You may have noticed that the site is looking strange right now.  Thats because I’ve had to revert to one of the standard Wordpress templates after upgrading the blog.  The spammer scum have once again decided to harass me and my site even though all comments are disabled.  Hence I decided it was way past time to upgrade to the latest version of Wordpress and hope to get rid of them.

Unfortunately, with the upgrade comes upgrade issues.  The custom template I built for the site is using older functions that are no longer supported hence I have to redo the template to get things back to normal.  I’m heading out to the Carolina Hurricanes vs San Jose Sharks game right now so tomorrow Ill be able to  get into the guts of the template and have the site looking good in its old wrapper.

Its been a slow week for me as far as Livestrong Challenge training goes.  After the Run for the Oaks 5K this past Saturday the only exercise I got was my soccer game on Monday.  My legs were burning and aching pretty quick during that game by the way.  When playing indoor soccer there are really only two speeds, sitting on the sidelines and sprinting.  Thats at least the only two speeds I end up going for better or worse.  I know I’m not the best players so I try to make up for it by being in as many places as I can at once.

Since Monday Ive been locked up in the house studying for my management exam today for my MBA program.  in addition to that its been a hectic week with work since a project that was overdue just kept coughing up more kinks to be worked out and features that needed to be added.

I can honestly say that I really need to get in some running and relaxation after this week.  The good news is that the weather is outstanding and only getting better.  I’m looking forward to finally getting the old Raleigh out of mothballs and hitting the road for a long ride on Sunday.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the running now that I’ve gotten back into some semblance of shape but cycling is a lot easier on the body.

Today registration opened for the Raleigh City of Oaks Marathon here in town. Raleigh used to have its own marathon but it disappeared for several years and has now returned. I registered for it this morning, making it the first marathon I have registered for and likely the first I will participate in. There’s an outside chance of doing another between now and then but I doubt I will. The registration is $50 and limited to the first 5000 participants. The 5000 limitation is cumulative and includes both the marathon and half-marathon. This race is one month after the Austin Livestrong Challenge so Ill be in shape but possibly still pretty knackered.

Take a look at the website and sign up if you’re so inclined. Through training for the Livestrong Challenge I’ve found myself adopting a much healthier and active lifestyle and you probably will as well, if not already. Once you cross that first Livestrong Challenge finish and experience that high of completion you’ll want to get it again and again by pushing yourself further and further. It may not be a marathon but you’ll find yourself doing much more than before you started.

Raleigh City Of Oaks Marathon
http://www.cityofoaksmarathon.com/

I was watching Fit TV the other day and they had a show on called Diet Doctor or something similar.  They were going over the Atkins diet for a guy who matched up fairly well to my size and fitness level.  The guy was a cyclist who was slightly bigger than he wanted to be.  They told him to skip the induction phase, the phase everyone knows which is when you go off almost all carbs.  Most people dont realize that there’s more to the diet and you’re not supposed to do that for only a couple weeks then add carbs back in.  Anyway they told him to skip induction because he was too active to give up carbs which I though too when the show first started.

She made him a menu that he was supposed to follow which sadly I forgot most of.  Ill probably go to the website to get the diet again.  I did, however, remember the breakfast which I’ve been cooking every day.  Maybe its because my diet’s been, to be nice, a little suspect that it tastes so good.  Its pretty simple, get 3 eggs, one tomato, and some mozzarella.  Dice up the tomato and put it in a bowl and put some mozzarella in it.  Next scramble the three eggs and put it all in the bowl and mix it together.  Thats all there is to it.  I don’t know if thats what she meant but thats how I’ve been putting the ingredients together.  I look forward to waking up in the morning so I can have it.  I also make sure to use as natural of ingredients as I can which may or may not make a difference.  Organic eggs, tomatoes, and cheese.

I know not everyone likes tomatoes but if you do give it a try.

I leave tomorrow morning to head down to Daytona Florida to spend a week camping in the infield for the Daytona 500 and all the related races.  There’s little chance ill be able to access the Internet and even less that there will be anything remotely related to the Livestrong Challenge to post here.  So I hope everyone has a good week and is able to get in some training, fundraising, recovery, etc.  Ill be back and now that the weather has warmed up I should be able to start posting about my training experiences with me back on the road.

I have setup my first race by registering for the Run for the Oaks 5K in downtown Raleigh.  So come this time next month Ill be pounding pavement with the rest of the runners in the triangle.  And probably getting my a** served to me with my lack of training to this point.

See everyone around Monday or Tuesday.