Running without Going Anywhere

Since I've begun running, people are always surprised that I do all of my running on a treadmill. I typically don't watch TV (unless someone else at the gym has it on). I don't listen to music or podcasts because I could never get headphones that would stay in my ears once I started sweating profusely (note: this happens quite early in any run). So what do I do? I think. I figure fractions in my head of how far I've gone. I count down the remaining time. I stare blankly at the wall.

Anyway, a bullet-point list of why running on the treadmill works best for me:

• The treadmill is easier on my joints. I figure if I'm going to be a runner for a while, I need to do what I can to take care of my hips, knees, and ankles. I've found the treadmill deck to be much more forgiving than pavement, road base, cement. I know some people live near nice, cushiony running trails. Good for you. I don't.
  
• I don't have to deal with the elements. It's not freezing cold. It's not scorching hot. The wind isn't blowing against me. I hate running in the wind and it seems like it's always windy.
• I can control my pace. I know there are advanced GPS gizmos out there that help with this, but I like being able to set exactly how fast I want to run.
• I don't have to carry water and carbs for long runs. I know when you run races, you have drinks and stuff at stations along the way, but when you're training?
• I don't have to figure out a route for how far I want to run that day that starts and ends at my house.
• No dogs barking and chasing me.
• Can it be boring? Sure. But I don't really see that it's significantly more boring than running outside.
• I can go to the gym, run, and shower during lunch so it's not cutting into my family time in the evening or forcing me to get up much earlier.

I guess that's about it.

Now I'm not not trying to convince anyone that runs outside to run on a treadmill. To each his own. And I know that when I run races outside, I'm going to be sore in a whole new way. But for now, it's what works for me.

LMMEFS

In the Richard C. Mouritsen family, we have an unofficial title, identified by the acronym (coined by my brother Carl, who has held the title for a few years now) LMMEFS. As you probably guessed, this stands for Lightest Mouritsen Male Except For Scott. (Since Scott is a few inches shorter and more importantly, has kept himself more active over the years, we didn't think it fair to actually try to be lighter than Scott).

Over the past 6-7 months, I have made some dramatic changes and if I haven't taken over LMMEFS already, I am definitely getting close. Below are some pictures to illustrate:

The picture on the left was taken July 30, 2010 on a family outing to Lava Hot Springs. The picture on the right was taken February 18, 2011, about 6 1/2 months later. So what happened in between?

In August, September, and October of 2010, I trained for a half-marathon (I didn't actually end up running an official half-marathon, but the training seemed to do the trick). When I finished that, I had gone from ~230 lbs to ~212. After that, I decided that I wanted to train for a marathon, but I wanted to start at the beginning of the year, so for the rest of 2010, I just ran the pre-training schedule for a marathon training plan, which consisted of about 20 miles per week. I also started working out on my lunch hour rather than before or after work. For me, this worked out well because running took away a lot of my hunger and I began eating less, many times I didn't end up eating at lunch at all. (I am not a nutritionist and I know that this flies in the face of most dieting/weight-loss advice (although not all) so I'm not advocating it necessarily, just explaining what worked for me). By the end of the year, I was down to about 205.

With the start of the new year, I decided to add some weight training and formalize my workout plan a little bit. I built a running schedule that includes a marathon training plan and a half-marathon training plan, with parts of a 5k and 10k training plan filling out the year.

As far as weights, I do 10 basic exercises, all on machines (as opposed to free weights). I broke the year into 4 phases of 13 weeks each. The last week of 2010, I maxed out on each of the 10 exercises. Then I do two weeks of 3 sets of 15 at 40% of my one rep maximum, followed by two weeks of 4 sets of 10 at 60% of ORM, and finally two weeks of 5 sets of 5 at 80% of ORM. I then repeat that schedule again (for a total of 12 weeks). During the 13th week, I max out on each of the exercises again to prepare for the next phase. Here are the details of my Phase 1 weight-training. In addition, I do a few sets of push-ups, sit-ups, and curls each evening, M-F.

** UPDATE: Phase 2 weight-training **
** UPDATE: Phase 3 weight-training **
** UPDATE: Phase 4 weight-training **

Here is my entire workout schedule for 2011. So far, I've lost another 10 lbs or so, and set just a little under 195.

