John's Blog http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/ en-us Nucleus CMS v3.24 © Weblog http://backend.userland.com/rss http://johnhurlbut.com/blog//nucleus/nucleus2.gif John's Blog http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/ "Skinny" Jeans http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=401
Even though I've been pretty faithful to my eating habits this year, working out, losing weight, getting back some of the swagger in my step, I've been hesitant to pull that tote down because "what if they don't fit?".

This morning I said enough is enough as I pulled on my jeans and after they were buttoned up and zipped, still hit the floor. So I pulled down the tote. I thought I had size 38 jeans in there (I currently wear size 42) but there were only 40's. So there I am standing in the garage in my underwear (ha! you'll be stuck with that image all day!) looking through the four or five pairs of jeans in there. I pick out two of the better looking ones and slide the first pair on. The button buttons without much effort and the zipper zips. VICTORY!

OK, so I'm glad there were not 38's in there. That would have ended up differently, but the fact that the 40's WERE there and do fit is a nice feeling.

NOW, the hard part is actually taking all my 42's (and the 44's in dress slacks), putting them in a bag and taking them to Goodwill. It's funny how emotional we get about all this. The thoughts that race through my mind "Is this really the last time you'll need those?" or "Are you REALLY doing it this time?" If you talk to someone that's been thin all their lives, they'll simply tell you to just lose the weight and be done with it. They don't understand the emotional struggle that goes along with losing the weight.

Last night, I met Teri and some friends at the shotgun range. Teri's friend Kate was there and when she saw me she said "Wow! You look GREAT!" as she gave me a hug. Then went on to say "Oh and you smell good too!" and "I really like your hair that way!". Validation. From the most innocent of sources. Not asked for, simply given. Is there any sweeter reward?

Gym tonight, or a bike ride. The TV is turning into just another piece of furniture. Awesome.]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=401 Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:07:47 -0700 I Am WE Are . . . Triathletes http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=400 Am I a Triathlete?" after my boyz and I had finished our indoor Triathlon. The question was, because we did it indoors and on exercise bicycles, without real transitions, no open water, were we still considered triathletes? Well, the question has been answered with a resounding "YES! We are triathletes!".

This weekend, Teri, Scott and I participated in Trifreak's Big Ocean Shores Weekend sprint distance (1/4 mile swim, 12.4 mile bike and 3.1 mile run) triathlon. And you know what? We all had an absolute blast! I've got to say as life accomplishments go, this was right up there. All the training this year, all the anticipation, the goals, the encouraging one another, everything came together on July 12th, just after 7:30 AM. When we waded into Duck Lake to receive our instructions and then to hear the countdown FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE, GO! we were about to find out if we had what it took.

image
Teri, John and Scott Getting Ready


I'll give you my notes on my first triathlon, so maybe it can help you through yours? First, lets start with the swim. Now, I grew up swimming in Duck Lake. But nothing can prepare you for your open water swim like swimming in open water. Teri, Scott and I all skipped this crucial step prior to this weekend. Our first open water swim was in Duck Lake for the actual tri. We survived, but I know we all wish we had been training in wetsuits and open water the whole time. First off, I hated swimming in a wetsuit. I hated the arms and the neck. I felt like I was really restricted in my stroke and felt like I was being choked all the time. But once I got around the buoy, I knew I was going to be OK.

image
Teri heading out on the bike


Coming out of the water, I tried putting my sandals on, but they kept slipping off with the water, so I went barefoot over the briars into T1. Taking off the wetsuit turned out to be easier than I thought. I didn't dry myself nearly enough, so putting my cycling jersey on was a chore. I could have easily shaved 30 seconds off here. I'm getting quick laces for my cycling and running shoes too. AND I found out later, you're not supposed to have iPods either. OOPS! So I could have taken a few more seconds off by not screwing with that. I also learned my Forerunner 305 does not do well acquiring satellites while moving at 20 MPH on the bike. So next time, it will be on while I'm in the water. The extra 15 minutes of battery won't kill me.

image
John & Teri Show Off Their Triathlon Badges of Honor


Once I was on the bike, the world settled down a bit. Having done multiple rides over 30 miles, the 12.4 was basically a sprint for me. I went out at about 22 - 23MPH and came back at about 18MPH. (I had guesstimated 20 out and 15 back) The wind was at our backs on the way out and in our face on the way back. I passed a few people on the ride and only got passed by one person. Teri and I waved to each other when we crossed on the bike and I shouted to Scott as we crossed. I counted the people coming back that were in front of me and including the one person that passed me, I was 17th off the bike.

image
Teri at the finish


Coming into T2, I pulled off my cycling jersey and put on my dri fit shirt with my number on it. Off with the cycling shoes, gloves, helmet and on with a hat and running shoes. T2 was MUCH faster than T1.

