Another Half Marathon!

Yes - that's right - I did it again this morning! I repeated my route from yesterday and completed another 13.1 miles. That's a full marathon, split into two parts over two days, and it's the first time I've ever done two consecutive runs of that distance.

I guess it was a little more challenging the second time around than the first, because it took me four minutes longer to complete it - 2 hours and 40 minutes today vs. 2 hours and 36 minutes yesterday. And I'm down another pound - which makes sense, since according to my Runkeeper app I've been burning about 1790+ calories per run at that distance, or almost 3600 over two days...and 3500 is what it takes to lose a pound.

Despite all the pounding, my legs and feet feel great, albeit well worked out, but I'm not going to push it any further at this time. I'm giving my running muscles a break tomorrow and am just going to take a bike ride before work. But I'm planning to resume running at the more sane level of three miles a day starting Tuesday and continuing over the next few days and am still well on my way towards earning those Margaritaville Volcano Nachos next weekend! :)

On second thought, I might just attempt another half-marathon next Saturday morning just to make sure...

Lin's Grand Buffet vs. The Half Marathon

Despite returning to work this past Wednesday, I was able to get right back on vacation for a couple of extra days and take Thursday and Friday off due to low work load. As Lynn also had the time off after returning from her recent trip to Michigan, we had the perfect opportunity last Thursday night to try out Lin's Grand China Buffet, which I recently discovered and mentioned in my October 7 post.

Wow! This place was fantastic, and we've now found a new best Chinese buffet in Phoenix. Even despite the fact that it doesn't serve crab legs, it's even better than our previous, now-closed favorite, the Great China Buffet. Unfortunately, as we live in Scottsdale and Lin's is just west of Tempe, it's quite a drive from our house - but it's still worth it. It has an equal or better food selection - and far better decor and ambiance - than Great China, at roughly the same reasonable price (about $26 for the two of us, including taxes and tip, but unfortunately not including the extra gasoline burned on the long drive). 

One aspect of this place that I really liked was that payment including tip may be made by credit card upon entry, so there's no waiting around for a check at the end of the meal, nor any feeling rushed by a check which arrives early.

And the food selection was fantastic! Every Chinese buffet item imaginable was available - fresh, excellently prepared, and well-stocked. There were even some NON-Chinese items available (this is the first time I've ever had enchiladas on a Chinese buffet). In addition to the familiar standbys such as beef with broccoli, egg drop soup, and sweet and sour chicken, I was able to sample some more exotic items including a whole baby octopus. (Reminiscent of the "Chinese Turkey" goose scene in the movie "A Christmas Story," it was smiling at me).

Lin's also features a Mongolian grill section as well as an excellent dessert selection including real soft-serve vanilla, chocolate and swirl ice creams, much better than the watered-down "ice milk" featured at some of our previous Chinese buffets. It was the perfect touch to settle our stomachs after an extended evening of serious eating.

Of course, I did make sure to burn off every one of those Oriental calories - and then some. I had already run 7.78 miles that morning, did 12.21 miles on the morning after - Friday, and then followed all that up with a half marathon - 13.1 miles - this morning. The net result? I won - I'm half a pound lighter now than before the buffet. Even better yet, I set a new personal lifetime record for most miles run in a single week - a whopping 67.7 - as well as a new personal lifetime record for most miles run in a single month - 174.8 and counting, with a high likelihood of exceeding 200 before the month is over.

The high-intensity training continues as I prepare for my next gastronomic challenge: Margaritaville Glendale's Volcano Nachos. That trip is scheduled for a week from today.

My next run is scheduled for tomorrow morning at 0430 hours.

One Last Hurrah!

No - don't panic - this blog is NOT ending! I'm just referring to plans for one last buffet hurrah later today to mark the end of several days of vacation before I return to work tomorrow. A few hours from now I will be at Pancho's Mexican Buffet. Olé! (And no, I haven't been eating buffets every day in between these entries, so Mom, there's no need to put the Arizona Heart Hospital on speed dial for me. I've been good and stuck with my spinach and oat bran blender shakes and eaten all my veggies the rest of the days).