I'm not sure what my final target weight should be. I kind of had in mind getting to 175, which is what I weighed my senior year of high school. Jeanell thinks I shouldn't go below 185, which as about what I weighed when we got married. I guess we'll see.

Anyway, I know there are plenty of people that run a lot faster and farther, as well as people who are much more ripped that could give much better help and advice on getting in shape. This is just something I've struggled with for a while and I wanted to share some specifics of what has been working for me.

My Facebook Credo

So I've been on Facebook for a while now and a little bit surprisingly, I really enjoy it. I like staying in contact with friends that I really wouldn't stay in touch with in any other way. In using Facebook I've developed a mental list of do's and don't's to keep Facebook enjoyable.

Now these are just my personal opinions so don't get mad or offended. While I do think everyone should live the way I think they should, I don't think they have to. Also, keep in mind that my tongue was surgically attached to my cheek years ago so take most of what I say with a grain of salt (for an example, see the previous sentence).

Without further ado:

1. Seek first to entertain. (Sounds like something straight out of Covey).

Isn't that the whole point of Facebook, entertainment? Share funny thoughts, anecdotes, cute pictures, etc. Don't take yourself too seriously. Share things that made you laugh or that amazed you.

2. Try not to offend but not at the expense of being a little bit edgy.

Don't intentionally offend people, but push the envelope a little bit. People can always unfriend you if they don't like your take or your sense of humor. I try not to post things that I think will offend everyone but I will post things that I think could potentially offend one or two. Sue me.

3. Don't use Facebook to tell people how depressed you are or how bad your life sucks or that you're bored.

Trust me, if you're bored, typing it into Facebook isn't going to alleviate your boredom. As a good friend of mine used to say, "There are no boring activities, just boring people."

4. Don't play the games.

Facebook is enough of a time-waster as it is. Don't exacerbate it by spending hours each day playing Farmville. Read a book, get some exercise, better yourself. There's a lot of life to be lived.

5. If you must play the games, please don't send me Game Requests.

6. Do use Facebook to bring awareness to a good cause.

I thought the Wal-Mart Fight Against Hunger thing was great. And other fund-raising efforts for good causes are great as well.

7. Don't re-post anything that includes the phrase "re-post this if...". Like "re-post this if you know someone who is great at kayaking" or "re-post this if you like pizza."

8. Especially don't re-post anything that says "I know most people won't re-post this..."

9. Don't have a cartoon character for your profile pic. You're just helping the pedophiles.

10. Don't post a list of how you think Facebook should be used. Nobody cares what you think.

Touché.

After publishing my initial list of ten, a couple more came to mind:

11. Don't post gripes or complaints about your spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, partner. Don't post that you're fighting either. If your relationship is in enough trouble that you truly need some support or advice, reach out to a friend or family member privately.

12. Don't post topless videos of your daughter, even if she is only two.

Resolutions: Recap and Recommital

Well, 2010 has come and gone and as I look back, I didn't do all that badly (although admittedly I was a far cry from doing well).

Below I give a little recap of how it went for 2010 and what I'd like to do for 2011.

• Physical

Lose 30 lbs (bringing me below the 200 lb mark)

Unfortunately, I didn't lose 30 lbs. But I did lose 25 and I feel better physically than I have for quite a while. My secret: running my guts out. I've actually started working out on my lunch hour which for me reduces my appetite significantly. Sure, I'm a little smelly when I get back to the office but that just means fewer interruptions and shorter small talk conversations.

For 2011, I'd like to drop another 20-25 lbs...get down to my “playin' weight" and see how that feels. I'm also going to do some weights this year where last year was exclusive cardio.

Run the 4th of July 5K in Grantsville (and humiliate all of my younger brothers and children)

I participated in my first Ray Barrus Memorial 5K and had a great time. Two of my younger brothers beat me, but one of them is a cross-country coach (or was at the time) and the other is twelve years younger than me and lost control of his bodily functions in beating me...for reals. So that means I only beat one of my brothers (because two were too big o' wusses to participate) but I handily beat my three older boys, their dad (fist pump), my sixty year-old dad, and my sixty year-old mom (although she was pushing a stroller). I also beat my little sister, but she had to quit because she was going to be late for work.

