Week 12 (Final) Report

Well, the 12 weeks are finally over. After nearly three months of calorie counting and increased exercise, my final results are in.

I made my way to the Human Performance Lab on campus and had my weight and body fat measured in the Bod Pod. The results were very encouraging, but there's still room to improve.

Weight: 167.6 pounds (Down from 179.2 for a loss of 11.6 pounds)
Body Fat %: 20.9 percent (Down from 26.8 for a loss of 5.9 percent)

Overall, I'm on the right track. I didn't quite reach my goal of 165 pounds and under 20 percent, but I came dangerously close on both counts. I certainly can make it within a few more weeks. The folks at the lab were impressed, saying the body fat I dropped in 12 weeks is more than most people in the Wellness Program do in a full year. Or perhaps they were just being nice. Either way, I left their office with a grin on my face.

So, what have I learned from my first-ever diet? Well, the first thing I can say for sure is that I definitely don't plan on counting calories for the rest of my life. While it kept me honest with the types of food I ate, being ultra conscious about everything I put in my mouth is incredibly stressful, not to mention exhausting. That being said, it has taught me a lot about portion control and keeping an eye on food labels. Some "regular" items I eat contained way more fat and calories than I ever imagined, but some others were actually much lower. I can still watch my calories without counting them religiously.

I'm not sure what I'm doing here, but Jen captured the moment anyway.

I haven't had any major revelations regarding exercise. I was fairly educated about it before, although I knew I wasn't doing enough of it. I did my best to maintain a full 2.5 hours of cardio per week throughout my diet. I only wavered in one week and in several others, I did way more than that, sometimes as much as 4.5 per week. However, I did learn that using exercise as a fail safe to "earn" extra calories is a dangerous game, one that I played way too much. I should be exercising regularly and maintaining a balanced diet anyway, not doing one or the other in extremes to balance out the other. I learned that the hard way during a few weeks, with disappointing results on the scale.

Jen and I are still expecting the baby any day now, so I finished this experiment up just in time. She's been incredibly patient with me during all this and my "restrictions," but I think even she learned a thing or two for her own weight-loss goals after the baby is born. I still plan on using MyFitnessPal daily, even though I'm not following a strict diet anymore. It should help me make healthy choices, so I don't completely fall off the wagon and gain everything back.

Week 7 report

It's been a long week and I'm pretty tired, so I'm going to keep it short in this update. Last week wasn't ideal, but overall, I managed to keep myself under control regarding what I put in my mouth. I had a couple of bad days, but they weren't so overboard that I couldn't recover with exercise.

I haven't seen this territory in about eight years. Holy crap!

That being said, I still finished the week in the red with my remaining calories, which is a first since I started this. I only managed to work out four times, rather than five, but I think it's OK to miss every once in a while. I still managed to lose a little bit more weight, dropping 0.8 pounds this week. When I stepped on the scale on Wednesday, I couldn't help myself as I instantly grabbed my iPad and took a photo. I weighed in at 169.8 pounds, which puts me very close to a 10-pound weight loss since March 13. I haven't seen the 160's since I was 19 years old (almost eight years ago), so I was pretty damn excited.

However, the bloody push-up challenge fell through after less than four days. It was simply too much, too fast, and my shoulder told me so. It was in terrible pain for several days after and it's still twinging a little bit. All I can do is ice the crap out of it before starting my swim class next Tuesday. Oh well. I still managed to get in almost 350 push-ups that I wouldn't have otherwise done.

Till next week. Less than five pounds to go!

Week 6 report

Huzzah! I'm officially halfway there. Only six more weeks to go and I'm back on track after a rough Week 5.

I hit the ground running to start the week, going to the gym for four straight days. During the first few weeks, I was averaging about 2.5 to 3 hours of cardio per week. This week, I did well over four hours in addition to the normal weight training. On top of that, I started a new mini challenge to work into my over-arching 12-week challenge. I'm trying to do 100 push-ups every day. I'm going to do it for a full two weeks, hopefully knocking out a total of 1,400 push-ups before starting my swim class. We'll see if my shoulder agrees.

