Let the race begin!

Running has never been part of my life, but the next four months will involve lots of steps (and as few missteps as possible).

I've been selected for Team Myles as part of the 2014 Blue Nose Marathon, joining a dozen or so of Halifax's non-runners in a mission to complete either the 5K or 10K races over Blue Nose Weekend (May 16-18, 2014). www.bluenosemarathon.com

Two years ago, Charlene (my wife) and I made a resolution to drop those pounds that have attached to our hips over the past decade of little activity. I was approaching 40 and too many of my friends, colleagues and mentors had, just after retirement, became ill and some passed away. It had a profound impact and we both made up our minds to get off our butts and get back in shape.

I am proud to say we have lost the equivalent of a decent sized human in the past few years. We've started down the path of an active lifestyle. Kayaking has become a passion. I started playing hockey after a 15-year hiatus. Last weekend we started cross country skiing.

We're into the hard weight now and it will take more than eating better to shed the last 20-30 pounds to reach our goals. Insert running here!

With the selection to be on Team Myles (I plan to run the 10K on May 18, 2014), Charlene has decided to take up running as well. She is planning to run the 5K at Blue Nose on May 17, 2014. Together we'll be good support to reach our running and weight loss goals - just like the combined 130 lbs we've already lost.

So this past Monday, we dusted off the treadmill and started some initial training. This blog will chronicle progress through the next four months encompassing our new active lifestyle in pursuit of the 5K and 10K goals.

To make it official my plan is to go sub-70 minutes in the 10K. Charlene wants to do 5K in less than 40 minutes. We're way off that pace right now. It should be an interesting journey. Let the race begin.