And as I almost always do, I've earned this upcoming buffet in advance. With the exception of one morning last Wednesday when I took a break and only did a 6 mile bike ride, I've been running for extended distances ranging from over 7 to nearly 15 miles EVERY DAY for the last two weeks. In fact, during that time I've actually logged a total of over 98 miles of running, which I'm absolutely sure is a personal lifetime record for the most done in a two week period. (It's just as well I didn't count until after I got home this morning, or I would have been tempted to tack an extra two onto this morning's 10.62 miles just to bring that total to an even 100. But, hey - there's always tomorrow).

So anyway...time to slap together a mariachi playlist for the iPod and get myself in the mood for Pancho's. Then tomorrow it will be time to go back to work and earn more funds. After all, at the rate I've been going, I'd better make sure I have enough saved up for my next pair of running shoes. :)

C.O.L.

If you don't like reading lengthy posts, and you're glad I'm not writing a 5,000 word theme tonight, you have C.O.L. to thank.

C.O.L. is Cat On Lap. And it's a condition that reduces my normal 75-plus word per minute typing speed to that of a paltry two-fingered beginner. 

Lynn's ongoing vacation in Michigan has left me as the sole provider of all of kitty Jerry's feeding - and petting. And he doesn't let me forget it. So you'll have to excuse me for being brief tonight. The cat is demanding quality time.

However, I won't leave without a brief word about - you guessed it - my running. Not to worry. No buffets today. And I've kept up my high level activity and more than cancelled out those prior indulgences. I did 8 miles this morning, and 8 or more miles almost every morning for several days before that - the highlight being an 11 miler this past Tuesday. That run featured doing an EXTRA loop up and back down through McDowell Mountain Ranch just so that I could keep going long enough to see a gorgeous orange full moon setting behind the Scottsdale city lights. Alas, each day the moon sets a bit later, and by tomorrow the sun will already be up before the moon sets, so I won't be able to see another great moonset until at least next month. Nonetheless, I plan to be out there again tomorrow morning before the sunrise, with that full moon lighting my way. And I can be sure Jerry will be lying in wait for me as soon as I get back.

BURP!!

Yep, the title just about says it all - I just got back from a buffet! (But don't worry, I also did a 7.5 mile, 1050-calorie run first thing this morning to earn it in advance)!

My wife, Lynn, is on vacation in Michigan and in her absence I pigged out. :) Unfortunately, when she left she took the heat with her. Every fall it's the same thing; she flies up North to visit her family for a couple of weeks and thinks she's going to escape the heat and cool off - and what happens is it cools down here while Michigan gets Indian summer and warms up. It was down to the upper 50's as I ran up McDowell Mountain Ranch road a couple of hours prior to the sunrise.

Later, in order to replace the calorie deficit, I had lunch at the Golden Corral. This is one place where it is very easy to load up on all of the four major food groups: protein, fried, sweets, and ice cream - and I can honestly say I had a balanced lunch. (I'll also need to at least repeat this morning's running route tomorrow morning to come out even. But don't worry - I will).

And Lynn? If you're reading this, you'll be excited to know that yesterday I was driving around Tempe and spotted a billboard advertising a new Chinese buffet - and guess what it's called? Lynn's Grand Buffet! Oh - wait - not quite. It's actually Lin's Grand Buffet - but that's close. Well, that I had to see. So I drove by to check it out. (And I would have eaten there too if I hadn't already been full from the Burger King Whopper that I had at the food court). Anyway, Lin's looks like a somewhat upscale place compared to the Grand China Buffet that recently closed (see my previous post on that subject). Hopefully it's not TOO up$cale, but we'll still have to try it out as soon as you get back.

Meanwhile, I'm headed for the DVD case. Time for tonight's annual Halloween season marathon one-sitting viewing of Stephen King's "IT." Yep, Lynn, that's the one with "that crazy clown." I know you can't stand it, which is why I'm making sure to watch it now while you're away.