Week 14: if you look like a whale.....

  the great thing about me being a whale... is that i am starting to swim like one... whoooo
i finally was able to swim up to 2 miles.. 60 laps in the pool in 1hr & 35 min.... ahhh man... that is so exciting.. now i can keep up my swim once a week, i really need to focus back in on my running & cycling.  i have not pushed my self past the 35 mile mark on the bike.. you saw last time i changed out the tires (i went to slicks) for a mountain bike that makes a huge difference.. a 30 min difference in time.. i shaved it off from 3 hours on 35 miles to 2 hours & 30 min for 35 miles...  i really have 50 in the back of my head, i really want to ride that and get it in..  that will be a goal for this next month i think.. to get in a day when i hit 50.. if i can get my speed up more i might can get to where i am doing... ever since i have had the blow out on the pedals i have not gotten in to a consistency again.. and swim days breaks that up too which is kind of crazy...  i am going to try with a friend this week to ride 11-15 miles then run 3-4... and the run will be from a point A to a point B.  so i think that will be fun to do.... i am excited about not running in a circle.. ha ha.. the simple things in life right...
                         Working out is so spiritual... i will not be able to say this enough.  i can not being to tell you how i really enjoy the alone time and prayer time when i ride or swim or run... but i can't begin to tell you how terrible of a mental attack that it is as well.  i forever am getting slammed with just random thoughts of Sin through out my work outs, and i have to some times just focus on one thing about God..  right now i always come back to the four Cherubim who surround the throne.  and they praise God saying, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God almighty who was, and is, and is to come."     some times i have to refocus, or what Paul says, "capture our thoughts" or what i say...." tie them up, and pray they sink to the bottom of the pool".. ha ha...
               hey it's not easy but keep trying...  Don't give up, keep moving forward..  please know that i have not gotten to where i am... i stared with just riding my bike 3 loops a day where i lived.. that was only 2.4 miles then i would walk 2 loops.. but i did that 6 days a week..  yeah i had a sick day, or my pedals were blown out, or i was insane for getting out in the weather that i got out in, or no way am i getting out in that kind of weather.. ha ha..  just..... don't.... quit.....  i may not reach iron man this year.. but maybe next year.. but i will reach it... right????    right!!!!!  catch up with you more soon.. thank you for the comments, the post, the repost, the tweets, and the likes on Facebook. yall are some great friends to have, and prayerfully you know that you are not the only one where you are.. we are in this to-gather.

          Scotty (great red giant)... ha ha 
             

Week 9 & 10 unplanned rest.... it helps sometimes :0)

  Warm up: wow, it has been incredible feeling to get to a point where I can ride a bike 20 miles in 1hr & 45 min.  i know, i know it still slow right,  but i remember when it almost took me 3 hours to ride 20 miles.   I pushed for 40 miles last week but because of my work scheduled i could only hit 34.97... i know i know .03 short of 35.. ha ha. that's what happens when you Mile tracker is in you pants and not mounted on your bike.. so for your newbies out there... the soon you can get it mounted on to you bike, the less time you will have recorder like i have of being short of a goal you were trying to reach.. my mistakes may become your wisdom :)
         Advertise something:... Ha ha Check out Map my Fitness it is a great place to log you work outs, it can sync with you heart rater monitors, smart phones, and you can edit from a Real web site when you get back home to you computer. I really like the app end of it..
      
               Experience: The Past two weeks i have experienced two days of late nights for Good reason, (Having a Foxy wife) spending quality time with the family, but in the process it left me with 2 consecutive weeks of no activity, bummer? actually not really... yes i didn't get any work out it, but when i picked up the Day after those 2 extra days of rest.. i felt incredible and picked up major momentum in my Times in what i did.  but i really had to push my self on that third day, and with the help of my wife sometimes, "as i hit the floor" to get out of Bed and really keep after it. It was easy to think, "what am i doing, should i get up?"  the answer is Yes...  yes get you lazy bum out of that bed an push your self to get dressed, quit draggin you bottom and hurry get some protein in you body and some water and start on time...
      
