Discontinuing...

I am discontinuing this blog... I have been writing two blogs for a while now, and decided to just merge the two together.  I ask that you please keep following me - over at my new blog.  http://www.knivesup.blogspot.com/.

Thanks!

My first early morning run

Tuesday - 6/21/11

Out and back through town

2 miles / 29 minutes

Went for a short run this morning.  This week, I started a new work schedule, giving me some extra time in the morning to work out.  Hopefully, it will allow me to be more consistent.

The run wasn’t too bad, just a quick out and back.  Did about two miles, in about 29 minutes.  Felt a little tight when I started, and loosened up as it went along, but there was some pain in my right ankle and calf muscle, but nothing too bad.  I tried to keep my heart rate in the monitor’s preprogrammed “zone”, which was between 127-143.  When I went over, I would walk, when I hit the lower end, I would start running again, which equated to about 2-3 minutes of running to 1 minute of walking.  Not sure if this was productive or not, but it seemed to work for me.

Since I was scheduled on the medic unit last night, I haven’t had a chance to set up my Garmin yet, but I plan to take care of that task tonight, and will hopefully be up for using it quickly.  I do want to do a few tests to see if the heart rate monitor and maybe the calorie burn figures are similar to the Polar HR monitor I’ve been using, just to see how things compare.  Really hoping this device will entice me to get out of bed more often than I have been!

Weekend in the Battlefields

Friday was one of the most exciting days I’ve had in a long time!  First, my parents were in town (granted, they came Wednesday, but mom wouldn’t let me take vacation, so Friday signified “the weekend with them”).  Second, my Garmin 310XT arrived!!!

Now, disclaimer time.  Even though it arrived on Friday, I knew I wouldn’t get to use it until after the weekend.  It would take time to get set up, time to get used to it, and I knew I would want to spend every second with the ‘rents.  I was ok with that…

Last night, when I got back to my apartment (and got laundry started…) I sat down and opened the box.  Even without a monitor on, I could feel my heart rate increasing…



My new Garmin 310XT, sans the baggies...

First, why do companies have to package every single little piece in it’s own plastic baggie?  What happened to putting all the pieces in cutout cardboard, with little twist ties?  So much easier.

The monitor was, as expected, a dead battery.  So it charged overnight.  Can’t wait to use it, although because I am riding the medic unit tonight, I doubt I will get to use it until tomorrow.  I will definitely spend part of my medic shift setting it up, though.

Now, for workouts… I haven’t been logging all of my workouts.  When I started this blog, I figured it would be a “running” blog, but I have been doing a LOT of walking, and while I have kept track of it, I haven’t always logged it here.  I probably won’t start, either, but felt it was worth mentioning, since I haven’t done a ton of running, either.  But I did run this Saturday, so…

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Run through part of Gettysburg Battlefield

3.74 miles / 55 min.

Back at it...

Oops, I forgot to report on my latest run.  First off, apologies.  I took off about 6 weeks, to let my legs heal.  I ended up deferring my Frederick 5k race until next year, and literally did not run at all for 6 weeks.  I walked a lot, though – not that it’s the same.

So for my first run, I knew I had to take it easy.  I planned to just do a 2 mile out and back (1 mile each way), walking as needed, but when I started, I decided to revise that.  I was really good about limiting how much I actually ran, and certainly how hard I ran, but I did a 4.7 mile loop.  I ran more at the beginning, and walked a bunch at the end, but I finished feeling great, and even the next day, didn't have much in the way of soreness, so I call that a win.  My stats for the run:  Monday evening, April 23, 2011 - warm and humid, 4.7 miles, 1hr 13 minutes, with an average heart rate of 138, which felt good to me.  I have to admit, my HR didn't seem to be the issue, as I thought it would be, but rather my lungs were the limiting factor.  Obviously, walking was not the cardio exercise I needed to maintain my lung strength.  But for a first run, I was pleased.

And then the bad news...

Three days later, I was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection, bringing with it a nice painful cough.  So no running since then.  Joy.

I am revising my training plans a bit.  Starting this weekend (assuming I can breathe without coughing by then...) I am going to start a slow run/walk program to get me back to speed again, and while doing that, I'm going to also do the Insanity DVD program.  It's a three month program that is aimed at cardiovascular health and weight loss, and I am hoping that the combination of the DVDs and the running will get me healthy and prepared for the marathon.  I believe the Marine Corps training program starts at the end of June, so I need to be semi-ready for that.

I am also making some life changes.  I am going to change my work hours, so that I better utilize what little free time I have.  By moving my hours back one hour, I should be able to get up and run in the morning before work, without having to get up any earlier.  It will also eliminate wasted time after work, as most of my evening activities begin later and the time between was wasted watching tv or surfing the net.  Either way, we'll see how this works...

More to follow...