Let’s Get Physical: Week 6 (The Final Cut)

On 06/09, I wrote about my decision to get in shape in a post entitled “Let’s Get Physical.” My decision was based, in part, on the fact that I was out of shape to the point that walking up multiple flights of stairs winded me.I’ll be using a combination of diet and exercise to accomplish my get-in-shape-semi-quickly goal, and I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan (starting with week 4), and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”This is a continuation of Let’s Get Physical tracking my progress after the final week of my program.

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Well, it’s been nearly 3 weeks since I last posted anything, largely because I have been avoiding the inevitable final post of my personal quest of getting physical. I knew that I couldn’t (in good conscience) post anything else lest a month and a half of work and hype simply get swept under the rug. I wish I could say that my last run was a glorious triumph, akin to Rocky climbing the courthouse steps, arms raised and bouncing in a joyous celebration as the angels sang “Getting Stronger!” But alas, it wasn’t.

Instead, I cut out a day early, skipping my final run and heading to Illinois for a friend’s wedding (”Getting Stronger!”). I ended up staying there a while and really haven’t been on a run since. However, this does not mean that all is lost, or that this particular exercise was in vain. Nay!, quite the opposite. I am feeling phenomenally better, and I can walk up stairs, several in fact, without getting winded. I walked the mile or so between my hotel and the conference I attended in St. Louis this weekend several times, and felt great doing it.

It has also come to my attention that the scale I have been using doesn’t work very well at all. Instead of the 190 it was weighing me at, I am actually five pounds lighter. And although 185 is decidedly closer to my goal, I still have a ways to go, not to mention the fact that I don’t really even know what my weight was when I started.

As far as my soda fast, that met its demise at the hands of the sweet nectar of life: Dr. Pepper. This is not to say that I plan on making soda my drink of choice. Rather that I will drink soda, but always in moderation. One thing I certainly learned over the course of getting physical is the importance of water and hydration. Staying properly hydrated is an essential part of feeling good.

So, final thoughts: was it worth it?

The answer is decidedly, emphatically, and whole-heartedly yes. Being able to run a 5K might probably won’t land me any major endorsements anytime soon (fingers crossed!), but I certainly do feel better. Feeling better = living better, and who doesn’t want a better life? I would encourage anyone (and everyone) to heed the advice of Ms. Newton-John like I did and start a wellness project of their own.

Let’s Get Physical: Week 5

On 06/09, I wrote about my decision to get in shape in a post entitled “Let’s Get Physical.” My decision was based, in part, on the fact that I was out of shape to the point that walking up multiple flights of stairs winded me.I’ll be using a combination of diet and exercise to accomplish my get-in-shape-semi-quickly goal, and I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan (starting with week 4), and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”

This is a continuation of Let’s Get Physical tracking my progress after week five of my program.

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Heading into the last week of my program, I’m actually feeling pretty good. The running is getting easier, and I am with out a doubt in much better shape than when I started. I just hope that with winter approaching I’m able to continue to stay fit and don’t backslide too much.

Stats

Weight: 190 lbs.

Once again holding at 190, but still feeling better. As I said before, my hope is that once I’m running 5K on a regular basis and improving my times that the weight will start to come off. So far, its just been moving around (i.e. fat into muscle).

Active Heart Rate: 170/60

For some reason, I decided to run my route in reverse, placing a fairly steep hill at the very end of my route. The effect it had is similar to if I had sprinted the last quarter-mile. So, instead of the steady pace I had grown accustom to (and thus steady heart rate), my heart rate spiked. I expect this to drop again at the end of next week.

At-rest hear rate: 71/60

Staying low.

Run

As I mentioned before, I made the mistake of leaving a steep hill until the end my final run this week. I made it up the hill, but ended up walking the last block to my apartment. To be fair, I had been increasing my distance per the program, so that could have contributed as well. In addition, I ran Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday, so I had a 3 day rest leading into the run, which also contributed.