My 100 push-ups per day challenge is in full swing (Day 3 actually)

In the nutrition department, I had a very good week. I did slip up once (as I seem to do every week), but I had big enough calorie deficiencies on a daily basis to more than make up for it. Oh, and I only consumed 33 percent calories from fat this week, too, which is the lowest I've managed so far. Another huzzah!

Stepping on the scale this morning was odd. I was incredibly nervous, which is never the case. Maybe it was because this is the halfway point and because last week's weigh-in was a little bit disappointing. Regardless, I felt like one of those Biggest Loser contestants and I was legitimately scared. A huge sigh of relief came over me, though, when I saw 170.6 flash across the scale. That's a loss of 1.7 pounds this week, way more than I needed. That's a total loss of 8.6 pounds in six weeks, an average of 1.43 per week. I'm definitely way ahead of pace, which is good, because the fat is only going to get harder to shed in the final weeks.

I only have 5.6 pounds to go before I reach my 12-week goal, but hitting that mark will be tough, considering in the coming weeks, my weight training is going to intensify, which may counter the weight loss, although I'll certainly be chipping away at my body fat percentage.

Till next time ...

Week 5 report

This is starting to get tough.

After initially getting into the groove with a regular diet and exercise regimen, I'm starting to show signs that I'm faltering. I had two days last week where I went way over on my daily calorie limit, forcing myself to workout extra hard in the following days in order to break even for the week and I didn't quite make it. I went over about 150 calories for the week, which still isn't all that bad, considering I'm allotted 1,500 per day. That means I averaged a surplus of about 21 calories each day.

However, I did slip a few times and I'm afraid I'm about to hit a big wall and completely fall off the wagon. This week will be critical. I need to make sure that I stay strong and make good decisions every day, especially late at night, which is when I get the most powerful cravings for sweets. That being said, I haven't slipped up at all in the exercise department, logging well over 3.5 full hours of cardio, in addition to some weight training and my rotator cuff exercises. My goal heading into this experiment was to do at least 2.5 hours of cardio per week, so I'm tearing it up right now.

I weighed in at 172.3 pounds this morning, which shocked me, considering my undisciplined diet during the week. It's only a loss of 0.3 pounds, but honestly, I was expecting to gain weight this time. That makes a total loss of 7 pounds so far, which is about 1.4 per week. So, I'm still right on track.

Next Wednesday marks the half way point, so I'll check back in then.

P.S.: Jen and I can't wait for the baby to get here. I caved the other day and bought this infant-sized Weber State jersey for him. Sweet!

Week 4 report

I'm officially one third of the way there.

I struggled mightily with my calories this week, but still managed to stay a hair under my weekly allotment. That being said, I maintained my hold on about 37% calories from fat, which didn't climb along with my increased intake. The only way I managed to stay ahead was with an extra session at the gym on Sunday, which earned me a bunch of extra calories.

Wearing down the final hole in my belt. It's time to cut out a new one.

My shoulder is still in a state of despair. I've been in considerable pain since last week's cortisone injection, which is what I feared would happen. I began my rotator cuff exercises, but they haven't been pleasant. I know I am not icing it nearly enough, as I keep forgetting to bring my shoulder pack to work with me. I signed up for a swimming class on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Weber State for the summer (tuition is free because I'm staff now), and I'm nervous I won't be ready for it in time. It begins in May and I want my shoulder to be somewhat stable before I begin. I hope the class works out, because I need to be very careful not to log too many yards in it, but I think the instructor will cater to it just fine as there will be swimmers of all levels in the course.

Other than all that, there isn't a ton of new information to report. My weight was 172.6 pounds this morning, marking a 6.6-pound total weight loss since starting this regimen four weeks ago. That's 1.65 pounds per week, which is definitely above what I was aiming for. I'm still nervous about how my body fat percentage has been affected, but I'm confident it is on the decline. Six pounds isn't a ton of weight, but I can actually start to see some small changes in my physique in the mirror, now. Also, I'm out of holes on my belt again. Another good sign...