Now running is not my forte, so I got passed . . . . a lot . . . on the run. At least a dozen times I think. I crossed the road to high five Teri when I saw her and again when I saw Scott. I kind of ran/walked the run. But I saved enough at the end for a sprint across the finish line!

I waited around for Teri and cheered her on her way into the finish. It was odd, Teri and I were both sobbing after we finished the race. For me, I think it was just an overwhelming feeling to know that YES! I CAN do a tri, AND enjoy it! And the culmination of completing a 20 year old goal. Teri said similar things, but I'll let her explain what she was feeling in her blog. Then we grabbed some food and waited for Scott to finish. Scott's youngest daughter, Jorja, went out to meet him and come into the finish with him. Very cool site to see!

image
John and Scott at the Finish


Teri, Scott, you guys are amazing! You set a goal and you accomplished it! I couldn't be prouder of the two of you! I for one had a blast! Teri talked about doing another sprint this Summer. I'd be down for it. Also, Scott, you and I talked about training for the Olympic distance (.93 mile (1.5 Km) swim, 24.8 mile (40 Km) bike and 6.2 mile (10 Km) run), next year. Still on? :-)

Here are our official times from Athleteslounge.com:

Name
Swim
T1
Bike
T2
Run
Total
John
0:10:20.7
0:03:31.0
0:39:57.2
0:03:28.8
0:37:31.0
1:34.48.7
Teri
0:15:13.5
0:02:44.1
0:49:55.3
0:01:39.5
0:36:58.4
1:46:30.8
Scott
0:22:12.3
0:08:36.5
0:56:00.1
0:01:38.3
1:00:42.4
2:29:09.5


OH and another bonus of doing Triathlon? I was down to 297 today (a new low!) AFTER eating lunch! SWEET! Now, time to get back into the gym and start prepping for the Dam2Dam in September!

P.S. - Thanks Scott for the pics!

]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=400 Mon, 14 Jul 2008 21:20:01 -0700 Spinning and Lifting http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=399
I also did my normal lifting routine, but having just propped myself up on the bike for an hour, I had to lighten the load for a couple of the exercises. I won't bore you with details, you can look at Saturday's workout to see the exercises I did.

Also yesterday I went to Kohl's at Southcenter. Today I'm wearing pants that are 4 inches smaller and a belt that is 4 inches smaller as well. Sweeeeeeeeeeet.

4 days to Triathlon!]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=399 Tue, 8 Jul 2008 08:27:03 -0700 Chehalis Western Trail http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=398 Chehalis Western Trail. It runs from Olympia down to Tenino. We started in Lacey and did 14.5 miles down to highway 507 near Rainier and back for a total of 29 miles. It's a very pretty trail, most of which is covered in a canopy of trees. On the trail you pass golf courses, equestrian centers, farms and residential neighborhoods. We saw people jogging, walking, walking dogs, bicycling and in-line skating. Overall the trail is really nice. It's not as clean as the Foothills trail, but I think that's mostly due to the tree canopy. There are lots of little sticks, leaves, etc. that you've got to watch out for. It's not trashy at all.

At about the 12 mile mark, I could see someone in a bright orange coat up ahead of us on a bicycle. We had been gaining on him pretty steadily for a bit, but I wanted to make sure we caught and passed him before we got to our turn around point. So I turned on the gas and watched my speedometer climb over 20 MPH. I think I saw 23.0 a couple times when I looked down. It took us a few minutes, but we finally caught him with about 1/2 mile to go. He was probably doing 17 or 18 MPH, so I'm sure he was somewhat surprised to hear "On your left" as I went cruising by him. I definitely couldn't keep that pace much longer, but it was fun to reel him in anyway! There were also a couple times going up a grade that Brandon and Chuck got ahead of me, but on the flats or downhill, I poured it on again and caught up with them.

