Day 100. 100 Days. No matter how you put it, give me a second to celebrate before we press on for the next almost-100 days. I’ve learned a lot about myself over this time. Some good, some needing improvement, but the bottom line is that I’m growing, learning, and running in the right direction.

Growing — A lot of small steps, consistently over time, will undoubtedly make a difference. The key word being consistent. To a lot of people, these are just words on a page so you want proof … let’s take a look at the numbers.

1st Training Run 8+ Miles (06-10-2013)

Most Recent 8+ Miles (09-22-2013)

Small step after small step which has morphed into long stride after long stride, I’ve shaved off 2 minutes and 50 seconds at this distance. And notably, I’m not running every day. Nearly 3 minutes per mile less and that was only my 24th training run.

Is it too early to imagine what the next 24 training runs can do? Could I possibly be a 6-minute-miler? I’ll answer my own question and say, Too Early! Never was one of my goals and it doesn’t mesh with my current and original goal of running my first marathon. But, don’t tell anybody, seeing these numbers, it is now a post-marathon goal.

Learning — Life lesson #100 — Freely celebrate your milestones, but don’t let your milestones become stumbling blocks. In other words, celebrate but don’t get lazy. This will make sense to anybody that has ever said, “Wow, I can’t believe I finished that (fill-in-the-blank), I deserve a break.” In my personal jog journey, I’ve caught myself a few times saying, “I just ran my personal best time at the required distance … it’s okay to take a few days off.” Be careful not to get too comfortable in your goals — some of the most successful people share this quality … celebrate rarely, but grind daily.

What I’ve Learned. Consistent, regular training is key, but if you don’t get the proper nutrition, you’ll burn out. 100 days in now, I can say that Herbalife24 Prolong and Herbalife24 Hydrate are certainly doing as advertised. I can go longer, or “Prolonger” because of the combination of my nutrition and exercise. I started adding Herbalife Niteworks about 2 weeks ago and my pre-run routine has stepped its game up. The key … whatever activity you do, your nutrition is just as important.

Morning weight = 171.5

Today’s Meals:

Meal 1 — 8:15am

Meal 2 — 12:30pm

Meal 3 — 7:30pm

Snacktime – Meal 2.1, Ritter Sport 1:15pm. Meal 2.2, Homemade Banana Split Cupcake 2:50pm. Meal 2.3, Buttered Popcorn 4:30pm. It was a snack kind of day!

Meal 3 — 7:30pm

Today’s Activities:

• Rest days are good days.

Tuesday, 09-17-2013