Turning the clock back!

[Chancer]

They say that its never too late, in think in my case I may have done it in the nick of time though.

I am feeling very virtous as I write this as I completed my first ever half marathon today, not only that I only started training at the beginning of August, not only that (OK I wont repeat it again) I hadnt run for at least 40 years and back then was forced to once a year by the school, not that I could even run when forced mind you, I came 333rd out of the 350 boys in my year, it was at the time the biggest school in England.

I cant even speak of my return to fitness as I have never been fit in my life and have been between 3 an 5 stone overweight all my adult life, I work hard and have always been active and 6 months ago whilst I may have felt and believed that I was as fit as the next guy I could only dream of running like those that pass my property every year on the 10K circuit and look on wistfully, mind you they all took it so seriously that it could not be called a fun run.

In 2006 a good friend then aged 35 who was and is very sporty ran the half marathon in 2 hours 8 minutes, a week later with another one of her fit girlfriends we  retraced the route on our bikes, it completely knocked the stuffing out of me, I made them stop several times and even though I was 10 or 12 years older than them it felt like 100 it was a real blow to my pride and male ego but I just had to accept that is the way it is and life continued like that until this year.

Then in the spring I had the incredibly good fortune to be contacted by a fellow member of this forum, I cant name them as it would be advertising but they know who they are and how much I am in their debt, they offered me a stay at their business in France to lose weight and become fitter, I seized the opportunity with both hands and promised to myself that I was going to give my all and not squander an opportunity of a lifetime and in doing so deny the chance to someone more worthy.

I was initially offered a week in February which was extended to two weeks, the stay consisted of a strict GL diet with 6 hours of exercise a Iday followed by massage and hypnotherapy sessions. The results amazed me and I lost 5.5kgs in the first week, I was told that I had done well but not to expect such dramatic results the second week, nonetheless I still did well and for the first time in my life actually started to enjoy exercise.

On my return I followed the principles of the diet where I could and joined a local gym club to do classes in stretching, muscualtion and bums n tums,(I was the only guy in the class) in addition to the 2 hours of swimming training that I do with my diving club.

God blessed me one more time in May as I was once again invited, this time to fill a last minute cancellation which I was delighted to accept,  I had continued to gradually lose weight between stays but the weight loss in that one week equalled what I had acheived in the 3 months, I began to see why those who can afford it, the film stars etc love these type of places.

I carried on the good work on my return to life here in Picardie and things were going well until Paff!! C'est les vacances and everything stopped dead until la rentréé and I gradually found myself really missing the exercise, I reckon I had become a junkie! I asked my friend who still runs several times a week if I could join her for a slow ballade, we jogged slowly for 45 minutes and I said to myself maybe I could do the 5km run in September.

I made contact with a young couple from the gym who were also at a loose end and we decided to jog 2 or 3 times a week for 5km, I soon found that I was capable of running faster than them and they would have to stop several times (he is 30 her 22 and both slim and fit looking) my ambitious nature soon started saying "maybe you could do the 10km or even the half marathon" so I asked my Doctor as I needed a medical certificate to even do the 5km race, he was very blunt, you are 52, you have never run in your life until 3 weeks ago, the furthest that you have run is 5km and the marathon is in 2 weeks time, do not attempt anything more than the 10k, which he himself had done until knackering his knee the year before, he said we should not take up impact sports at our age just look at me!

He also said that he knew I was not likely to pay any attention to him, the medical release does not specify a distance and what the hell it was my funeral!

Well despite me being very knackered these last few weeks of training where I got up to 15km distance once only I am proud to say that I did the 21km today without stopping and in a time of 2 hours 9 minutes, one minute slower than my sporty friend did when she was 17 years younger than I, the other couple did well also as they did the 5km in 34 minutes and for the first time without stopping.

I am going to bed now, I may be gone some time!!  [;-)] (as whoever it was that famously said it to Scott or was it Shackleton?)

[Théière]

Well done Chancer!