Week 2 report

So far, so good. After knocking out the first week, my second week of dieting was much easier to get through. It's so strange how quickly habits can form, and in this case, it's a good thing. I maintained my calorie goal all week, despite slipping up on a few bad nutrition choices. Fortunately, MyFitnessPal has a feature that calculates calories earned through exercise, and that helped me stay in the positive on my net calories consumed.

Dripping sweat off the tip of my nose during last night's stationary bike session. It was a doozy.

There is still a ton of room for improvement, though. My percentage of calories from fat was 37 percent, which is still way too high, but I did manage to improve my percentage of protein from 13 to 18 percent this week. Breakfast is where I've been the weakest, getting the bulk of my fat calories in those meals. I simply haven't been giving myself enough time to get ready, eat and get to work on time in the mornings, so I've been eating quick junk for breakfast. Lunches and snacks have been fairly solid and Jen and I have been vigilant about cooking healthy dinners in the evening.

Here's another product I've been snacking on lately. It has a shit-ton of fiber, is low in fat and only has 130 calories in it. They've been good to eat an hour or so before the gym.

I weighed in this morning at 175.4, which is only a slight loss from last week's weigh-in, but I anticipated that. I dropped much more than I wanted to in the first week, so I'm still on pace for my 12-week goal.

I also locked in a five trips to the gym last week, although I kind of slacked off on one of them, following a piss-poor calorie decision. I really challenged myself in the other workouts, though, mixing it up with cycling, running, treadmill incline walking, and circuit training. And that's just the cardio. I also threw in some weight lifting and ab work and have still been going on walks during my lunch hours on most days. It definitely was a good week in the exercise department, and I hope to crank it up even more this week.

On a side note, I finally surpassed 1,000 miles on the stationary bike since I started logging my distance almost a year and a half ago. Huzzah!

Week 1 report:

Huzzah! Whatever I've been doing this past week seems to be working. My initial goal was to lose anywhere from 1 to 1.5 pounds per week. I figured that was reasonable, considering I'm not trying to drop a drastic amount of weight; just about 15-20 pounds. When I stepped on the scale last Wednesday I weighed in at 179.2 pounds. This morning I tipped the scale at 175.6. Losing 3.6 pounds in one week is quite a bit more than I anticipated. That being said, I did have a light dinner last night, so the one-week result may be skewed a little bit.

These are so good, and there are about four more styles I can try out.

I am on a run of five straight days at Planet Fitness and I haven't been going crazy, either. Usually, I just do anywhere from 30-45 minutes of cardio. I did get in one weightlifting session and one hour-long session on the stationary bike on a day that I went over on my calories. I've also been supplementing my after-work workouts with long walks during my lunch break. The weather has been so nice, so I figured it is a perfect opportunity to burn a few extra calories, giving me a little more leeway on my dinners.

Speaking of dinners, the first few days of my diet were VERY hard. I went over on my calories twice in the first three days, but gradually found a rhythm with healthier choices as the week went on. I've grown fond of the microwave bags of veggie steamers. They are filling, low in calories, low in fat and do a great job of energizing me before I go to the gym after work. My percentages still need improvement, though. I consumed 36 percent of my calories from fat this week, which is still much higher than I want. I want to get that to less than 20 percent. Also, only 13 percent of my calories came from protein, so I plan on eating a few lean turkey choices for dinner this week. That should beef up my protein and keep my fat content down.

So far, so good. I'm still updating my distances on my tracker, but memorizing them for weekly totals is more than I want to do for every blog right now.

The results are in

OK, I know it's been about two weeks since I last posted, but I wanted to wait until I got my full Wellness results back. I finally did, and now I can move forward. Here's what I took from it.

The good

• My blood lipid profile was excellent. My triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL and LDL cholesterol, glucose and lipoprotein levels were all in optimal ranges.
• My "risk" factors are low, including not smoking, rare drinking, no diabetes, no signs of osteoporosis and somewhat regular physical activity.
• Upper body strength. I scored well on every category. The aide even said my grip strength score was "through the roof," which shocked me. I never thought I had a very strong grip.

