Week #5 Session #3 (x2!)

The task here was to run for twenty minutes!  I doubted whether I could do that - such a jump from eight minute runs! I felt pooky Friday when I was supposed to do it, so I postponed to Saturday. I also bargained myself down:  I figured 12 minutes was over a mile, and I had never actually run a mile before. So I figured if I got my mile in, I could break for a walk and finish out the twenty minutes after the break.

I was on a deadline to get out of the house for an appointment, and I slept in, so it was off to the basement with barely a cup of coffee inside. I started at my fast running speed of 5.5 mph, and after ten minutes lowered it to 5.0 mph, and after I hit my mile I decided to keep going to fifteen minutes, but at my slow jog of 4.8 mph. The heart rate got up to 150 bpm by the end of the first ten minutes, and didn't slow down (but also didn't climb) after I dropped the speed. I was also gasping for air - I certainly could not have carried on a conversation. After fifteen minutes I was dying for a drink of water and broke for a three minute walk. I have a spiffy water bottle with built in straw I got for a Christmas present. I can drink while walking, even walking briskly, since with the straw I don't have to tilt my head back. But I can't run and drink at all.  This was part of the problem of jumping on the treadmill without having spent enough time getting ready.  After three minutes, the heart rate was down in the 120s and I finished the last five minutes - but they were a hard slog, and I ended at 4.7 mph and reached to slow it down the second I tripped the minute mark.

I was both proud of myself for running a whole mile (+), but I was sad I hadn't lived up to the prescribed workout routine.  I really enjoyed the feeling of running, even while I was doing most of it. And I really enjoyed the feeling which lingered for fairly long afterwards. But I had been somewhat ambivalent about getting up and getting started. I sensed the enthusiasm beginning to wain. In the afternoon, I somehow ended up having to kill some time near an outdoor outfitter, and ended up with some new running pants and a new high tech fabric t-shirt. I am consciously rewarding myself for keeping this up, and building in incentives like wearing new clothes.

So I decided to give the long run a try again this morning. I also had the brilliant insight that maybe I should start more slowly, rather than boost the heart rate up so quickly.  This morning, I woke with the sun after almost a whole eight hours of sleep. I drank a couple of cups of coffee, and also a good glass of water, and remembered to pee right before starting, as well. I put on my new clothes, happy they fit.  I started the run at 5.1 mph (I meant to punch in 5.0 but missed and then decided my body wouldn't know the difference).

I made it the whole twenty minutes!!!!

My heart rate took its time getting up there, and I did slow down to 4.8 mph for the last five minutes, but I was not totally wiped out at the end. I went on to finish the whole 5K at a walk, and even put in a final two minute FAST run because I was recovered and I was bored with walking.  I am now certain I'll be able to keep building up to be able to run the whole 5K on the treadmill. The routine for the next couple of weeks is shorter runs for the first two sessions, and a longer and longer one for the last session of the week. I think the idea is a faster pace for the shorter runs and keep going more slowly for the longer ones.

I'm going to be able to do this.  Stats today:  for the first 30 minutes, I covered 3.3 miles at a speed of 4.5 mph and a pace of 13.26 minutes per mile.  For the whole 5K, I finished in 43.3 minutes, which is a speed of 4.3 mph and a pace of 13.93 minutes per mile.  

Week #5 Session #2

Wow!  Eight minute runs!  I really wasn't sure I was going to be able to do this.  I did two eight minute runs separated by a five minute walk, and I realized that I have been running sixteen or more minutes out of 30 already, but putting it together into eight solid minutes was a lot.

The first one went well.  I maintained my pace for five minutes, then dropped it down a bit to finish up.  I cooled all the way down during the five minute walk and figured the second run would also be ok, but it was really hard.  I was not helped by the music, either.  I had Truckin' by the Grateful Dead on the playlist and it is 18 minutes long.  The last many minutes are long and moody (and self-indulgent) guitar solos and rifs only mildly related to the very good, rythmic basic tune. The whole eight minutes was in the guitar solo and my feet kept searching for the beat behind the wails but it didn't work well. I plug the ipod into a boom box and its out of reach when I'm on the treadmill, so I was stuck. I ended up dropping my pace to slower much sooner in this second interval, but I did finish it all at a jog. But this song is coming off the running playlist!  I need a different kind of altered state to be able to enjoy that guitar work.