My O/H ran the London marathon a couple of years back and actually ran/jogged it, no walking like some of the slackers. I was really proud of her as it is a heluva distance for someone who has never run and is only just 5ft.

I on the other hand ran for my school in 1500 metres and cross country and represented my school again in the county X country run. haven't done any running since so despite having knee problems (we ran in Dunlop green flash) not these high tech assembled by Chinese children state of the art shoes you get now. Have been thinking about starting to run post health problems last year to try and gain some fitness back after almost a year off.

 

[idun]

Felicitiations [8-|]

[Frecossais]

You have every right to be proud of yourself, Chancer. You climbed a metaphorical mountain.

[suej]

 

 What an achievement!  You must be exceedingly proud- and exceedingly tired - go on now, feet up and a glass of, eh!

 

 

[Chancer]

I was surprised to see not one person walking in any of the races, they do take t very seriously here though and there are some really fit people of all ages, there were a lot of  English who had come over for the weekend as it was an English guy that started the thing from nothing 6 or 7 years ago.

Actually I did see one person walking, there was a guy built like superman dipped in lycra limbering up before an adoring crowd of totty before the start, he was so over the top and full of his-self that I took an instant and intense dislike to him (meaning he made me feel inadequate and jealous [:D]) I was both gob smacked and overjoyed to overtake him at around the 15k mark as he was walking, I guess he had an injury though he wasnt limping, perhaps a dramatic deflation of ego [6]

I knew that one guy had died last year and wrongly assumed it was a 10k runner as this year they had changed the course to avoid the hill after my place, unfit guys were racing up it far too quick and many returning in the ambulance, however i was wrong and the real story was really tragic.

He was 28 and one of the front runners in the 42km full marathon, he collapsed a few yards from the finish line and would have been in 8th place probably pushing to get under the magic 3 hour mark, how traumatic for his family, friends and all the crowd at the finish line.

[Judith]

And you managed to have enough energy left to type all that lot - and here I am shattered after a day in the park at the forum des associations ..... standing around and walking from stand to stand (as well as mounting and demounting the exhibition - I wasn't that idle!)

well done you ...

[just john]

After all that work too! you must be a masochist[:P]

[Anton Redman]

The quote about going out and perhaps being some time is Captain Oates. I once explained it to a group from Japan and then had to explain it again word by word because they did not believe the English could have that sense of honour

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Oates

[NormanH]

You deserve congratulations for the effort and hard work that have gone into your success.

Don't go and have a heart attack on us..

[Chancer]

No chance of that (famous last words!).

I forgot to add that I have lost 23kg since starting this journey.

[suein56]

[quote user="Chancer"]I forgot to add that I have lost 23kg since starting this journey.[/quote]

That's amazing! Well done. You must feel fit and healthy as well as being fit and healthy.

It also nearly half my entire weight.

Sue

[Tancrède]

[quote user="suein56"]It also nearly half my entire weight.[/quote]

46 kilos ?

The ancients of my rural Devonian childhood were firm in the opinion that 100 lbs was the 'weight of a witch'.  I would love to know if this is true…

[Will]

She sounds like a small witch [:)] Most of those I have known were rather more substantially-built than that.

But Chancer - that's bloody marvellous. Speaking as another with recent experience of fitness gain and weight loss I know what hard work it can be, though how pleasing it is when it comes together. Although I'm happy with my results, I haven't achieved anything like you have.

[idun]

I've managed the weight loss, but fitness gained, I really don't know where I'd start with that. I suppose as both knees just about need replacing, excersizing gets a little difficult.

[Chancer]

I liken my body to that of a very old car, one that you have found with remarkably low mileage, only used to go to church in by its elderly owner, cosetted, protected, and kept in a warm heated and dehumidified garage, still with the plastic wrappings on the seats etc, etc. You get the picture.

 I have owned a few of these over the years but sadly they never would last long with the abuse that I made them suffer, the engines and/or transmissions would fail in short order [:(] Too much of a shock to the system.

I hope that I have learned my lesson [;-)]

[idun]

How are you feeling today?

Aches and pains, tired, or fine?

