PB in 12.5 km run

Went out last night for a 12.5 km run and got round in 1hr 12 min which is a PB for me. Stoked with the quicker pace and managed to run the entire way including hills which helped the time. Feet stood up OK although blisters were a little tender when i got home.
Had a rest day the day before which obviously helped so I will need to make sure I have a good rest before running the half marathon as it makes such a huge difference.

Haven't done a lot else this weekend. Weighed in last night and have now dropped to below 80kgs which means that I have lost over 16kgs in total now. Psychologically its a great feeling to have cracked that 80kg barrier but will now need to focus on putting on muscle mass before the upcoming league season. Don't want to be too light or I will get smashed.

off to Hamilton today to see the parents who are taking kids on holiday so will try and squeeze in some track time when i get back

PB in 5km

Quick update. Went out this morning for a 5km time trial and knocked it off in 25min 55. best yet. Still can't seem to crack that 5min/km time and I think its because I am really slack on warm up so the first km or so is a warm up of sorts and so my pace isn't up there. Might have to do some looking into better warm up patterns. It's just sooo hard when you are half asleep to stretch properly and get the muscles fired up. But if I am going to get below 25 minutes I will have to change something.

On the bright side it was another awesome morning for running. Nice and cool with heaps of people out and about obviously enjoying it the same as me.

Also went to the gym last night and did some leg work. Squatting 90kg, leg press 120kg and hamstring work. felt it at the time but no soreness this morning. Might have to move the squats up a bit. I keep forgetting what an awesome exercise that is for legs/back etc and have to make sure that I talk to Cam (PT) about changing things regarding the abdominal weight I'm carrying.

No plans to do anything tonight but that may change depending on what happens when I get home of course. I may yet have a burst of energy or may just go for a nice quite walk with the better half. Weekend ahead so will have lots of miles to go methinks...hopefully its fine

5 weeks to go

The countdown to the half marathon is ticking and training is supposed to be ramping up but I have found myself plagued with a few aches this week. I went out on Monday morning for a 7km run with my training buddy and good friend Shellton. Felt a bit stiff and sore after the plyometric stuff on Sunday but managed to toddle round OK. Tuesday I did a leisurely 10km before work while listening to the latest fitcast podcast. Interestingly enough they did a section on marathon work for weight loss...I haven't seen any benefits in that area yet and they seem to think that there are better ways of losing weight (which i would agree with). However the training I am doing is more about my personal goals of completing the half and moving towards the full marathon distance. I do need to discuss weight loss with the gym though as I have plateaued in that area and would like to see some improvement especially round the abdominal area

Took a rest day on Wednesday. I was so sore on Tuesday night that Wifey gave me a calf massage. Having trouble with my right calf which seems to get really sore and was very tender to touch. Might have to invest in some deep heat or something of the like to help with these aches and pains.

Felt better this morning for having had the rest day so Shellton and I headed out for a 10km run at 5:30am this morning. Was a beautiful morning to be out running. There had been a lot of rain last night and it was fresh and cool with an awesome misty sunrise over the Hunua ranges...great day for running.

Successful Sunday

Today has been a much more productive day on the fitness front. I have managed to squeeze in a gym session this morning where, to make up for my tardiness during the week, i did a chest and arms work out.
Bench Press
Incline Bench
Cable cross overs
Dumbell bicep curls
Cable dumbell curls

and finished off with some swiss ball press ups which I felt rocking my core...ouch but good.

Also had a text this morning from my brother in the UK and the shoes are on their way tomorrow which is great. Means that I will pick them up for about half the NZ retail cost...and hopefully they will help with the blister situation (which are actually resolving after a little while off long runs)

Then this afternoon went down to the local track where i stated off with some gentle warm up laps then did 3 x 400mtr sprints. I suffered doing the sprints. Have done some 100mtr sprints but has been a long time since i have attempted to sprint 400mtrs. It was hideously hard so I think I will be working on improving my times. I ambled round in times of 1.25; 1.26 and 1.29. Tried lengthening my stride on the last lap and this managed to shave 3 seconds off the previous lap even though my lungs were burning.