Tomorrow is the gym at 6 am, and Friday is another stepped up run. I am really impressed at the way this training is working.  I am really progressing.  Running 8 minutes was definitely beyond my capabilities just a month ago!  At the pace I'm going, 8 minutes is about 2/3 of a mile. Maybe the best I've done since sixth grade!

Stats:  I hit the 2.0 mile mark at 26 minutes, and 2.2 miles at 30.  I averaged 4.4 mph for the 30 minutes, or a pace of 13.37 minutes per mile.

Walk Today

First lunchtime walk of the year (maybe, certainly the first significant one).  I just was not able to focus and so I headed outside where the sky was uncharacteristically blue.  I walked around the Capitol building. The State of the Union is tonight, so I got to watch all the preparations for it.  I surely live in a great place to take a walk.

I need to run tomorrow morning, since I had so much stuff to do today that I couldn't get onto the treadmill.  I think the running I've been doing quickened my walking pace considerably.  I definitely got back into the office in a better frame of mind.

Here is what I did:
Finished Walk: Jan 24, 2012 12:13:29 PM
Route: FAA Cosi
Google Maps URL: http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/f807/802b/4b81/b51a/Runmeter-Walk-20120124-1124.kml

Walk Time: 43:33
Stopped Time: 5:51
Distance: 2.49 miles
Average: 17:28 /mile
Fastest Pace: 11:03 /mile
Behind Worst Walk: 1:30
Ascent: 171 feet
Calories: 241

Not Going to Lose Weight

I'm all about doing this running thing, but I really do want to lose those last fifteen pounds and get down to goal weight.  So I've been contemplating a blitz to get there.  I got out my Atkins book, because if you look at last year's graph, Atkins really works.  And the current Atkins framework has huge portions of "leafy greens" every day - either salads or cooked greens - and emphasizes plant oils versus animal fats - so it's not anywhere near as controversial as it used to be.  But I'm not going to do Atkins right now.  The book says not to start Atkins together with an exercise program.  It says there is about a two week transition to a very low carbohydrate regime during which you are likely to have much lower energy.  Afterwards, things are fine, they say.

Last year when I tried Atkins, I simply kept up my existing routine of the gym and walks at lunch, and I didn't write anything about losing energy.  I did, however, write a lot about wanting treats and chocolate.  So generally, I'm not thinking I'll ever do Atkins for the long haul, and I'm not going to do it for a blitz right now.

Having thought this through this far, apparently I unconsciously thought that meant I didn't need to worry at all about what I was eating.  SO not so good this week, and not good on the tracking either.  OK on eating at the table, except for snacking at night.  Attention must be paid, or things go down the tubes rapidly. But I want to just stick with WW tracking and sitting down.  That will not help me to lose weight, I think. The points total for WW seems to be maintenance for me. I can live with that, during this training phase at least.

NOT going to lose weight: though I hope constantly, I'm not acting like this needs to happen.  But the two techniques of tracking and sitting down, even for snacks, should keep me in decent maintenance.

Week #5 Session #1

This was not a huge step-up - three five minute runs.  And here is the wonderful part:  the first one was actually fun!  The music worked, and I did not have to work as hard as I did before (that would be like last week before), based on the heart rate.  I was not gasping for breath, though quite ready to turn down the speed to a walk when the five minutes was up.  But for the first few minutes, I was running along steadily, with the pace of the music, and totally enjoying the feeling of my body working hard but not desperately.  This is what I'm working for.  I want to run a 5K race, to have a goal and to have done it, but what I really want is to be able to go for a jog, pound out some miles, with my body working hard, and to feel enjoyment at the feeling.

Not every minute was fun, but it's clear this training thing is working to keep bringing me up to new levels.  I finished the 30 minute prescribed workout with 2.25 miles down, at an average speed of 4.5 mph and a pace of 13.4 mpm. I went on to finish the 5K in 43 minutes, at an overall average speed of 4.3 mph and a pace of 13.85 mpm.  

Week #4 Session #3

Whew, things do get better.  Better music, better wind, better overall, more fun.  Except for the alarm going off at 5 am part.  As it turns out, I have to speak at a conference Sunday morning, so even then the alarm will be going off.