The bad

• Nutrition. This comes as no surprise to me. I sorely need to eat more veggies, less red meat and less high-fat foods. The only area I scored particularly well in was my intake of whole-grain and wheat carbs that are low in high-fructose corn syrup and gluten.
• Flexibility. Although I've vastly improved since I lost weight, I still have a long way to go, scoring a little low on my sit-and-reach test.
• Body fat percentage. This is the big one. I scored a whopping 26.8 percent, which stunned me, even though I knew my percentage was going to be high. The charts map me in the "obese" category here, even though my weight (179 pounds) and waist (34 inches) measurements were only slightly high.

With this information, I have formulated a lofty goal with a tentative plan, aided by Gordon Gridley, a friend and fellow swimmer who has undergone an incredible transformation himself. I'll fill you in on that a little more later.

The goal

• To drastically improve my overall health by the time our baby is born. This gives me about 12 weeks, as he is due in early June. I need to set an example for my family, one that will stick and hopefully encourage a healthy lifestyle for both Jen and my son. I would like to drop my weight down to 165 pounds and my body fat percentage to less than 15 percent (eventually to less than 10 percent).

The plan

• Diet right. I've never actually "dieted" before, but I'm going for it. I started last Wednesday and have been using a very helpful tool on my iPad called MyFitnessPal. It's an incredible app that logs my diet and exercise, keeping track of my calories and nutrition with an exhaustive database of millions of foods. I don't have to drop calories drastically, only a little bit. I mostly need to focus on what calories I consume. I should consume less than 20 percent of my calories from fat (less than 10 percent in a perfect world), with a rough balance of 50 percent carbs (the right kind with less bad sugar) and 30 percent protein. The best part is, I don't have to do any friggin math. MyFitnessPal charts those percentages automatically for me as I enter my food after every meal.
• Exercise more often, but not necessarily for longer. I don't need to log hours upon hours of cardio like the people on The Biggest Loser do, but I need to get cardio sessions in more often and every day if possible. I've pretty much slacked off since last November, rarely working out more than 2-3 times per week. I've been at it for four straight days now (including five of the past six days) and I'm gaining steam. Depending on how fast I shed the fat/pounds, I will eventually start doing more weight-bearing and strengthening workouts to add muscle. I set a reasonable goal of about 1-1.5 pounds of weight loss per week for now. Another fun social media app called FourSquare helps keep me motivated. You "check in" on your iPad or iPhone wherever you are at and can try to become the "Mayor" of certain locations by having the most check ins at that spot. My goal is to be the Mayor of Planet Fitness in Roy by the time my son is born, which will be tough, because there are some regulars there that have logged a lot of check-ins.

So, that's the tentative plan. I will fill in more details as I report back every Wednesday for weekly follow-ups, starting tomorrow.

Do. Or do not. There is no try.

I woke up a bit early this morning for no reason in particular. I love it when you just wake up at a reasonable hour all on your own and don't get that immediate urge to go back to sleep. I took advantage of it and went straight to the gym.

A guy at work made this and it reminded me of my fitness goals, although I'm not a big fan of New Year's resolutions.

After nibbling on some dried fruit and nuts, just to get something in my system, I hopped on the treadmill to test out my knee. I set the program for speed intervals, jogging slow at 4.5 miles per hour for five minutes before sprinting at 7 miles per hour for one minute. Repeat as desired. I lasted a full 30 minutes with zero discomfort in my knee, which was very surprising. I did take extra time to stretch and warm up well, so maybe that helped.

I followed that up with some light ab and chest work. I hope to do more leg sets tomorrow, followed by a swim some time this week. As far as my diet goes, I've sinned in a few departments, but I've made a lot of conscious efforts to eat healthier in the first few days. I've stuck to my goal of one diet soda per day so far. I hope to do that for a few more weeks before bumping it down another notch. Also, although I'm not counting calories, I'm still keeping an eye on them, and have resisted several urges to snack on candy and other junk. Just like Yoda said, "Do. Or do not. There is no try." Although I admit, I did munch on a handful of Doritos late last night after work. That being said, I have a fridge full of veggies that I've been working through.

