Before and NOW pictures! (Read 22618 times)

    Congrats on the comeback westward! We are in very similar situations, except I'm trying to break the 4 minute mile, hopefully before I turn 30, that gives me 4 years. Smile I still haven't broken 5 yet, but I'm going to give it a go next month and hope for the best. I started running again in Sept 2007 after about 4 years off. We could link each others' websites if you want! Smile Best of luck to you with your goal, I read on your site that you're only a few seconds away! Nice job! EDIT: Just found your PR section, you already broke 5!! Nice! Smile How many months did it take you from the time you started up again? Just curious because we seem to be of about the same ability and your answer will help me guage my own progress. Also, when I started up again 5 months ago, I could barely run a mile in under 9:30, what about you?
    I'd be happy to talk with you about your goals and how you might be able to reach them. Only the elite among the elites have a realistic shot at a sub 4 minute mile but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to get as fast as your training and natural ability allow you to. I'd love to hear how you've been doing thus far and what kind of training you've been doing (and plan to do) to shave minutes off of your mile time. Shoot me an email at westward13@aol.com when you get the chance.
      I know they say they have varying paces and distances. You've been there... is it true? MTA: I don't want to show up and then get dusted and be stuck running the whole time by myself. I can do that at home. But I really do want to find people local to run with. I lurk over at the CRC board, and you guys who post there seem fun.
      It is very much true about having people of varying abilities at the Saturday morning runs. The CRC training group just started back up and that's a group that's designed to help runners achieve a certain goal. Most of those runners are very new and they're trying to conquer a certain distance. There's also the Saturday morning coffee crew (Catherine, Patti, Abbey) that run around 9 minute mile pace pretty consistently. I'd recommend steering clear of the Monday night runs, though.


      Lazy idiot

        It is very much true about having people of varying abilities at the Saturday morning runs. The CRC training group just started back up and that's a group that's designed to help runners achieve a certain goal. Most of those runners are very new and they're trying to conquer a certain distance. There's also the Saturday morning coffee crew (Catherine, Patti, Abbey) that run around 9 minute mile pace pretty consistently. I'd recommend steering clear of the Monday night runs, though.
        9 minute miles sounds about right for me. I've heard Mondays are brutal. I will gladly stay on my own for those.

        Tick tock


        Just Be

          I'd be happy to talk with you about your goals and how you might be able to reach them. Only the elite among the elites have a realistic shot at a sub 4 minute mile but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to get as fast as your training and natural ability allow you to. I'd love to hear how you've been doing thus far and what kind of training you've been doing (and plan to do) to shave minutes off of your mile time. Shoot me an email at westward13@aol.com when you get the chance.
          Thanks. Smile Email sent!


          Life is Good

            2005 at my peek....omg!Photobucket and 2006 and still losing:Photobucket

            Run 1000 miles

            bike 500 miles

            finish a half Ironman triathlon

            Warrior dash 2012

            Chickamauga battlefield half 2012

            and a few small races in between


            Lazy idiot

              Awesome job, Jamie!

              Tick tock


              Another Passion

                Great job, Jamie! You better send out a search party to find the half of you that was lost! Shocked Where was the top picture taken?

                Rick
                "The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare." - Juma Ikangaa
                "I wanna go fast." Ricky Bobby
                runningforcassy.blogspot.com

                  That's incredible progess in only 1 year, Jamie! Keep up the great work!!
                    westward13, looking good dude (musk-cles on them legs!). I hope you consulted you wife before losing a quarter of yourself Wink aka giving her a little less to love Big grin. rvelich, yeah I thought I'd put the half marathon off last year.... now I'm signed up for a full also... which I hope turns out to be a dream...
                    Thanks, Modal. Unfortunately, the wife isn't as pleased with the weight loss as I've been and she definitely doesn't understand the whole running thing. You know that when you order a black and tan, it's supposed to be half Guinness and half Bass, right? Looks like you've got a pint of Guinness in one hand and a pint of Bass in the other! Big grin
                      Jamie, awesome work! Everyone here is amazing! Smile
                      JakeKnight


                        2005 at my peek....omg!Photobucket and 2006 and still losing:Photobucket
                        I love three things about this post: 1) The dog; 2) The fact that you actually lost so much weight that the size of the picture is different. That's hilarious. Your wide butt couldn't have even fit in the lower picture's frame; 3) And the MSU t-shirt in the first one. You probably can't wear it anymore, so I hope you got a new one. There are altogether too many Ann Arborites in this forum; East Lansing has to represent. Go green, go white, etc. We gotta stick together. By the way - did you lose the weight to get a job in law enforcement, or were you already doing that? I'm guessing from the stripes you were already in. Is the dog your partner? Just curious. Forgive my nosy questions. I do that.

                        E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
                        -----------------------------

                        JakeKnight


                          Jamie, awesome work! Everyone here is amazing! Smile
                          Indeed. This has long been my very favorite thread at RA. I make a point of avoiding it for a while, so people can add new stuff, and then I open it up again like its a present on Christmas morning. This thread inspires me more than a thousand Olympic marathoners could ever do. You guys should all be proud of yourselves, but you really also ought to recognize what you do for the rest of us. It's truly a privilege to watch your progress.

                          E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
                          -----------------------------

                          JakeKnight


                            Thanks Eddy! Losing the weight definitely helped to improve my racing times quite a bit. Before losing it, I used to struggle to run a 5k in 21-22 minutes. Now I'm running a 5k around 17:30 or so and hope to break 17 sometime this year.
                            You and Eddy are both amazing. Your weight loss may not have been as dramatic, but you're still almost unrecognizable in the second picture. Your times (both of you) are so amazing that I'm considering packing on 50 pounds on purpose. Apparently getting chubby and then losing it makes you wicked fast. Do you recommend beer or pizza - or both? Should I be doing any pre-eating stretches? You guys should probably write a book on the topic. You'd make millions. Suggested title: "Get Fat, Get Skinny, Get Fast."

                            E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
                            -----------------------------

                              Wow, Jamie, that's fantastic!!
                              2009: BQ?


                              Slow-smooth-fast

                                You and Eddy are both amazing. Your weight loss may not have been as dramatic, but you're still almost unrecognizable in the second picture. Your times (both of you) are so amazing that I'm considering packing on 50 pounds on purpose. Apparently getting chubby and then losing it makes you wicked fast. Do you recommend beer or pizza - or both? Should I be doing any pre-eating stretches? You guys should probably write a book on the topic. You'd make millions. Suggested title: "Get Fat, Get Skinny, Get Fast."
                                sounds good, I actually could probably write a book with all the shit I know about dieting. I would have to go for kebab over pizza btw.

                                "I've been following Eddy's improvement over the last two years on this site, and it's been pretty dang solid. Sure the weekly mileage has been up and down, but over the long haul he's getting out the door and has turned himself into quite a runner. He's only now just figuring out his potential. Consistency in running is measured in years, not weeks. And over the last couple of years, Eddy's made great strides" Jeff 14 Jan 2009