October 31 will be my last day in San Francisco. I plan to be living in LA by November 1.
For the first time in my life I feel like my life has a purpose. I believe that I was placed on this earth in order to make a difference in people’s lives. For a long time I thought being part of Residential Life was the way for me to accomplish that but boy was I wrong. While I definitely touched the lives of some of my students, I know deep down that the difference I am making in my client’s lives as their trainer is so much more significant. I am helping people realize they are stronger and better than they ever thought they were. I am teaching them that life is worth living! I am showing them how living a healthy lifestyle is worth more than all the negative thoughts holding them back.
As such, I feel like there are bigger things in store for me, but I honestly believe I need to be in LA in order for those things to happen. Recently, I had applied to be a trainer on Live Big With Ali Vincent. For those of you who live under a rock, Ali Vincent was the first female winner on The Biggest Loser and went on to become one of the most inspirational “Losers” ever to walk across the BL stage. When I saw she was looking for a team of trainers to help her on her show, I jumped at the chance and submitted my application. I thought with my BL connections, that maybe I’d have a better chance at getting chosen. I reached out to a few of my BL friends and asked them to put in a good word for me with Ali. But let’s be honest, I think my track record speaks for itself. I did train the last TWO at-home winners after all! Plus, I’m a frickin IRONMAN!!! Who better to help inspire someone to take back their life by losing 100+ lbs?! However, in order to be considered for the show, I had to be in LA. Unfortunately for me, I live a few hundred miles north of LA in good ole San Francisco. But this was exactly the wakeup call I needed to make a decision that I have been wrestling with for almost a year now: Am I ready to leave San Francisco and move to LA? Well, clearly you know my decision.
So the decision has been made. As of October 31, I will be stepping down from management and going back to being a full time trainer. I just feel that if I am going to continue on the path I want to be on, it’s time to step down from management and do what I am truly passionate about: TRAIN! Here’s the way I see it… The people I look up to most in my field (Bob Harper, Jillian Michaels, Chris Powell, etc) are not successful because they are amazing managers, they’re successful because they’re amazing TRAINERS!!! I may not be an inspiration to millions of people yet, but I am just as talented as they are so WHY NOT ME?! Why can’t I be the next trainer to make it big?! So, here I am, 2 months away from moving to LA to follow my dreams! I want to inspire a nation that has accepted an unhealthy lifestyle and show them that there is so much more to life! It’s out there, you just have to believe in yourself and trust the process. It’s that simple.
I definitely have a few words for many of my friends here in San Francisco:
Dave – Oh Dave, what would the last two years have been like without you? You will forever be my ghost client but in the best way possible!
Elizabeth – How many “breaks” have you taken? Yet you always come crawling back for more! Unfortunately now it’s my turn to take a “break” from you :( I will train you again, remember that! Oh, and you WILL run a FULL Marathon one day!!
Tessa – Oh Tessa, how you have grown over the years! When we first met, you constantly cancelled on me and didn’t take anything I said seriously. But that all changed and now you’re one of my best clients! It has been a true pleasure training you these last two years and I know that you will continue to train at such a high level, and YOU WILL RUN A FULL MARATHON ONE DAY!!
Brandon - I've had a lot of fun training you! You just keep taking my beatings and coming back for more! Thank you for allowing me to be your trainer, and thank you for following me from Marathon Plaza to Van Ness! I'm gonna miss kicking your ass every week!
Brianne – Oh how I’m going to miss you, but to be honest, I’m not at all worried about you. Since the day I met you, you have truly changed. You no longer question me when I tell you to do something. The day you came in for that tabata treadmill workout and I put it at a 7.0 and said it was staying there for 4 minutes, you just jumped on and started running! No hesitation, no question, just hard work! I have so much faith and belief in you! And I think this is where I say, you will be running the LA marathon with me in March. It’s only 7 months away so get ready! And guess where it starts? Oh yeah, with the US Half Marathon in November! While I won’t be here to run it with you, I know you can do it! And I know you WILL do it! Trust the process, girl, trust the effing process!
Cara – I think you are the one person who has surprised me most. When Brianne first reached out to me, I knew this journey was something that she wanted. Asking for help is always the hardest part and that’s what she did. But then she told me she had a sister who also needed help losing weight and I thought, “okay, let’s get her in here!” I sensed a lot of hesitation from you at the beginning. Scared to run on the treadmill if it was too fast (even though sometimes you still hold on when I know you don’t need to!), scared to run a half marathon, scared you’d never lose weight because you kept plateauing, etc. But since January, you have completely turned things around! Right around mile 12 (you know which mile I’m talking about), you started taking control of this process instead of letting it control you! I no longer sense that fear in you! Even if you plateau, you don’t let it push you back, you just keep moving forward! As much as you want the number on the scale to keep moving down, I truly believe that you know it’s not about that number anymore. It’s about living a healthy lifestyle no matter what the scale says. For that reason, I know you will continue on this journey even after I move to LA.
Landon – It’s been an absolute blast training you these last few months! You are someone who took control of her life long before you ever met me and that’s what makes you so incredibly awesome, but you allowed me to help push you to a whole new level! You are a rock star, plain and simple!
Courtney Crozier – You’re just awesome! I don’t think I’ve ever met a more selfless and giving person in my life! Thank you for being so incredibly wonderful and thank you for believing in me. That’s all :)
Tara Costa – Had I not met you, I probably never would have registered for that Ironman. Well, at least not as soon as I did. You inspired me to register for it YEARS before I ever imagined myself registering for one. And crossing the finish line made me realize that I am capable of so much more than I ever dreamed possible! Finishing an Ironman gave me the courage to do what I’m doing so thank you for being such an inspiration!