Today:  the odometer clicked to 2 miles at 26:30 minutes.  I finished the 30 minutes with 2.2 miles, at a speed of 4.4 mph and a pace of 14:37 mpm.  I started each run at 5.5 mph, but didn't hesitate to slow them down. I found my heart rate went to the low 150's but didn't keep climbing and I was not gasping for breath.  I peeked at next week - for the first time, each session during the week increases over the previous day. The first day is three 5 minute runs - I know I can do five minutes, so I should be able to handle this.

Excelsior.

Week #4 Session #2

After last session, I really paused and re-thought what I'm doing.  This shouldn't be a horrible experience.  If I don't enjoy it, why bother?  If I don't enjoy it, I won't do it.  So am I having fun yet?

As part of my re-thinking, I made myself a playlist instead of relying on the shuffle on my iPod. It was music that helped me finish the last session. I looked at on-line playlists, but rather than get any of them exactly instead I used them for suggestions. I had a lot of the music I wanted to use, but thanks to the instant gratification of itunes I was able to fill it out to a respectable length.

Boy, did this make a difference!  I went for a lot of Motown, and for the obvious road song themes.  The first three minute interval this morning was perfectly timed in length and cadence to "She's a Maniac" from the movie Flashdance.  "Hit the Road, Jack" and  "I'm a Road Runner, Baby" was the second run, where I was ok for all five minutes.  The second five minutes was "Heat Wave" which suited the sweat pouring off me by then.  Sadly, the last five minutes included a song I had better remove the list:  "How Sweet It Is (to be loved by you)" which unfortunately continually repeats the lyric "I just want to STOP (and thank you baby)" at just the wrong time!  As the running interval ended, on came "You Can't Hurry Love" and I thought Oh Yeah! I finished the 30 minutes with the cool down walk to "Marching Through The Wilderness" by David Byrne.  Perfect.

Another thing I did, because its what I always do, was buy a book.  Again the instant gratification - there is no bookstore within five miles, and so I got a couple of running books on my kindle. From what I can tell, I need to maintain a balance between pushing myself really hard - but only for short periods - and maintaining a comfortable pace.  It is better to do the time at a slow jog than to push too hard and have to stop early. I should not be gulping for air for very long - not for above a minute.

I think I actually enjoyed the three minute runs. My heart rate was in the 140's, and it was fine to match my pace to the tunes and to look out ahead instead of staring at the panel.  The last run I slowed way down, and was very happy when I could move to a walk.  But I think this is just about right. I have an image of myself jogging along to tunes for a while, and I want to get there, and I think my body is capable of getting there.

Today was a bit slower than Sunday because I was more willing to turn down the pace.  For the 30 minutes, I completed 2.2 miles for an average pace of 4.4 mph and 13.37 mpm.  

Eating

I'm signed up via NY resolutions for a couple of minor mods on the eating front. First, tracking on WW.  I'm doing well on that, keeping close scrutiny on what I'm eating.  It's really great to have more activity to add in as well, so while my actual food intake has exceeded my daily points allowance every day, I'm well under the weekly total.  It's also pushing me into more fruits and vegetables in order to keep the points total lower when I'm hungry. Will this lead to weight loss?  Still TBD.  I'm bouncing around in the low end of my endless plateau, and not ready yet to do a serious crash / blitz / diet to blow through the floor of this range.

My other goal, to sit and eat at the table, is doing no more than 50% success.  It's hard in the morning with getting out the door on time instead of eating portable food while driving. And it's hard in the evening.  I still have serious issues with my evenings and my need to overeat at that time.

Partly as a result of the fact WW allows me to eat fruit and veggies freely, I'm signing up for a new thing: weekly delivery of fresh, mostly local, produce!  A friend sent me the link, and now I'm due for my first delivery this Wednesday from South Mountain Veggies.  How cool is this? It sort of merges the best of a CSA, and a farmer's market, with the convenience of Amazon!  I've never been interested in the Peapod or other local grocery store thing, partly because you have to be home for them (I hate to sit and wait) and partly because I like picking things out myself - especially produce.  But these guys deliver to a cooler on the front porch, and they are only about produce, so I imagine it will be relatively good.  I'm starting very small and thus very affordable, and I'll let you know later whether I think they are good value for the money.  They are very up front that more comes in the summer for the same amount, so I'll withhold judgement for a while.  I had been in a CSA twice before: once the food was good but it was relatively inconvenient to fetch it every week, and the second time it was relatively convenient but seemed really sparse and not worth it.  Here, I get a fixed quantity but pay a couple more bucks for the privilege of customizing it so I don't need to get turnips or beets every week.  I hope.  I'll let you know.

