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. 

5 mile run

Today was my first 5 mile run of my half-marathon training. I thought I wasn't going to be able to do it, because I had an MCL injury on both knees from last weekend...most likely a sprain from dancing. I did my 3.5 mile run on Tuesday, but had to stop after 1 mile on Wednesday. After that, I stayed away from the running for the rest of the week. Today, however, I felt no pain, so I decided to go for it. I was able to finish 5 miles with no pain whatsoever. I will still ice my knees to be on the safe side. I have to say that the run went quite well. I finished in just under 62 minutes. It's still not at the speed that I'd like, but I know that will improve over time. I must remain patient. 

I am going to give myself an A- for my diet this week. I have eaten a very balanced diet and was rewarded with a 1 lb loss. This is exactly what I was expecting (according to my calorie logging), so I wasn't disappointed. My bodybugg and the half-marathon training have given me the focus that I've been needing for such a long time.

Calories

I purchased a Bodybugg last week. If you don't know what this is...it's a band/sensor you wear on your arm and it uses several factors to determine how many calories you are burning throughout the day. You upload the data into the online calorie management system and then enter what you've eaten for the day. It's very simple. If you have a calorie deficit, you lose weight. If you have a surplus, you gain. 

It's a cool little gadget, but the website is even better. It asks what your goals are and then helps you fine-tune your diet and fitness plans. My goal was to lose 2 lbs per week, but this would require a deficit of 1000 calories per day. So far I haven't achieved this. Maybe it will be easier now that the holiday weekend is over. I've been averaging a 500 calorie deficit, so maybe I'll just lose 1 lb per week. 

The worst/best part about this program is that my eyes have been opened to how many calories I take in on a daily basis. The simplest of restaurant meals seem to be 800 - 1000 calories at a minimum. All those times that I thought I was being good were not n5 early enough for me to lose weight. I'm lucky to have not gained all of my weight back. 

The program suggested that I consume 1100 calories per day and burn 2100, but I changed it to 1600/2600 today. I simply cannot live on 1100 per day, but I can burn 2600 on most days. 

I plan on weighing myself on Friday's, and I'll post the results here.

I'm still going strong on the half-marathon training. I'm now on my fourth week, and I'm feeling pretty good. Last night was 3.5 miles, and tonight I'll do 2 miles. My long run on Sunday will be 5 miles. Exciting stuff.

Just a quick post...

I ran 3 miles in 34:20 on the treadmill tonight. Not the best, but it's great progress. Last week I did the same distance in 36:25. Earlier this week, I did it in 35:25.  

Week 2b

I'm happy to see that I'm beginning to feel stronger again. Tonight I did my 1st 3 mile run of the week, and I finished in 35:25 (compared to 36:50 last week). It's always good to see improvements in time, but I'm even happier to have noticed that I felt much stronger and taller...and that I wasn't going to die. 

I realize that I have a long way to go, but I've only been back for just over 2 weeks now. I can't wait to feel back to normal. Tonight I did my 3 miles alternating between 5.0 mph for 4 minutes, then 6 mph for 1 minute. Tomorrow night, I'll do a short 2 mile run, and I think I'll up my speed a little.

Last night was my 3rd yoga session, and it's starting to become slightly more interesting (finally). Not only is the stretching good, but I'm starting to see how this will help strengthen a lot of the areas that will help me in my running. I could see myself getting into this more seriously in the future. 

Week 2 - Complete

Tonight marks the end of my second week of half-marathon training. So far, so good. This week ended with a 4-mile run. I was able to shave off 3 minutes from the same run last week (49 minutes this week), and I expect to do much better next week. I could move onto Week 3's plan next week, but I think I'll repeat Week 2 to feel just a little more caught up before moving on. 

I changed up my eating strategy a little this week as well. I'm switching from low-calorie to "food for fuel" mentality. I'm trying to eat healthy food that will help me to maximize my workouts. Healthy snacks in between healthy meals. I obviously want to limit my calories somewhat, but I'm no longer trying to just lose weight. I want to be fit again. 

This weekend was a little more difficult to eat clean, because I had family in town; however, I think we've done fairly well, considering...

...except for the Mexican food last night. But that's just one meal. One meal does not make you fat. 

Week 1 - Complete

I completely followed the half-marathon training plan for this week. Today was my 4 mile run, and it was my best "run" so far. This is a good sign. I know that it's just going to take a little time for my body to realize that I more from it now. Today I ran 1 mile, walked 1 minute, then ran the next mile, walked 1 minute, etc...till the 4 miles were done. This is a fine strategy, since the most important part is finishing it. The next week is the same exact as this week, so I hope to see some slight improvements in time (took me 52 minutes today...ugh). Maybe I won't rest between miles or maybe my miles will be faster. We shall see. 

Everything else is going well. I'm also doing 3 days of mild strength training and one day of yoga per week. I had a couple of days of cravings this week, but I don't think I blew it too bad. 

That's all I got today.