Ali Vincent – I think I might actually owe you the biggest thanks of all! Had you not reached out for a team of trainers, I probably never would have made the decision I did. By moving to LA, I will be fulfilling my dreams of LIVING BIG, so THANK YOU!!!
Mike Messina – My man Mike! You came into my life at exactly the right time! After I had trained Jen, I was amazed at everything I had accomplished but was left doubting whether or not it was just a fluke. I mean, she won but by only 4 lbs! After learning from my experience with Jen, I was able to truly perfect my craft and use everything I have learned about nutrition and fitness to help you win. And not just win but KILL IT!! I am so honored and grateful that you allowed me to train you. You helped me realize just how great of a trainer I truly am! You showed me that I truly know what I’m doing and that I have a real gift! I’m not just helping people lose weight, but I am changing their lives! You are a totally different person today from the person I met 7 months ago! Yeah, can you believe it’s only been 7 months?! You are an amazing human being and great things are in store for you!
Dan - OMG how I'm going to miss you! You're the reason I've become the athlete I am! How am I going to continue on my journey without you?! Who will keep me injury free with all the abuse I subject my body to? You have no idea how much you amaze me! This will not be the end for us, but just the beginning! I still have many more Ironman's to compete in and I need to run an ultra marathon one day! I will be calling upon your services again one day soon!
Raquel – Oh Raquel, I owe so much to you. You believed in me before I truly believed in myself. When I first became a trainer, I only did it because I needed to make some money until I figured out my next move. You helped me realize that being a trainer WAS my next move. Introducing me to Jen made me realize that this is what I am destined to do. I’m a life changer but so are you because you changed my life. There truly are no words to express my appreciation and gratitude to you. Thank you for that and thank you for you :)
Elisabeth Meany – You know everything that happens to me in LA is all thanks to you! Everything I accomplish is because you pushed me to be a better trainer! You helped me realize what I was capable of. For that I will be forever grateful to you. You are my wonder twin and we WILL be the next Bob and Jillian. This I promise you! Daniel better get used to sharing you with the world because you will inspire millions one day, the same way you inspire me.
Ilona – In a lot of ways you are my scarecrow (and you know the best part of that statement, you probably don’t even know what it means, lol). If it weren’t for you, I honestly don’t know where I would be today. I mean, who else would sign up for a full marathon, and then keep signing up for them, just because someone asked you to. And who else would agree to train for an Ironman because someone else registers you for it. I don’t know who’s crazier… Me for registering or you for agreeing to train with me. I guess it really doesn’t matter since here we are. 3½ years later and look at everything we’ve accomplished together. From spin class, to the run club, to our first half marathon, to our first full marathon, to our first full Ironman. From being nothing more than mere gym buddies, to becoming friends, then roommates, and now you’re one of my best friends and the greatest fake wife ever! I will truly miss you! (crap, I’m starting to cry as I type this)
To my amazing team of trainers at Van Ness – Thank you all for being so wonderful these last 8 months! It’s been a real honor to be your Fitness Manager.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
The downside of being an Ironman...
Being an Ironman is pretty awesome, but it comes with a downside...
When I first started working as a trainer, I had no idea how truly weak I was. The first time I tried to bench press, I thought 90 lbs was going to crush me! I could barely do it. Another trainer looked me and started laughing. If you know me, I don't like being laughed at, especially for being weak! He pulled me aside and told me that as a trainer, I should be able to bench press my body weight at least 10 times without struggling. Well, when I'm given a challenge, I ALWAYS accept it! For the next 3 months I worked my ASS off strength training! Within 3 months, not only was I throwing up 135 lbs like it was nothing, I had increased my 1 rep max to 185 lbs! I had FINALLY started developing a chest and arms! I had grown about 4 inches between my chest and arms! I felt awesome about my body! For the first time in my life I felt STRONG!!!
Unfortately, I had registered for a marathon many months earlier and it was finally time for me to run it. Once again I felt weak. My marathon time had increased by 30 minutes. Ugh. I had to stop running in order to gain the size I wanted. Working out is such a double edged sword! I'm not going to write that it's impossible to be a super fast marathon runner but also have super huge muscles. It's just march harder. The amount of calories you burn training for a marathon is ridiculous so the amount you have to eat to maintain the muscle weight is a lot. At one point I was eating well over 4,000 calories a day. You'd be surprised how hard it is to eat 4,000 HEALTHY calories! Yeah, eating 4,000 calories worth of junk is easy but that's not what I want to do.
Anyway, I continued lifting after the marathon but started re-introducing running back into my routine. I didn't lose any weight but I stopped gaining. Oh well, I really liked how I looked at that point so I was okay with it. But now let's fast foward 6 months to my decision to sign up for an Ironman. Looking back, I truly had no idea what the hell I was thinking. I just thought it'd be cool to challenge myself. I had no idea what kind of training I was gonna need to do!
