Face of a man suffering from nipple chaffing.

This is week two of three that I will not have an opportunity to weigh-in as a result of travel. That doesn't mean I didn't spend the week trying to eat right or workout. This week in weight loss consisted of the first full week of workouts for the 10k trainer and a 5K race.

To me, going from doing a couch to 5K program to training for a 10k is like transitioning from learning to walk to training for a 10k. I thought I was getting in some good miles during the 5k training program, especially at the end when I was running for 30 straight minutes (a feat I'm proud of accomplishing). It wasn't until I did the first full week of the 10k trainer that I realized that running a 5K is virtually a sprint. The first day of the 10k trainer instantly added another 14 minutes onto my total workout time. I went from covering 3.2 miles to covering 4.7 miles overnight. I'm happy that I did it and I was able to do it but it was and is much harder than I anticipated.

At this time I'd like to take go on a tangential, but related, topic of discussion. Ladies, I would like to express my deepest jealousy of you, especially in regards to running. I understand that some of the more, ummmmm, blessed among you may have more difficulty with running because you cannot locate a sports bra(s) that provides adequate coverage or support. As a man of larger girth I can, to a certain extent, sympathize as my boobs have ached after a jog on more than one occasion. What I am jealous of is the very existence of a sports bra. You see, this week I learned the very painful and true reality of increasing the distance you run in a sweaty t-shirt. It is called nipple chaffing.

It was midway through my Tuesday run that I first noticed the slight tingling in my nipples. I just figured it was extra hot and I was extra sweaty since I was going farther than I had in previous workouts. I tried to put the discomfort out of my mind and focus on Taylor Swift's Bad Blood to keep me pumped up through my run. This, of course, got harder the further I ran and by the end of my run I felt like my boobs were on fire! During the cool down/walk at the end of my workout I lifted my shirt to expose my breasts to the fresh cool air hoping this would quell the discomfort. I was sadly mistaken and it only proved to fuel the fire. My nipnips were bright red and hard as rocks.

As soon as I got home I immediately removed my shirt completely and waited for the pain to subside (it wasn't until a few hours later that I was able to put a shirt on again). I decided to do some research on this phenomena to see if this was a localized incident or something I would have to worry about as I continue my exercise extravaganza. I was saddened to learn that this is a common occurrence for men who start running longer distances. Hence my jealously as women avoid this terrible boob tragedy through the blessing of the sports bra. My continued research offered a few suggestions on how to counteract such painful results, including (1) running without a shirt, something I would never punish the visually unimpaired with, (2) putting some super glue on my nipples, which doesn't seem to be a good idea, (3) covering the nips with adhesive bandages, (4) lathering up the nipples with scent free deodorant, and (5) or some very expensive adhesive strips known as Nip Guards.

My bandage pasties. Try not to faint from the beautiful site of my man-teets

For my Thursday run, I made a stop by the local pharmaceutical shoppe and picked up some circular adhesive bandages. Throwing caution to the wind and hoping that every hair upon my bosom would not be painfully removed, I applied the bandages and began my run. They worked like a charm. First, they protected my nipples from another bout of chaffing. Second, the amount of sweat produced removed just enough of the adhesive compound to allow the bandages to slide easily off at the conclusion of my workout. I only hope that I have not jinxed myself and this method of boob protection will continue to be successful.

September 19th marked the first official 5K race I have run in a long time. I wasn't worried since I have been training for a 5K and I was a week into the 10K workout app. The event took place at Dulles Airport as part of the Dulles Day celebration. Rizzo and I both ran pushing Cece in our jogging stroller. It was cool to run the 5k on the runways next to giant airplanes while a helicopter circled overhead. Cece did great most of the race but was getting a bit anxious to get out of her stroller by about mile 3. Rizzo and I finished the run in 33:30, which works out to about a 10:26/mile pace. Considering it was just over a month ago that I ran my first sub-10 minute mile I think keeping a 10:26 pace over 3.2 miles isn't too shabby. I'm unsure if I should sign up for more 5K races. Not that I'm afraid to finish them but I have really started to enjoy the long runs by myself. I have run a few races before this one and I have never enjoyed the feeling of people cheering for me. I have always just wanted to get out and get it over with and always felt self conscience about people watching me. Of course during those previous runs I had slightly larger moobs so it wasn't nearly as bad during this race so we will see what happens.

What I'm more happy about after this race, other than a fairly good time for me (probably my personal best), is that I don't have the desire to take time off from working out after finishing this run. In the few 5k races I have done before this I always worked up to the 5K as an end goal and then once I finished I would take some time off which inevitably turned into not working out for a year or two. This time the race felt very much like my regular Saturday morning workout. In fact, the 5k was a shorter run than I would have done had I kept going on my 10K app, so in a way the 5K was the break as opposed to the end game.

All in all this was a very good week in weight loss world. There is still two weeks until my next opportunity to weigh in at Weight Watchers. My goal at that weigh in will be to have maintained from my previous weigh in which will, by that point, have been over a month. I figure that with all the traveling I will be doing, which in turn will mean eating out on a regular basis, that maintaining my weight will be a big victory. Now, time to catch a plane to Atlanta. Go Braves!

P.S. Don't think I'm trying to say that women have it easy in life because they get to wear a sports bra and can avoid nipple chaffing. I'm not completely oblivious to the plight of the woman and also abundantly aware that I am a member of the most privileged class of person on the planet; the white, male American. That doesn't mean my boobs don't hurt.

P.P.S. Never ask your significant other to wear pasties if you are trying to spice things up the bedroom. As you can see from the gloriously freckled rack above, it is not a good look.