Afterwards I did three sets of 5 x stair runs followed by 10knee to chest jumps. Was a nice plyometric work out for my sunday arvo.....and made my lungs burn like they haven't done in a while which is fantastic.

Finding that the more I train the more I realise how unfit I am and how much I need to improve...its very motivating

Hmmm...rainy days suck

Today has been a pretty blah today when it comes to the weather and by association my training. The better half slept in till late due to our 10 week old keeping her up all night. Which meant I was daddy day care for Miss 4 and a half. This involved sitting at the table doing Barbie jigsaw puzzles for three hours. I actually enjoyed every minute of it but it meant that I was unable to stick to my plan of going to the gym this morning for a leg workout.

So instead I checked out some cool stuff on you tube on plyometric exercises and will start incorporating some of this into my weeks work. I also busted out my first ever completely vertical hand stand push up. Admittedly I used the wall as support but still...gotta be happy with the start. (Actually it was 10 HSPU's but who's counting...oh wait...I was)

Also paid the entry fee for the half marathon today which means there is no backing out now. The blisters on my feet are healing so I will be strapping them up tomorrow and heading out for at least 10km to see how they cope. I have also arranged for my brother in the UK to get some better shoes out which should help as well.

I have also concocted a grandiose plan to run the London Triathlon in 2013. A long way off but it will take a bit of planning. Guess I will be able to get a few under my belt before then but will have to get over my fear of deep water before then....

blisters on bruises

My blisters have become bruises pretty quickly. Did a 5km time trial yesterday morning and only manged 27 minutes. Was pretty disgusted with that effort and have given myself an uppercut and a "must do better" talk. I would like to blame it on my sore feet but no excuses right?

Rest day today (enforced due to being out of town for work all day and an early flight) so back into things tomorrow and that will almost mark only 5 weeks till the half marathon...eeeek

On a positive note I have finished reading Quantum healing by Deepak Chopra. Pretty intense book and made me think about a lot of my conceptions of health. Am sure I will be able to utilise some of the thoughts into my training/overall health and I will be looking into meditation as a performance tool in the next little while as well. Need to find a place in Auckland that can teach me how to meditate properly though as I'm not sure dozing on the couch while watching tennis or cricket really counts

Ouch

sooo sore after the weekends work outs. had to take Monday as a rest day and have only just got back into training today. Went for a 5km run this morning with my traithlon training buddy and it was a very leisurely 34 minutes round. Each step was painful to start with especially the right quad ( think I may have slightly strained my VL). Helped loosen me up though and seeinga s I have a sedentary job I made sure that I stretched during the day today.

Tonight I hit the gym for a short sharp back workout. Focussed on bent over rows, lat pulldowns, dumbell rows and reverse fly's. Smashed it for a quick half our then called it quits.

Tomorrow I start with another 5km run and may use it as a TT. The blisters on my feet continue to cause a problem and if this keeps up I will be needing new shoes prior to the half marathon. I would prefer to change shoes after but if my hand is forced I will have to make the decision soon so I can wear them in

oh...and found a great podcast too. The fitcast on itunes. Have become a fan very quickly..great mix of training and nutrition.

Sunday Afternoon Workout

Not long back from the track and I decided against doing the fast 400's as training and opted instead for a crossfit style work out. The main motivator was the fact that every step was painful due to the blisters on the inside of my right foot. Must do something about getting my shoes looked at at some stage.

So instead of the sprints I did 5 rounds of

50mtr walking lunge
100 Mtr Broad Jumps
200 mtr sprint

completed the 5 rounds in 24:42 and was wrecked after it. Work outs like that really let me know how unfit I am and give me an awesome feeling once I complete the work out. It also motivates me to get fitter and stronger so that my lungs and legs don't burn as much the next time i do something like that.