After the first few months I started realizing that I had to focus more on swimming, biking, and running, than on maintaining my upper body strength. So I pretty much stopped strength training except once a week. While my swimming and biking got A LOT stronger, my ability to lift heavy got weaker and weaker. I felt it but at the time I really didn't care. I just wanted to become an Ironman so badly! I finally reached my goal last weekend. Yay, right? Well, yes, YAY! I'm beyond proud of myself for everything I accomplished, but now it's time to step back and re-evaluate my fitness goals. I wanted to see exactly how far I had fallen so today I got back on the bench press just to see where I was at. It wasn't pretty. Started with 90 lbs. Not too bad. Did 10 reps pretty easy. Through on 20 more lbs. 115, NOPE!! Could barely throw up 6 reps before I felt like I was being crushed! NOT OKAY!!!
So, after testing my strength, I walked downstairs, bought 20 training sessions (I still had 4 sessions left from before the Ironman) and starting Tomorrow I plan to start lifting 4x a week for the next 6 weeks and hopefully I'll be able to get back up to benching my body weight 10x. My ultimate goal is to get back up to benching 155 lbs 10x plus gain about 5-10 lbs of muscle but that'll probably happen over 12-16 weeks.
So to sum up, being an Ironman is AWESOME! Being weak SUCKS! Thanks for reading :)
When I first started working as a trainer, I had no idea how truly weak I was. The first time I tried to bench press, I thought 90 lbs was going to crush me! I could barely do it. Another trainer looked me and started laughing. If you know me, I don't like being laughed at, especially for being weak! He pulled me aside and told me that as a trainer, I should be able to bench press my body weight at least 10 times without struggling. Well, when I'm given a challenge, I ALWAYS accept it! For the next 3 months I worked my ASS off strength training! Within 3 months, not only was I throwing up 135 lbs like it was nothing, I had increased my 1 rep max to 185 lbs! I had FINALLY started developing a chest and arms! I had grown about 4 inches between my chest and arms! I felt awesome about my body! For the first time in my life I felt STRONG!!!
Unfortately, I had registered for a marathon many months earlier and it was finally time for me to run it. Once again I felt weak. My marathon time had increased by 30 minutes. Ugh. I had to stop running in order to gain the size I wanted. Working out is such a double edged sword! I'm not going to write that it's impossible to be a super fast marathon runner but also have super huge muscles. It's just march harder. The amount of calories you burn training for a marathon is ridiculous so the amount you have to eat to maintain the muscle weight is a lot. At one point I was eating well over 4,000 calories a day. You'd be surprised how hard it is to eat 4,000 HEALTHY calories! Yeah, eating 4,000 calories worth of junk is easy but that's not what I want to do.
Anyway, I continued lifting after the marathon but started re-introducing running back into my routine. I didn't lose any weight but I stopped gaining. Oh well, I really liked how I looked at that point so I was okay with it. But now let's fast foward 6 months to my decision to sign up for an Ironman. Looking back, I truly had no idea what the hell I was thinking. I just thought it'd be cool to challenge myself. I had no idea what kind of training I was gonna need to do!
After the first few months I started realizing that I had to focus more on swimming, biking, and running, than on maintaining my upper body strength. So I pretty much stopped strength training except once a week. While my swimming and biking got A LOT stronger, my ability to lift heavy got weaker and weaker. I felt it but at the time I really didn't care. I just wanted to become an Ironman so badly! I finally reached my goal last weekend. Yay, right? Well, yes, YAY! I'm beyond proud of myself for everything I accomplished, but now it's time to step back and re-evaluate my fitness goals. I wanted to see exactly how far I had fallen so today I got back on the bench press just to see where I was at. It wasn't pretty. Started with 90 lbs. Not too bad. Did 10 reps pretty easy. Through on 20 more lbs. 115, NOPE!! Could barely throw up 6 reps before I felt like I was being crushed! NOT OKAY!!!
So, after testing my strength, I walked downstairs, bought 20 training sessions (I still had 4 sessions left from before the Ironman) and starting Tomorrow I plan to start lifting 4x a week for the next 6 weeks and hopefully I'll be able to get back up to benching my body weight 10x. My ultimate goal is to get back up to benching 155 lbs 10x plus gain about 5-10 lbs of muscle but that'll probably happen over 12-16 weeks.
So to sum up, being an Ironman is AWESOME! Being weak SUCKS! Thanks for reading :)
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Today, I am an IRONMAN!!!
2 years of running marathons + 7 months of intense triathlon training + having the passion and desire = Becoming an Ironman!
I'm not even sure where to begin. The last 2 years have been such a dramatic change for me. 2 years ago I was the Assistant Director in charge of Housing at the San Francisco Art Institute. I had no idea what I was capable of and I had no dreams of being any better than I already was. I was content with being ordinary. I had no idea that the next two years of my life would involve running 6 full marathons, countless half marathons, 2 tough mudders, 1 olympic distance triathlon, training people and changing lives, and completing a full Ironman!
Today a good friend and someone who inspired me to become an endurance athlete sent me a message that said, "I am very proud of both of you. The two of you have come a long way and I am thrilled to have played a part in your achievement. Michael, you especially have come a long way since we first met." He is right. I have come a long way since I first moved to San Francisco. Everything I want in life is within my grasp. I just have to reach for it now.
First I have to say THANK YOU to the people who have inspired and pushed me the most:
1. At the top of this list I have to THANK my amazing roommate Ilona! 2.5 years ago I registered her for her first marathon and 7 months ago I registered her for her first Ironman. Most people would just tell you to EFF OFF if you told them you registered them for a marathon let alone a full ironman! But Ilona said just laughed and said, "Okay." Over the last 7 months, she frustrated me with how dedicated she was! She hired a coach and trained pretty much everyday and just about every hour she wasn't working or sleeping. Maybe if I had trained HALF as hard as she did, I might have beat her. But to Ilona I must say, thank you for understanding me, thank you for never giving up, thank you for always running by my side (except when you're running ahead of me!), and thank you for not killing me for typing in your name on the registration form! You are AMAZING!!!
