How Not to Train for a Marathon, T-13 Weeks
By Patrick Chang 
August 20, 2010 
16 Comments
Week of August 9 –August 14
I decided to start recapping this once-in-a-life experience and I really do mean once-in-a-life experience. Megan from Runner’s Kitchen really inspired me to recap my training experience, except she’s good at staying healthy while training. I’m quite the opposite. I like to live vicariously through her and pretend I had a healthy week and trained hard when in reality I’m just pigging out. Kids, please do not try this at home. This is how one should NOT train for a marathon.
I’ve always wanted to run a marathon but I’ve never been motivated to do so until now. Currently I am running for StreetWise Partners in the ING New York City Marathon. I’m much more motivated knowing I’m running for a great cause. Though, I have to also raise $3,000 for StreetWise Partners which is MUCH harder than I anticipated! I was fortunate enough to have a few wonderful sponsors including Matsuri and Meze Grill. (Matsuri is offering a $50 gift card to a lucky supporter of my marathon!) I am currently at $1,840 – so close to $3,000! Only $1,160 to go! Please support my marathon run and StreetWise Partners!
I have minimal experience in running and usually just ran sprints and short long distance runs (under 5 miles) for tennis back in the day. But after entering the lottery for the marathon (which I didn’t win) and eventually getting a guaranteed spot for running for charity, I began my long journey of training. I am several weeks into my training but it’s time to ramp it up with only 13 weeks left!
For the week of August 9th, here’s how I ate and trained. Mind you, this is how I foolishly trained; this isn’t what you should do. Don’t be amazed by the mass quantities of food, as I always thought my true calling might have been a competitive eater. Again, kids don’t try this at home. Only an idiot would do this… or someone incredibly weak to unhealthy, processed, and cheap foods.
Monday – 8/9/2010
Lunch: extra large Papa John’s pizza (for $12.99) with chicken, onions, sausage, beef, ham, Italian sausage, three cheese blend and garlic sauce. You really can’t beat this deal!
2nd Lunch: I was already halfway done with my pizza when all my co-workers decided to go to Cosi’s so I decided to tag along and got a Chicken Caesar salad. How can places charge $9-$10 bucks for a salad? I just don’t understand.
Dinner: leftover pizza. I know I know I’m in NYC how can I be eating chain pizza.
Workout: back and bi’s
Mileage: 5 Miles. I don’t think pizza is good fuel for running.
Tuesday – 8/10/2010
Lunch: Chipotle Burrito Bowl – my usual, steak burrito bowl with both beans (extra beans), lettuce, hot sauce, and TONS OF CORN salsa. I love their corn salsa!
Dinner: 2 large Dominos pizza. I wanted to try their new recipe and I had a coupon for buy one get one free. I got a thin crust ham and hand tossed sausage. I couldn’t taste the difference with the new “recipe†I was pretty disappointed. Not as good as I remembered.
Workout: Shoulder and legs. I never have any motivation to do shoulder and legs even though I should… I tend to just go through the motions.
Mileage: 5 Miles. Don’t try this at home. Eating two large pizzas and not letting the food settle and then going for a run… Horrendous run! Don’t read if you get sick but the food came up a few times while on the treadmill but I’m so dedicated I caught it in my mouth and swallowed it back down … did this 3x-4x…. ewwwwww
Wednesday – 8/11/2010
Lunch: two pounds of various Chinese food from Ho Yip. I come here after 2:30 because they have $4 per pound! Bleh but I always feel so gross afterwards. Way too greasy!
Dinner: Mermaid Inn, 12 oysters, mussels, shrimp poboy, fish tacos, and lobster roll. Every dish was incredibly delicious. I just wish I didn’t have to work out afterwards! Appetite for Good will have a piece on Mermaid Inn soon! They support so many causes around the city! It’s truly admirable, talk about a socially responsible restaurant!
Workout: Chest and Triceps – extremely lazy work out day. NO benches available!
Mileage: 5 miles You’d think that I learned after yesterday’s debacle… but nope… I went for a run again after stuffing my face.
Thursday – 8/12/2010
Lunch: Café Exchange mutant chicken shawarma wrap. They ran out of chicken shawarma so they substituted it with chicken from the burrito station and mixed it with Mediterranean toppings. It was actually QUITE DELICIOUS! I love tzatziki sauce.
Dinner: Two Five Guys double burgers with large fries. Except they accidently gave me one cheeseburger (which I didn’t order) and one regular one. O well no complaints here.
No workout on today; I had to travel for work. The horrible weather delayed our flight for 5 hours. We were at the airport at 4pmand didn’t leave till maybe 10:30pm. At the President’s Club I munched on tons of crackers, apples, lays chips, pretzels (I hate pretzels), and free alcoholic beverages while working :-/
Friday 8/13/2010
Breakfast: Free breakfast at the hotel! I was up and going at it! I had a huge plate of “eggsâ€, sausage, and toast! There was also a do-it-yourself waffle machine! So I made myself a small waffle but I felt guilty so I used sugar free syrup. I know I’m weird but it’s kind of like the people who go to McDonalds or any other fast food joints and orders the fattiest value meal, super sized and asks for a diet coke because they’re watching their weight. It makes no sense! And neither do I!