My Tips: one of the biggest things helping me right now is getting ready the night before.... laying out the clothes, checking my bike my, my shoes, my coat, my heart strap.. checking the weather for the next morning...Getting food & Drink ready.... Ect....  I also encourage you to start taking some time of looking out what morning foods are best for you before you start your work out.. for me peanut-butter & honey... just as is.. i use do at least a table spoon of each mixed to gather really good, and eat it just like that.. mmmmm
      
  Spiritual:  last but not least.. prayer time has been great...  i pray about what i should pray about.. i know it sounds weird right, but how else are you suppose to pray when you want to pray about the things you want God for you to pray about???? you ask him.. so that is what i do...  one of the things for me lately that i have really enjoyed focusing on is God himself.. the 4 angels around the throne.... "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God almighty who was, and is, and is to come"  there is something about saying that phrase out loud.....
         i am  not going to lie to you... i don't start glowing, and i don't sprout wings when i say that.. matter of fact my mind usually can not stay focused for long and i start fighting my sinful thoughts about things that same to race into my head even more so then my ability to take time and just Focus on God... it gets down right  sad some times... how in one minute i be really wanting to worship my Creator of the heavens and earth, and in the next flash be so consumed with thoughts of selfishness, sinfulness, failures...  The War within ourselves continues to rage on right... just know as i continue to battle to through these things in my own life, that your not alone..  we all have things we have to fight against, things we have to try to work through and prayerfully some day overcome.. i know, i know, it seams like we never will be able to but we will, and if for some reason we always struggle with it.. when God calls us home we can rest in peace knowing for sure, God will not allow to pursue us any more.. it will be finished.. and prayerfully our not giving up in the small battles even though we get whipped some times... we will not loose the war..  we know this.. God has show us the end.. he over comes and makes a place for us.. so don't give up, don't give in, and continue to push for another day to fight, to love, to give joy, to give assistance too, to empower, and to change the lives of those who are around us through the mercy & grace that has been so compassionately bestowed upon us the sinners. 
   come on get up, lets not quit, one more Lamp post we can make it, one more mile you can do it, one more mail box before we got to walking, one more lap in the pool, one more person that receives that can find the gift of mercy & forgiveness in you.... in us.. with God's help we can do this.. don't....... give...... up...... come on............................................

Rhythm, Rain, crazy train, and a blow out

Crazzy Trains this morning, I get back to that in a minute...
I felt great today.. I got more in a rhythm today I think.. 2nd day of my 14 mile route and at the half way point I wanted to go more.. I had to hold myself back... Although I Pushed a .8 out of it...(14.8) and I ha to remember I don't want to quit, I want to be consistent.. Even with two traffic stops for crossing roads or trafficked lights and taking off my glasses for the pouring rain this morning,, I still shaved 1 mints off the rout.. Pulled a 6 minute mile average speed 10mph.. I was excited to go further and shave a minute off my time..
Conditions This was the whole reason I moved to north and south.. The wind was strong this morning..: the Rain was coming Down, and it was awsome...
train man as I come in close to the last mile there is a train crossing.. Well the trains decided to through a Kim in my plan and I had to hit the river park area.. Roads at more narrow and this broke my Rhythm a litte which was the
Most annoying thing.. Oils field traffic is thick down here for sure..
blow out on my shoes of all places.. It's my oldes pair of shoes I had I my arsenal.. A good friend of mine gave them too me.. It was funny and it was in my after walk ride(which will turn into a run later I my training) I was walking and though I had stepped on a big drink bottle, it was kind of dark, could not Belive I missed it.. But ok... Ha ha come back around for my second lap and what did I see... The bottom of my shoe.... Ha ha ha ha had those shoes since 2004... Thanks Scott they were a great lasting gift...
last but not least, the spiritual aspect on the last of my second lap this morning I felt like the Holy Spirit really allowed me to focus on God and express gratitude towards him and praise him in a way I have not gotten to in a while.. It was verry refreshing and memorable time.
Don't quit, don't give up.. Keep moving forward.. It's about consistantcy in what you are doing, don't worry the more you practice the better you will get, and then the more you will be Able to do...
Merry Christmas....

4th week kick off 14.1miles

Man   do i feel like a million dollars... grrrr,
         it was hard, it took me longer then i wanted to, i wanted to almost get off the bike once, and i thought, "you can't get off your bike, you some kind of sissy" ha ha... i beat myself verbally back into it, sang some Kids hymns & Christmas songs "Jesus is the Rock of My salvation, His banner over me is love"   & pushed.... grrrr it was a push for me too,  and i ended up doing 14.1 instead of 12 for what i planned... i wanted to make sure i got 12 in didn't want to risk it, so i pushed passed another hill just to make sure...
         can't wait to see what tomorrow holds.. it's a great day.. now how home to the family after some work... and let my body get some rest and get ready to do at least the 14.1 again... i am excited...
          don't give up, don't quit... 
if you have a chance go to  http://www.mapmywalk.com/profile/11295424/ and check out it's free app and is awesome... friend me and lets encourage each other... 
have a great night everyone.... Merrrrrrry Chrissssttttmasssssss!
Scotty