Week #4 Session #1

This was really tough.  I knew it would be, and I was a little afraid I wouldn't be able to do this.  The routine this week nearly doubles the amount of time running overall, from nine minutes to sixteen out of thirty.  Yikes!  It's good to kick it up to the next level on a Sunday, when I can optimize this - a good night's sleep, wake naturally, drink coffee and wake up thoroughly, before venturing into exercise.  Even so, I decided last night I might need another inducement to do this, so I picked something from a catalog to reward myself with, after completing what I had to do.  Not workout clothes, though I may eventually need to get something different for running. But a nice top I had been thinking about, a cotton and cashmere knit sweater jacket on sale.

Yeah, I did it. Yeah, it was really hard.  Probably, if I hadn't been telling everyone in the world I'm going to run this 5K, I wouldn't have finished it. Let's never underestimate the power of public humiliation.

This week, there are three minute runs and five minute runs.  The first three minute one was fine - in fact, it even felt good while I was doing it.  I wasn't staring at the clock waiting for it to be over, at least. I was able to look ahead and listen to the music, and feel like my body was working fine.  The five minute runs, however, were hard to get through.  I decided I was would allow myself to drop the speed from the 5.5 mph I had been doing to whatever it took to get me through.  On the first five minute run, for the last minute I dropped down to 5.3 mph.  And on the second, I dropped first to 5.3 mph (about half way through) finally to 4.8 mph for the last ninety seconds.  Oddly, my heart rate was ok - in the low one-fifties - but I felt I was out of breath. Gasping like a fish. Little things began to hurt. My foot, my knee, the sweat dripping into my eyes was stinging. Then, serendiptiously, the music shuffled on the ipod to something that allowed me to match the pace and get through the last minute.  I allowed the music (a nothing but pleasant pop song I picked up from my girl) to carry my feet, my hands, and my heart and lungs forward for the last minute.  But my finger was pressing the speed control the second I hit the mark to slow down.

I kept going to complete the whole 5k, and after catching my breath, I sped up the walk to 3.7 mph.  I haven't walked that fast very much, but a tip at the gym about swinging my arms out a lot (bent arms with fists like a runner) has helped me maintain a faster pace more comfortably. This kept my heart rate around 130 for the balance of the time. This in total was a lot faster than last week, not surprisingly with twice as much running and a faster walk. I hit 2.0 miles at 26 minutes, and my 30 minute Couch-to-5K stats are averaging 4.3 mph and 14 mpm.  Much faster than before.  I finished the 5K at 44:27, for an average of 4.2 mph and 14.3 minutes per mile.  (Last week the 5K took 47 minutes.)  I did a small amount of stretching / yoga postures afterwards, but no other workout.

I'm a little nervous about how well I'll do at 5:30 am on Tuesday.  But now I've proved I can do this. If I need to, I'll drop the pace, but keep at least a jog going for all the prescribed times. The point is to finish, not to go fast. And, if I want to, I can repeat this week's routine for longer than a week.  I am fifteen weeks out from the road race I'm signed up for, and in week four of a nine-week routine, so I have time.

I also think I should do more of a cardio workout on the four days a week I'm not doing this running routine.  I'm going to the gym, and sometimes (not every day) strolling around at lunch time or after work.  But I'm thinking a brisk walk in the evenings would be really worthwhile.  After reading Bossypants by Tina Fey I started streaming 30 Rock from NetFlix, and 22 minutes at more than a stroll (I'm thinking my 3.7 mph walk to get the heart rate above 80%) with the iPad on the treadmill streaming the show, might be a useful cardio add.  Not likely to do it every day, but any at all is good.

Week #3 Session #3

Still hard going, but tiny evidence the interval approach has benefits.  The idea is to train my heart and lungs to handle the work of running with less effort.  Today, I went a tiny bit faster overall, and yet my heart never hit 160 bpm.  (OK, it hit 159 very briefly.)  I did 2.1 miles in 30.25 minutes, for an average speed of 4.1 mph, and an average pace of 14.4 mpm.  I'm trying not to stare at the treadmill console during the three minute runs - it's only three minutes, for crying out loud - I should be able to endure anything for three tiny minutes!