Once again, deviating from the schedule came back to bite me.

Eat

Again, no problems with soda (though I have been craving a Dr. Pepper, the sweet nectar of life). I have started eating less, more frequently, which may or may not prove to be a good thing.

As far as the nutrition guide I am supposedly following, the one thing I really haven’t been doing is eating a large breakfast, medium lunch, and small dinner. I’m sure this is affecting me, though in what ways I can’t certain. It is entirely possible that my diet is contributing to my very minimal weight-loss, but at least I’m not gaining!

With the last week of my program upon me, I am feeling great and I am getting in shape. I guess I should start thinking about what’s next — do I seek to improve my time, or do I seek to improve my distance? And what diet restrictions, if any to I place on my self? Certainly healthy diet = healthy body, but when is it OK to splurge and indulge? Does the rule of moderation apply to a healthy diet (i.e. too much of a good thing…)?

Time will tell.

Let’s Get Physical: Week 3

On 06/09, I wrote about my decision to get in shape in a post entitled “Lets Get Physical.” My decision was based, in part, on the fact that I was out of shape to the point that walking up multiple flights of stairs winded me.

I’ll be using a combination of diet and exercise to accomplish my get-in-shape-semi-quickly goal, and I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan (starting with week 4), and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”

This is a continuation of Lets Get Physical tracking my progress after week three of my program.

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Well, it’s the end of week three and I feel exhausted. The last workout — 2.25 mile, no walking — really pushed me. My legs are dead, and will most likely feel worse tomorrow. But, you know what they say: “No pain, no gain.” Last week’s slacking threw off my routine for this week, really making me realize the importance of setting a schedule, and sticking to it.

Stats

Weight: 190 lbs.

Well, I’m now hovering around 190, meaning that since I started this whole thing, I’ve shaved off 2 pounds. But the thing is, you can’t really measure success in pounds lost, what matters is how you feel. Also, consider that the process of getting in shape requires the breaking down and rebuilding of muscles, so to truly measure my fitness stats, I should be using my BMI and percent body fat (Note: my current BMI is 25.76 and according to the chart at Wikipedia, I am slightly overweight).

Active Heart Rate: 160/60

I actually have a hard time believing this calculation, but I took it immediately after walking in from run. So, the jury’s out until I get into next week’s work out regiment.

At-rest hear rate: 76/60

OK, so this is up from last week, which seems odd to me. Then again, I am not a cardiologist, so what do I know?

Run

The running this week was a little challenging. I really had to push myself, which is great (even though it doesn’t feel like it). The tiredness I’m feeling is a sign to me that I am doing something right. I’ve been able to stay pretty hydrated, thus reducing fatigue, etc.

I’ve had to continually alter my route to give myself enough room to run the required distances, and still end up back at my apartment. This means that the hills are getting hard to avoid. I can generally avoid them in the beginning of my run, but still find my self running up hill at the end of my run. However, today I found a route that is a much more gradual ascent (so much so that it almost feels flat), and I plan on running the whole route backwards, starting running down hill and then around to the gradual incline. Should give my legs a nice rest.

Eat

My eating has stayed pretty consistent. I think that I’m getting plenty of protein, but I’m definitely not getting enough carbs. I need to focus on eating more rice and pasta’s on my off days so that I have the energy I need on my run days.

The soda thing is still going fine, and I am still drinking a lot of water. This has actually ended having a welcome side effect: I am spending a lot less money on drinks. Aside from the occasional beer, I only drink water when I go out.

Also, after my praise of Vitamin Water last week, I was encouraged to be careful because a whole bottle has more calories than most sodas. After a more thorough inspection, I discovered that the nutrition information on the bottle is based on 8oz servings. Tricky.

But one shouldn’t be afraid of calories if one is active. What I am really interested in avoiding is the caffine, high fructose corn syrups, and other things of absolutely no nutritional value that are in sodas. Vitamin Water may have calories like soda, but it also has vitamins, which soda does not. Anyway, thanks for the heads-up.

