Profile:
Dwayne J. Lowes, MSgt, USAF
Siegelbach, Germany
A New User
Wants to get in shape through running
Click the link below to view details and maps Dwayne’s training at MotionBase’s TrailNetwork.

Djlowes.motionbased.com

I recently, within the last three months, decided to run my first marathon.  I originally made a resolution to get myself back into shape over the Christmas-New Year holiday period, and while most people are indulging in loads of festive foods, I was watching my diet more closely, and running.  I currently live in Siegelbach, Germany, where winding forest trails and beautiful scenery is the norm; the personality of the region creates an amazing backdrop for outdoor fitness.  Anyway, after the first couple of weeks of pounding miles out I began to wonder how much improvement I was making.  Additionally, as I started to seriously think about running a marathon I also wanted to know how far I was running, and I wanted to keep better track of my progress.   So after a few days of pestering and hinting to my wife about how nice it would be to have a GPS training aid, she surprised me with a late Christmas present: a Garmin® Forerunner 301. I quickly unwrapped it and immediately charged it up. But waiting the four hours for the unit to fully charge darn near killed me. I was like a little kid that couldn’t wait to play with his new toy.  At around 11:00 p.m. I zipped into the front yard; I couldn’t help but laugh out-loud as I darted around the block watching my pace, heart-rate, and distance change with my every stride.  Moreover, being able to see my running path on the little screen was the coolest thing I had ever seen. 

After using the Forerunner for a couple of weeks, I was amazed at how incredibly helpful it was to see the results of my labor in real-time clicking away on my wrist.  And you can probably imagine that if I thought the basic features of the Forerunner were great, my reaction the first time I used MotionBased was utter bliss.  As I said before, I run on trails and farm roads a lot and the map player function is simply incredible; being able to see an aerial photo of the area with my route marked in red is not only neat, it is rewarding; seeing a real-world view of were I was with my exact pace, time, altitude and location is not only motivating, it is addictive.  In fact, the first thing I do after running is sync my Forerunner with MotionBased…the information provided is like having a personal coach tracking my every move.  The combination of the Forerunner coupled with the great features of MotionBased is simply out of this world.  I am excited about running my first marathon and I know that MotionBased is a huge factor in my confidence and ability.  Since 1 February 2006, I have logged almost 300 miles, burned 31,000 calories, lost 15 pounds and I am still improving.  Dwayne Lowes