When it comes to fitness and health, what I hear the most is, “I just don’t have the time to exercise.” It’s true you need the time, but there’s something else you need more.

Financial advisor and author, Dave Ramsey, says that one of the keys to financial success is to spend less than you earn and do it over a long period of time. The key to weight loss is similar. Burn more calories than you consume and keep doing it until you reach your target weight.

This is also the premise behind LoseIt.com, a Web site and app that Gail and I have been using since the first of the year.

After I finished reading Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, I bought a pair of Vibram FiveFingers shoes. I have been running in them now for five weeks. I am loving them. The only negative is that I am continuously having to explain them to curious strangers. In fact, three people stopped me today in the space of three miles.

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I am runner. I didn’t start until age 50, so I am making up for lost time. I just finished a fascinating book on running by Christopher McDougall. It is called Born to Run. At the end of this post, I will tell you how to get a copy free.

Two years ago, I ran the Country Music Half Marathon for the first time. Sixty-five of my colleagues from Thomas Nelson ran with me (about 10% of our workforce at the time). It was such a great experience that we did it again in 2007. Last year, we doubled the number of participants—135 finished the race (about 20% of our workforce).

Well, we want to do it again this year. My goal is for 150 of our Thomas Nelson employees to run the half marathon this year. This represents about 25% of our post lay-off workforce. I don’t know about you, but after the holidays, I am feeling more motivated than ever to get myself in shape.

For every athlete who made it to the Olympics, there are hundreds—probably thousands—who tried out. Here are a few who didn’t quite make the cut. All I can say is “Ouch!”

About three weeks ago, 135 of our employees completed the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville, Tennessee. (Our Dallas-based employees completed the Big-D Dallas Half Marathon a month earlier.) While it was fresh in their minds, I wanted to capture their thoughts.

So Lindsey Nobles, my Director of Corporate Communications, produced this simple 6-minute video with the help of David Woodard at Literary Video. In it, our Nashville employees talk about their experience. I can’t wait until next year.

In late December of 2007, I issued the 2008 Half Marathon Challenge. An amazing 135 of our employees participated in the event and participated. It was my second half marathon, and I enjoyed it even more than last year.

Last week, Lindsey Nobles, my Director of Corporate Communications, invited everyone who finished to write about their experience. Like last year, we were overwhelmed. It seemed that the majority of runners wanted to share their experience. As a result, I have included them below in full. (They are listed alphabetically by last name.) I found them truly inspiring.

On January 4th, I set a goal of enrolling 158 of our employees in one of two half marathon races this spring. This represents roughly 25% of our workforce.

I knew this was a big goal and, frankly, it was a little daunting. However, I am happy to report that we now have 160 employees registered. In addition, we have 32 spouses, and 14 authors or agents registered for a total of 206 people. Wow.

Three weeks ago, I got out of bed and noticed that my right heel was really sore. That’s strange, I thought. I wonder if I stepped on a stone. Over the next few days, I kept running and noticed that it was getting progressively worse. Then it dawned on me. Could this be the dreaded Plantar Fasciitis?

A little over a month ago, I issued the The 2008 Half Marathon Challenge. I invited our employees, spouses, authors and agents to run either the The Big-D Texas Marathon & Half Marathon in Dallas on April 6 or The Country Music Marathon & Half Marathon in Nashville on April 26. So far, we have 102 employees signed up. My goal is 158.

Admittedly, I am a novice runner. I’ve been running just a little over a year. So what could I possibly have to say about training for a half marathon? A couple of things.

My wife, Gail, loves to walk outdoors. She likes the fresh air. The scenery. The sense of connecting with God’s creation. For her, it is all about the process of walking.

Holy smoke! I thought I had big goals. Then I read a new article on the Wired Web site about a long-distance runner named Dean Karnazes. It’s called “The Perfect Human.” It’s definitely worth reading.

Here are some of the highlights:

• He ran a marathon a day in a different state for 50 consecutive days. He ran in all 50 states.
• He once ran 350 miles in three days—with no sleep.
• He’s run the Badwater Ultramarathon seven times. It starts in Death Valley, 250 feet below sea level and concludes, 135 miles later, halfway up Mt. Whitney, at 8,360 feet. He won the race in 2004 on his fifth attempt.
• He runs 100 to 170 miles a week.
• He couldn’t find time to run 4–6 hours a day, so he began sleeping less. He currently only sleeps four hours a night.
• His resting heart rate is 39 beats per minute!

My favorite quote from him is this one:

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention to arrive safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming: Wow!! What a ride!

Amazingly, Dean just turned 44. Maybe I need to revisit my goals and do a little stretching! You can also read more about him on his official Web site.