2. The next THANK YOU must go to my wonder twin Elisabeth Meany! When we met, I had no idea what I was capable of! You showed me the kind of trainer I was capable of being and you showed me how strong *I* was capable of being. Competing with you to see who could kill each other more pushed me more than you will ever know! If not for you, I never would have been introduced to the Biggest Loser world! That is something I will FOREVER be grateful for. Dude, not just one but TWO at home winners! Seriously?! Anyway, it has to be said, thank you for you :)
3. Barry and Rachel need to be included in my THANK YOUs! If not for Rachel starting that run club, I NEVER would have developed a love for running and had I not developed a love for running, I never would have registered for my first marathon, I never would have become a trainer, and I never would have thought I was capable of doing an Ironman! If not for Barry pushing me in spin class every week, I never would have believed that I could cycle 112 miles! Although I now know that spinning and road cycling are TOTALLY DIFFERENT BEASTS!!!! Barry used to always tell me that I was an athlete. I never really believed him but now I do. To Barry I say, "I AM AN ATHLETE!"
4. Daniel Lord. There truly are no words to express my love for this man! My body would be a total disaster if not for Dr. Sexy! When I lived in NY, I thought it'd be fun to attempt gymnastics again. After landing wrong doing a front handspring and twisting my knee, I ended up in Physical Therapy for like 6 months! It sucked! After that I had constant knee pain and just thought I'd have that pain for the rest of my life. Dan gets a sick pleasure out of torturing me! He took this tool made by the devil himself and used it to "reshape" my knee. I'm still not quite sure what that means but whatever it mean, I no longer suffer from knee pain. If it weren't for Dan, I honestly don't think I could have completed 6 full marathons or the Ironman! I truly owe the health of my joints and bones to Dan!
5. I also must thank Megan Collins. To you I say THANK YOU for seeing something in me when I didn't see it in myself. When I first started as a trainer, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. But you took me under your wing and showed me what being a trainer was all about. You never gave me a hard time for "stealing" each and every one of your workouts, many of which I still use today! You pointed out ALL of my weaknesses as a trainer but helped me to overcome them! You took my droopy hip pushups, corrected my form, strengthened my chest, and never let me look like a damn fool at the gym!
6. My two Biggest Loser Winners, Jen and Mike! Even though Jen chooses not to speak to me anymore for reasons I still don't understand, I cannot discount all the joy and happiness she brought into my life. She introduced me to a world I had longed to be part of! And if not for Jen, I never would have met Mike! Mike turned out to be a blessing in disguise! Jen was totally obsessed with Bob Harper, almost in an unhealthy way, so if information about food or exercise didn't come from Bob (or Dr. H), she really didn't listen to it. But Mike didn't really get a chance to know Bob or Dolvett. When he met me, he was a blank canvas and I was able to turn him into my masterpiece! If I told him to eat, he ate. If I told him to run, he ran! If I told him to rest, he rested. And clearly what I told him worked since he not only lost MORE weight and percentage of body weight than Jen, he also won! He showed me how hardwork and dedication can truly pay off and change your life! Jen may have lost weight, but she really didn't change on the inside. She doesn't know how to trust and that's just sad. Mike lost weight but also became a whole new person! He is someone I truly call a friend and the day I made him run that half marathon after really not having trained for it (I still can't believe he was actually willing to run it!) is the same day I knew I could complete an Ironman. I mean, if this guy who was still 80 lbs overweight was capable of running 13.1 miles without stopping to walk once, then certainly someone like me who was in far better shape could do an Ironman. Thank you to Mike for believing in me and allowing me to help you win the Biggest Loser. I may have already been in training mode for the Ironman when we met, but you helped me realize that I could truly do it!
7. Last but not least, I must THANK Raquel Engelund! Your belief in me has truly changed my life. There are no words to express my gratitude to you.
Okay, enough with the thank yous! Let me get give you a blow by blow of the Ironman weekend! The alarm went off at 3:30am. I took a quick shower, got dressed, and packed up the car. We arrived to the starting line at around 5am and dropped off our bikes and started to get ready for the swim. We got our wetsuits on and went for a quick 3 minute dip in the river. The announcer called out, “Wave 1 get ready, Wave 2 in the corral” (I was in Wave 2). After Wave 1 started, all Wave 2 participants had to enter the water. For some insane reason I thought it would be smart to start at the front of my wave. HUGE MISTAKE!!! When Wave 2 started, I got trampled in the water! At one point I even got kicked in the face! It was HORRIBLE!!! I kinda thought I wasn’t gonna make it. I started to panic! But I stopped for a second and told myself, “Michael, you’ve already done this exact swim twice before, YOU CAN DO IT!!” So I just started swimming and tried not to think about the hundreds of swimmers in front of me, next to me, and behind me. It must’ve worked because I finished in 1 hour and 22 minutes! Talk about shocked and confused! My worst event when I started training ended up being my strongest!
