JCC 2016 Fitness Goals

How long did you have between eating and working out? I find that the older I get, the more time I need to digest before I push myself hard.

 

I never eat before I work out. I typically just take a vitamin supplement or immune "booster" (like Emerge-C) in the mornings about an hour or so before I go for my run or the gym. Also, I haven't been getting sick during my outdoor runs, only when I'm lifting at the gym.

I left the gym this morning after, like I said, maybe 20 minutes, and after about half an hour or so, I felt better. I think tomorrow I'm going to skip the gym and settle for a longer run instead, and then return to the gym for a light chest workout on Thursday.

My worry is that, in my experience, if you don't keep up with lifting, you'll quickly lose all the progress you've made.

 

That's a good way to be though I reckon. Always looking forward to the next phase. I find it the same with running. When I'm building a mileage base I look forward to getting into something shorter and sharper and varied, tempos and intervals etc. When I've been doing a lot of speed work I look forward to the 'easy', more meditative long, slow distance. Keeps things interesting.

 

I had a similar situation at the end of last year. Over the previous two years I'd worked towards PB's for 5k, 10k, half and full marathon and done a number of long trail races. I did a 10k race just before last Christmas which didn't go well and left me feeling all raced out. This year I've just run, with no particular goal in mind and it's been really refreshing for both body and mind. I'm just coming round to thinking about entering a race again.

 

I was feeling a little burned out lately as well. The heat in Ohio was bad this summer and the humidity made it very hard to breathe. I should have taken about a week off after my first race in early August as well. Now the humidity is fading and it's amazing how good my lungs are working compared to before so I am slowly getting out of this feeling burned out stage. I'm looking to at least do my first marathon distance in a November trail race. Running the hilly trails in the brutal humidity is paying off now. I have a big long term goal of potentially doing a hundred mile race next summer where I frequently run trails. I want to do a 50k sometime in December if everything goes alright between now and then. I know I have learned that I need to take more time off after a race in the future.

 

I think when you get into something and start to do ok and achieve your goals the good feelings from that are a bit addictive and you want to just get going on the next challenge ASAP. It's great, but it can't be sustained indefinitely.

Just tested the waters on half marathon pace, or what I hope half marathon pace will be in a couple of weeks. Did 6k with a k warm up and down. Just need to get the other 15.1 done and I'm there!

 

I finished my miserable 16-day liquid diet, and I'm down 19 pounds. I suspect the doctor is going to put me right back on it, because he wants another test done, but I'm taking a break today and eating real food. That feels wonderful.

 

Decided to throw myself into a full weightlifting workout this morning at the gym, followed by an outdoor run. I feel great. I skipped my vitamin supplements/immune boosters this morning until after I was done working out. I guess that helped a lot.

But now I'm hungry and too tired to cook, so I'm just scarfing down on bananas, apples, and olives.

 

Congrats, it must feel good.

 

I did a tempo run yesterday in preparation for my half on 25 September. 7km in 31.11 minutes, with a 1k warm up and warm down. That pace for the half will give me around 1.33, which I'd take at the moment for sure. Whether that pace can be sustained for that long is another matter of course!

 

That's really good. Lately, with it being 90-100 degrees Fahrenheit, I've been averaging about 30 minutes for a three mile run. Maybe when it cools down again I'll be able to do better again, but as is I count every run that I don't get heat stroke from as a success.

 

In that kind of heat I'd last about 300m!

 

So I'm getting new running shoes on Friday. What are comfortable but cheap shoes one can get?

 

If you're planning to do a bit of running I'd highly recommend going into a specialist running store and having some analysis done on a treadmill so that you get the right shoe for your foot and running style. Most of the big brands have a wide range of shoes in terms of style and price. I'm a Mizuno man myself.

 

Not cheap, but the best running shoes I've ever had in my life are my current Asics GEL Nimbus (T600N). I think you can find them online for about $150. But I'd also recommend adding quality inserts if you intend to do distance running.

The difference between Aesics and conventional Nike or Reeboks is substantial, imo. I used to do most of my running with the previous two brands and only this year realized what a huge mistake that was. But again, it all depends on what type of running you plan on doing.

 

I've had Aesics since I started running way back in '08. I might stick with that, but goddamn the price.

 

MOC Yak Face what do you enjoy about your Mizuno? Are you using a Wave Rider? I haven't really looked into that brand, but from what I understand, the Asics running shoes generally have more cushioning whereas the Mizuno running shoes are typically more rigid. Not sure if that's correct (and obviously there would be variations depending on the specific lines) though. For me, I prefer a lot of cushioning and shock absorption.

Edit:

I Are The Internets I know. With the Aetrex inserts, I spent over $200 on my Asics. But, like I said, they're easily the best running shoes I've ever owned in my life, and I've been able to pile on miles per run because of them (so long as my skin isn't about to melt off my bones under this darn Florida sun ).

 

I wear the Wave Creation. It's a fairly firm shoe, but has plenty of cushioning in the heel, which has been a problem area for me in the past. It's also really comfortable on my foot and durable too, which is good at the price! It's not for everyone with its slightly unusual cantilever design at the back, but I've had a really good run with it for several years now. Having said all of that about Mizuno, I've heard nothing but good things about Asics shoes from other runners.

 

I'll test them out next time I'm near a running specialist store.

 

I recently bought a pair of Mizuno trail shoes as well. The Mujin 2. In the past I've run in Salomons on the trails, but I've found them to be very expensive and not especially durable. So far so good with the Mizunos, although I haven't had them long.

 

I like my Saucony Ride 7s. They're fairly light while having decent cushioning.

 

So after four or so months, I've gone from 206 lbs to 186 (20 lbs total). My original goal was 190 lbs.

 

I'm famous! Kinda. A few months ago, a bunch of instructors were asked to submit footage of them doing a particular circuit for a blog on the StrongFirst website. Mine was chosen! Vid's about mid-article.

http://www.strongfirst.com/dirty-ocr-strength-training-program/

 

I'm doing a 10k on Sunday; the Terry Fox cancer run. It's a family tradition, ever since Terry himself ran down the Trans-Canada Highway just a few hundred yards from our house just before his cross-Canada run hit the news. I should finish in well under an hour, probably 50-55 minutes.