As anyone who has seen my goals knows one of the things I've been trying to do this year is qualify for the Boston Marathon.  For a guy my age that means running a marathon in 3:10 or less or about 7 minutes a mile.  A good chunk of in-shape people can run a 7 minute mile.  Stringing together 26 of them in a row is a little more difficult. :)

Yesterday I ran the California International Marathon in Sacramento and thought I had a really good chance to qualify.  I've been training with the support of a "virtual coach" named Matt Forsman (a.k.a. Marathon Matt) who sends me an e-mail training schedule each week and gives me a call once a week to see how things are going.  I'd HIGHLY recommend using Marathon Matt (or someone like him) if you're training for a specific running goal. 

I felt well-trained going into the race but in the end I couldn't quite pull off the time.  I had muscle spasms around mile 20 or 21 and around mile 25 my legs locked up entirely forcing me to stop for about a minute and let the spasms subside.  I've had this same thing happen to me in the last three marathons I've ran and I think it's related to something called benign fasciculation syndrome which I'm pretty sure I have (my muscles fire constantly throughout the day...not harmful but definitely annoying).  Gonna go see a sports medicine doc about that soon because I plan to keep doing endurance sports throughout my life and want to get this thing figured out.  The wierdest thing was finishing the race and not really feeling all that tired.  Had it not been for the muscles spasming I have little doubt that I would have achieved my goal as I wasn't very fatigued or winded up until the final few miles.

On the whole though it was a good day.  I shaved over 10 minutes off my PR, running a 3:22 despite walking/shuffling/race-walking most of the last few miles.  I got to run with my brother David (who ran a 3:33 which was also a PR!) and even though we've now ran 8 marathons between us this was the first one we did together.  The course was great, the fans were enthusiastic and the weather was beautiful.  All in all, I enjoyed the experience even if the ending wasn't quite what I was hoping for.

So I'm going to give my body a bit of a break for the next few months but I plan to be back with a new running goal soon (more on that in a bit...).  If anyone out there hasn't ran a marathon yet and is thinking about it I'd highly recommend it.  As Lance Armstrong recently said after his 1st marathon, it's probably the toughest physical thing you'll ever go through but it's definitely worth it.  Regardless of how you do the feeling you get when you cross that finish line is an amazing one! 

For those of you who would like to run a marathon someday let me close this out by offering five tips:

1.  Find a coach, good training partner or running club - Running can be a solitary sport and while that's not always a bad thing it definitely helps to have some to motivate you and hold you accountable.  I really enjoyed having a coach but if that's not your cup of tea then look for a running club in your area or find a good training partner.

2.  Work on your form - Many people who run have really bad form and are setting themselves up for injuries down the road.  In fact, a lot of people can't run marathons or don't think they can because of past injuries from running.  I read the book Chi Running and it had a dramatic influence on my form.  I'm not quite where I want to be yet but am close and have been able to train relatively injury-free.

3.  Cross-train - Matt had me on a schedule where I never ran two days consecutively and I really liked this.  On my "off days" I would either do 90 minutes of yoga or ride the bike for an hour or so.  Even if your form is good running can take a toll on the body and it's good to give yourself frequent breaks.  My body definitely felt a lot better through the training process than it had in the past.

4.  Audio learn - OK, this one is a bit self-serving but one of the reasons why I enjoy running so much is it gives me the chance to listen to an audiobook or some podcasts.  So it can be both a mental and physical workout at the same time.  If you're looking for a place to start audio learning you can check out my site LearnOutLoud.  I know that there were many times where I couldn't wait for my workout because I had something cool lined up to listen to that day.

5.  Have fun - So many people view working out as a chore but at least for me when I have a goal lined up it ends up being a lot of fun.  As I was telling a friend on Friday, even if you're not sure you can run one sign up for a marathon a year out or so and see what happens.  Just by having a date on the calendar you'll start making better choices about diet, working out, etc.  And have fun while you are training by mixing up partners and workouts, running some shorter races, betting your friends you can do it, etc.

Best of luck to anyone and everyone who enjoys running whether you're looking to complete your first 5K or win the Boston Marathon.  It's a great way to stay in shape, meet new people and test your own limits. 

So I'm not vegan (yet) but I'm gravitating more and more to veggie/vegan principles in my diet.  I guess one of the reasons why I haven't gone full-out vegan is that it seems pretty tough to incorporate veganism into a busy lifestyle.  I have no doubt that people can do it but it does seem to me that most of the people I know who are vegan either spend a lot of time in the kitchen and/or limit themselves to the small number of vegan restaurants that are out there.  I'm not really interested in doing either at this point in my life...

