Andrew Oxendine, 43, is a marketing man by day and competitive runner by night. Growing up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Andrew learned at a young age how much fun running could be. He enjoyed the competitive edge the sport brought and how it challenged him to always be better. At only 9 years old Andrew’s relay team won 2nd Place in a 400m Relay and at age 12 he took 2nd Place again in an 800m race at 2:57:7.
As a young adult, Andrew continued to run competitively. He attended J.P McCaskey High School where he was the 1600 M District Champion and 4X800 M Co-Champion. After 24 years, his 600m and 1000m indoor records still hold. After high school, Andrew attended Pennsylvania State University where he studied International Trade and ran middle distance on the Track & Field team.
Post college, Andrew continued to run in a few road races but then stopped competing to spend the next 15 years focusing on his professional career. During this time, Andrew put on weight and found the biggest contributor to negative symptoms that affect the body was stress. In January of 2013 he was at the pinnacle of stress and decided to do something about it. Weighing 215 lbs., Andrew made a New Year’s resolution to drop down to 203 lbs. He did not change what he ate, but rather when he ate. He did his best to not eat past 7 p.m. In 3 months he dropped down to 200 lbs.
Wanting to continue maintaining a healthy lifestyle and weight, Andrew started going to the gym 2 times per week. He also increased his water intake to prevent dehydration and decrease toxins in the body; drinking up to a gallon of water per day. Throughout 2015, Andrew maintained an average weight of 196 lbs. Although he exceeded his weight goals, he was still stressed and felt like something was missing in his diet and gym routine. In early 2016, to help reduce stress Andrew started running again.
Andrew became a member of the Charles Town, West Virginia running group, Bros and Bras. He also began changing to a ketogenic diet and learning about body mechanics of running. The combination of working out, developing proper eating habits and running have helped him change his life for good. He now weighs 178 lbs and frequently competes in road races. “I cannot outrun the young kids but I am happy when I win my age group”. This year he dropped his 5K time from 24:50 to 20:59 and looks forward to being sub 20 minutes in 2017.
“A good leader does more than navigate to control direction in which they go. They see the whole trip in their minds before they leave the dock”. – John C. Maxwell