Total distance: 2.5 miles running

Bachelor party recovery

Well, my body is in a weird state right now. Kelly, Wes and I celebrated Zack's upcoming wedding with a full 24 hours of drinking, junk food and video games. Today, in an effort to start recovering from it, I went to the gym. I'll need to go one more time extra to help knock off some of those extra calories.

So, today I started with a walk on the treadmill on a heavy incline, which kicks my ass worse than running at 6 mph. I did that for 20 minutes and then rode the bike for 20 minutes more. I finished up the afternoon with some upper body weight training before calling it a day.

Tomorrow, if my shoulder is feeling up to it, I might go for a light swim. No guarantees, though.

Total distance: 1.25 miles uphill treadmill, 8.2 miles cycling

More circuit training

After taking a few days off I got back to it today. I decided I wanted to do the circuit training again, but I wanted a little extra, so I rode the bike for about 15 minutes to get warmed up and get my blood flowing.

Grilled chicken, pecans, lettuce, spinach, blue cheese, apples and craisins.

I did the same circuit as last week, but I pushed myself a little harder this time around. I was already sucking wind by the 10th station (out of 20). When it was all said in done, I was happy with myself for not half-assing, so I rewarded myself with Wendy's for lunch. Not burgers and fries, though. I inhaled one of their apple pecan chicken salads. Those things are super tasty and don't pack more than 400 calories. It's quite filling, too.

Total distance: 5 miles cycling, 30 minutes circuit training

Long week of guilt

Something is seriously wrong with me. More than I've experienced in a long time, my motivation to get up and work out just isn't there. I had several opportunities to work out this week and didn't. Plain and simple. I've pigged out all week, stayed up way too late a few nights and haven't been able to drag my self out of bed early enough to get to the gym. I went six consecutive days with zero exercise and whether or not it's all mental, I feel like crap for it. I haven't felt this guilty about my health in some time.

So, today I broke the streak and went for a run. I didn't last very long before my knee started hurting, so I turned back early. It wasn't much, but it was something and I suppose that's better than what I've done these past several days. I actually made the quick drive over to the gym first, but it was closed for the holiday weekend. I need to find a new motivator and fast. I am terrified of falling out of the exercise habit, because I know it can happen before you know it and just like that all my lost weight is back. Ugghhhh....

Total distance: 1.54 miles running

New favorite workout snack

One of my new favorites

Normally, when I work out, I eat something small before I leave the house, like a granola bar or piece of toast. But sometimes I just use the energy gel packs you can buy in most sporting goods stores. They are easy on your stomach and don't require much breaking down, so they don't cause me to cramp up during exercise.

The past year or so, I've been using the Gu brand gel packs. I can only ever find them at Harmon's and Sports Authority and they have served me well. However, I found a new favorite brand last week, when I was getting my bike tuned up at The Bike Shoppe in Ogden. It's called Hammer and I know a few open water swimmers who like their powder products. They are the same price as the Gu gels and they have different flavors. I tried the banana and tropical recently and loved them. I think I'm going to have to start interchanging my Gu and Hammer products to mix it up a bit.

Anyway, today I just rode the stationary bike for about 20 minutes and followed it up with a 30-minute swim.

Total distance: 6 miles cycling, 1,500 yards swimming

McDonald's guilt = Long bike ride

Normally, I don't feel guilty about the junk I eat. I try to make good decisions some times, but often I just don't care, knowing that I'm exercising enough to make up the difference. However, after eating McDonald's for lunch today, a strange guilt came over me after and I immediately went home, changed and went to the Roy Rec Center.

Camera phones don't focus very well when moving. Bleh...

Lap swim hours were long over, so I hopped on the stationary bike and cranked out 17 miles in just over an hour. I was pouring sweat and felt crummy, probably because of the extremely fatty food in my system. I followed it up with some free weights. According to the machine, I burned just under 700 calories on the bike, probably enough to cover half the meal I ate earlier in the day. Yuck....

