31 March 2009

Run/Walk (4:1)

Duration = 35:01
Distance = 3.29
Calories = 367
Max HR = 185
Avg HR = 161
Running Index = 45
Max Cadence = 112
Avg Cadence = 96

I good session. Most runs were 4 minutes at 6.0 mph and the walks were 1 minute at 3.0 mph. At 20:00, I did a quick pyramid burst: 30 sec at 6.0, 30 sec at 7.0, 30 sec at 8.0, 30 sec at 7.0, the rest of the interval at 6.0. The last run, at 30:00, was 4 minutes at 7.0. The final walk was 30 sec at 5.0 then 30 sec at 4.0. Cool-down (recording off) was 5 minutes at 3.0 followed by 4 minutes at 2.5 to allow my heart rate to recover to under 130.

I'm quite happy with this session. I did learn that I need to limit the volume of what I drink just before running. Nothing serious, but I would have been a bit more comfortable in the beginning of the run. My knee actually felt better after the run than before. The intervals are set based on what my knee will allow. Aerobically, I could easily run a constant 6.0 for the whole session. I need to focus on strengthening my core and strengthening the muscles related to the ITB.

30 March 2009

Another Walk in the Park

Duration = 41:52
Distance = 2.60
Calories = 185
Max HR = 115
Avg HR = 103
Max Cadence = 73
Avg Cadence = 69

My wife and I took a walk in the park adjacent to our subdivision just before sundown. This was entirely paved trails. There was a bit of standing water in a couple low spots, but otherwise the path was dry. It was quite comfortable with little wind and cool temps.

29 March 2009

Back Home Again

Duration = 46:01
Distance = 3.55
Calories = 384
Max HR = 157
Avg HR = 141
Running Index = 46
Max Cadence = 108
Avg Cadence = 94

It is good getting back home. I prefer my treadmill to the one in the hotel. Sleet and snow tonight so outside wasn't really an option. I may see how much outside running I can do next winter when I have time to get used to it. Of course, having someone read to you while running does help the time go by.

Tonight was a long run with 1.5% grade (minimum for home treadmill). Run/walk intervals of 4 minutes at 5.0 mph and 1 minute at 3.0 mph. Average pace was basically 13 minutes a mile. Feeling pretty good. Two weeks to my first 10K.

24 March 2009

Run/Walk (4:1)

Duration = 32:38
Distance = 2.84
Calories = 331
Max HR = 190
Avg HR = 155
Running Index = 44
Max Cadence = 108
Avg Cadence = 93

I tried a 4-to-1 ratio tonight. This proved to be successful. I walked at 3.0 mph and ran at 6.0 until the last run interval. That interval stepped up after each minute from 6.0, through 7.0 and 8.0, finishing at 9.0. The cool-down started at 5.0, then 4.0, finishing at 3.0. I may stick with this interval for a while as it is easy for me to remember.

[Posted 2009-03-25 2340]

22 March 2009

Peak Long Run for 10K

Duration = 1:35:01
Distance = 6.85 (From foot sensor; treadmill was over 7)
Calories = 771
Max HR = 151
Avg HR = 137
Running Index = 45
Max Cadence = 104
Avg Cadence = 87

This was the peak distance for the 10K race on 11 April. I debated adjusting this and running it next weekend, but decided to give it a try and I'm happy I did. I ran this with 5.0 mph runs for the 3 minute interval and 3.0 mph walks for 1 minute. I have every confidence that I will be able to run the 6.2 miles of the 10K in three weeks.

Using Daniels' formula, yesterday's race supports a vdot of 34. This predicts a time of 57:26(9:14/mile). As it is a first race at this distance, my goal is to finish. It looks like this shouldn't take much over an hour and a sub-60 finish is possible. I'll probably run the race similar to the last. The major question is which interval to use. I may try 4:1 during the next week to see how I do and hold with that through the race.

