Saturday, March 27, 2010.
That’s the date of my local Cooper River Bridge Run, my first 10K race.
6 months ago I was 350 pounds and couldn’t run down my drive way without becoming exhausted, forget about participating in a 10k race. And while I’m not certain I’ll be able to run the entire 6.2 miles, I know I can at least finish.
I have 8 months to prepare. I’ll be ready.
Anybody else going to be participating in the Cooper River Bridge Run? Do you runners have any tips for someone running their first marathon?
Today marks the 28th consecutive day of going to the gym.
I never used to go to the gym every day of the week until about a month ago. It wasn’t a conscious decision to keep going over the weekend — it just gradually happened. Instead of taking Saturday and Sunday off like I did for the first 5 months, the gym naturally merged itself into my every day routine.
Like waking up and breathing.
I almost feel “empty” until I step into the gym at night and go to work. I’m absolutely in love with going to the gym and being pushed to my physical limits. It’s an addiction. I know that the more I workout, the more calories I burn, and the more I have to show for it on the scale next Wednesday.
The accountability drives me. This blog drives me.
While the updates on my treadmill and elliptical workouts may be interesting to read on your coffee break and the workout pledges maybe a fun gimmick, every single one of you that has followed, commented, or sent me an e-mail through this blog over the past 6 months has had a little part in saving my life.
I’ll live another 20 years because of you. You saved my life.
And you drive me.
Using the numerous running tips and suggestions I received on Tuesday as a guide, I went to the drawing board and made a treadmill workout routine. My workouts on the treadmill have improved considerably because of it.
Here’s how my treadmill workout has been for the last couple of days:
Duration: 30 minutes
Machine Mode: Fat Burner
Speeds: 3.6 (walking) and 6.0 (running)
Incline: 3.0 to 6.0, varies
The actual treadmill workout routine consists of walking (3.6) for 4 minutes, then running (6.0) for 1 minute. So, I start walking from 30:00-26:00, then run until 25:00, and so on. It’s extremely tough, but I have discovered I am physically capable of running for 1 minute — more than that, not so much.
Then again, level 5 on the elliptical used to be hard, too.
This treadmill routine, consisting of walking for 4 minutes and running for 1, allows me to cover about 2 miles of “ground” in 30 minutes.
Also, while I now know calorie counters on workout machines are less than accurate, 30 minutes on the treadmill burns about 420 calories (!). This is relevant because on Monday night, with a workout of the same duration, I burned 100 less calories. This shows I’m already getting acclimated.
So, where do we go from here? Much like my elliptical workout that changed every week, I plan on changing up my treadmill workout as well. Every week, I’m going to increase my running by 10 seconds. Meaning, instead of walking 4 minutes and running 1, next week I’ll try to walk 3:50 and run 1:10.
If I can keep that pace up, I’ll be walking 2 minutes and running 3 minutes in 3 months. That seems obtainable and realistic. Of course, I can change this plan down the road if necessary — but it seems like a solid plan for the time being.
What say you, oh mighty runners?
