Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Getting Hot - Week One Progress

I've worked out six out of the past nine days. I'm just starting to feel myself coming out of the, "What the hell are you doing to me, ramping up physical activity like this?" phase. After that I'll start entering the, "you need this to feel normal," phase. I love that phase, and I hope it gets here in full soon.

As mentioned, I'm incorporating elements of Tony Horton's Power 90 and running for at least four days a week. I plan on incorporating cycling when I acquire a gym membership (spinning!), or when it stops raining, whichever comes first. I can deal with running in the rain, but cycling is just too much. I ran 3.5 miles last night in a cool drizzle, continuously wiping my glasses with sweaty wet fingers, changing the blurriness of my surroundings from a hazy prickled star field to twin murky smudges. It wasn't a bad run, my time was 31:48. That's a pretty respectable pace for me, and I wasn't pushing myself that hard. I need to keep my heart rate in the ideal fat burning zone if I want to see more immediate physical results, but I tend to enjoy running at slightly above that rate. Either way it's a great workout. At a higher cardio zone I'll be burning sugars instead of fat, but also increasing my muscle mass, lactic threshold, and cardio endurance. I'm okay with that. Muscle burns more calories than fat.

I've lost just under two pounds so far. I'm taking weight readings about every other day, at the same time of day. I control for added clothing weight and meals by weighing myself in the morning right after I wake up, right after my morning shower. Two pounds a week is a pretty healthy amount. Any more and it is more likely to be water weight, or has more potential to return. Weight should be taken with a grain of salt since it can fluctuate so much naturally. Most experts agree that the best way to see results is to take measurements of the various parts of your body. I tend to lose weight from the top down. That pesky belly and love handles are the last to start to go. The way your clothing fits is a good indicator without all of the measurement work. I measure my success using the holes on my belt. We'll see how long it takes to move that buckle one more notch! I'm sticking with it.


Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Running in the fall

Last night I went for what could be said to be my first real, true run this fall. I really love running outside this time of year. I've noticed many people almost immediately switch to a treadmill as the temperature drops, but I think they're robbing themselves of something special. The air is so crisp and cool, and the light in the evening is almost ethereal. The lower light enables me to really look around and absorb my surroundings. Wearing glasses instead of contacts and sunglasses when running really limits your ability to observe a lot in the summer, when the sun is shining so brightly. The cool temperature allows me to push myself without worrying about overheating, and the drop in humidity can be said to be glorious. Running in the summer in Northern Virginia can be compared to swimming in a hot tub. Running in the fall is the opposite of this. When I step outside it's almost too cool; I'm almost cold, but as soon as I start my workout my body temperature rises and all thoughts of the temperature just fall away, and I find my rhythm.

I ran approximately 3.4 miles at an easy pace, putting my total run time at 35:16. Not too bad for not having run any true distance in a couple of weeks. I felt fantastic afterwards, which is exactly what I want when it comes to maintaining a positive attitude towards a workout plan. When I returned home I did the Tony Horton Ab Ripper 100, which is basically the most painful series of ab workouts I've ever done, and I know that isn't saying much. Afterwards I cooked a quick stir fry dinner with Lis and we relaxed with friends. It was a great evening.

So far so good.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Get Hot Pre-Weddings Plan - GO!


Laziness is a pretty horrible thing.

I'm not saying I'm lazy, just that it's a horrible thing. A lot of wonderful things that can take the place of laziness in derailing a workout plan include the following:

Video games
Beer
Video games and beer
Television series on DVD
Hot girlfriend
Sleep
Cuddles
    So, like I said, I'm not lazy. What I am is distracted. That ended yesterday (as of now). This doesn't mean I'm giving up any wonderful things. On the contrary, I'm embracing all wonderful things, and pushing working out into the wonderful things category again. I used to thrive on working out. I used to need it almost every day. It centered me. It's fallen a bit to the wayside. I haven't stopped, it's just become a bit infrequent. As opposed to my usual four or more times a week, it's become two to three, if that. Last week didn't even make that cut.

    Goals are important when it comes to keeping on track in a workout regimen. The hardest I ever worked out was training for my triathlon, and it paid off. I beat my personal time goal, and I felt and looked better than I have since high school. What I've been yearning for is a goal. It occurred to me the other day that maybe I don't need a race in my future to be my goal...maybe my goal could be... to look as good as possible for the two weddings I am attending in November!

    The plan developed quickly into a very basic principle: Workout as hard as I can as often as I can until the weddings. Focus both on strength and cardio training, and don't drop the ball. Keep it up, if I stumble, just keep pushing through. So that's what I'm doing.

    Yesterday I did strength training in the form of Sculpt 1-2 in the Power 90 series. It's the precursor to what you find on late night infomercials, P90X. It's not as advanced or time consuming, but it's still a good workout, and I can definitely feel it. I'll supplement it with running, cycling, and the ab ripper series that is also a Tony Horton product. I tried the cardio included with the Power 90 package, and somehow jumping in place, jogging, and jumping jacks just don't keep my interest...

    Hooray workout plan! Stay tuned.