The next couple of weeks is when the program really heats up, requiring running for increasing distances / times without walking. Gut check time is now officially upon me, and I shall consider myself checked.

Let’s Get Physical: Week 2

 

On 06/09, I wrote about my decision to get in shape in a post entitled “Lets Get Physical.” My decision was based, in part, on the fact that I was out of shape to the point that walking up multiple flights of stairs winded me.

I’ll be using a combination of diet and exercise to accomplish my get-in-shape-semi-quickly goal, and I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan (starting with week 4), and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”

This is a continuation of Lets Get Physical tracking my progress after week two of my program.

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After week 2 of following Olivia Newton-John’s advice and getting physical, I’m still feeling pretty good. The jogging regiment started out better than week 1, but ended up sucking (though this is primarily due to me and not the program or jogging itself). Apparently, if you deviate from the program, even a little bit, it can come back and kick you in the face.

Stats

Weight: 192 lbs.

Still holding strong at my starting weight. I am hoping that this starts to pick up as the weeks go on, but I may need to actually be able to run 3 miles before I start shaving the ol’ pounds.

Active Heart Rate: 170/60

This is about the same as week 1, so I must have waited to long to take my initial active heart rate.

At-rest hear rate: 70/60

Assuming that it is correct, this is an improvement of 10 beats per minute, meaning I am getting in better shape.

Run

As the week started, I was feeling pretty good. As I continued my running regiment, I still felt pretty good. I was confident that I would have no problems with the 2 mile, 20 minutes of non-stop running madness that was the last day of week 2. And then I just didn’t run.

I didn’t run on Friday (which I should have according to the program). I didn’t run on Saturday, when I had plenty of time to make up for Friday’s skip. I didn’t run on Sunday, when I had yet another chance to make up for it. So now I find myself in week 3 of the program without completing week 2. I decided that since Friday’s workout was a little tougher than usual (i.e. no walking), I would simply do it in place of my workout for day 1 of week 3.

And then I didn’t run on Monday.

So by the time I get around to starting week 3, its been almost a week since I have run, when I am used having 1 day of rest during the week, and 2 on the weekend. Needless to say, when I finally got around to finishing week 2’s regiment, it sucked. When I finished, I felt like I had been hit my a million dollars, packaged together into 10.75 pound bricks. I know 10.75 pound bricks sounds ridiculous, but that’s what it felt like. Seriously.

Eat

Despite my less than stellar running performance this week, I feel that my eating habits have improved. I am still not eating a large breakfast, but I am eating at more regular intervals, and in more conservative portions.

I am finding that I need carbs before I run, and protein after. So, I plan on working in pasta and cereal before I run (and on my off days), and more meats and vegetables after.

So far its been pretty easy to go without soda. I’ve continued to drink more water, and I have discovered this wonderful drink called Vitamin Water. It’s basically flavored/colored water with vitamins added to it. It has a third of the calories in soda and is a lot less harsh than a sports drink. My favorite flavor so far is b-relaxed. It is truly and simply amazing, almost as if there were a raging party taking place in your mouth.

Less than 2 weeks in, and I am already slacking off. It’s time that I stepped up and got myself in gear. As my high school soccer coach would say (minus the preceding and following arbitrary string of obscenities): It’s gut check time… $%@#$&*!

Let’s Get Physical: Week 1

On 06/09, I wrote about my decision to get in shape in a post entitled “Lets Get Physical.” My decision was based, in part, on the fact that I was out of shape to the point that walking up multiple flights of stairs winded me.

I’ll be using a combination of diet and exercise to accomplish my get-in-shape-semi-quickly goal, and I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan (starting with week 4), and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”

This is a continuation of Lets Get Physical tracking my progress after week one of my program.

