Checking in, not checking out

Concentrating on being healthy is tiring! As a teacher on summer vacation, I'm wondering how I survive working full time on less sleep. I've been taking naps nearly every day. The upside has been that my laundry consisted of just bathing suits, workout clothes and pajamas this week.

Running
I had a great training week, 22 miles in all. Our five miles of bridge repeats were faster this week by 30 seconds! And, I took a whole minute off my 5K time this week. Motivation (and consistency) has been a key factor. I've been able to meet my running partner in the mornings when I would normally be getting ready to go to work. I also joined in on the Runner's World Sub-30 Facebook group. Their conversation is non-stop and almost makes you feel guilty if you're not out there doing something. They have been a very inviting and fun group to get to know. And, who can resist getting up early for these views:

 

PiYo:

I'll admit I've fallen a bit off the schedule, but with a bigger focus on the running, driving my daughter back and forth to work and other activities (open mic nights, chi running clinics, etc.) I've managed to get behind by two workouts. I've now done the Define: Lower and Define: Upper twice. They are pretty short and I feel like I'm getting better at them as time goes on, although triceps pushups continue to be difficult. The Sweat workout is about double in length and much more taxing. You spend long periods of time on each leg doing multiple exercises. I'm looking forward to trying Core this week. I'll also admit that I haven't been faithful to following the eating plan.

dietbet

This is another active, highly engaging online group and source of motivation. Everyone checks in often about their food or exercise for the day. People comment on eachother's posts and encourage them, especially when they are seeking help, advice or just a nudge to continue. I am surprised not to see a bit more interaction from the host, Shay Carl, though. I do continue to watch his vlogs, and his Shayloss channel has some beautiful footage of the activities they are doing in Idaho. It certainly makes me want to go join him on a hike. I'm proud to say I lost 3.4 pounds the first week. I've been relying more on the MyFitnessPal app and counting calories. The app is really eye-opening as far as keeping track of the macro-nutrients, as well as other vitamin and mineral intake and sugar. I've learned I definitely need to focus more on cutting out fat and sugar.

Finally, it looks like I'll have the best motivation coming up: This week I signed up for the Outer Banks Half Marathon in North Carolina. It will be state number 14 for me!

Summer Slim Down

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?