Monday, June 16, 2014

On Again, Off Again {Weekly Summary}

Once again I missed a weekly summary (mainly because there was nothing to summarize -- June 2-8 was an "off" week for me, in that all I managed to do was swim once. Oops?). The update below covers only the week of June 9-15.

Total # of Cardio Workouts: 3
Total # of Strength Workouts: 0
Total # of Runs: 1
Longest run without walking (time): 30 minutes
Highest total running mileage in one day: approx. 2.5 miles
Total running mileage for the week: approx. 2.5 miles
Fastest speed sustained over a mile: approx. 5 mph (12 min mile)
Progress on training plans: I'm still on day 6 of the ab challenge. I am in week 4 of my triathlon training plan.
Progress on safety goals: No recent progress.
Injury Report: Some minor issues have arisen in the past two weeks. I stubbed my toe so badly that I worried it was broken, but thankfully discoloring and swelling never appeared, so I'm guessing the toe and foot are just badly bruised. I've had a little lingering soreness in the foot but otherwise it's fine. Meanwhile, I've been suffering from mild headaches and a few leg/foot cramps at night, so I suspect I may be a little dehydrated. I'm going to try being more careful about my water intake and see if those issues resolve themselves in the process!
Weight: 222
Weekly Change: -4
Overall Change: -8 from starting weight of 230
BMI: 32.3 (obese)
Jean Size: 20
Waist Circumference: 40.5 inches the last time I measured
Next Goal Weight: 220, and when I reach that I will have lost all the weight I've gained in the past year since my daughter was born.
Next event goal: Okay, the September triathlon is looking more likely, and I'm fairly certain I've selected a July 5K, but I'm not going to share any specifics until I have registered for the events.
Last week's goals: (1) FAIL: Ran only 1 time. (2) Not sure whether to classify this as failure or success: I have continued to LOOK for a bike, but I have yet to FIND one. (3) FAIL: Wrote ZERO blog posts.
This week's goals: (1) 3 each of my main workouts: running, swimming, and abs. (2) Work on finding a bike. (3) Write 3 or more blog posts, including this one, and brainstorm ideas for future posts.

Analysis: I really don't know what was up with me the past two weeks. I just couldn't seem to get out of bed in the mornings and had no motivation to do anything at all. The second week was a little better, but I still wasn't completely back on track. Hopefully it was just a temporary funk and it won't return again, because I can't afford to lose any more training time. I still have a lot of endurance to build up in the pool, and I'm going to have a lot of ground to make up whenever I finally find a bike! One thing working in my favor now is school being out -- my mornings no longer have to be scheduled around some of my kids getting dropped off at school. At the same time, working against me is the weather -- the summer heat has arrived, making running more difficult! Although maybe that factor can work for me after all, if it motivates me to get out of bed to run EARLY before it gets too hot! I guess we shall see what happens tomorrow....

Monday, June 2, 2014

I Took the Plunge {Weekly Summary}

I failed to post a summary last week; this summary covers the week of May 26th - June 1st.

Total # of Cardio Workouts: 5
Total # of Strength Workouts: 2 (abs)
Total # of Runs: 2
Longest run without walking (time): ~40 minutes
Highest total running mileage in one day: 3.0 miles
Total running mileage for the week: approx. 5.5 miles
Fastest speed sustained over a mile: approx. 5 mph (12 min mile)
Progress on training plans: I'm on day 6 of the ab challenge -- I made a first attempt at it last night but failed to complete it, so I will try again tonight or tomorrow. I have started week 3 of my triathlon training plan.
Progress on safety goals: I'm looking into a one-session self-defense class this week, just to get started, but it's not at the most convenient time. Other than that, no progress. And I haven't mentioned it in a while, but I've decided to focus on my running distance rather than my speed. Now that I can run 30 minutes at a time without too much difficulty, I might start looking into some speed workouts.
Injury Report: Still some minor knee issues, but nothing too worrisome.
Weight: 226
Weekly Change: +2
Overall Change: -4 from starting weight of 230
BMI: 32.9 (obese)
Jean Size: 20
Waist Circumference: 40.5 inches the last time I measured
Next Goal Weight: 220, and when I reach that I will have lost all the weight I've gained in the past year since my daughter was born.
Next event goal: I'm working towards a triathlon in either mid-August or early September, and before that I'd like to complete a 5K race. I have one such race in mind but haven't committed yet.
Last week's goals: (1) FAIL: Ran only 2 times. (2) ACHIEVED! I renewed my pool pass the week before, and swam 3 times last week! (3) FAIL: Wrote ZERO blog posts.
This week's goals: (1) Run 3 times and somehow celebrate National Running Day. (2) Work on finding a bike. (3) Write 3 or more blog posts, including this one, and brainstorm ideas for future posts.

Analysis: Overall it was a good week and I'm pleased with how well I have jumped into triathlon training. Of course, it's a little frustrating but also a little funny that I managed to swim three times in only my second week back in the pool, while a three-RUN week still eludes me!!! However, my second run last week was significant enough that I don't really care that it was not my third. It felt amazing, though a bit painful, to complete three miles without walking or stopping. It's hard to believe that when 2014 began, I wasn't running at all, and now I'm on the verge of being able to complete a 5K again! Meanwhile it's challenging to start back almost from scratch with the swimming, but I trust my endurance will build soon. I'm just thrilled to be back in the pool again! And one nice side effect of training for a triathlon finally is that my brain has been churning out all kinds of introspective thoughts, many of which will soon find their way into blog posts. It should get easier from now on to meet my goal of posting at least three times per week now that I actually have things to say! So those of you who have been hanging in there with me even while my updates have been rather boring should soon be rewarded with more interesting reads. Thanks for your patience!