21 March 2009

Daniel Island 5K

Duration = 30:09
Distance = 3.18
Calories = 362
Max HR = 196
Avg HR = 172
Running Index = 45
Max Cadence = 113
Avg Cadence = 96

It was a great day for a race. There was a bit of wind, but this didn't have much impact. Race temperature was about 50F. The race T-shirt was long-sleeved. I wore this over a short-sleeved wicking shirt. With shorts, this was just right. I was running with an interval timer and that worked very well.

They announced that this was a new course. (It WAS different than the one on their website.) The first part was on residential streets starting from Bishop England High School. Near the halfway point, the course turned onto a bike path. This ran to a corner of the school property. The last bit was across a field, then a bit of parking lot, before passing between the track and the football stadium. The end was half a lap on the track.

It was a good start. I got all my technology going. There was a bit of sorting out and it was very crowded for the first bit. I will need to figure out how to stay out of the way when I stop to walk. There was water at the 1 and 2 mile point. I bypassed the first, but took a cup at the second. I need to work on water stations more, but I did get a couple swallows of water. There was a bit of a kick left in me at the end. Splits were about 8:30, 9:00, 9:10 (estimates as I didn't mark the miles).

I need to even my pacing a bit. My cadence was good and consistent, but I was shortening my stride a bit during the run interval.

I felt really good about this run. I was quite surprised when I got to the first mile and was well under 10 minutes. I started thinking about a sub-30 race when I was well under 20 at 2 miles. The final time was 27:39 for an average pace of 8:54. I am this at a faster average pace than I did the 1.5 mile run in December.

17 March 2009

Hard session (3:1)

Duration = 32:01
Distance = 3.14
Calories = 327
Max HR = 174
Avg HR = 156
Running Index = 47
Max Cadence = 109
Avg Cadence = 94

I need to remember to start the interval timer sooner. I ran this with 3 minute run and 1 minute walk intervals. The speed was 7.0 mph for the run and 3.5 for the walk. Today's grade was 0%. This treadmill seems to run a bit slower for a reported speed than the one at home. I will have to verify this once I am home as I also changed the sensor calibration between home and here.

This was the best pace I've averaged since my 1.5 mile run in December for the USAF. Again, I am quite happy to be actively training again.

16 March 2009

Elliptical Session

Duration = 30:25
Calories = 152
Max HR = 129
Avg HR = 108

This was my first time trying an elliptical. I found it interesting, but I'm not sure it is for me. The biggest problem is that I have very short legs and the strides seemed totally out of line with what was reasonable. I'll have to read up to see if I just have the wrong idea on how the exercise is supposed to go.

[Posted 2009-03-17 2253]

15 March 2009

Long Run/Walk (3:1)

Duration = 1:21:09
Distance = 6.04
Calories = 736
Max HR = 181
Avg HR = 146
Running Index = 44
Max Cadence = 117
Avg Cadence = 90

Long run/walk with 3 minutes run and 1 minute walk. Treadmill in hotel exercise room. Took a bit to get everything right. I used 1.5% to match the grade at home. Most of the session was 5.0 mph for the run and 3.0 mph for the walk. I did one run increasing by steps to 8.0. The next included a brief 9.0 run. The last run was at 7.0 for 2 minutes.

13 March 2009

A walk near Huffman Prairie

Duration = 35:58
Distance = a bit over 2 miles

My wife and I went for a walk this evening. We covered a bit over 2 miles in just under 36 minutes. Temperature was 45F. It was a beautiful day.

[Posted 2009-03-14 2124]

12 March 2009

Sensor Calibration

Duration = 42:24
Distance = 3.70
Calories = 397
Max HR = 175
Avg HR = 148
Running Index = 45
Max Cadence = 127
Avg Cadence = 87

I ran this session on a quarter-mile track in 35F weather. The first mile was a constant run for the purpose of calibrating the stride sensor I'm been using since November. The 4 laps yielded a measured distance of 1.036 miles for a calibration factor of 0.965. I then did a couple sprints on the straights of the next lap. The remainder of the session was run/walk interval (3:1) followed by a cool-down walk.