I went on to do a half-marathon training plan later in the year, which I completed and by the end of the year I was down to about a 22 minute 5K (where I think in July I got 25:30 or something).

For 2011, plan to do a marathon training plan. I didn't get into the Ogden Marathon so I don't know if I'll even do a "real" marathon but I do plan to run 26.2 miles in a row at some point.

Oh, and I'll be back at the Ray Barrus Memorial 5K as well, with a vengeance!

• Mental

Read one book per month (I read long books for the most part, ok)

I didn't read 12 books, but I did read quite a bit. I finished Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow. I read The Blind Side by Michael C. Lewis, How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins, and worked my way through all of Malcolm Gladwell's New Yorker articles. I'm currently reading Andrew Jackson by Brands and am 1/5 through the unabridged version of Les Miserables.

For 2011, the book a month goal still seems reasonable. I'll shoot for it again.

• Spiritual

Read the Book of Mormon all the way through

Made it through Helaman while reading the Book of Mormon Institute Manual concurrently and most importantly got back in the habit of daily personal scripture study.

For 2011, plan to finish my current time through plus reread again.

Read all of the Old Testament selections from the Sunday School student manual

Not even close. We'll try again in 2011, but this year it will be New Testament.

100% Home Teaching

83%

Spend at least two hours a week on my Sunday School lesson (I feel like this should be more, but don't know where to find the extra time. You're right, I could give up Idol).

Ummm, maybe...sometimes. I did give up Idol but for unrelated reasons.

• Social

Weekly blog post

Does one count? Dropping the expectation to monthly for 2011.

Organize a get-together with old friends (these are friends I haven't seen for some time, not friends that are advanced in age)

No, in fact I don't know if I even saw any "old" friends.

Send out a Christmas letter (Thanks to Jeanell, we do pretty well at sending Christmas cards, but I'd like to use that opportunity to bring people up to speed on what we're up to).

No Christmas letter either.

A last thing I'd like to improve on is becoming more involved or at least aware of politics and the important issues facing our country. If anyone has good recommendations of websites, blogs, books, etc., please post as comments.

I've done a little bit better here. Just try to read from a variety of papers on a variety of topics. I've liked the Economist app on my iPhone. Every issue, there's a set of "Editors' Highlights", usually about 4-5 articles, that I can read for free. Usually, that's about all I have time for anyway.

Well, I guess that's about it for this blog post. Wish me luck for 2011 and best of luck to everyone else in their quest for continual improvement.

The Futility of My New Year's Resolutions

I am a very firm believer in New Year's Resolutions. Each year I start to think about all the areas I need to improve in and formulate goals that will help me to improve in those areas. Unfortunately, I am much better at thinking about and making resolutions than I am at following-through and achieving them. I sat down and looked at my list today and already I am failing miserably (and we're barely a month into the year).

Well, I'm regrouping and thought sharing some of my resolutions here would maybe help to steel my resolve (besides, one of my resolutions was to do a blog post at least weekly...two birds with one stone).

A few of my resolutions, by category:

• Physical

Lose 30 lbs (bringing me below the 200 lb mark)
Run the 4th of July 5K in Grantsville (and humiliate all of my younger brothers and children)

• Mental

Read one book per month (I read long books for the most part, ok)

• Spiritual

Read the Book of Mormon all the way through
Read all of the Old Testament selections from the Sunday School student manual
100% Home Teaching
Spend at least two hours a week on my Sunday School lesson (I feel like this should be more, but don't know where to find the extra time. You're right, I could give up Idol).

• Social

Weekly blog post
Organize a get-together with old friends (these are friends I haven't seen for some time, not friends that are advanced in age)
Send out a Christmas letter (Thanks to Jeanell, we do pretty well at sending Christmas cards, but I'd like to use that opportunity to bring people up to speed on what we're up to).

A last thing I'd like to improve on is becoming more involved or at least aware of politics and the important issues facing our country. If anyone has good recommendations of websites, blogs, books, etc., please post as comments.