Total distance: 17 miles cycling

One more day

I seriously can't take my mind off Saturday's race. I've been having a hard time focusing on anything else during the past few days and today Gords told me about some crappy news. A nasty wind storm is forecasted for Saturday morning and winds could reach 40+ miles per hour. Gords and Josh were forced to cancel the 8-mile race and bump the 1-mile race up to 9 a.m. instead of noon. I feel really bad for all of those who were training for the 8-mile race. Few non-swimmers don't really understand how much work and how many hours go into training for something like that and I'm sure it was a devastating blow for the 15 athletes who were registered for it.

I was already nervous the weather would negatively impact my ability to top my time from last year and I'm trying to stay positive. I figure if I can beat my time in stormy water conditions, perhaps it will feel more rewarding, even if it is only by one second.

Anyway, I went to the gym to get some work in on the stationary bike, but it was in use, so instead, I used the treadmill. I set it to a slow 3.5 miles per hour, but cranked up the incline every two minutes. That made me work up a serious sweat after about 10-15 minutes and it was just as intense as a good hike. I called it at exactly 30 minutes. My calves were certainly feeling the burn. After that, I did some light ab work, but no weights. I'm trying to give my upper body a break.

Tonight will consist of ice, ibuprofen and more ice. Tomorrow will consist of more of the same along with rest, hydration and carbohydrate loading. My goal is to drink an entire gallon of water at my desk while at work tomorrow night and load up on fruits and veggies.

Total distance: 1.6 miles (running, or hiking, or walking or whatever you wanna call it)

Just say no to the Marshall White Center

Today was just a disaster day for swimming. I met Jen for sushi early in the afternoon and we totally pigged out. I felt guilty and went to the Marshall White Center to swim some of it off, because I missed the Roy lap swim hours.

Almost immediately, I realized why I hate swimming there. It's a filthy, smelly facility, but I was able to look past that for an hour or so in the pool. However, when I was in the pool the chlorine content was so ridiculously high, that I had cotton mouth within 10 minutes. Last summer, their pool ate through a brand new jammer in just two swims. It's like acid in that pool and no matter how much I scrubbed, I can still feel it on my skin, burning, even now.

On top of that, there were a dozen or so kids swimming around in the pool during lap swim hours and the lifeguard didn't bother to tell them to stay out of the way of lap swimmers. After running into kids, twice stopping my progress, I looked at the lifeguard like, "Hey! What the hell is going on?" She simply grinned and moved on. After running into kids two or three more times, I finally gave up and got out of the water. It frustrates me, because it's already such a crappy facility, and if they want to stay in business they can at least provide decent enough service to its customers. Ogden City has dumped thousands of dollars into that place just to keep it afloat and they shouldn't be alienating people who want to bring them business.

Never going back and I highly discourage any desperate Ogden-area swimmers from going there. It just isn't worth it.

Total distance: A measly 1,600 yards

Ladders and Five Guys

I was a little sluggish when I arrived at the gym this morning, but started to wake up a bit once I started my warm up in the pool. I wasn't sure on what sets I wanted to do, so once again, I kept things fresh and tried something different. I did ascending ladders. See below ...

Warm up
250 free
Core
250 free (30 seconds rest between sets)
300 free
350 free
400 free
450 free
500 free
550 free
600 free
Cool down
150 breast

I'm not sure I'll do it again, because the constant stopping slowed down my progress and I wasn't able to hit 4,000 yards before lap swim ended. I probably would have done it with ease if I just swam it all consecutively. Oh well ... lesson learned.

I don't feel guilty one stinkin' bit.

Anyway, I met Jen for lunch after my workout and totally blasted any of the calories I burned by eating at Five Guys. As always, though, it was totally worth it. Plus, I don't eat there too often so I don't feel super guilty about it. I effing LOVE Five Guys!!

Total distance: 3,800 yards

Weight-gain from vacation

I hopped on the scale this morning, suspecting I may have had a bad week in the diet department. Other than running my 10k on Saturday I spent almost five days doing nothing and eating a lot of crap while visiting my family in Las Vegas. As I feared, I gained two pounds. It may be the first time I've gained weight since I started this whole exercise deal, so I felt extra motivated to finish the week strong.

