[3/27/12] Hi again! I'm going to go ahead and post my current workouts for the month of April. I'm still in my conditioning phase because I still feel the need to strengthen my core and my legs before really hitting the mileage that I need to perform well and finish the half marathon in just under 6 months! The support for what I'm doing has been tremendous so far! Recent donation shout-outs to Sharon Gates and Auntie Flor and Uncle David Hotchkiss!

Shorter workouts (When school gets intense and I have little time):

1) @ the Gym: 1 hr 30 minute time frame
- Warm up jog: (5-10 minutes) 0.75-1.25 miles jogging
- Stretching
- Anterior upper body workout: Biceps, Chest, Shoulders (3 sets of 15 reps: 6 total exercises)
- Ab workout:  (3 sets of 20 reps: 4 total exercises)
- Cardio workout: (30-45 minutes)10-14 mile bike or 3-4 mile eliptical machine
- 5-10 minute cooldown with stretching after

2) @ the Gym: 1 hr 30 minute time frame
- Warm up jog: (5-10 minutes) 0.75-1.25 miles jogging
- Stretching
- Posterior upper body/back workout (3 sets of 15 reps: 6 total exercises)
- Light Ab workout (3 sets of 20 reps: 2-4 exercises)
- Cardio workout: (30-45 minutes) 10-14 mile bike or 3 mile eliptical machine
- 5-10 minute cooldown with stretching after

Longer cardio workouts
3) @ the Gym: 2+ hours
- Warm up jog: 10-15 minutes: 1.25-1.5 miles
- Stretching
- 10-14 mile bike ride (45-60 minutes)
- 3-4 miles eliptical (30-45 minutes)
- 2-4 miles of track running 60-70% pace (15-30 minutes)
- Cooldown with stretching

4) Outdoor running
- 8-10 mile runs so far.

I'll be updating this as I get stronger and (hopefully) stay healthy! I train 6 days a week with 1 day of rest. I alternate between workout 1 and 2 and add the longer workouts in between. When I get more confident in my new shoes I'm going to begin to reduce the amount that I do the upper body workouts and concentrate on building leg strength and cardio (possibly mid-April to beginning of May) to prepare for the daily distance running I plan to do during the summer.

I will also begin to upload my runs as soon as I figure out how to work the run tracker... :)

EDIT: I just realized I can use my iPhone to track runs... technology fail on my part! I'll upload my run tomorrow to test it out!

That's all! :) Gotta study and work on the upcoming health fair this Saturday!

[3/21/12] Exciting past couple of days!! My best friends came out from California to spend some time with me out in Chicago so it was like they brought home to me since I'm staying out here!

I'm going to start exploring Chicago's Lakefront/Lakeshore drive tomorrow afternoon with my new shoes that I bought today! I went to Fleet Feet to talk to some of the running experts they had there and they told me that I have a "midstrike" stride, meaning that I don't run heel to toe anymore. The shoes I got have really strong arch supports that will help me during my training and during the half marathon itself! Here are some pictures of my Team World Vision jersey and the shoes that I'm going to be training in! I'll take a picture of them on me later (It's late over here!)

Take care! I'll be posting data from my run tomorrow assuming I can get this tracker to work... :)

[3/15/12]

FIRST DONATION! :D Thank you SO much for your generous donation Auntie Judy and the Alicante family!! Just a quick update so far: Studying for my GI/Metabolism block exam tomorrow then off to the gym to train (shout out to my cuzzos Edward, CJ, Sean, and Melissa!).

Afterward... gonna try to sleep early!

Future updates:
1) I'm planning to post a picture of my Team World Vision running tee this upcoming week.
2) Fleet feet to buy new running shoes that will support my arches and help me run to make sure I don't get injured.
3) Explore Chicago (particularly the lakeshore) to scope out some of the trails that I will be training on soon!

Stay tuned! :)

[3/11/12]

E-mail sent out! I'm super excited! :) Gonna train, go to anatomy lab to help others while I study, then study the night away for an exam coming up this Friday! Going to upload a picture of my Team World Vision shirt that just came in today onto the blog and onto my fundraising homepage (If I can!) check it out! :)

God bless!

[3/11/12]: This is the e-mail I'm sending to everyone I love and care about! Please distribute the e-mail widely to see if anyone would help me with my cause!


Dear friends, family, and loved ones,

Hi everyone! My name is Marc Dadios and I just wanted to let you all know that I recently signed up to run my first half marathon with Team World Vision, a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to raising money to help provide clean water to the poorest communities in Africa.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Team_World_Vision
http://support.worldvision.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Impact_WhyCleanWater

A little bit about myself: I am a first year medical student studying at Rush Medical College in Chicago. I decided to commit to this race because it has been my dream to run a half marathon/full marathon but, unfortunately, I had to have ankle reconstruction surgery over the past 3 years. My podiatrist and surgeon told me because of my condition, I would most likely not be able to run that distance. Instead of becoming discouraged, however, it has inspired me to go against the odds and religiously train for this event. I have attached a few photos post-procedure, including X-rays showing some bones that they removed. My goal for this half marathon is to run it under 1:40:00 (7:30 mile splits for 13.1 miles) and, with my pre-existing condition, it is going to be a challenging road ahead.

Pre-surgery

Post-surgery (Note the missing bone and the difference in the anatomy after reconstruction)

My inspiration to give this undertaking my all, however, is to dedicate my body and soul to the kids living in very poor communities in Africa who fight to survive on a daily basis. My overall dream is to become a caring, empathetic, and active doctor who makes an impact in someone's life. I strongly feel that one of the ways I can actively make a difference right now is to become an instrument of good in the world. The following link is a testimony from kids who have benefited from the money raised by Team World Vision.

http://support.worldvision.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Impact_Africa

I also plan to actively update a blog that details every aspect of my journey from training, to my comments, to injuries, and to medical school up until the race on September 9th. If all goes well, I plan on trying to run a full marathon the upcoming year! Please send any love, encouragement, and support because I definitely know I cannot undertake this endeavor alone!

My blog link is:

http://md-twvchicagohalfmarathon.blogspot.com/ 

If you would like to support my cause please follow the following link to my personal fundraising site! If you are hesitant to donate to this wonderful cause... think of it like an early Birthday or Christmas gift to me! Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding your donation! If you would like to donate by check, please let me know as well so I can properly record your donation and personally thank you for your generosity!

http://support.worldvision.org/site/TR?type=fr_personal&fr_id=1680&px=1215447&bpg=list&pg=personal 

Love you all! God bless! Please feel free to forward this e-mail to your other friends and family to spread the word! Also, forgive me if I send a few e-mails reminding you all about this over the course of the next 6 months!

Sincerely and with great joy,

Sincerely,

Marc Dadios

1 Corinthians 6:20 “Glorify God in your body”

[3/7/12]
This is my first post! Up until this point I have been training for about 2 1/2 weeks and I will post exactly what I have done over that time in the next post. For now, though, I want to get the e-mail out to everyone so I can start this wonderful and exciting journey! :)


I'll be posting the e-mail I plan to send out to everyone as my first official post! I'll upload a picture of me in my Team World Vision shirt (the one I'll be using 6 months from now on race day!!) as soon as I get it!


Time to study for my exam next Friday! :)