After I got out of the water, I ran to my bike, ripped off my wetsuit, dried off the best I could, and just hopped on my bike and started cycling! I wasn’t really paying attention to what was going on. I was just peddling. I figured with 112 miles ahead of me, it was best to just let my mind go blank. I tried to make sure I drank an entire bottle of Gatorade and had at least 3-4 shot blocks before reaching each of the aid stations. At mile 75, I had to stop and use the bathroom. I wanted to hold it but I figured going poop would make the remaining 37 miles more enjoyable, which it did! It was crazy, throughout the ride I kept looking for Ilona. I kinda thought she’d pass me up by mile 20 because she’s a much faster cyclist than I am. However, with the 10 minute head start I had plus the 13 minutes faster in the swim I was than her, she ended up not being able to catch me until about the 95 mile mark! I am actually really glad she caught me though. It forced me to speed up to keep up with her. She helped get me to the 112 mile mark at least 10-20 minutes faster than I would have alone.
Which brings us to the full marathon! This was by far the worst marathon I’ve ever done! Ilona and I were going to run it together but it took my feet about a mile for them to realize they weren’t on a bike anymore. Ilona didn’t want to wait for my feet to realize it was time to run so she just took off without me. Big surprise, I know! Haha! As for the run, it was painful, hard, and I walked a good portion of it! I definitely utilized a run/walk strategy. I would tell myself, walk to the mailbox and then run to the aid station. Walk to the fence, then run to the aid station. Luckily I started talking to this guy, Jarie. He was 41 and it was his first Ironman as well. I think we met shortly after mile 1 and pretty much kept each other company for just about the entire marathon. We helped push each other. Honestly, if it weren’t for him, I probably would’ve walked the entire thing. As we were starting the 2nd half of the 2nd loop, which was also the halfway mark, he pointed out the time and that we could still finish in under 14 hours. This was the exact motivation I needed to push through the pain and pick up my pace! After passing the 2nd loop, it was on! I made to the turn around and started sprinting! Well, what I would define as a sprint at mile 22 of the marathon portion of an Ironman, haha! My normal sprint is probably a 6-min mile pace. My sprint during the ironman was closer to a 10-min mile pace! I told Jarie around mile 25.5 that I was going for it and started running like the wind! Right around mile 25.9 I was seriously ready to collapse and started walking. Someone running behind me yelled at me, “SERIOUSLY?! THIS IS WHERE YOU CHOOSE TO WALK?!” I wanted to flip him off but he was right! I was so close I couldn’t stop there so I said to myself, “YOU DON’T STOP WHEN YOU’RE TIRED, YOU STOP WHEN YOU’RE DONE, DAMN IT!!!!!!” And I started running again and didn’t stop until I heard them say, “MICHAEL FRIEDMAN, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!”
Biggest highlights of the day:
1. Beating Ilona in the swim! I was thrilled to have a 10-minute head start because I thought she would beat me in every segment of the Ironman.
2. Staying ahead of Ilona for the first 95 miles of the bike ride! (Can you tell I'm competitive, haha)
3. Completing the swim in 1 hour and 38 minutes FASTER than I thought I would.
4. Getting to the 2nd loop of the bike ride by 11:30am and completing it by 3:10pm.
5. Meeting Jarie during the run! Ilona said she didn't care about her time and that we'd run together. She lied! Once we started the run she took off and left me to eat her dust! If it weren't for Jarie keeping me company, I probably would have walked the entire thing! But he pointed out that we could both still finish under 14 hours if we pushed ourselves so we just ran and did our best not to stop!
6. Meeting the woman during the run whose daughter had died the previous week due to complications from diabetes. It was her only daughter and it was a like 2 weeks before her 28th birthday. Talk about inspirational! She was determined not to walk a single step of the marathon in memory of her daughter! She has more strength than I ever will!
I'm not even sure where to begin. The last 2 years have been such a dramatic change for me. 2 years ago I was the Assistant Director in charge of Housing at the San Francisco Art Institute. I had no idea what I was capable of and I had no dreams of being any better than I already was. I was content with being ordinary. I had no idea that the next two years of my life would involve running 6 full marathons, countless half marathons, 2 tough mudders, 1 olympic distance triathlon, training people and changing lives, and completing a full Ironman!
Today a good friend and someone who inspired me to become an endurance athlete sent me a message that said, "I am very proud of both of you. The two of you have come a long way and I am thrilled to have played a part in your achievement. Michael, you especially have come a long way since we first met." He is right. I have come a long way since I first moved to San Francisco. Everything I want in life is within my grasp. I just have to reach for it now.
First I have to say THANK YOU to the people who have inspired and pushed me the most:
1. At the top of this list I have to THANK my amazing roommate Ilona! 2.5 years ago I registered her for her first marathon and 7 months ago I registered her for her first Ironman. Most people would just tell you to EFF OFF if you told them you registered them for a marathon let alone a full ironman! But Ilona said just laughed and said, "Okay." Over the last 7 months, she frustrated me with how dedicated she was! She hired a coach and trained pretty much everyday and just about every hour she wasn't working or sleeping. Maybe if I had trained HALF as hard as she did, I might have beat her. But to Ilona I must say, thank you for understanding me, thank you for never giving up, thank you for always running by my side (except when you're running ahead of me!), and thank you for not killing me for typing in your name on the registration form! You are AMAZING!!!
