PLEASE READ

I am in the process of changing some things to the My Living Energy website, in order to get a fresh start on it after having it for 2 years now (and still growing). I'm adding some services, changed the logo a little bit, I plan to have a few things for purchase online etc...

One thing that I may or may not change is the My Living Energy blog. I will leave this posting up until Christmas - If you read my blog regularly and would like to see me continue it in the new year, please leave a comment on this message posting. If I don't have many comments, My Living Energy Blog will stop come January '09.

Thanks so much and keep visiting www.mylivingenergy.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

:o)

Busy times

My apologies to my loyal Living Energy Blog readers... Life has been busy (but good of course) . My schedule is jammed at work, and family life is busy as always with my two girls and my wife.

Lots has been going on though in the way of fitness and health (both in my life and in my experiences with clients etc...) Keep watching my blog! Updates will be coming soon!

Also watch for some changes to the mylivingenergy.com website very soon!

Articles no more....

For almost 2 years, I have written articles for the local Quinte area newspaper, The Shield. All of those articles have been posted on the mylivingenergy.com website. Unfortunately, I have made the tough decision to stop writing articles for the newspaper.

Times are getting busier and busier, and the less on my mind the better for concentrating on my family and my work. It was an excellent opportunity for me, and my articles were read by so many people in the Quinte area it was incredible! A special thanks to all those at the Shield newspaper. I truly am grateful.

My Half-Marathon Experience

Well, it happened. I did my first half-marathon. To be honest, it was all I had hoped it would be. Exciting, nerve-racking, memorable, fun... and of course, a great workout.

My chip/final time was 2hrs 2 minutes. I was shooting for around 2hrs so I was happy with that result. I ran at a heart rate higher than I normally run, so I was pleased with that as well. However, due to my lack of training after the birth of my little girl (approx. 5-6wks off) I was not running the pace I can. But I was still satisfied with what I had accomplished.

The important part for me was having family and friends there to support me. My wife, two daughters, my dad, my sister and my close friend were all there to cheer me on. Along with others who knew me from work, sports etc... It was awesome!

I would totally recommend people try the half-marathon experience. Whether you do it for speed or just the experience, just do it! It's nothing you could imagine. The way the spectators support you as you run by (all throughout the race) is incredible! The adrenaline push from that is undescribable.

So I did it! I accomplished the goal I had set earlier in 2008 and did it with total success in my books! And that's what's important!

My next goal for next fall is to participate in the CN Tower run for United Way. Running up the 120 something stories of stairs at the CN tower! Wow! It'll be different, tough but just as rewarding in my books! :o)

Sometimes you just get lucky...

The day after posting my unfortunate story about not being able to run in the actual half-marathon this coming sunday, luck hit me!

I was telling my unfortunate story to a few co-workers that morning. Then one of my clients (who is a huge marathoner - she runs in Boston each year, and does others throughout the year), came in so I had to tell her my unfortunate turn of events. Well, she immediately insisted that I have to do the marathon itself (for the experience) and that she'd even pay it for me. I said no way - I don't want to do that to her. She argued with me about it, and insisted I take her offer... So after a few minutes of this, I gave in. She gave me her credit card right then and there, made me go online and signed me up. Wow!

So - I'm back to running it as planned. My wife was dissappointed when we decided it'd be too hard financially, because she knows this was a goal of mine, and she knows how hard I worked (before my baby was born ...LOL) So it was an unexpected and incredible gift! You can't beat that.

It's a perk of a fitness professional's job; working with people. You meet so many fantastic people who give their kindness even when they really don't have to. It's also an added motivator to go have fun, and enjoy being there! :o)

My 3 week cleanse has begun

I started my cleanse officially this past Saturday. So far so good... (fingers crossed). The cleanse involves eating more closely to the way we were designed to eat. NO processed garbage, NO additives etc... Just as natural as possible.

My cleanse does not involve any supplements either. Just food! :o) And good food too!

This is my first cleanse ever... so I'll keep my readers posted on how it goes. :o)

Life and procrastination don't mix!

My how life slaps you in the face sometimes! Procrastination can not only make you rush things but also can make you lose out on things too.

I procrastinated too long with registering for the half marathon, that now it would cost $90 to run it this coming Sunday. As someone who is just doing this to complete it (as my goal), $90 is a heck of a lot of money to spend on something, when I really can do it for free. That however was not the main issue - the main issue is life. Bills to pay, mouths to feed, and other activities that made registering take a back seat.

Once we looked at the big picture though (financially) it just isn't feesable to run the race on Sunday in Picton. :o( BUT - that doesn't mean I won't run a half-marathon. I worked really hard this summer for this (except since my baby's birth) to let this go now. So my plan is to still run 21.1km (my farthest distance ever) this coming Sunday. The unfortunate part is, I won't have as many family and friends there to support me in the big race, but after getting over the fact that I financially couldn't participate in the half-marathon, I asked myself; "what is the main reason I'm doing this?" My answer; "to complete a half-marathon". So... that's what I'm going to do!!!!!!

When life and/or your own procrastination slaps you in the face... slap it back!!!!

Half-Marathon is next weekend!

Well, my goal to run in a half marathon is coming very soon! Next Sunday, October 5th is the big day. Wow! I'll be honest though, my run training has slacked the past 4-5wks unfortunately. With the birth of my little girl, and my grandfather passing away it's taken a toll on my conditioning. Thankfully, my resistance training hasn't been hit as hard. And thankfully I still have my sports to keep me active.

So this past weekend I knew I had to get a long run in again to get back into things. I looked at my training plan and it was the day to run 20 km. I've never run 20km. So I did it... My lungs felt great, my head was in the right state of mind; but my legs were sore during parts of the run.

The first 6km was a bit tough - just waiting for that second wind. From around 6.5km-8km mark, I felt great! Then looking at my watch I noticed my time was where I wanted it to be. So that boosted me from that point through to the 14km mark. Around 14-16km my legs really kicked in, and I started to feel them getting more sore. But I pulled through, knowing there was only 4 km left. I looked at the watch and cranked up the pace for the last 4km. My final 1.5km was a fast pace run to finish hard. It felt so great in the end. My longest run ever! YEAH! :o)

My legs were sore the rest of the day and the next day, but now they're almost back to normal. Training resumes today with some resistance and a lighter run. Plus, I've started working with Michelle Meilleur of Living Well Nutrition (at work) and I'm starting my cleanse in a day or two. I can't wait! It's going to be great! :o) I'll keep everyone posted on how things pan out over the next few weeks with the marathon and cleanse!