Tips on Running/Training for a Marathon

Ever wanted to run a marathon but just don't know where to start? Well here are some tips on how you can start and stay motivated all the way 'till the finish line!

Marathons have lots of benefits. Physical exercise, social interaction, building self-esteem, and accomplishing something that's downright very difficult to do. I started running marathons when I was 15 years old. I am now 18 and I have completed 4 with my 5th being in under 2 weeks from today. I have calculated that I have run over 1,600 miles and I'm on my 4th pair of running shoes. 

I have to start by saying that running a marathon is anything but easy to do. Commitment, motivation, and perseverance are all qualities one needs to have... or develop.

To start off running, you need a game plan. Figure out how many times a week you will be running and how far you will go. As the marathon date comes closer, you will need to be pretty far up there in mileage. I started by running 2 miles every other weekday and 4 miles on Saturdays. I wasn't going for time, just distance. Once I got further along in my weeks, I started running 4 miles every other weekday and 6 miles on Saturdays. I never went above 4 miles on weekdays but rather worked on how fast I could run those 4 miles as the weeks progressed. And on my "Saturday Long Run" as I soon called it, I increased my mileage by 2 miles every week. 

Now being young and healing quickly was on my side, but as I grew older I realized that I needed to give myself more space in between runs. And you have to find a run that works for you. As long as it gets you where you need to be. 

Never ever run the 26.2 miles before the marathon day. Accomplishing that distance is meant for the day you do it. I never ran more than 24 miles in my training. It gave my mind something to shoot for and helped with the motivation. 

Some people need coaches or a friend to push them. This will help with commitment. Whoever you choose to encourage you, make sure they know that they won't always be playing the "good guy". 
Sometimes anger is the only motivation you have to keep you going.  

Others either don't have a coach or prefer not to have one (like myself). You'll still need motivation. Thankfully with new technology, you can plug in your mp3 player and crank up some tunes to keep you going. 

Also, electrolytes are very important. Potassium, sodium, carbohydrates, proteins, and fats are all burnt up when you work out and sweat.

Your body will function 110% better when running off fuels that power it. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and white meats are all power foods that will help you do your best. If your a vegan or vegetarian, try beans and rice together or toast and beans to make a perfect protein. Try to stay away from refried beans and white rice as those have been either bleached or fried. 

Stay focused, stay on task, and go for the finish line!

I hope some of these tips help and if you do decide to run a marathon, half marathon, 10k, 5k, or triathlon I wish you the best of luck. Finishing something that big gives you a euphoria and a happiness that you will remember for the rest of your life. 

Best Wishes!

How to Get Your Moneys Worth at a Buffet

In America, we enjoy food... a lot! And not just good food, but large quantities of food. Buffet restaurants offer us the quantities and varieties we all crave. So how do we get our full money out of visiting a buffet restaurant? 

Just like with any buffet, there will be a large variety and quantity of food available to each customer. And with prices of buffet restaurants ranging from  $8 to $25+ a meal (not including drinks), how do we get the most out of the buffet experience? Especially when on a budget.

First, take a stroll through the aisles upon aisles of soups, salads, entrees, desserts and drinks. See what looks good and what doesn't. When you start loading up your first plate, try starting with something light that will digest within the time you are there. Such as vegetables or fruit (no heavy dressing as this will defeat the purpose of eating something light). The reason why you would start with something easy is so that you can have room for that last plate later.

After eating something small and dainty is when you can really let loose. Start loading up your plate with everything you had seen before and crave. Eating a large quantity of food is like exercising, just keep a good pace and breathe. Try taking a few sips of soda every couple of bites so that the carbonation assists with removing air from your stomach (a.k.a. burping) which gives you more space to work with. I call this the "Tetris Effect". Like the lines disappearing in the game "Tetris", the food will settle down further into your stomach allowing for a more efficient use of space. More space = more food.

Also while eating away at your 1st, 2nd, or 3rd plate of food, eat a slice of orange or lemon. The acid will help break down the food in your stomach and give you a head start in the digesting process.  With a good buffet, you'll need all the space you can get.

Second, try staying away from anything with chili's like hot sauce or peppered foods. It may seem difficult for all those spice lovers (such as myself) but statistics show that when one eats any sort of chili's, they consume an average of 17% less food. An ingredient in chili's give the eater a sense of being "full" more quickly than normal. So stay away from the spicy.

Finally, try eating something light for dessert such as frozen yogurt or jello. You basically just stuffed yourself so you don't want to feel like crap afterword. Buffets are an experience you should enjoy and remember. Who wants to be moaning and groaning on the way out? No fun.

And remember, your stomach can only digest 1 cup of food at a time. So give yourself at least an hour of cool down time before doing anything physically stressful.

How to Create an Awesome Password

Privacy is everything now a days and one needs a good password to keep out certain people and groups. 

Generating a strong password is actually more difficult than it seems. Especially for people like me who tend to forget such things. And when you have multiple accounts, it can become very difficult to remember all of them. 

Here are a few things you can do to help generate and remember your password. 

On your personal smart phone, or any device that can have applications. Download an app called "Keeper Password & Data Vault". Its a free app that allows you to only have to remember a 4 digit pass code to access all of your passwords for different online sites. Once you have imputed all of your previous passwords into this app, you can back up your device to your computer (in case anything ever happens to it). 

Now there are a few things to remember when generating a password. 

Remember to use upper and lower case letters with preferably some digits at the end. You know how some people name stuff? Like how you name your car, or maybe a personal item, or perhaps a gift someone gave you. Well, you can help yourself remember your passwords by using an item of yours, followed by a article ("a", "an", or "the"). Then declare what it is. Like if you named your car joey. Your password would look something like: Joeythecar31.

Or if you had a favorite toy growing up: Mikealego113

The digits that follow can either be the date you got it, or maybe your birthday. 

Having a solid password is valuable for private information. And as more and more people are trying to get your information. Its very important to have and update passwords on all your accounts.