Much ado about clothing

I find myself in a happy muddle over clothes (no, it's okay I have some on), having shrunk 20lbs or more in the last 10 weeks I have to consider my wardrobe. It isn't that I am a 'fashonista' or even particularly self conscious about style, it is simply that my stuff is all... a bit... big. There are a few options that sprung to mind: (1) get rid and start over, (2) adapt and make do, (3) do nothing in case this is all an anomaly. The middle option seems the most prudent and sensible. I can't help but feel there will be a steady flow of my clothes heading to the charity shops over coming weeks / months.

Perhaps my biggest concern is buying for now and then having to buy again. Case in point, I brought new jeans a little over two weeks ago and I am already finding that they might be getting loose. This is I suppose where a number 3 type option could be useful in an adapted form... do nothing until I am sure I have found my natural plateau and THEN buy new stuff. I am not used to this level of thought about clothes (call it a 'man' thing if you wish) and I am finding it all oddly stressful. Yes, I have lost weight before, but no not in such a concerted way as to have created this dilemma (previously I've lost this kind of weight over 10 months plus not 10 weeks plus!).

Whatever I do about it, the best thing about this period has been that as I get on with training or catch myself in the mirror I could swear I feel / look younger.

PS. I will try to remember to update my weight graph this weekend to give a 'scale' to the cause of the above ado.

Swansea Bay 10k - family day out

Sunday saw the family travel across to Swansea to watch Mrs. Taffi run the 10k race. It was a lovely day weather wise, and the organisation of the event was second to none. Sadly Mrs. Taffi was suffering a full on and stinking cold. She set out feeling very unsure of her run strategy and then during the run suffered a couple of further set backs (most notably her ipod shuffle dying somewhere the half way mark). In the end she came in in a time just around 1hr 3min, bettering her PR by 4mins (that seems to be catching in our house) and doing brilliantly considering the gods of luck were working against her somewhat.

It is the first 10k race that I remember watching and it was really quite an experience. Watching the leaders coming in was a sight to behold for a confirmed plodder, they move so freely and with such speed. The event was won by a Kenyan, Edwin Kipkorir (who I think was a previous winner). The stream of runner that built up behind was amazing to watch. Everyone with there own style, facial expression, apparent motivation. I was taken by the gradual change in the runners as the finish time ticked onwards towards the hour and beyond. It was clear that although you might look at someone and guess their time, it is no real indicator of their potential time. I know have great hopes of improving my PR next year having seen guys of my frame blitzing to good times.

Mrs. Taffi is now recovering from both run and cold, and I think also looking forward to next year. She really wants to find out how she can do when everything goes 'right'... yes, that is right... she is addicted ;-)

Not long to the Cardiff Half-marathon now, and the two of us are getting excited in our own different ways. I am off for an hours easy run later, trying to convince myself that I can truly make 9min/mile the new 10min/mile and perhaps begin to move slowly towards the speeds needed to run like the 10k in 45min runners?!?!

PS. I hope to hear about the London Marathon Ballot in just over a week, having never been this run fit and not having been lighter in the last ten years... I am even more excited than I have been in past ballots. Lets hope this one does not turn out like the others... #desperatetogetinthisyear

Win win!!

Okay so I haven't blogged a lot lately, but happily I have been working on good news.

myfitnesspal.com - my progress chart.

After finishing the Cardiff 10k having smashed my PR.

The evidence is in the two pictures above. I think from my captions you can already see why I am currently a happy bunny. My progress with weight has lead me to an all time low for this century (ahem!), which meant I met my goal of 14 stone (196lbs). Happily I am feeling so good on losing the weight that I have revised my target and am hoping to park myself in the middle of my BMI (body mass index) range... eventually.

The second picture is from after my half-marathon warm up event, the Cardiff 10K. I set out with the knowledge that I had beaten my competition PR in training, and hoped to see if I could add to that benchmark. Happily I beat my old competition PR by over 4minutes and came in at 53min 4sec. I am quietly hopefully of a PR in the half-marathon next month. These two pictures are I believe totally linked, it is not simply that I have gotten stronger following the half-marathon training plan, it must be because I am so much lighter that contributed hugely. At the end of the 10K race I found I had a Usian Bolt-like sprint finish in me that I hope implies I had stamina in reserve for the longer distance (though perhaps I was kicking myself that I could have paced myself to a faster 10K PR).

Off the back of the 10K I signed up for the 2012 Bath Half-marathon next March. It seems I am developing a habit of entering new races the day after completing another! My thinking was that if (and it is a huge 'if') I make it through the London Marathon ballot this time around then I would need a half race around then to progress training for the big one. If I don't get through to London then it is a fabulous run to do anyway from what people tell me?

All is well, and I am off to get my kit on for what looks like being a very wet training run - overcast, steady rain, moderate to gusty wind.

Fantastic, absolutely brilliant weigh in - under 200lbs (90kg)

I am totally over the moon with recent weight progress, fuelled by running training and also the calorie counting I have managed a great personal landmark. For the first time in this century, in well over ten years, I weigh less than 200lbs (90kg). It has been a long time coming a goal that often looked in reach only to slip away (usually around a Christmas period). The very real challenge now is to keep the good work up so that I get a little below 14stone and then keep it there!

Next week I'll be tackling the Cardiff 10k race. It will be very interesting to see if I can improve on my personal best. I have a plan for how to run it, but having just come back from holiday I am not sure I've done enough recent running training (apologies for the break in blogging).