This article is in no way medical advice. If you are looking for medical advice, talk to a doctor. This is one crazy guys experience. I went from the couch to a marathon in nine months.

OK, when I say from the couch, what I mean is I wasn't running at all. I hadn't done any serious running before the year prior. I had run a 5K the year prior, but hadn't done any running for at least 5 months.

January 2006, I weighed 257 lbs, again! One client I work with regularly has an annual weight loss program. It's called appropriately enough "The Program". I was dreading my weigh in for the program this year. I had lost about 35 pounds just 12 months earlier. Then I had gained 28 pounds back.

This year had to be different. I was sure I could lose the weight. I just didn't want to have to lose the same 30 lbs again and again. Cardwell, a friend of mine, was in the same boat. So, we decided we were running a marathon that year. Mark, another friend of ours, had run the Top of Utah Marathon in Logan, Utah. He said it was a good marathon. We committed to get it done.

I had been told by LOTS of runners that a marathon was extremely difficult, but I had no way to know how hard. Cardwell and I picked training programs, and we got started. My training program started with walking. My dad had both his knees replaced when he was in his 50's. To reduce the stress on my knees, I dropped into the 230's before I started running.

Once I started running, I knew I had to train for the marathon training. Most training programs want you to be running for at least a year before starting to train. They also want you doing 20 miles per week for a while before starting. So, I started my training for the training for the marathon. It was a gradual ramp up of miles over 14 weeks. I was excited to see that I could stretch my distance so quickly. I followed the pre-training very closely, except for a week that was pretty much no running. I just swapped it out for a rest week.

At the conclusion of the pre-training, I had to see if I could run in a race or not. So, I ran the half-marathon at the Salt Lake City Marathon. That was in June. I still had 4 months to go to the big race. The half-marathon was awesome. Prior to the half, I had only run in a couple of races in my life. A 5K was the only race I had ever run as an adult. The excitement of crossing the finish line and knowing I had just run 13.1 miles was a big boost.

I couldn't run the half all out because I was coming up on "Monster Month" in my marathon training. After a recovery week to get over the half, I was back on the training schedule. I was knocking on the door of Monster Month.

Monster Month is the big increase in distance of your long runs. My training took me from running 12 miles on my long run to running 18 miles in 4 weeks. It still amazes me how quickly your body can improve if you follow a good training schedule. The 18 miler wasn't a lot harder than the 12. If I had tried to jump from a 12 miler to an 18 mile long run in one week, it would have killed me! Yet doing it over 4 weeks with several other runs made it very manageable. Our bodies are AWESOME!

With monster month out of the way, I just kept running and following the schedule. I got behind twice due to vacations with the family. That would come back to haunt me.

One of my runs was a 20 miler. My shoes were wore out, so I went out on that run with new shoes. The left shoe had something wrong with it. My toes were aching bad by mile 9. I pushed it, and finished my 20 miler. My knee was a little sore, but I didn't think too much of it. The place I bought my shoes traded them for a new pair. Some more running the next week, then a week of vacation later, there I was trying to run 23 miles with a sore knee.

All the limping I did on the 20 miler had hurt my knee. With a week off and a LOT of stretching I thought I had it taken care of, but it was back. I stopped by mile 6 to stretch. Then again by mile 9. Then again at 9.5... By mile 15, I was walking a block for each mile. I pushed it out to 21 miles. That was my last long run before the marathon. The "long" runs in my taper went really well.

To have support along the way, I distributed maps to some friends and family. The map showed the marathon route on the front. On the back I printed a table showing the approximate time I would hit each mile.

Marathon Day

When the alarm went off, I was already up. Worried about the time, I had woke up ½ hour early. I was too excited about the race to get back to sleep. No big, I used the standard advice. Get lots of sleep two nights before a big race. That's because you don't sleep so hot the night before. I got up put on all the stuff I had laid out the night before, ate a light breakfast, and took some Ibuprofen. With lots of extra clothes on, I headed out to Cardwell's brother-in-laws house.

He had spent the night there because is was close to the race. I got there about 5:00 am. It was great to be with another runner, somebody to share the anxious thoughts with. His wife is so awesome she drove us to the shuttle bus pick-up. The ride to the start seemed like it took forever. There was a lady on the bus that had done like one run to train for her marathon. In my mind, I was sure she was screwed, but didn't bother sharing that with her.

