From a tub of GOO, to Marathon FINISHER! In just 1 year! - ThinnerTimes - Gastric Bypass Forum, Lap Band Forum, and Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy Forum

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:11 PM

What an incredible year this has been. Well, actually it has been 13 months, but close enough. Some good and some bad. But overall, I can not believe the amazing transformation of me inside and out.

I decided to pursue WLS in March of 2008 when I felt like all was hopeless. I wasn't having much luck with diets and my weight was becoming a big issue. I was starting to have heart problems and also borderline diabetes and high blood pressure. My doctor said if I didn't make some changes soon, I was going to suffer the same fate as my father & grandfather, which is a life I did not want to live.

In August of 2008 I had my surgery. At this time, I could hardly go up a flight of stairs or run 25 yards. I felt like I would pass out. Ever movement I made I did it after thinking about it first. "Will that chair hold me?" "If I step off this step, will I keep my balance.." etc.

Here's a before pic. Yikes.

While I was still in the hospital recovering from surgery, my wife decides to leave me. That is a whole drama story in itself. I will spare you the agony, but it was for the best. Tough road for me, though, to recover from surgery with just my 12 yr old son to help me out. But I am a winner. And I will keep my spirits and head up the best I can. Moving onward.

So, just 3 weeks later, I decide to get out and start exercising. How about a hike? Sounds good. There are lots of places to hike around Portland so I decided to hike Beacon Rock. Wow! It was slow going, but my son and I made it to the top! It was an exhilarating feeling seeing the Columbia River Gorge from here.

Pic of my son and I at the top.

Then, probably the most amazing thing happened. I met a special friend at a WLS support group meeting. She could see that I needed some help with nutrition and advice so she helped me out. She had been through the surgery in May 2008, so she was someone that understood what I was gonig through.

I started exercising by playing volleyball with the other guys at work. This was something I would just watch from the sidelines before surgery, but now I was playing and doing pretty good. I loved volleyball as a kid and I was amazed at how well I was getting around. This was feeling terrific!

My sister, bless her heart, is a runner and is always exercising. She signed me up for the 5K Jingle Bell Run in Portland in December. Ugh! Sister! She said, "come on, it will be fun, we can run it together." Well, I am a very competitive person and I wasn't about to let my sister beat me at this event. So I'd better get to training. She got me hooked up with a beginner's 5K training program and also took me to a running store to get some real shoes. I was used to paying $25 for shoes from Payless Shoe Source. But at this running store I had my gait analyzed and about 4 different measurements taken and they pulled out some $110 running shoes! They felt awesome from the moment I put them on. I reluctantly paid the $110, swearing these would be the last pair of expensive shoes I ever buy.

The training program was going pretty good, I was up to running a quarter of a mile, then a mile and after about a month I was up to 2 miles. The progression was nice and slow and it was at a pace where I could still hold a conversation while running. I didn't want to over do it.

For other training I was also swimming, playing basketball and doing some core work. Oh I forgot to mention, all of my running up to this point has been exclusively on a treadmill. Lower impact. When I made the transition to terrafirma, I still took it very easy.

Continued...

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:13 PM

So the day of the Jingle Bell run came. I had been training pretty well and being so competitive I told my sis that we should try to break the 30 minute barrier for the 5K. She about freaked when I told her, because she runs about a 10:30/mile pace. Well, we would just see how we did.

We had an absolute blast running through Portland. The crowds were terrific and so were the other runners. It was great. Our finish time was 30:54, we just missed the 30 minute mark. Oh well. We tried. We had to walk a short part of the route.

Here are some pics:
My sis and I

Run, run, run

All done!

So I was seeing quite a transformation in my body and my positive attitude towards permanent lifestyle changes. I was thrilled with the great feeling exercising was giving me. Wow!

During the winter time, my son was going snowboarding and in the past I would just send him with my sister and I would stay home. Well not anymore! I used to ski when I was younger (and thinner). So after watching him shred down the slopes a couple of times, I said, "heck with it, I want to strap on some skis!" So I spontaneously rented some skis and was in awe at how amazing it was to be back doing something I enjoyed.

We went several times over the winter and I was shocked that it was usually my son who would poop out first! Awe come on, son! Just one more time! We were having lots of fun.

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:14 PM

Next up was a big step for me. An indoor triathlon. My ultimate goal was to complete a sprint distance triathlon sometime in my life. Well, my first opportunity to get some experience was an indoor tri sponsored by the parks & rec. It would encompass a 20 minute swim, 20 minute exercise bike and 20 minute treadmill run. A participant would go as far as they could in those 20 minutes. Okay, lets do this!

I was super psyched on race morning. I was the first one to show up to the event! Oops! So I spent a lot of time waiting around for my start time. So into the water I went and swam just over a half-mile, then onto the stationary bike where I pumped out 7.3 miles and finally onto the treadmill where I cranked out 2.0 miles. I was spent! But I felt terrific!

Pics
Aquaman

Pedal, pedal, pedal!

"I was running"

Woohoo!

So what was next? My sister was lucky to get an entry into the 2009 Hood to Coast Relay run from Mt. Hood to Seaside, Oregon 197 miles away. Her team was doing training runs in the winter and their mileage was a lot more than what I was used to. But not to be a wuss, I went along. We did 3 milers, 4 milers and 5 milers. They ran in great locations along trails, lakes or rivers and the social atmosphere was great. Running with friends is always better.

My sister, bless her heart, signed me up for the Shamrock Run in March. Great, another 5K! Yes! She burst my bubble by informing me she signed us up for the 8K (5 miles) instead! Ugh! Are you kidding me? Time to really do some training.