2. The next THANK YOU must go to my wonder twin Elisabeth Meany! When we met, I had no idea what I was capable of! You showed me the kind of trainer I was capable of being and you showed me how strong *I* was capable of being. Competing with you to see who could kill each other more pushed me more than you will ever know! If not for you, I never would have been introduced to the Biggest Loser world! That is something I will FOREVER be grateful for. Dude, not just one but TWO at home winners! Seriously?! Anyway, it has to be said, thank you for you :)
3. Barry and Rachel need to be included in my THANK YOUs! If not for Rachel starting that run club, I NEVER would have developed a love for running and had I not developed a love for running, I never would have registered for my first marathon, I never would have become a trainer, and I never would have thought I was capable of doing an Ironman! If not for Barry pushing me in spin class every week, I never would have believed that I could cycle 112 miles! Although I now know that spinning and road cycling are TOTALLY DIFFERENT BEASTS!!!! Barry used to always tell me that I was an athlete. I never really believed him but now I do. To Barry I say, "I AM AN ATHLETE!"
4. Daniel Lord. There truly are no words to express my love for this man! My body would be a total disaster if not for Dr. Sexy! When I lived in NY, I thought it'd be fun to attempt gymnastics again. After landing wrong doing a front handspring and twisting my knee, I ended up in Physical Therapy for like 6 months! It sucked! After that I had constant knee pain and just thought I'd have that pain for the rest of my life. Dan gets a sick pleasure out of torturing me! He took this tool made by the devil himself and used it to "reshape" my knee. I'm still not quite sure what that means but whatever it mean, I no longer suffer from knee pain. If it weren't for Dan, I honestly don't think I could have completed 6 full marathons or the Ironman! I truly owe the health of my joints and bones to Dan!
5. I also must thank Megan Collins. To you I say THANK YOU for seeing something in me when I didn't see it in myself. When I first started as a trainer, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. But you took me under your wing and showed me what being a trainer was all about. You never gave me a hard time for "stealing" each and every one of your workouts, many of which I still use today! You pointed out ALL of my weaknesses as a trainer but helped me to overcome them! You took my droopy hip pushups, corrected my form, strengthened my chest, and never let me look like a damn fool at the gym!
6. My two Biggest Loser Winners, Jen and Mike! Even though Jen chooses not to speak to me anymore for reasons I still don't understand, I cannot discount all the joy and happiness she brought into my life. She introduced me to a world I had longed to be part of! And if not for Jen, I never would have met Mike! Mike turned out to be a blessing in disguise! Jen was totally obsessed with Bob Harper, almost in an unhealthy way, so if information about food or exercise didn't come from Bob (or Dr. H), she really didn't listen to it. But Mike didn't really get a chance to know Bob or Dolvett. When he met me, he was a blank canvas and I was able to turn him into my masterpiece! If I told him to eat, he ate. If I told him to run, he ran! If I told him to rest, he rested. And clearly what I told him worked since he not only lost MORE weight and percentage of body weight than Jen, he also won! He showed me how hardwork and dedication can truly pay off and change your life! Jen may have lost weight, but she really didn't change on the inside. She doesn't know how to trust and that's just sad. Mike lost weight but also became a whole new person! He is someone I truly call a friend and the day I made him run that half marathon after really not having trained for it (I still can't believe he was actually willing to run it!) is the same day I knew I could complete an Ironman. I mean, if this guy who was still 80 lbs overweight was capable of running 13.1 miles without stopping to walk once, then certainly someone like me who was in far better shape could do an Ironman. Thank you to Mike for believing in me and allowing me to help you win the Biggest Loser. I may have already been in training mode for the Ironman when we met, but you helped me realize that I could truly do it!
7. Last but not least, I must THANK Raquel Engelund! Your belief in me has truly changed my life. There are no words to express my gratitude to you.
Okay, enough with the thank yous! Let me get give you a blow by blow of the Ironman weekend! The alarm went off at 3:30am. I took a quick shower, got dressed, and packed up the car. We arrived to the starting line at around 5am and dropped off our bikes and started to get ready for the swim. We got our wetsuits on and went for a quick 3 minute dip in the river. The announcer called out, “Wave 1 get ready, Wave 2 in the corral” (I was in Wave 2). After Wave 1 started, all Wave 2 participants had to enter the water. For some insane reason I thought it would be smart to start at the front of my wave. HUGE MISTAKE!!! When Wave 2 started, I got trampled in the water! At one point I even got kicked in the face! It was HORRIBLE!!! I kinda thought I wasn’t gonna make it. I started to panic! But I stopped for a second and told myself, “Michael, you’ve already done this exact swim twice before, YOU CAN DO IT!!” So I just started swimming and tried not to think about the hundreds of swimmers in front of me, next to me, and behind me. It must’ve worked because I finished in 1 hour and 22 minutes! Talk about shocked and confused! My worst event when I started training ended up being my strongest!
After I got out of the water, I ran to my bike, ripped off my wetsuit, dried off the best I could, and just hopped on my bike and started cycling! I wasn’t really paying attention to what was going on. I was just peddling. I figured with 112 miles ahead of me, it was best to just let my mind go blank. I tried to make sure I drank an entire bottle of Gatorade and had at least 3-4 shot blocks before reaching each of the aid stations. At mile 75, I had to stop and use the bathroom. I wanted to hold it but I figured going poop would make the remaining 37 miles more enjoyable, which it did! It was crazy, throughout the ride I kept looking for Ilona. I kinda thought she’d pass me up by mile 20 because she’s a much faster cyclist than I am. However, with the 10 minute head start I had plus the 13 minutes faster in the swim I was than her, she ended up not being able to catch me until about the 95 mile mark! I am actually really glad she caught me though. It forced me to speed up to keep up with her. She helped get me to the 112 mile mark at least 10-20 minutes faster than I would have alone.