Anyway, I have found some great options for vegan eating on the go so I thought I'd share.  After all, now that they found a link between high IQ and a vegan/vegetarian diet I figured this might be of interest. :)

Baja Bud's - Most burrito joints allow to get a vegan burrito and since you can guac and other fun stuff these taste pretty good.  My personal fav is Baja Bud's here in LA which makes a tasty and cheap burrito that kicks the pants of La Salsa and Baja Fresh.  Chipotle is also delish although there isn't one close to us. :(

Subway - Just recently I starting eating foot-long veggie subs (w/no cheese).  I used to do turkey breast or chicken but to be honest I don't miss the meat all that much.  The key for me is Jalapeno peppers which give the sandwich an extra bit of kick plus a little oil and salt and pepper.  Throw it all on honey oat bread (for some extra fiber) and you've got yourself a quick, tasty and cheap (under $5) meal that'll fill you up.

Wolfgang Puck - While it's pretty tough to find anything vegan here you can opt for their yummy linguine with garlic and basil.  Skip the parmesan cheese and you have a healthy and tasty vegan entree.  Throw in a side salad too if you're feeling it.

So those are a few of my staples that are only a block away from the office.  I'd love to hear any other suggestions people have for good, cheap vegan eats on the go!

...that our elders don't inspire us as much as they did in previous generations...

It's too bad that our elders are out of touch with what is going on in our generation and what's popular these days...

It's too bad that our elders all fall into the stereotype of people sitting around doing nothing or hitting the golf course...

Oh wait...


Awesome.

P.S.  I can't wait to see my last remaining grandparent in a few days and after watching a video like this really miss my grandparents who have passed on...

I've mentioned Steve Pavlina a few times because I think this guy totally rocks.  Here's a really amazing chart:


The red line is the Alexa traffic numbers for tonyrobbins.com and the blue line is the Alexa traffic numbers for stevepavlina.com.  As you can Tony's site has been largely flat or in slight decline this year.  Steve's site is growing like wildfire.

This isn't to say that Tony isn't still very popular but he doesn't seem to have adapted all that well to this new world we're entering.  Steve is out blogging, podcasting, etc. and really becoming a key personal development guru for a whole new generation.

I'm not sure you'll see Steve Pavlina getting people to walk across burning coals anytime soon but he is definitely a guy to keep your eye on.  One of the New Gurus! ;)

Just sent this to about 200 of my closest friends and family members and thought I'd share here as well...

Hey all.  First of all, I wanted to wish everyone a late Merry Christmas and an early Happy New Year!  I hope you are all enjoying your time with family and friends and re-charging for 2007. 

I wanted to take just a minute to share a couple of really amazing organizations with you.  I’ve been incredibly impressed by the positive impact they are having in the world and if you have a few free minutes this week I’d encourage you to check them out.

Room to Read – During my time back in Minneapolis I read the remarkable book Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.  It’s the story of John Wood, a former high-powered Microsoft executive who gave up an enviable lifestyle to dedicate his life to making universal education available to children in developing nations.  Since 2000, John’s non-profit Room to Read has established over 3,000 libraries and touched the lives of over one million children.  I’d definitely recommend the book and am a big believer in what his organization is doing.

Kiva – Kiva was one of my favorite discoveries this year.  It’s a non-profit organization that allows individuals to make micro-loans to entrepreneurs in third world countries.  The great part about Kiva is that they are empowering people to create economic futures for themselves rather than just making people depending on government aid or charity.  You can make loans in amounts as little as $25 and choose who you’d like to loan the money to (e.g., I loaned money to a man in Uganda named Richard who is starting a movie theatre).  To learn more about Kiva, watch this Frontline video or listen to this Venture Voice podcast.

If you’re looking for a way to help make the world a better place in 2007 I can’t think of two more worthy organizations to give your resources to. 

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t give a big shout-out to my buddies Kareem and Sundeep who introduced me to these organizations (Sundeep donates a significant chunk of his valuable time to Kiva as their Marketing Director!).

Best wishes to all of you in the New Year and may it be your best year ever.

-J

From the last paragraph of the amazing must-read book Leaving Microsoft to Change the World:

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once wrote about Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, "If all the musicians in the world played this piece simultaneously, the planet would go off its axis."

Human beings never think for themselves, they find it too uncomfortable. For the most part, members of our species simply repeat what they are told--and become upset if they are exposed to any different view. The characteristic human trait is not awareness but conformity, and the characteristic result is religious warfare. Other animals fight for territory or food; but, uniquely in the animal kingdom, human beings fight for their 'beliefs.' The reason is that beliefs guide behavior, which has evolutionary importance among human beings. But at a time when our behavior may well lead us to extinction, I see no reason to assume we have any awareness at all. We are stubborn, self-destructive conformists. Any other view of our species is just a self-congratulatory delusion.

-Michael Crichton, The Lost World

From this cool blog post (thanks Ranjit!)

This might be the most important news story of the year.

Crowds of Pupils but Little Else in African Schools

Here's to changing the world and providing hope in the New Year.

A very good one methinks...

I'm surprised to see such resistance to eating clones. If you're OK eating animals in the first place, cloning seems like it would be a relatively minor issue. more

Wow. 

The Blaze Man

Dealing with BFS this year has much made me much more attuned to what people with ALS go through (often people with BFS first think they have ALS...).  To do an Ironman after being diagnosed with ALS?  It's almost incomprehensible.