Drinking water

Water consumption had always been a challenge for me. I don't have a problem putting away a pot of coffee or downing a six-pack of beer but water is another story.

Taking a bottle of water with me when I go to the gym or out for a run isn't a problem. In fact, I can drink a liter or 1.5 liter of water without hesitation.

We have been told that we should have 6-8 glasses of water per day. Turns out, this is inaccurate but should be the minimum. How much should we have per day? More than that. Take your current weight and multiply by 60%. Ouch.

I know that it seems that increased water consumption results in more trips to the bathroom. Apparently, that's temporary and will change once water consumption is more consistent.

In an effort to increase my water consumption, I will fill up a few water bottles each night and put them in the fridge. I will drink one at different intervals of the day.

We shall see what happens.

I'm amazed by the camaraderie I've encountered

Maybe it was my childhood "trauma" of being the last one picked in gym class, not being athletically gifted (and catching grief for it), or being a "late bloomer" to fitness that I thought that I would be isolated in this journey but I have found the reverse to be true.

When I started running, I did it exclusively on the treadmill because I was self-conscious over the extra weight I was carrying. I trained for a 5K and my first 10K on the treadmill and it seemed to work for me but when I started training for a half-marathon, I had to bite the bullet and start running outside.

Until recently, a considerable portion of my running was done in the park or on a trail because I was hesitant to run on the street (once again, self-consciousness was taking control). I was amazed at the friendliness of the folks I encountered. A number of people will wave, say "hi" or "how are you doing," but some may actually initiate dialog to ask how far you're running today or if you're training for a particular race.

When I started going on the race circuit, I was intimidated by being surrounded by numerous runners who were a hell of a lot faster than me. When I go to the NYRR events, my corral corresponds with my best registered pace and I am surrounded by folks who run a pace comparable to mine. I've met a runners who were committed to running and overcoming challenges but yet we've joked about "how slow" we are and would check on each other during the course of the race to see how we're progressing.

I just moved to a new neighborhood and it's a bit of a burden to go to the places where I've run so I have been exploring the area while logging the miles. It turns out I was my biggest critic in terms of how I looked when running; as far as "everybody else," they don't care.

Wait a minute...did you...

Over the next two weeks, I will be spending a lot of time working at one of my client's offices. I haven't been there in over two years but I have run into some folks between now and then.

Within my first hour at the office, the first person I ran into looked at me and said "I know there's something different about you. I want to ask if you've lost weight but sometimes you just can't go there." We had a chuckle and I confirmed that I did lose weight. About 30 minutes later, another person looked at me with similar commentary.

I understand that some folks are uncomfortable with commenting about somebody's weight loss because of the fear that it opens a can of worms. For example:

• "You look great. Have you lost weight." So are you trying to say I looked terrible? Are you trying to say that I was fat?

Not for nothing, I appreciate the validation and the compliments.

Hitting a plateau

I have been slacking something awful since the fall. Running has been the only thing that has saved my ass from having the scale revert to my previous numbers.

I will admit fault. Yes, I can say that life got in the way, I picked up a crazy workload, I'm dealing with personal crap, etc. but the fact is that I haven't been on top of my game.

A few weeks ago, I went for my Weight Watchers weigh-in and the leader addressed plateaus. He was spot on when he said that we will plateau when we get comfortable with our results and take it as license to get lax in our routines. That's exactly what happened to me. I lost 60 pounds and have been getting compliments so it goes without saying that I did develop a sense if complacency.

Yes, if my life was different,  I'm sure the extra weight would've been long gone but the reality is that I have a husband, a daughter, and a career that seems to revolve around meals and cocktail parties so it's a challenge to modify my eating.

I'm running my first marathon in less than 4 months so I will be doing a lot of training runs and some cross-training. To be on top of my game when I conquer those 26.2 miles on November 2nd, I need to work on other components between now and then.

Completed my second half marathon

I have been using RunKeeper to train for a half-marathon and will be using the same app to train for the NYC Marathon. This app is on my phone and I also log on from my computer on the web. When I run, the app tracks my distance, pace, total time, and my route; it's pretty cool to see how I'm doing day-to-day and by location.

The More Magazine/Fitness Magazine Half Marathon was my first half. This race fell during a busy weekend; went to the Yankee game on Friday, my HS reunion was the day before, and I was going to a birthday party for one of my daughter's classmates immediately after the race. I wanted to complete the race in 3 hours and was thrilled to see that I finished in 2:59:10.

My second half was the Long Island Half this past Sunday and it was a great day for a race. I had a really strong start and finished in 2:59:49. I tracked my time on RunKeeper and noticed that I lost a considerable amount of time waiting to use the bathroom at various points throughout the race. Whatever the case may be, I completed the race without needing a wheelchair or an ambulance (LOL).

I'm registered for my third half taking place in a week and a half. The Superhero Half sounds like it will be a fun race. To get in the spirit, I wanted to get a superhero outfit (my daughter wanted me to get a Spidergirl costume) but I find the prices to be a tad prohibitive considering I'm not at goal weight and I don't want to buy something I can only wear once. I went to Party City and bought a Superman shirt for $9.99 (tax free because I bought it in NYC).

In the meantime, I'm still figuring out hydration and fueling strategies as I build my speed and endurance.

Updated Measurements

Just wanted to get a more global perspective on my progress

Weight - 166.4 lbs (down 67.6 since I started)
Waist - 36" (down 8 inches since I started)
Hips - 43.25" (down 12.75 inches since I started)
Bust - 40" (down 11 inches since I started)
Chest - 32" (down 6 inches since I started)
Right calf - 15" (down 1 inch since I started)
Right thigh - 24" (down 7 inches since I started)
Right bicep - 10.5" (down 2.5 inches since I started)
Right forearm - 8.5" (down 1.5 inches since I started)
Approx BMI - 28.6 (down 11.6 since I started)

I just went on a 5 mile training run this morning and will be running a 15K this Saturday. It's 24 degrees, 11 with the wind chill. There was a time when I wouldn't want any part of being outside in weather like this, much less run in it. Talk about going through changes.

I'm hard on myself but was given a different perspective

In last week's blog, I mentioned hitting a plateau and being down about it. Yes, there are things within my control that I could do better but every day is an opportunity to start anew.

I've spoken to my Weight Watchers leader on a number of occasions over the past few weeks and yesterday, she gave me a different perspective on my plateau. She told me that it's tough to stay within a given weight for a certain period of time and she commended me on my ability to do so considering all of the "crap" I've been dealing with in terms of a crazy schedule and other personal circumstances. Yes, there are things that I could've done better in terms of tracking and food choices but due to my level of physical activity, I've been able to not regain a considerable amount of weight.

I'm 25 pounds away from getting to Lifetime status at Weight Watchers.