Once to the start line, we hit the Porta Potties, then found Mark. The temperature at the start line was about 25 degrees. Luckily, we had got some advice from somebody at Striders in Layton, UT the night before. What an awesome store! I would have started the race seriously overdressed without their advice. After taking some more Ibuprofen, Mark warned me not to take too much. It can cause diarrhea, as I found out later. At 6:50 we took off the extra clothes, stuffed them in marked bags, and threw them in one of the shuttle buses. They would be waiting for us at the Finish line.

Well, the race started promptly at 7:00.Again, I was surprised by my bodies abilities. It was about 25-27 degrees, and I was running in two shirts--long sleeve over short sleeve--, shorts, and thin gloves.

The first five miles were noneventful. At mile 6, I had to take a potty break. Then at mile 9, Marks words of caution became reality. I had to wait like 7 minutes in line for porta potty. I guess I did take too much Ibuprofen. I left the porta potty upset about the time I lost in line. The first 14 miles of the race are down a narrow canyon, so there are no spectators. It's kind of funny how solitary it feels to run down a quiet canyon with a couple thousand other people. Equally as awesome is how good it feels to see people you know. Another friend Mike is a police officer. It was great to have a quick chat with him a few times as he rode by on his motorcycle.

Just after mile 14, there was Phil and his boys, my first spectators. He made sure I was doing alright, gave me some words of encouragement, and watched me run off. So far the race had all been downhill. It was too easy, so I ran too fast. As soon as the course flattened out, I started paying for it. At mile 15, I walked about ½ block at the aid station. Just before mile 17, my wife and kids were there cheering me on. By this point, I was starting to hurt. It was really a boost to see them there to support me. I walked the aid station plus a little at 17.

Unfortunately, just after mile 21 the course started climbing again. This was a very gradual incline, but I was extremely tired at this point. I decided I would walk a block every mile. My legs weren't willing to though. My feet started scuffing. One time I nearly fell down. So, I decided to walk it off for a few minutes. Problem was, when I started running again, I didn't get a block, and my feet were dragging again. Walking a little was part of the plan, but walking most of miles 21 and 22 wasn't.

Sometimes plans change. I pushed it as hard as I could, but really didn't want to fall and injure myself. So as I walked I reflected on how I should have done more hill training. Between mile 21 and mile 22 Ali, my daughter, started "running" with me. She was awesome. Talking me through it. Telling me I was doing good ... Just after mile 23 (still going uphill) I saw Mike again. I'm sure he could tell I was hurting. He told me the course turned down in about ½ block. Ya, I was that tired. We were talking ½ blocks! Well, this is the part of the marathon that separates the men from the boys.

As promised, we headed down a gradual slope at the corner. I started with a nice easy jog to get my legs moving again. It felt good for about ½ mile. I decided to push it little harder. Bad choice. In two strides, I went from feeling OK to cramps in my quadricep and hamstring in my right leg at the same time. I hobbled over to a mailbox, alternated quickly between stretching the two muscles. Once the cramps stopped, I walked it off for minute.

My goal time was under 5 hours. At this point, I was getting close. I decided if I missed my goal, I was going to know I gave it my all. From mile 24 to 25.5, I was running about half the time. The cramps didn't come back in full force, but they were close. At mile 25 Morgan and Mathew, my daughter and son, joined me. At 25.5, I gave it everything I had. That was probably just a slow jog at that point, but still my best. I came across the finish line with a 4:58:36.7 gun time. My time from start line to finish line was 4:58:03.6.

It was extremely satisfying to run across the finish line with my 3 kids. My wife was cheering me on. Cardwell and his wife, Phil and his kids, and Mike were also there cheering me on. Not many times in my life have been as difficulty or satisfying as completing my marathon.

That's a slow marathon, but I am still very proud of it! Remember, just 9 months earlier, I was 257 pounds, and sitting on the couch. Quite an accomplishment! If you are training for your first marathon, or considering one, get it done. I would recommend more time for training. I'm just a guy that tried to follow a training program, and gave his all. You can do it too.

When I was done, I swore I would never run another marathon. It's 4 months later, and I've softened on that position. No marathons this year. I'm registered for a 5K, and I'm going to run a 5 mile leg in a marathon relay. Who knows maybe next year.

Click here to see a map of the marathon (it takes a few seconds to load). You can zoom in and out and pan around. Also, you can map your runs. If you have a garmin you can import a run. I think it's really cool to watch your run animated out on the map.