…

After week 1 of following Olivia Newton-John’s advice and getting physical, I am feeling pretty good. The jogging regiment went pretty much as expected: it sucked. Apparently, I was more out of shape than I realized. However, each workout went a little better than the previous, indicating that I am in better shape than when I started, albeit very little.

Stats

Weight: 191 lbs.

Because it is so close my starting weight (192 pounds), it doesn’t really mean much

Active Heart Rate: 170/60

This is up considerably from my first workout, so either I didn’t workout for 20 minutes, or I waited to long to take my heart rate)

At-rest hear rate: 80/60

An improvement of four beats per minute. Not a big deal, but people in excellent shape (i.e. professional athletes, etc.) can have a at rest heart rate as low as 60/60, so lower heart rates across the board show improvement.

Run

I prefer to run outside to inside, and on a “road coarse” than around a track. This generally leads me to run in and around the my neighborhood. The roads around my apartment are pretty hilly, which I never really paid attention to until I was running up and down them. After realizing that running up-hill pretty much killed me, I altered my route.

Generally speaking, getting in shape involves improvements in 2 separate areas: cardio (breathing, heart rate), and muscles (arms, legs). Usually your muscles improve faster than your cardio, leaving you feeling winded after workouts, rather than with muscle fatigue. For me, this generally alternates as I push myself to run longer distances or at faster paces. Through the first week, I experience more muscle fatigue during and after my workouts than feeling winded. This is probably because of the hills, so sticking to flat ground should help.

Eat

What really surprised me about my first week was that running was easy part. The hard part was figuring out how to follow the nutritional plan. The water wasn’t really an issue (though I could probably use more), and neither was avoiding soda (I’ve been drinking water). The real issue has been altering my eating habits.

Prior to this, I had been eating very little, if anything for breakfast then eating a medium lunch, and a bigger dinner, while the program I am following calls for just the opposite. In addition to the portions, I generally don’t eat at regular intervals, so following the nutritional program completely alters my eating habits. It means that I have to take the time to prepare things, and I’m not always motivated to do so. It also means that I have plan out what my meal options are, which I am also not accustomed to.

It turns out getting physical is going to be harder than I thought.

Let’s Get Physical

Well, I’ve decided it’s time to heed the advice of Olivia Newton-John… time to “get physical.” You might be wondering what prompted this decision, and asking “Wouldn’t it just be easier not to?.”

The answer is yes, it would be easier not to. And, yes, I am aware that Olivia wasn’t talking about working out, but for the purposes of this post, I am taking in her words with ears of innocence.

As far as what prompted this decision - well, that’s a little hit to the ol’ ego. Suffice to say, that when you don’t have the abs you always convince yourself you do, you get winded walking up multiple flights of stairs, and you realize that your thighs occasionally rub together when you walk, Olivia’s advice starts to make a lot of sense.

As it turns out, the Internet is your best friend when you are looking for a get-in-shape-semi-quickly regiment of jogging (that’s yaw-ging, it’s a soft J). I’ll be following the Couch-to-5K Running Plan, and “Nutrition and Hydration for Runners.”

After my first run yesterday wasn’t too bad, I’ll be skipping ahead to week 4 in the program, making it a 5 week commitment. I have decided to cut out soda for the duration, and to follow the nutrition/hydration article as best I can. This means lots of carbs, protein and water.

As of this morning, I am weighing in at a gentleman’s 192. I Googled “ideal weight“, and according to a quick survey of the results and throwing out the highs and lows, my ideal weight is somewhere between 150 and 180 pounds (Apparently there isn’t a universal formula/chart for ideal weight, which make sense I guess because everyone is different, etc). I’ll be shooting to lose somewhere near 15 pounds, putting me between 175 and 180 pounds.

I’ll be tracking my progress via weekly updates of diet, weight, heart rate and general in-shapeness. Look for the P.E. tag to follow how I am doing.

Update:

After my first 20 minute workout, my heart rate was 140/60, while my at-rest heart rate is 84/60.