Ryan Snowden is doing what most of us only dream about: he's training for the upcoming Beijing International Marathon.

7:00 a.m.

Home (Shuangjing Qiao)

Wake and groan from going to bed only four hours earlier. I sleep in for six minutes. My body attempts to will itself into rising and I am reminded of Aqua Teen Hunger Force: “Arise, Chicken! Ariiise!” Pain in my legs from yesterday’s run: Today is going to be hell.

7:06

Pour nutrition drink with low fat milk and eat a banana. Confirm 10 a.m. meeting and set up another on Skype. Relax for 30 minutes of studying Chinese.

7:50

Shower, iron shirt. My eyes are dry. Forego usual 15 minutes of rope skipping and read articles from Digg and Slashdot instead.

8:15

Realize it’s actually cool outside and look forward to riding into work. Legs are stiff.

The Office

8.30

See a million hot girls in tiny shorts and tight jeans and think today might be a good day. Put on Glenn Gould, Beethoven Piano Sonatas Vol. 1. Mei Ling from sales is already in: “Zaoshang hao!”

8:35

Drink coffee: three teaspoons of sugar. Put on glasses. My eyes are so dry they are burning.

9:20

First crisis of the day: some data loss has apparently been going on for four days. I'm seeing red. Rage won’t help, though, I need an action plan, or a punching bag, which reminds me of the pain in my legs.

Starbucks

10:45

On my way to Starbucks for a meeting, the client sends a text message saying he’s still in a meeting and can’t make it. I take a deep breath and grab a long black with an extra shot. I spy a billboard for the Beijing marathon and I think: “What am I getting myself into?”

11:25

Hungry for sushi or anything clean—maybe a quick lunch at 7-11 before the hordes line up. I decide to have a big lunch since I’m planning on (finally!) joining the gym in my apartment block tonight.

7-11

11:45

Lunch turns out to be a ham and cheese cardboard sandwich, red bean sushi, seaweed and soy salad. I find a small rock in the sushi and eat it. Down three pieces and plan to eat the rest before running tonight. The thought of exercise makes me shudder. All I want is a beer.

The Office

2:34 p.m.

I start rummaging through mountains of data checking records in a salvage operation. Nothing.

3:30

I get a glimmer of hope and reward myself with a double half-decaf half-caf with a twist of lemon a la "L.A. Story."

4:22

Extremely tired. Thinking of tonight’s run: “It’s going to be a long night.”

Home

6:00

After arriving home I have a beer and watch the episode of ATHF where Master Shake is resurrected. “Ariiise, Chicken!”

6:45

Have a shower and begin working on crap.

7:37

Hunger pains, so I eat some steak leftover from last night, cold, with my fingers. Eat sunflower seeds and peanuts. Wash it down with a glass of milk. Will run after all this has gone down.

The Run

8:39

I get on my gear, even though I don’t want to run. I don’t want to do anything. But if I put on my shoes and just walk towards the door I’ll have to. So I do and run along the little canal which is about 4 km, continuing until I reach the Royal Gardens. I’m devastatingly tired by this point so I rest instead of continuing the run. My body is over. I usually make 7 km. It's dark and I want to go home. Everything hurts. My face is pushed into a permanent mask of pain.

9:10

I get my second wind after the cool down and run really fast until I hit the home stretch. I’m going to hurt tomorrow. Sweat like mad in the stuffy elevator and stand in front of the air conditioner, full power, for five minutes.

Home

9:16

Have a shower and cook a vegetable soup. Check out the Beijing International Marathon forum for any new posts. Cool off and start work again.

1:30

Finish working, collapse in bed. Finally. Everything hurts but it feels good.

The Marathon

On October 21, starting from Tiananmen Square, 24,000 runners from 20 countries will compete in five separate divisions, everything from the full 42.2 kilometer run to the kid's dash. The current record is 2:07:35, set in 1986 by the Japanese runner Kodana Taisuke and equaled two years later by Abebe Mekonnen of Ethiopia, the fifth best result in marathon history. Don't worry, though, you'll have five hours to cross the finish line, plenty of time to sample cuisine from the accompanying food festival. You can still register in person for the marathon, though online registration has closed. Check: www.beijing-marathon.com for exact venues.