"Speed" Training

Tonight I ran 5.5 miles, which included the following:

• 20 minute jog @ 4.5 mph
• 3 x 1 mile @ 5.8 mph with 2 minute recovery between each mile @ 4.5 mph
• 10 minute jog @ 4.5 mph

It went quite well, even though the gym was warm.

My diet was great yesterday and today. I decided yesterday that I was going to attempt to shave off 50 - 100 calories per meal, if possible. This seems to help keep me within my desired range.

I plan on doing some form of cross-training tomorrow. Moving right along...

7 mile run

My 7 mile run on Sunday went great. I completed it in 01:21:37, and I know that I could have gone further and/or faster. I think this is the way that I should feel during a long run, so I will probably stick with this plan.

The plan this week calls for:

• 4.5 mile speed training on Tuesday
• 4.5 mile tempo run on Thursday
• 8 mile long run on Sunday

Other than that, I really don't have much to say. Have a great week.

Father's Day 5k

Yesterday morning, me and the fam got up bright and early to head out to the Father's Day 5k. It was sooooo nice to have my husband and kids with me. They were there to send me off and greet me on my return. I finished in 32:45, which was better than I expected. I have only been back to running for 6 weeks now, and this was a couple minutes less than my fastest training run. Plus, my training focus has been on endurance rather than speed anyways. Oh well. I think that it's disappointing to me that I let myself get out of shape, but it's still nice to see where I'm at.

I started out WAY too fast - finished the first mile in 10 minutes, so the next 2 miles were probably a little more rough than they should have been. I'll definitely need to work on pacing myself better. Hopefully I'll figure that out before the 10k in 3 weeks. I signed up for that today, so if anyone in the area is interested...please let me know and I'll send you the details.

Other than that, I had a fantastic weekend. Very full...and satisfying. Unfortunately, I did not eat properly. I doubt I will lose any weight this week. I can handle that though...as long as I don't gain.

Ok. Off to bed...

Not too much to say

Yesterday, I felt completely famished all day long, and I ended up going over my desired calories consumed; however, I didn't want to end the day with a caloric surplus, so I ended up going for a 2 mile walk/jog.

I was much better today, and I was successful in spacing out my meals/snacks better. I somehow ended up only consuming less than 1200 calories (far lower than usual). I also ended my day with a 4+ mile tempo run. This was a little more difficult for me, because it's going the same pace for a long time. I didn't have a problem with the distance or the pace...it's just that I always like to mix up my speeds just to keep it interesting; however, it's probably good practice to try to train the mind more than anything. Plus, the tempo run is at a slightly faster pace than the long run, so I think it will help with the longer runs on Sundays.

Sunday is my 5k. I don't expect a very good finish time, but I'm excited nonetheless. It's a good starting point.

Early morning 4 miler

I had a terrible night sleeping last night, and I was dreaming about different workouts. I decided to get up early and head over to the gym to get my 4 miler done. It felt good at the time, but I really feel beat now. Ready for bed...

6 Miles

Today was my first 6 mile run of my half-marathon training, and I think it went incredibly well. I feel that I was in good shape mentally, which is just as important as the physical. Listening to audiobooks is definitely helping me get through the longer distances...and doing the longer distances helps a ton with the shorter distances. It's amazing how short 3 miles feels these days.

Mentally, I broke down the run into 3 parts... 3 miles, 2 miles, then the final mile. For the first part, I stayed at 5 mph, then I went 5.2 mph for the 2nd part. I mixed up the final mile a little. My body could have gone much faster, but I decided to pace myself to avoid injury.

I also came up with a plan to carry me through to the half in October. I will continue with the 12 week program I'm currently on (Hal Higdon), and then I will work on improving my time with the 10 week Runner's World plan, which is still only 3 days a week of running (with cross-training on 3 other days).

For events, I will be doing a 5k next weekend, a 10k in July, a 10 mile in August, and the half in October.

My diet has been pretty good overall. I've averaged a caloric deficit of about 500 calories per day, and I've lost 3 lbs in 3 weeks...exactly as predicted. Even though it's only 3 lbs, I can see differences in my shape, which is the most important part anyways.

Another 4 miles

Not much to say tonight, except that I did my 4 mile run in 45:25 today...decent improvement. I have a 2 day break before I have my 6 mile on Sunday.

One other thing I've noticed is that my bodybugg says that I'm burning less calories lately. I take this to mean that my body is not having to work as hard as it did a few weeks ago to do the same amount of work. I think I'll start pushing myself just a little bit harder next week.

4 Miles

I did my 4 mile run this evening, and I think it went extremely well. My time was 46:30, and I would say that I was going at a medium pace. Up until now, I've been walking for 1 minute between each mile. This serves 2 purposes. It helps break it up into manageable pieces, and it also also gives me a break, of course. Tonight, I ran straight through, and I felt absolutely fine. I'm starting to feel that I'm making some real progress now. Exciting stuff :)

Week 5 - Completed

This past week went well enough. I lost 1 lb, which is in sync with what my bodybugg told me should happen. I don't want to drop my calories too low, since I also need energy for my fitness goals. I started taking Alli on Saturday, so I hope this will help boost my numbers just a little. I know that I'm eating right, because I'm not experiencing any of the "treatment effects" even after 3 full days.

I finished my 5 mile run on Sunday in just over 60 minutes. Not horrid, but I still have a long way to go. I really wish they'd keep the gym a little cooler. I have never been so drenched with sweat in my life. Abnormally drenched.

I've finally started seeing some noticeable differences in my body this week. My legs are starting to firm up and I don't feel as lumpy through my hips, butt, and stomach. It's a start anyways.

This week, I have 4 mile runs today and Thursday, and then a 6 miler on Sunday...plus crosstraining on other days.

That's all I got today.

Week 5

Several things:

1. On Saturday, I remembered that I had bought a lifetime membership at a local gym when I was 19 that I had totally forgotten about. The gym kinda sucks, but they do have classes and a pool. I was actually looking for some pilates classes in the area, when that gym popped up. I went up there Sunday to update my info and get a new card. 
   
2. Earlier on Saturday, I remembered the Windsor Pilates DVD's that I bought about 6 years ago. I did the 20 minute workout on Saturday for a refresher, but I did the 1 hour one tonight. Ouch. Some of it is easy stretching stuff, but there are some things that are just plain impossible for now. Hopefully I'll see some improvements soon.
3. I got my Jillian Michaels 30 day shred in the mail today. I did the Level 1 workout tonight, and even that was quite a workout. I don't know if I'll do it everyday, but I will mostly likely do it on the days that I'm not running.

On a less positive note, I had a semi-bad eating day on Friday. I went over my calories by 1200ish. It's really not that hard to do actually, especially when you didn't realize that a stupid Oreo McFlurry costs 550 calories!!! It wasn't even that good. I would so rather have had a couple of burgers had I known. I guess the good thing is that I now know, and I will probably never have another one of those things ever again. I also didn't move from the couch all day. I worked from home and then watched movies...my calories burned reflected this. It's pretty cool to see with the bodybugg how many more calories are burned just by normal daily activities. 

Since Friday, I've successfully attemped to increase my activity level and watch my caloric intake better. I actually feel way more focused this week than I have since I've gotten back to it. I don't know if it was the 5 mile run on Sunday or the bodybugg...most likely a combination. I'm definitely in this to see some big results. I know it won't be long if I can just keep it up.