But one thing I saw a lot of that really inspired me was YOGURT! I ate 4 cartons of strawberry yogurt! I saw that it was loaded in potassium and decided this is what I needed to eat when I’m sick of bananas. O right I also had a bowl of Total cereal!
Lunch: We were so busy on our work trip that we ordered Chipotle online but forgot to mention rice with the burrito bowl. We all realized all our bowls were extremely light and looked in and found barely any food in it. It was the dinkiest chipotle burrito bowl ever! How can you have a burrito bowl without rice? That’s basically a glop of beans, meat, lettuce and etc.
Dinner: Finally back in NYC I grabbed another Five Guys burger and fries. Sigh I don’t know why! After that dinky lunch I was craving food! But seriously? Double burgers two days in a row? What’s wrong with me?
Workout: I wasn’t planning on working out that day but I was extremely frustrated!!! I plugged in my laptop into my docking station and it wouldn’t boot up correctly!!!!!! It was working completely fine in the morning for work! I decided I need to take a breather and let out my frustration. I went to the gym and was too frustrated and pissed to run I decided to cross train and row 4 sets of 1,500 meters. It was a back and bi’s day
Saturday 8/14/2010
Cereal for breakfast and all day of working! I had so much work to do because of my dead computer last night! I had to come into the office in the Financial District. Unfortunately EVERYTHING down here is ALWAYS CLOSED! My dining options were limited…. So I ended up getting pizza delivered. Bleh wasn’t feeling too well about that! But this time real NYC pizza!
Dinner: I left the office around 5pm with a mountain of work still needed to be done but I HAD to get a long run in! Especially this incredibly unhealthy week! I finally downloaded this really cool running app for my palm pre (worst phone ever, highly DO NOT recommend it) and tested it out in a car! The mph was extremely accurate we were going 65mph and my app caught the entire thing (smart runner)! I envy android and iPhone users with their choices of running apps. However, this saved me $200 from buying a Garmin watch! This was the first time ever that I was actually looking forward to my long run.
But before I went for a run, I stopped by my favorite quick bite, Meze Grill, mainly because I was in the mood to be a little healthier! (Why bother right? My arteries are probably completely clogged) I ordered two chicken rice platters with extra falafel. Unfortunately Marwan wasn’t in for me to say hi! Meze Grill is never a disappointment. I saved these for after my run but I snuck in a few bites before. When I say snuck in a few bites I mean I ate half an order… surprisingly I didn’t cramp up during my run. This is probably one meal of the week I’d actually recommend during marathon training. Extremely healthy, light, and DELICIOUS! Did I mention they also have these new juices that are extremely healthy? I haven’t had one yet but I think ill try them out next week!
Workout: None
Mileage: 10.24 in 1:23:31H (I stopped it early to see how it worked I think I ran an extra mile before getting home)
Don’t try this at home either but I never hydrate or drink a sip of water during my runs or eat anything. But in the coming weeks I promise I’m going to start trying to find water fountains to sip from or else my colleague, Jaine, said she’s going to force me to wear her water belt! EEK!
TOTAL MILEAGE for the Week: ~26
Hope y’all enjoyed! Stay tune next week for How Not to Train for a Marathon T-12 Weeks!
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What do you mean “How Not to Train for a Marathon,” it’s called carb loading, you’re doing fine with the pizzas and burgers
haha i always been wondering why im gaining weight even tho ive been running so much… now i know why… Its kind of scary looking back on my diet for the past week! gezz this is quite ridiculous haha
HOW do you consume that much food???
haha dont act surprised youve witnessed it in person for what? 10 years that ive known you?
haha, i love this post. 5 guys doesn’t often make an appearance on my blog, but i secretly love their burgers and fries. YUM. we marathon runners are hungry, yo. happy running and eating! =)
THANKS! I love your posts
youre the inspiration for my new weekly recap.
I can’t fathom how you can eat two WHOLE pizzas by yourself. But then again, you do stuff okonomiyaki down whole
haha you too! dont you act surprised ! i eat all your left overs cause you eat a pea and youre full :p
I’m officially a huge fan of your exercise regimen. I only hope that I can one day attain your level of strict dietary commitment.
haha thanks. I actually shouldnt be doing this but i just cant help myself
not running to get in shape but to fight obesity
Fun post…Whole pizza, wow impressive. This is my kind of training
Thanks! It’s been a while
Patrick, I think competitive eating is your true calling… just saying
I would be dead after eating all that food in one week, haha… fat and dead 
Hilarious!
Haha, do you ever eat ONE of anything?
haha i ate one of the wrap on thursday :p
last weeks recap coming tonighhhhhhhhhht