I got to the gym and found my favorite bike empty, which is a rare occurrence. So, rather than run, I didn't pass up the opportunity to use this particular machine and I went to work. The 10k run spoiled me with the low elevation, so I really felt it on the bike this morning. I only went for about 45 minutes, because I was planning on doing some ab work and calisthenics after. Once that was complete I sat in the sauna and got a real nice sweat. I don't sit in the sauna too often because I had a bad experience that sent me to the hospital once when I was 19, but today I was glad to use it. Stretching in a hot sauna feels so good and is very therapeutic for me and today was no different. I think I'll do it again tomorrow after my run and perhaps some kicks in the pool.

Total distance: 10.8 miles cycling

My 2012 exercise goals

I've put a lot of thought into what I expect from myself in 2012, so hopefully I'm not setting my standards too high. I competed in four events in 2011 and I hope to do at least six or seven this year. Most of them are swim events with a few runs and one triathlon. Of course, all of it depends on what I hear from the doctor next week regarding my shoulder. Depending on what the problem is, I may or may not require surgery, so when I can actually start swimming is up in the air.

Here are the events I absolutely plan on competing in:
Running from an Angel 10k: (10k run) Jan. 8
Salt Lake City Half Marathon: (13.4-mile run) April 16
Great Salt Lake Open Water Marathon: (1-mile swim) June 9
Deer Creek Open Water Marathon: (5k swim) Aug. 13
South Davis Masters Swim Meet: (several swims) Mid Nov.
Weber State Turkey Triathlon: (sprint triathlon) Mid-to-late Nov.

Here are the events I'd like to compete in. But I'll probably only be able to do one or two of them:
Utah Summer Games: (several swims) June 14-16
Escape from Alcatraz: (1.5 mile swim) July 28
Slam the Dam: (5-mile swim) Oct. 1
Golden Gate Bridge Open Water Swim: (1.6-mile swim) Late Oct.

I've also taken into account that other events I haven't yet discovered might pop up, so the optional events list may grow as the year goes on. I've also set many other goals for 2012, some relating to the above events, and some not, such as beating all my times from the events I participated in in 2011.

Here are my goals for exercise totals:
Swimming: 175 miles (did 107 in 2011)
Running: 300 miles (did 213 in 2011)
Cycling: 700 miles (did 303 in 2011)

I hope to lose at least 10 more pounds this year. I doubt I will be able to lose much more, based on my height and weight. My goal is to be at 170 pounds or less by the end of the year. I also want to make more strides in my diet, such as cutting out more fast food, late-night eating and sweets. I think I did a good job in 2011 of adding more fruits and veggies into my diet and I want to take that to the next level this year.

Here we go...

Recovery from sickness

Today was my first day back at the gym in almost a week. I went to the gym last Wednesday and did a 15-mile bike ride followed by some weights, but by the next day I was feeling kind of crummy. By Christmas eve I was full-blown sick. I don't know how I made it through work that night. It was the works: stuffy nose, sinus pressure, headache and sore throat. This morning was the first day that I felt I had enough energy to go work out, even though I'm still a bit stuffed up.

I looked kind of like this over Christmas weekend

I only have a week and a half left until the 10k, and I'm getting nervous that I'm not ready. I'm sure I'll be able to finish, but I highly doubt I'm going to reach my initial goal of finishing in under an hour. Today I just wanted to see what I could manage in one hour on the treadmill and I was only able to do 5.51 miles. That's about 0.75 miles short. It's OK, though. I'm still not at 100 percent and the altitude will be about 2,000 feet lower in Las Vegas. That should play in my favor. If I can finish in 65 minutes, I will be very pleased.

As per the usual, I haven't been doing very well on my food intake, but what can I say? It's the holidays. I'm not feeling too guilty about what I eat until the first day of 2012. That's when the new year starts and that's when my new diet starts. Until then, anything goes...

Total distance: 5.9 miles running (including warm up and cool down)