On the way back I wanted to see if we could do a mile in under 3:00. A 3:00 mile is averaging 20.0 MPH. So at mile 21, we turned it on and at mile 22, my lap timer read 2:50! Most all of our miles were in the 3:30 - 3:45 range, so the overall average for the ride was really good, 15.9 MPH moving average I think. Definitely one of my fastest rides so far. At about 25 miles, Brandon and Chuck sensing they were almost done, started to get way ahead of me again. With about 2 miles left, I wanted to see if I could catch them. I didn't, but I only finished about 20 seconds behind them. The ride felt really good and I was able to challenge myself a few times too. I'd like to do the 22 miles to Tenino and back sometime in the near future.

If you're looking for a new trail, this one is really nice. I'd recommend it!

Click on the map below for details about the ride:

Map of Western Chehalis Trail
Map of Chehalis Western Trail from Lacey to Highway 507 (29 miles round trip)
]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=398 Sun, 6 Jul 2008 13:18:29 -0700 Downloading Books - Why Can't We? http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=397 General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=397 Sat, 5 Jul 2008 16:14:01 -0700 Little Si Hike - Gym Workout http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=396
Yesterday, Teri and I took Taylor on her first hike. We headed up to the Little Si trail. Little Si is the little brother of Mount Si and is a good alternative when Si is covered in snow, or you want a shorter, less steep workout. Little Si is about 5 miles round trip with a little over 1,000 feet of elevation gain. In contrast, Mount Si is 8 miles round trip with just about 4,000 feet in elevation gain. Again, I had my Forerunner 305 with me and again, I was disappointed in it's performance on the trail. Looking at the Forerunner during the hike gave weird readings. Like it said that we only did 3 or so miles, however after downloading the data to Motionbased, it put the round trip at 5.25 miles. So Garmin must be doing some error correction on the fly when downloading the data. It would be nice if they could just fix the device to give you accurate readings while you're actually accomplishing the task at hand. I did remember my chest strap this time, so I do have a nice read out of my heart rate during the hike. My HR never really got above 145 and on the way down, it was a mild 120 or so. I know my aerobic capacity is getting better. Now I just have to work on strengthening my legs so they don't get as tired as easily. Unfortunately that means I'm likely going to have to incorporate legs into my lifting routine. Oh well . . .

The whole thing took us just about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Only 1 hour 54 minutes moving time though. Not too shabby, that averages out to a 2.5 MPH clip . . . I'm happy with that. As it was pretty overcast and misty, the view from the top wasn't great, but it was nice to get out and get some fresh air. Taylor did REALLY well for her first hike. You could really tell that Teri has been working with her. There were a couple times that I thought Taylor was going to pull Teri over or down a hill, but for the most part, she listened. She sat when told to sit, she stayed when told to stay, and she heeled when told to heel. She did great and she'll be a great addition to our summer hikes this year. I think next up we're going to do Rattlesnake Ledge. Here's the chart from MotionBased for the hike and following that, some pictures.

Map of Little Si Hike
Map of Little Si Hike - Click for details at MotionBased.com

image
Teri and Taylor on Little Si Trail

image
Taylor on Top of Little Si

image
Teri on top of Little Si

image
John, Teri and Taylor on top of Little Si


OK, then this morning, I got up at about 10 after 6 and headed to the gym. I wasn't sure how I'd feel after hiking yesterday, but I felt surprisingly good. So today it was treadmill and lifting. I started out at 5.2 MPH on the treadmill . . . I did about 1.25 miles at that pace, then walked for about .10 miles then ran at 5.3 MPH for another .75 miles or so, walked for about .15 miles, then ran at 5.4 MPH for .75 miles and then at 7.0 MPH for the final .25 miles. That last quarter of a mile hurt. But my overall time was 36:29, pretty respectable I think. Then I hit the weight room . . .
  • 3 X 10 @ 135 Lbs Bench Press
  • 3 X 10 @ 110 Lbs Lat Pulldown
  • 3 X 10 @ 65 Lbs Triceps Extension
  • 3 X 10 @ 80 Lbs Pectoral Fly
  • 2 X 10 @ 30 Lbs "7-Ups"
  • 1 X 10 @ 20 Lbs "7-Ups"
So I increased my weight on a couple of lifts, I can feel myself getting stronger. Because of my bum shoulder however, the bench press still gives me some trouble. I need to work on building the muscle around my shoulder so it's not such an issue.

