Change will be forced upon us. It's going to happen.

‎"When you look at the curves it's just clear how unsustainable it is......Change will be forced upon us. It's going to happen. It would just be nice to do it in a considerate fashion earlier, rather than waiting for the crisis that's coming our way." 

My race training has led me to search out information on anything from the technical aspects of running equipment to specific training techniques as well as excercise and nutrition ... just to mention a few.  One of these inquiries ran me right into an article on "Paleo Nutrition" ... and after doing more investigation and looking into the possible benefits & risks, I decided to subject myself to a 30-day trial period ...

http://robbwolf.com/faq/

That 30-period of living without cereals/grains/legumes/dairy and starchy foods began on Dec. 15, 2010 ... and has stuck until the present.

My running has improved,  my training levels increased, and recovery times diminished.  My speed/pace have also benefitted from this change.  Funny thing, the more I look into it, the more it starts popping up all around  ... Could it be that we're becoming more aware of something that is fundamental and increasingly urgent in our society, or am I just more acutely aware of topics which I can relate directly to my current readings?  (right now I'm dissecting "The Paleo Diet for Athletes" by Loren Cordain and Joe Friel)

Take a look at what aired on NPR's "Fresh Air" today ... it's echos so many points put forth in the aforementioned book ... crazy!  (Listent to the "on-air" story ... 13mins and worth listening to ... very interesting stuff)

http://www.npr.org/2011/03/24/132745785/how-western-diets-are-making-the-world-sick?sc=fb&cc=fp

BARCELONA Cursa del Bombers 2011 (Fireman's Race)

On April 10th, 2011 I'm going to finally break my 40-minute 10k mark...

http://www.cursabombers.com/

I've been chasing this goal on and off for some time now and coming within minutes, seconds and even as close ase strides of achieving it yet never I've nailed it down ..
This year it's NOT going to get away from me! I'm going to bring in my first SUB-40min 10k race!

Too bad you can't be there to compete too, the registration just closed ... 20,000 participants strong!

It's going to be good ... REALLY GOOD!

Just 200meters from the finish line! ... Barcelona Marathon 6 March 2011

Wow! I've never felt so good just 200m away from the finish line! My training must be going great!

Just kidding ... the volunteer work went great. I was assigned to the elite tent where I had to work my language skills to help organize and guide the elite runners (primarily the Kenyans) who were out in numbers and on a mission. The 21 year-old Levi Matebo Omari won this year's edition with a whopping 2:07:31 ... just ONE SECOND over the course record set last year (2:07:30) ... The race was inspirational, albeit a bit difficult to be "on the sidelines", but I had decided it'd be better to sit this one out and really focus on getting set for my next one ... Berlin - September 25th.

I've been in contact with my coach Patrick McCrann from Marathon Nation (http://www.marathonnation.us/) and I'm getting ready to work up to the challenge. In the meantime I'll be training and representin' my "virtual team" as best as possible and trying to sport my Marathon Nation duds when/wherever need be (see pics).

More to follow soon .... I gotta run!
Ryan

Test Insert Video - "NOA's TATOOS"

I wanted to try inserting a video into the blog ... via email posts ...
Here it is.

Up and over Tibidabo ... almost....

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/70016030?sms_ss=email&at_xt=4d6be63ecf82c7c1%2C0
I took it "uphill" on Friday ... and conquered Tibidabo ...
I think this one is going to become a monthly fitness test (or
personal challenge) for me ...
Whew!

Back on track ... almost ...

I'm trying to figure out how to link my Garmin to my blog so you can follow my progress ... New York is behind me, and spring is right around the corner ... I've decided to pass up the Barcelona Marathon this year as a runner and give it my all as a volunteer ... I think I've decided to set my sites on Berlin in September ...

I'm still trying to get myself to sign up ... and start the countdown ... there's less than 31 weeks left until the starting gun, so I better get my act together.  Hopefully this blog will remain up-to-date and that way I can cronicle my progress and share the experience of getting prepared from the "get go" right up to the race.

Here's just a sample of my latest training runs ... to give you an idea of what kind of shape I'm in before I kick in my Marathon Nation training plan ... I hope to keep y'all updated ... Look out Berlin!

Upper Half DIAGONAL - Barcelona by ryan.mingo at Garmin Connect - Details

A "MESSI" SITUATION

I'm BACK! ... And I did it even faster than Barcelona's Messi ... but then again, if you look at that photo, he's dealing with something a little more "heavy duty" than I am ...

I cranked out some KM's last night (I know, you're asking now, "why does he keep running at night??!! ... you'd think that a little scare like that would set him on a better path" ...) Well, there are several reasons.  Here's a couple I can think of right off the top of my head:
 
  1. My days are filled with work, kids, "real life", etc ...
  2. The daytime streets are filled with scary cars, clueless pedestrians (and tourists) and lots of automobile exhaust .... (cough cough)
  3.  I save money on sunscreen.
  4.  .... because Ray says so ... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4rG4GRTVB4&feature=related)

So I did some slow, some fast and some quality KM's ... and today my ankle's a little sore, but I'm in no way in pain.  Today's (or should I say tonight's) workout is INTERVALS ... we'll see how that goes ... I'll let y'all know ...