable dumbbells, a TRX band and some surgical tubing resistance bands that range from 15 to 85 pounds. 

Ideally, I would love to get to the starting line at 160lbs and timewise, that is doable. 20 weeks at 2lbs per week is 40 pounds. 

This weeks Half-Marathon Progress: Week of September 7th

As I mentioned, I signed up for the Half on Sunday, September 7th. My weight was down to 201.8lbs from the high of 205lbs just a few days before. 

Sunday, before signing up, I did a 3.5-4 mile hike. 

Monday, I went out for my first run. Just a mile and a half around the neighborhood to test the old body out. I had to walk 4 times! My legs felt like lead and my calf and shins were not happy. Keep in mind, we all have to start somewhere. 

Tuesday, I hiked 2.5 miles.

Wednesday, I went to the Mountain State Fair and was actually pretty well behaved. I did have an elephant ear, mostly to myself, but that was it. I did not get a lot of other sweets that I really wanted like fried Reese's Cups, fried Oreos, etc. So I considered that a win!

Thursday and Friday I didn't do anything. I wasn't happy about it. I had the time, I just wasn't feeling it. 

But today, Saturday, I tried the mile and half route around the neighborhood again, and ran the whole way. I averaged a 12:48 pace, so well ahead of the 13:44 I need to break 3. 

So, stay tuned and check in each week. I'll post my progress as I go and offer some tips and tricks along the way. 

If you'd like help running your first - or next - 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, or even Marathon, let me now. I would love to help.