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:14 PM

For this event, because it was so freaking long, I wasn't going to have a time goal. Just go out and have fun. It was pouring down rain but that didn't dampen our spirits. The crowd was awesome. Lots of people in the event and on the course. Crazy people everywhere. We finished the 5 miles in 52:58. Alright, not too bad.

My sister is a nut

So golly, gee, what is next? I realized I needed to keep setting goals for myself to help with the motivation to continue to exrercise and train. My true ultimate goal is to complete an Ironman triathlon. Yes, you know, a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and then a full 26.2 marathon. That is a huge event and I didn't even know if there have been any WLS patients finish one. So part of that event is a marathon. Before I committed to doing an event like this I should at least have a marathon under my belt. So I chose the Portland Marathon in October and also signed up with the Portland Marathon Clinic. They offer a full comprehensive training program with seminars, group runs, coaching and a training plan. Perfect.

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:15 PM

So, while I was training for the marathon, I also had set my sights on another life-long goal...to climb a mountain. A group of us from the WLS support group and even my doctor and some of the staff came along and we climbed Mt. St. Helens the end of May. Holy moses! What an amazing feeling. My sister and my girlfriend were there, too. In many ways we all carried each other along the way. It was very difficult, but we kept supporting each other all the way to the top.

My awesome doctor:

Here's some of us

Heading to the top!

Summit!

Hey, we're not done yet, folks. What could be next? How about a sprint triathlon 2 weeks later? A sprint distance triathlon is 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike and 5K run. Oh goodness. Here we go. I had an awesome time, just soaking in the experience. It was very difficult, but I did very well for my first time. Swim 16:05, Bike 36:34 and Run 30:11 (that is faster than the Jingle Bell Run).

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:15 PM

Again, my sister was there

Out of the water!

Getting off the bike

It hurts to run!

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:16 PM

Into the finish!

Wow! That was awesome! My girlfriend was supportive of these events. She was there to cheer me on, which was awesome. She is still new to exercising and stuff, but she had her own success over the summer. She completed back to back half-marathons! She even walked/jogged the events. In back to back weekends, I thought this was insanse. But she did it and I was very proud of her.

During the month of June I had the chance to go checkout the Ironman Coeur d'Alene event in Idaho. Wow! To be around triathletes from all over the world and to see the big spectacle it was amazing. I did my long training run on the same course they used for the marathon route. It was just moving to be there. I then realized that this dream of Ironman WILL COME TRUE!

Next up was an Olympic Distance Triathlon (.9 mile swim, 26 mile bike and 10K run). Oh brother. I did this event strictly to see what it would feel like to "hit the wall." You know, when your body tells you that it has had enough. That might sound strange, why in the world would someone purposely do this, but I needed to know how it felt so I could react to it.

This triathlon took me 3.5 hours to complete, but I didn't hit the wall. I kept my heartrate under control and didn't overexert myself and didn't blow up. That was an important piece of information I will need when I do events that are much longer. Awesome! Another triathlon under my belt!

My marathon training was really taking on a life of its own. We were up to our longest run of 20 miles. I was just amazed that I could run 20 miles! We then switched to speed work and continued doing 16 and 20 mile weekly runs.

My sister's Hood to Coast Relay team had a last minute opening and she needed me to fill in. I was part of a 12 man team that relayed their way to the beach. It was 36 hours of zany fun, running in all odd hours of the day and night, getting 2 hours of sleep and being in a van full of nurses made the van conversation very interesting! But we finished and I ended up running 20 miles in that weekend! Ugh!

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:16 PM

Next, I made my weight goal of 190 pounds about 3 days before my anniversary! Yeah! I was so thrilled.

Old pants don't fit like they used to

Good looking?

So the day of the marathon came. I still couldn't believe that I was going to do a marathon. There are many times when I wouldn't drive my car 26 miles and here I was going to run that far!

The event started and I immediately felt this wave of emotion come over me. It was like living a dream. I had goosebumps for most of the event, because it was such anincredible experience.

The Portland Marathon is a super fun event. Lots of volunteers and lots of people supporting you on the course. It was so much fun.

The first 10 miles or so went by really well. No pains or problems. At mile 13 I started getting a headache and realized I needed more electrolytes. At mile 16 we started our long ascent of the St. John's Bridge. Mile 21 I was starting to really feel some pain. My calves and knees hurt the most. I was also a little dizzy. I was needing to refocus on getting to the finish. I was bound and determined to finish. After mile 25 I don't remember much. I was ready to be done and was just concentrating on finishing. Finally came through the finish and what a feeling! Finish time of 4:27:47.10.

Mike&HisMotorcycle · 10-12-2009, 11:19 PM

So what is next? Come on Ironman! Hopefully in 2010!

It is so incredible, this journey I have taken. I am still in awe. I can't believe that just today I was itching to go exercise, to go move, to go do something amazing and to feel great about it.

My next big event I am going for is a Half-Ironman Triathlon at the Ironman 70.3 California event in Oceanside, CA. You bet my sister will be there with me, as well as my girlfriend and family, too. This journey ain't over, it is just revving up!

Thanks for reading.

Josephine · 10-13-2009, 01:09 AM

You are amazing and a true inspiration! You have taken this journey FAR past what most do, and I only hope that I can be even half as inspirational. I am so proud of you Mike. I know you'll complete a full Ironman. Maybe someday I will be able to say the same!! You give me hope that anything is possible. =)