Which brings us to the full marathon! This was by far the worst marathon I’ve ever done! Ilona and I were going to run it together but it took my feet about a mile for them to realize they weren’t on a bike anymore. Ilona didn’t want to wait for my feet to realize it was time to run so she just took off without me. Big surprise, I know! Haha! As for the run, it was painful, hard, and I walked a good portion of it! I definitely utilized a run/walk strategy. I would tell myself, walk to the mailbox and then run to the aid station. Walk to the fence, then run to the aid station. Luckily I started talking to this guy, Jarie. He was 41 and it was his first Ironman as well. I think we met shortly after mile 1 and pretty much kept each other company for just about the entire marathon. We helped push each other. Honestly, if it weren’t for him, I probably would’ve walked the entire thing. As we were starting the 2nd half of the 2nd loop, which was also the halfway mark, he pointed out the time and that we could still finish in under 14 hours. This was the exact motivation I needed to push through the pain and pick up my pace! After passing the 2nd loop, it was on! I made to the turn around and started sprinting! Well, what I would define as a sprint at mile 22 of the marathon portion of an Ironman, haha! My normal sprint is probably a 6-min mile pace. My sprint during the ironman was closer to a 10-min mile pace! I told Jarie around mile 25.5 that I was going for it and started running like the wind! Right around mile 25.9 I was seriously ready to collapse and started walking. Someone running behind me yelled at me, “SERIOUSLY?! THIS IS WHERE YOU CHOOSE TO WALK?!” I wanted to flip him off but he was right! I was so close I couldn’t stop there so I said to myself, “YOU DON’T STOP WHEN YOU’RE TIRED, YOU STOP WHEN YOU’RE DONE, DAMN IT!!!!!!” And I started running again and didn’t stop until I heard them say, “MICHAEL FRIEDMAN, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!”
Biggest highlights of the day:
1. Beating Ilona in the swim! I was thrilled to have a 10-minute head start because I thought she would beat me in every segment of the Ironman.
2. Staying ahead of Ilona for the first 95 miles of the bike ride! (Can you tell I'm competitive, haha)
3. Completing the swim in 1 hour and 38 minutes FASTER than I thought I would.
4. Getting to the 2nd loop of the bike ride by 11:30am and completing it by 3:10pm.
5. Meeting Jarie during the run! Ilona said she didn't care about her time and that we'd run together. She lied! Once we started the run she took off and left me to eat her dust! If it weren't for Jarie keeping me company, I probably would have walked the entire thing! But he pointed out that we could both still finish under 14 hours if we pushed ourselves so we just ran and did our best not to stop!
6. Meeting the woman during the run whose daughter had died the previous week due to complications from diabetes. It was her only daughter and it was a like 2 weeks before her 28th birthday. Talk about inspirational! She was determined not to walk a single step of the marathon in memory of her daughter! She has more strength than I ever will!
Friday, July 6, 2012
Today, I am a swimmer!
The last 2 months have been absolutely crazy!
Here's what the month of May consisted of:
210.28 total miles of logged activity.
43.53 miles of running.
166.75 miles of biking. Of which one ride was a century ride and another was a half ironman distance ride.
I didn't track my swimming so you can add that into the mix as well.
Here's what the month of June consisted of:
206.13 total miles of logged activity.
53.55 miles of running. Of which one was a full marathon and then 6.2 miles were part of my first Olympic Triathlon.
136.9 of biking. Of which one was a 112 mile ride and then 24.9 miles were part of my first Olympic Triathlon.
I only logged .93 miles of swimming but I definitely swam more than that throughout the month.
So far the month of July has started out just as crazy!
It's only day 6 and I'm already at 37.84 miles.
33.58 miles of running.
4.26 miles of swimming.
I haven't logged any biking miles yet but I'll be logging a ton of miles today and this weekend.
Surprisingly, the above training is NOTHING compared to what some other Ironman training schedules look like.
Now that I've shared all of that, I definitely want to share a very happy story from this past 4th of July. While many of you were probably out enjoying the beautiful weather, BBQs, drinking lovely alcoholic beverages, enjoying the company of your friends and family, I was out in Sonoma (no, not for wine tasting unfortunately) but to swim 2.4 miles in the Russian River and then do a quick 17 mile run in the 87 deg heat. For those who know me well, you know that I HATE swimming. My form sucks, I fear putting my face under water, and I can't seem to figure out my breathing. None of that matters because of July 28 I either sink or swim! I needed to know that I can actually swim 2.4 miles prior to my Ironman so I went out to the river where the actual event will be taking place and told myself that I wasn't getting out until I swam 2.4 miles! I'm so happy I made that decision. I'm not sure how or why, but about 10 minutes into my swim, things just clicked! My technique just sorta started flowing, which allowed my breathing to slow down and actually take breaths. It was such an amazing feeling! I It took me less than 2 hours to swim 2.4 miles and I didn't freak out or panic once! I'm feeling sooo much more confident about completing this Ironman now! I honestly thought I would be disqualified before I even got out of the water but not anymore!