[Chancer]

Aches in the top of my feet last night, after sitting at the computer writing my epic posting one knee seized up, I could not walk down the stairs but could come up. Could not seem to sleep for more than 10 minutes at a time, perhaps the adrenaline surging but at 4.30 am I woke after a longer period of sleep, perhaps an hour and found that all the aches and pains had gone.

Spent today doing absolutely nothing but it was nice not to feel guilty. I have always admired those that go to work as normal after running a marathon, not me!

I cycled to the gym class tonight, it was stretching (they call it streching!), that and the cycling did me a power of good, I feel like a new man, not that there is much chance of finding one around here!! [:P]

[NormanH]

Les étirements...

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ascea-bad-grenoble.org/webotheque/images/archives2005/169-etirements.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.ascea-bad-grenoble.org/jeu/25-conseils.php&h=282&w=400&sz=27&tbnid=pBrUDmoiEsUJ8M:&tbnh=81&tbnw=115&prev=/search%3Fq%3D%25C3%25A9tirements%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=%C3%A9tirements&docid=7xzb0KLI8ZFmlM&sa=X&ei=tmxuTs-zHqPY4QTsy8SEBQ&ved=0CCQQ9QEwAA&dur=337

[mint]

So, Chance, are you going to tell us where this marvellous place is where you stayed and explain about your GL (whatever that is) diet and the rest?

Moi, je suis svelte et sportive (smug grin) donc no need to punish myself though I have committed to being on the wagon for 6 weeks.  Am on Day 18 today.

I find it easier to drink no alcohol at all than to cut down.

Has anyone stopped drinking and find that they lose weight?  Asking in hope of positive replies![:D]  

[Chancer]

I stopped drinking 19 months ago when I learned of my nephews alcohol related illness, he died last year, my niece is also very ill and needs a liver transplant, it was the kick up the backside that I needed.

Like you it was easier to go into sevrage than to cut down, I really thought that my weight would come down as without the drink I was not (over)eating rubbish last thing at night when I got the munchies, I was really surprised that even though I was swimming a couple of hours a week as well as my physical work I did not lose weight I actually put it on [:(]

My new beginning did not start until I went to the boot camp this year, you cant really fail to lose weight in a place like that given the diet and the amount of physical exercise you do, however there you learn about healthy eating (and I was ignorant) your emotional relationship with food and during the therapy sessions what its origins were, in my case going back to my early teens.

What I really took away with me was the knowledge that not only could I get by on what seemed to me to be a tiny amount of food, I could at the same time expend far more energy than I ever have been capable of and yet not be hungry, not even once! I had in fact always been drastically over-eating, never understood the reasons behind it and not had the tools and more importantly the willpower to tackle it.

For me personally the hypnotherapy really helped me, I was able to finally let go of the past that had been sub-consciously holding me back all these years.

I have now become very sporty which I never would have believed, I left with a personalised  exercise regime which i felt in my heart that i would never keep up at home on my own and i do believe that would have been the case, however I discovered a very old fashioned exercise club locally that does many sessions in the local salle de sports, absolutely lo-tech, no machines just a piece of plastic conduit as a baton and one of those stretchy bungy things with handholds, I now do weekly seances of stretching, musculation, step aerobics and abdo- fessiers (bums n tums) with the ladyzz which I really enjoy plus two sessions a week of swimming training with my dive club and one or two 10k runs.

The running I took up as both the gym club and dive club stop completely for the best part of 2.5 months [:(], this morning I did a 10k run with a friend, had a work break and then tonight did 2 hours of musculation and step aerobics.

I eat properly and at the proper times now with a piece of fruit as a snack between meals, at the moment I am actually eating loads due to all the exercise, not forgetting my work breaks! but it is loads of healthy food not junk. Since February I have eaten bread and potatoes only once, an americain mérguéz straight after the 21k marathon to celebrate!!!

So whilst giving up alcohol did not make me lose weight I am convinced that were I to still be drinking even in moderation I would find it a lot harder to keep to my healthy regime.