Since I had a whole series of medical issues last summer, finally resulting in surgery to remove my thyroid, my weight has fluctuated at an all time high. Surgery is well behind me. My medication seems to have leveled out. I'm back to running consistently. I'm off work for the next six weeks. Gee, there are no excuses left - time to get down to it and lose these ten pounds.
PiYo Challenge
I saw an ad for Beachbody's new workout and thought it would be perfect cross training for running. It is a combination of pilates and yoga, designed to build strength and flexibility. Today, a Monday after the long holiday weekend, was as good as any to begin the eight week program. The first workout, Alignment, was more of a video to watch. It gave the fundamental yoga poses and the modifications for beginners. I tried a few of them out, but mostly just watched. I had attended yoga classes before, but this was the first time I could actually see some of the poses done correctly and incorrectly instead of just trying to go by feel. I'm sure I'll be feeling tomorrow's workout much more than today's practice session.
The PiYo eating plan is interesting. It kind of reminded me of Richard Simmon's Deal a Meal from way back when. The booklet instructs you through the calculation process to find out how many calories you'll be aiming for - it recommends that you stay within 200 calories of your goal. Then, based on the plan, it gives you the number of servings for each of the five categories: primary vegetables, secondary vegetables and grains, fresh fruit, lean protein and healthy fat. Looks like I'll have to increase my vegetable and protein intake and lessen my fat intake.
dietbet
To give myself further motivation, and increased accountability, I have joined an online dietbet. It is being hosted by Shay Carl, a vlogger that I watch regularly. I thought it would be fun to connect online and share experiences. I can't believe how many people are signed up and how much money is in the pot. First, you join the game and pay the $30 entry fee. Then you have to take pictures, and have them verified. The pictures don't get posted, thank goodness; they are only sent in to try to assure there is no cheating. The goal is to lose 4% of your body weight in the next four weeks.
My own 5K Challenge
I read an article a couple of months ago in Runner's World about working on your 5K time to boost speed and endurance during training. It has not ever been a distance that I focused on as my races are half marathons. I usually train using the Galloway run-walk-run method. I've played around a lot over the years with the intervals that I use and seem to be getting a good result. A year or so ago, I had worked myself up to run the entire 5K distance and had gotten my time as low as 28:58. This has been something I've been wanting to work toward again, so I tried it this morning. Mind you, I was lazy and didn't get out of bed early enough so it was sunny, hot and humid for my run. I also had to pause twice. I made it two miles, and needed a short break. Then I ran another half mile and took another rest. My time was 33:23. Wow, a lot had changed. I'm hoping to get one of these in every week and monitor the progress. I will change the workout to record the mile splits in the future. Have I mentioned I'm loving all these geeky reports from Garmin Connect?
PiYo Challenge
I saw an ad for Beachbody's new workout and thought it would be perfect cross training for running. It is a combination of pilates and yoga, designed to build strength and flexibility. Today, a Monday after the long holiday weekend, was as good as any to begin the eight week program. The first workout, Alignment, was more of a video to watch. It gave the fundamental yoga poses and the modifications for beginners. I tried a few of them out, but mostly just watched. I had attended yoga classes before, but this was the first time I could actually see some of the poses done correctly and incorrectly instead of just trying to go by feel. I'm sure I'll be feeling tomorrow's workout much more than today's practice session.
The PiYo eating plan is interesting. It kind of reminded me of Richard Simmon's Deal a Meal from way back when. The booklet instructs you through the calculation process to find out how many calories you'll be aiming for - it recommends that you stay within 200 calories of your goal. Then, based on the plan, it gives you the number of servings for each of the five categories: primary vegetables, secondary vegetables and grains, fresh fruit, lean protein and healthy fat. Looks like I'll have to increase my vegetable and protein intake and lessen my fat intake.
dietbet
To give myself further motivation, and increased accountability, I have joined an online dietbet. It is being hosted by Shay Carl, a vlogger that I watch regularly. I thought it would be fun to connect online and share experiences. I can't believe how many people are signed up and how much money is in the pot. First, you join the game and pay the $30 entry fee. Then you have to take pictures, and have them verified. The pictures don't get posted, thank goodness; they are only sent in to try to assure there is no cheating. The goal is to lose 4% of your body weight in the next four weeks.
My own 5K Challenge
I read an article a couple of months ago in Runner's World about working on your 5K time to boost speed and endurance during training. It has not ever been a distance that I focused on as my races are half marathons. I usually train using the Galloway run-walk-run method. I've played around a lot over the years with the intervals that I use and seem to be getting a good result. A year or so ago, I had worked myself up to run the entire 5K distance and had gotten my time as low as 28:58. This has been something I've been wanting to work toward again, so I tried it this morning. Mind you, I was lazy and didn't get out of bed early enough so it was sunny, hot and humid for my run. I also had to pause twice. I made it two miles, and needed a short break. Then I ran another half mile and took another rest. My time was 33:23. Wow, a lot had changed. I'm hoping to get one of these in every week and monitor the progress. I will change the workout to record the mile splits in the future. Have I mentioned I'm loving all these geeky reports from Garmin Connect?
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