Only 7 days to triathlon. I think on Monday and Wednesday, I may do two a day workouts getting a couple spin classes in there somewhere. Light workouts on Tuesday and Thursday, likely swimming with weights. Rest day on Friday and Triathlon on Saturday. I'm pretty sure I'm ready. I've been visualizing my transitions, and my final time at the finish . . . I won't tell you what it is . . . but I have a dream . . . :-)]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=396 Sat, 5 Jul 2008 12:18:20 -0700 With You http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=395 By John

Standing there with you
The light dances on the trees
The clouds, they grumble
For just that moment
I feel complete again]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=395 Thu, 3 Jul 2008 14:37:09 -0700 Running, SMFH and Lifting http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=394
So when I got to the gym this morning, I hopped on the treadmill. On my way to the treadmill I got hit in the back with a towel. As I was walking by the SMFH at the time, I gave a dirty look at the guy on it like "Hey, watch what you're doing with your sweaty towels". As I got on the treadmill, I felt hands on my back. I turned around and it was Carl with a big S*** eating grin on his face. Ah ha . . . sorry guy on the SMFH.

I ran a mile at 5.2 MPH, then walked a quarter. I hopped off and got on the SMFH and did 20 minutes at level 5, 66 floors, 1.something miles . . . I hopped off that, did a half lap on the track to cool down and hit the weight room. When I got in there, Jamie Huscroft was there and looked like he was struggling with his weight workout. (NOTE: Jamie NEVER looks like he is struggling with anything) Ironically, the song playing in the weight room was "Get Ready for This" by 2 Unlimited, a classic hockey song. I quipped to Jamie "Don't worry Jamie, it's the music, it's getting to you" he laughed and said "Yeah, that must be it". (Jamie played in the NHL for the Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks among others). Anyway, my weight room workout looked like this:
  • 3 X 10 @ 135 Lbs Bench Press
  • 3 X 10 @ 110 Lbs Lat Pulldown
  • 3 X 10 @ 60 Lbs Triceps Extension
  • 3 X 10 @ 75 Lbs Fly
  • 3 X 10 @ 20 Lbs "7 Ups"
  • 5 X 20 Crunches (100)
When I got home, the number on the scale was 299.0. Still under 300. I need to find a way to break below about 295.0 so when I do fluctuate by a couple pounds it doesn't have that defeating leading 3 in the number. I guess it's just hard work and dedication right? Just keep doing it.

10 days to Triathlon!]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=394 Wed, 2 Jul 2008 08:29:48 -0700 Running at the Y http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=393
Here's a picture from the Tour De Pierce on Sunday, courtesy of Steve:

image
The whole Tour De Pierce Crew: From Left to Right; Scott, Leslie, Scott, Steve, Erick, Brandon, John and Chuck


Congrats everyone, you all did great on your respective rides! Next year we're all doin' the 50! :-)]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=393 Tue, 1 Jul 2008 10:34:46 -0700 Tour De Pierce 2008 http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=392 Tour De Pierce bike ride. We did this ride unofficially last year, but this year we did it on the actual ride date. It was just shy of 50 miles, my GPS says anywhere from 49.11 - 49.3 miles depending on which report you look at. I felt pretty good for the entire ride. We did the whole thing in 3 hours 15 minutes (moving time) and just under 4 hours total. I still suck at hills. Last year I had to walk the two big hills. This year I stopped twice on one, but rode the whole thing. And on the other, I walked half and rode half. So I did better, but still ticked I didn't ride them both.

I burned over 5,500 calories, Average speed was 15.2 MPH and my max speed was just over 38.0 MPH. (sweet) My average heart rate was 138. Other than the two big hills, the ride is fairly flat and it's a good way to see a good portion of Pierce county.

After the ride, we stopped at the Powerhouse for some lunch. All in all, it was a good day, even if the mercury will top 90 today. It's HOT! And it's NOT a dry heat either! As soon as Steve e-mails some pictures, I'll post them as well. There were three of us in FatCyclist Jerseys, which was kinda cool.

Here's the official route:

Map of Tour De Pierce - 2008
Tour De Pierce 2008 Official Route
]]> General http://johnhurlbut.com/blog/index.php?itemid=392 Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:13:25 -0700