[Posted 2009-03-12 2110]

10 March 2009

Challenging Time Trial

Duration = 30:08
Distance = 2.35
Calories = 241
Max HR = 179
Avg HR = 136
Running Index = 40
Max Cadence = 108
Avg Cadence = 77

I did improve my time on this Time Trial Mile by 20 seconds to 8:50. I know I can do better, but I just didn't feel "right" tonight. It might be something I ate today, or it could be something I'm fighting off. At least I'm feeling strong mechanically. Once I'm feeling better generally, I probably need to spend some time doing intervals to push myself a bit to get used to operating up in these higher speeds. It is uncomfortable and I need to get used to being uncomfortable if I'm going to make the improvements I want.

09 March 2009

Hiatus

I'm putting the strength training on hiatus. I'm not progress at all. In fact, I appear to be regressing. I'm not sure if it is simply muscle fatigue, or if there are minor issues in my joints that are being adversely affected by the training. It is possible that the running (which is improving) and the weight loss are also impacting on the strength training. I will work on both the sit-ups and push-ups in the future as these are related to my long-term fitness goals, but I think a compete break now is in order. This will also simplify other things I have in progress and upcoming.

Monday Walk

Duration = 45:02
Distance = 2.70
Calories = 186
Max HR = 107
Avg HR = 99
Max Cadence = 67
Avg Cadence = 64

Simple walk tonight. We finished the current book and started the next.

08 March 2009

Long Run/Walk (2:1->3:1)

Duration = 1:25:28
Distance = 6.72
Calories = 737
Max HR = 158
Avg HR = 142
Running Index = 48
Max Cadence = 107
Avg Cadence = 89

Pushed over 6 miles today. My heart rate seemed to be fairly low as I was getting the first mile down and I was feeling pretty good; so, I changed to ratio to run 3 minutes/walk 1 minute. I was a bit irregular with this as I have always started running on multiples of three. Now, I am aiming for multiples of four. This lead to a couple of 7 minute run intervals. Even with that, I'm feeling pretty good.

The goal race for this cycle is a 10K. This run extended beyond that at about 77 minutes (1:17). This at a faster pace than the overall pace I ran for the 5K on 1 Feb. I'm feeling real good about the April race. Next week, I will use the 3:1 ratio. I'd like to get to a 4:1 as that would have me starting the run at '5' and '0'.

05 March 2009

Thursday Run/Walk (2:1)

Duration = 50:01
Distance = 4.24
Calories = 463
Max HR = 168
Avg HR = 148
Running Index = 48
Max Cadence = 107
Avg Cadence = 87

Nice steady session. Run at 6.0 mph and walk at 3.0. After 44:00, final cool-down at 3.0.

Comparing this session with a week ago, I can see a distinct improvement in the heart rate throughout the session. Also, the shoes are working well.

It's starting to get to the point where I can realistically consider running outside. However, it is really nice to have someone read to me while I am running on the treadmill.

04 March 2009

Challenging Day

Sit-ups (W3D1): 15, 18, 11, 7, 7
Push-ups (W3D2): 14, 19, 9, 7, 7

Four more sit-ups today than Monday. The second set was pretty rough as well. Maybe third time will be the charm.

Hideous day for push-ups. The effort is even affecting my typing. We will drop back on Friday, or I may start Week 3 over next Monday as I am travelling this weekend.

Henceforth, I will drop back one day at each failure. I may need to spend two days at each level to allow my body time to adapt.

The good news is that I seem to be over whatever was bothering me Monday.

Walk

Duration = 31:15
Distance = 1.97
Calories = 147
Max HR = 115
Avg HR = 105
Max Cadence = 71
Avg Cadence = 67

Walk today. I'm still trying to figure out what the pace should be for these. Right now, I assume I should get into at least the lowest aerobic zone. The directions are less than clear in the 10K program I'm following.

