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A Val's Fitness Success Story

 

My Story

Eight years ago I weighed 230 pounds. My exercise routine? Fishing. My wife would sometimes nag a little about my weight, but I didn’t worry about it. I was happy. No problem here.


Until one day I couldn’t bend over far enough to tie my own shoes. At first I got mad. Not at me, at my wife for feeding me too much! Eventually I realized I had to do something.


I started with a diet. I was completely miserable and it didn’t work. I needed a new plan. With a demanding management job and five kids, I had to find a way to get results without spending a lot of time. My first step was a fitness assessment and consultation with Val. That also turned out to be the first step towards finishing my first marathon……a goal I had never even dreamed of.

 

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My Results

All I wanted back then was to lose weight. Val coached me through a program of proper nutrition and cardio workouts. I started losing pounds immediately. And no dieting! At first I could only run/walk a mile on the treadmill. I ran so heavily you could hear the pounding outside. Val focused on improving my balance and core strength. My form started to smooth out. I began to run more efficiently.


Nobody, including my wife, thought I’d keep it up. But Val got me really focused. A year later I finished a 40 mile race. In 2008 I ran the Portland Marathon in 3:27, and the following year in 3:18. That qualified me for the Boston Marathon. I ran my first Boston in 2010 in 3:19 and have been running it every year since.

So, here I am now, with 15 marathons behind me and 70 pounds lighter. My best marathon time so far is 3:15:40. I’m 40 seconds away from my goal!

 

 

 

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