Which brings me to the run. On July 1 I went out to San Jose for a 2 mile swim and a 20 mile run. I swam about 1.86 miles with bad form but whatever, I still did it. What I didn't realize at the time is that the heat that day would KILL me! Never before has a run been so hard for me. My body has definitely gotten used to running in cooler climates where I don't really need to hydrate as often. At about mile 8, I just couldn't run anymore and had to start walking. Then proceeded to walk for another 6-7 miles. It was awful! I ran out of water and felt totally dehyrdated. In the back of my head I was thinking, "How the heck am I going to do this Ironman if the weather is like this?!" But then on July 4, I had learned from my mistakes and decided to hydrate more often. I came to realize then when it's that hot outside, I NEED at least 5 oz of Gatorade every mile and an electrolyte chew every 10-20 min. I ended up missing a turn during my run and ran an extra mile for a total of 18.26 miles, which I guess is a good thing since I need to run 26.2 miles on race day.
Anyway, that's a very long-winded way of saying, "Today, I am a swimmer!"
Shout Outs:
My client and friend Landon: Thank you for reminding me that it is better to not finish than not to try.
My BLR friends: Thanks for adopting me into your family! You all inspire me more than you know!
Here's what the month of May consisted of:
210.28 total miles of logged activity.
43.53 miles of running.
166.75 miles of biking. Of which one ride was a century ride and another was a half ironman distance ride.
I didn't track my swimming so you can add that into the mix as well.
Here's what the month of June consisted of:
206.13 total miles of logged activity.
53.55 miles of running. Of which one was a full marathon and then 6.2 miles were part of my first Olympic Triathlon.
136.9 of biking. Of which one was a 112 mile ride and then 24.9 miles were part of my first Olympic Triathlon.
I only logged .93 miles of swimming but I definitely swam more than that throughout the month.
So far the month of July has started out just as crazy!
It's only day 6 and I'm already at 37.84 miles.
33.58 miles of running.
4.26 miles of swimming.
I haven't logged any biking miles yet but I'll be logging a ton of miles today and this weekend.
Surprisingly, the above training is NOTHING compared to what some other Ironman training schedules look like.
Now that I've shared all of that, I definitely want to share a very happy story from this past 4th of July. While many of you were probably out enjoying the beautiful weather, BBQs, drinking lovely alcoholic beverages, enjoying the company of your friends and family, I was out in Sonoma (no, not for wine tasting unfortunately) but to swim 2.4 miles in the Russian River and then do a quick 17 mile run in the 87 deg heat. For those who know me well, you know that I HATE swimming. My form sucks, I fear putting my face under water, and I can't seem to figure out my breathing. None of that matters because of July 28 I either sink or swim! I needed to know that I can actually swim 2.4 miles prior to my Ironman so I went out to the river where the actual event will be taking place and told myself that I wasn't getting out until I swam 2.4 miles! I'm so happy I made that decision. I'm not sure how or why, but about 10 minutes into my swim, things just clicked! My technique just sorta started flowing, which allowed my breathing to slow down and actually take breaths. It was such an amazing feeling! I It took me less than 2 hours to swim 2.4 miles and I didn't freak out or panic once! I'm feeling sooo much more confident about completing this Ironman now! I honestly thought I would be disqualified before I even got out of the water but not anymore!
Which brings me to the run. On July 1 I went out to San Jose for a 2 mile swim and a 20 mile run. I swam about 1.86 miles with bad form but whatever, I still did it. What I didn't realize at the time is that the heat that day would KILL me! Never before has a run been so hard for me. My body has definitely gotten used to running in cooler climates where I don't really need to hydrate as often. At about mile 8, I just couldn't run anymore and had to start walking. Then proceeded to walk for another 6-7 miles. It was awful! I ran out of water and felt totally dehyrdated. In the back of my head I was thinking, "How the heck am I going to do this Ironman if the weather is like this?!" But then on July 4, I had learned from my mistakes and decided to hydrate more often. I came to realize then when it's that hot outside, I NEED at least 5 oz of Gatorade every mile and an electrolyte chew every 10-20 min. I ended up missing a turn during my run and ran an extra mile for a total of 18.26 miles, which I guess is a good thing since I need to run 26.2 miles on race day.
Anyway, that's a very long-winded way of saying, "Today, I am a swimmer!"
Shout Outs:
My client and friend Landon: Thank you for reminding me that it is better to not finish than not to try.
My BLR friends: Thanks for adopting me into your family! You all inspire me more than you know!
Monday, July 2, 2012
My first blog post - My journey
I finally decided to start my own blog. I feel like I have so much to say and Facebook just doesn't allow me to say it all. My goal is to help inspire at least one person to get up off their couch and start moving!
After spending the last 2-3 years of my life in hardcore training mode, I've finally come to realize that it's not about the destination that matters, it's the journey that really counts! Whether or not you cross the finish line, it truly is about trying and perhaps failing versus not even trying at all. So that's what this blog is going to be, my journey. The journey never ends, therefore you never truly have a destination. Start your journey TODAY!!!
Shout outs:
My roommate Ilona. I wouldn't be where I am without you. Thanks for everything!
My buddy Elisabeth. I wouldn't be the trainer I am today had I never met you! I miss you more than I would miss Reese's Cups if I ever decided to stop eating them, LOL!
After spending the last 2-3 years of my life in hardcore training mode, I've finally come to realize that it's not about the destination that matters, it's the journey that really counts! Whether or not you cross the finish line, it truly is about trying and perhaps failing versus not even trying at all. So that's what this blog is going to be, my journey. The journey never ends, therefore you never truly have a destination. Start your journey TODAY!!!
Shout outs:
My roommate Ilona. I wouldn't be where I am without you. Thanks for everything!
My buddy Elisabeth. I wouldn't be the trainer I am today had I never met you! I miss you more than I would miss Reese's Cups if I ever decided to stop eating them, LOL!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)