Ebs (wifey) has gone to the supermarket and got me some thick plasters which I will put over the blisters with antiseptic cream as the training continues tomorrow morning with a 35 minute jog scheduled. I think I may just go for a 5km blast and see how the feet hold up.

Half marathon here I come

So I have decided on the back of last weekends succesful first attempot at a 20km run, to enter a half marathon at the end of February. The half will be run round thew streets of Auckland (The Cathay Pacific Auckland half) and allows me to get sponsored to raise money for heart kids which is a pretty good cause and should be extra motivation to get round those last painfulp couple of kms.

To help with my training I have downloaded a 6 week finishing programme ( ahh..the web is such a great tool for free programmes) and will be sticking to it fairly religiously to ensure that I don't collapse along the way. Went out last night and did 12.5km with hill work in 75 minutes. Again, its not lightning pace but is steady work to build up stamina. I will also be back in the gym again this week to do some leg strengthening along with my normal upper body work. Trying to ensure that I build up my running endurance but also build up muscle mass for the upcoming league season.

Going out to do some sprint work this afternoon at the local track. Going to combine some fast 400's with skips and jumping, will be a nice change from the longer runs and should give my feet a rest from the blisters I have on the bottom of my feet :-(

20km run knocked off

This weekend turned out to be a weekend of pushing the boundaries somewhat. It started Friday night when I borrowed a crossfit style work out (slightly modified) and did 5 rounds of 400mtrs followed by 25 sit ups. Did the 5 rounds in just over 15 minutes so wasn't blistering pace but was a good wind down from the work week at the local track.

Saturday I completed 100 sit ups, 100 press ups, 100 squats and then busted out a 10km road run. The run time was 54.14 and felt good afterwards although had to rehydrate as it was still pretty warm out there at 6pm when I started the run.

Sunday I decided to push the boundary a little bit and attempt my first ever 20km run. I completed it in 1hr 58 which is ok for a first attempt but while doing the run I know that this can be improved upon. Really stoked with managing to do the entire run and it gives me some confidence that a marathon would be achievable if I decided to attempt it ( with a lot more training of course). Cosidering that 11 months ago I could only run 1km without having to stop I think I am really starting to see some progress. I stopped half way for a water break and stopped the clock for about 2 minutes as I couldn't take the water with me. Came home and ate like crazy...didn't realise how much energy a 20km run would take out of me. Particularly enjoyed my new chocolate cheesecake which was given a trial run last night.

Back into the gym tonight as it reopens after the holiday break and the countdown is now definately on for the Rugby league season. Waiting to hear about the muster which should be anytime soon although hopefully after my blisters from yesterday have healed.

New decade and another new blog

I've been thinking lately about how I seem to have so much to say but no forum to share it in and with the dawn of a new decade I think its probably best if I join the semi-anonymous world of blogging to get it all out there.

The new decade has dawned with me having a renewed interest in self improvement and in particular ways to capitalise on the fitness gains I made in the past year. I started last year as a recently reformed smoker carrying a lot of extra weight. I was inspired to start losing weight with the prospect of going to the UK to see my brother get married and so joined a gym. Luckily for me the gym was where my brother in law worked and so he was able to set me up with a great program. This program has reslted in a loss of 15kgs so far and having achieved this loss ( and kept it off over Christmas) I have decided to try and make a belated return to competitive sport after a period of 10 years away from it. And to really test myself I have decided to play rugby league which means that I need great cardio fitness and need to increase muscle to cope with the physicality of the game.

I have been running a little bit over the summer break but will be ramping this up next week and will be trying to document my progress here as a way of maintaining my program and recording my progression towards the winter sports season and through it.

I will be adding photos in due course to show the progress as well. I also will be blogging about anything else that piques my interests.

So welcome to my blog...Its finally online in 2010. bring on the New year