03 March 2009

One Mile Time Trial

Duration = 32:01
Distance = 2.71
Calories = 292
Max HR = 183
Avg HR = 146
Running Index = 46
Max Cadence = 105
Avg Cadence = 86

The goal for today's run was to perform a one mile time trial to get an idea of current fitness and set some reasonable training paces based on that. This trail is based on the "Miracle Mile" from Jeff Galloway's book and website. The timed mile is embedded in a longer session including warm-up and cool-down. He suggests not using a treadmill, but I figure that, if anything, my treadmill understates speed and distance.

My warm-up was a walking lap at 3.0 -> 3.5 -> 4.0 mph, then a 5.0 running lap. I did a short walk at 3.0, then started the timed mile. The first 5 minutes were at 6.5, then I did a 30 second walk at 3.0. After the brief walk, I resumed using a new speed of 7.0. The last half lap was at 7.5 -> 8.0. The time for the mile was 9:10. I walked for 4 minutes at 3.5 then finished the rest of the session with a run/walk of 5.0/3.0. The last run was at 6.0 and the last walk was at 3.5. Final cool-down was at 3.0.

In rough numbers, and using the more pessimistic prediction, the pace for a 5K is 10:00, for a 10K is 10:30, and for the marathon is 12:00. This yields a training pace of 14:00 if I were to follow a strict reading of Galloway's method. I've been using 10:00 as the pace of the runs of the two weekday run/walks and 12:00 for the run during the Sunday long run/walk. My current goal race is a 10K in April. I think what I've been doing is in line with this program for now. I will do another time trial next Tuesday starting with a speed of 7.0 and see how that goes.

02 March 2009

What happens when you take a week off

Sit-ups (W3D1): 15, 18, 10, 6, 5
Push-ups (W3D1): 12, 17, 13, 13, 18

It doesn't help that I've developed the sniffles as well, but the week off does show in the numbers. I've read that muscular fitness falls off after 96 hours of no training.

I will repeat Week 3 Day 1 of sit-ups until I meet the standard. I made the standard with the push-ups, but I took significant breaks between sets.

New Shoes

Duration = 45:13
Distance = 2.99
Calories = 256
Max HR = 128
Avg HR = 114
Running Index = 52
Max Cadence = 74
Avg Cadence = 70

Starting this week with new shoes. I plan to wear them for the whole week. I had a minor issue getting the HRM to note the new shoes. I had to turn on the option for the second pair of shoes and associate the stride sensor with them. These shoes are a touch smaller than my other pair and, as such, may fit better.

After getting started at 3.0 mph for a few minutes, I increased the grade to 3.0%. I eventually pushed the speed to 3.8 mph. I never got above Zone 2 during this walk. I have to remember that these are supposed to be easy days, but I need some aerobic effect.

Jeff Galloway's book, Training Programs, and an interval timer came in the mail today. Hopefully, the book will give a better idea how I'm supposed to approach each of these sessions. His website was less than clear.

01 March 2009

Long Run/Walk (2:1)

Duration = 1:09:30
Distance = 5.26
Calories = 552
Max HR = 154
Avg HR = 135
Running Index = 49
Max Cadence = 99
Avg Cadence = 83

Today's long run was for 5 miles. Run intervals at 5.0 mph and walk at 3.0. Still running 2 minutes and walking 1. Next week is new shoes with the same ratio.

With the new month, let's report a few totals. I'll do a set for January as I haven't reported them yet.

Miles:
January = 25.8
February = 48.1
YTD = 79.2 (includes today, 1 March)

Time:
January = 5:39
February = 11:56
YTD = 18:44 (includes today, 1 March)

Finally, I used my HRM, a Polar RS800CX, to perform a fitness test which generates a value they call OwnIndex. Today, I got a value of 38. This is the best I have gotten from the HRM.