Outliers

Finally finished the second Benjamin Franklin biography I've read in the past year. Enjoyed it and loved Isaacson's concluding analysis of how appreciation for Franklin has ebbed and flowed based on the cultural climate. Since Franklin was more practical than romantic, many of the romantic era writers didn't express a high opinion of him. On the other hand, during the Great Depression, Franklin's sayings regarding frugality and hard-work caused him to be highly regarded.

After finishing that, I quickly read the latest by Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers, which I found fascinating. Some of the highlights:

• An inordinate number of hockey and baseball players are born in the months immediately following the "cutoff date" for their particular sport. For example, if players born within a calendar year are grouped together, those with birthdays in January - March are more likely to become professionals in that sport. The theory is that since nearly a year separates the players, the physical maturity of those older players is enough to get them selected for the all-star and competitive teams, which leads to increased opportunities to practice and better coaching, which increases the separation even further. This same type of pattern can be seen in education.
  
• Research shows it very hard to find someone who is naturally great at something and the magic amount of time that seems to be required to be excellent at an activity is 10,000 hours. The players with the early birthdays mentioned above get a leg up on reaching those 10,000 hours of practice.
• Bill Gates, despite having a brilliant mind and determination, came into some very fortunate situations that allowed him to get in 10,000 hours in computing/programming at a very early age.
• Cultural history plays a big part in our behavior. Rice farming which is very intricate and time-consuming in comparison to farming wheat or corn, helps explain a lot of the Asian work-ethic and success in mathematics. Gladwell talks about the TIMMS test that compares math scores between nations that is accompanied by a very involved demographic questionnaire. A researcher found that there was perfect correlation betweeen how thoroughly the student filled out the demographic questionnaire and how well they scored on the exam.
• Many plane crashes are caused by lack of communication between the co-pilot and the captain or the pilots and air traffic control. This lack of communication can vary culturally based on the power-distance index of the country, which is basically the respect for authority.
• Many of the differences in test-scores between higher-income and lower-income students can be attributed to their respective summer vacations. In other words, both groups of students are shown to progress equally during the school year, but during the summer, the higher-income kids progress significantly more than their lower-income counterparts.
• Advantages from having a high-IQ diminishes significantly past level of IQ needed to successfully obtain a four-year college degree. Once you are "smart enough", other aspects of intelligence come into play more.

This just a sampling of the book, but it really gets into how just restructuring some parts of our society could have a dramatic impact on how many people could be successful. I highly recommend it.

Also, you can access an archive of Gladwell's New Yorker articles here. I particularly enjoyed this one.

For those of you that follow the Sports Guy on ESPN.com, he's also had a couple of email exchanges with Gladwell over the years. You can access the most recent here. And one from 2006 here.

How Lucky Can I Be?

I am glad that I've been able to keep updating my blog with as much dedication and hard work as I put into the rest of my life.

For those that follow our family blog, which Jeanell maintains (and does a much better job than I do), you know that Jeanell gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Lila Rachel, a couple of months ago. When Lila was born, our plan was for Jeanell to be off work for as long as possible. Unfortunately, things haven't gone quite as planned and Jeanell had to go back to work earlier today.

This has been hard on both of us (I think more on her, but on me as well). I just need to take the opportunity to say what a wonderful woman Jeanell is. She has supported me in everything I've striven for. She tolerated me going to school in the evenings for three years so I could get my MBA. When I had a hare-brained idea to be part of a project team that would take me halfway across the country every week, she stood behind me. When I wanted to start exercising more so I didn't die of heart disease in the next decade, she told me to go for it. All of these resulted in untold sacrifice and inconvenience for the love of my life.

I just hope Jeanell (and all of my loyal readers) know how much I love and appreciate her. Not that I've amounted to much, but everything that I have amounted to is because of her unfailing love and support. She is tireless and even when working full-time, kept an immaculately clean house, prepared meals, helped kids with homework, worked on crafts and decorating, blogged, volunteered, and much more. I am truly a lucky man and am so grateful she consented to marry me almost nine years ago.

I love you, Baby. Thanks for everything.