Sunday, next week's routines, jump things up considerably.  Luckily, Sunday I'll be able to go at my optimal time- awake, but in the morning.

I'm expecting a big number on the scale this morning.  I had Chinese food last night, and have been drinking water as if from a firehose ever since.

Week #3 Session #2

Hard going this early morning.  I did 2.0 miles in 30 minutes, for an average speed of 3.9 mph or pace of 15.11 minutes per mile.  My heart was slow to get going but also slow to slow down once it got going.  After the second 3-minute jog (which was really hard to sustain) it didn't go back below 120 for a solid three minutes.  Clearly I am working hard.

Self-Monitoring

An article I came across this morning reported on a meta-study of behavioral interventions for exercise and healthy eating. A group of scientists, instead of doing a new actual study, compiled many many other studies, and statistically examined the results of them all combined. I skimmed it, and I suspect there is more to it than this, but the headline is that the single biggest predictor of actual behavior change is for people to engage in "self-monitoring".  In other words, if you want to change something, you have to notice if you are actually changing it.

So here's my self-monitoring for this week:
- I did every Couch-to-5K workout exactly as planned.  And blogged them, too. Yay me!
- I tracked in WW all my food and exercise.  I actually did my breakfast and lunches pretty much on time, but had to do catch-ups on my evenings.  It's a very good thing I'm exercising more and logging all that activity because I did not stay within my daily points once all week.  And I clearly start jamming food in my mouth at and after dinner.  CAREFUL with my evenings - got no more willpower left by then. I try to be brutally honest in my retrospective tracking, and was OK after all on my my weekly point total.  My actual commitment is simply to do the logging, and its a bonus if the actual eating is within point totals.
- Eat sitting down:  I only scored about 50% on that. See issue above about evenings. Plus, mornings can be a bit of a scramble.

Overall, I'm VERY happy with my self-obsession (I mean self-monitoring) and how I'm modifying my behavior. However, I'm heading into a rough patch as real life spools up from the holiday slow-down. Both home and work will demand more of me for a while. I've got to get food shopping to plan out this coming week's food, or things will get worse.

Week #3 Session #1

This week the intervals will all be the same:  two 90 second runs and two 3 minute runs, interspersed with walking to total 30 minutes.  That adds up to just 9 minutes of running.  "How hard can this be?", I thought.  "This is progressing really slowly."

Well, it turns out running three minutes solid was quite a bit more of a challenge than I thought it would be. I'm upping the pace slightly, again, to 5.5 mph.  This is because I've done the math about how long it will take me to go 3.11 miles, and I've compared to the actual finishing times from last year's race on this course.  The pace at which I've been jogging is pretty much some people's walk.  I simply want to finish, not set any records, but I've got to finish no slower than the worst one last year!  So with the longer interval, and the faster pace, during my jogging intervals my heart rate got above 150 bpm. This is very fast, but fine for interval training.  It just shows I'm pushing. And it also means I should keep wearing the monitor, and back off it goes a lot higher.

Back when heart rate monitors first became widely available for use in training, the standard formula was that one's maximum heart rate is 220 beats per minute minus your age.  Training should take place at about 85% of that (140 bpm for me), and intervals should push higher, but for short periods. Now, the science of heart rates knows there is really wide variability and so there are various calculators out there on the web that consider many other factors besides age.  I know a couple of things about my heart rate - it may actually go higher than the standard formula indicates. I'm guessing this not only from my observations in my training, but also from the time I had intensive medical screening for heart problems, after my sister died young from undiagnosed heart problems. I had the nuclear stress test, and was running flat out for a long time at an extreme slope before the techs were convinced I was done (and this at a time I wasn't in good condition - I stopped doing any training until I finished the screening). I also know my resting heart rate can be really low. I have an iphone app that uses the built in camera to measure it from my finger and I get lovely low numbers when I'm sitting around.  I suspect more heart rate research is in my future, for entertainment to keep me interested in what I'm doing here.

To capture the stats:  at 30 minutes I had done 2.1 miles, for an average pace of 4.1 mph.  I went on to complete the whole 5K (3.11 miles) at a walk, since I had the time, and did it in 47.5 minutes for a pace of 3.9 mph. It turns out these miles per hour numbers are not very sensitive to changes in pace (as you can see) and so runners more often use minutes per mile as their pace.  I averaged 14.3 minutes per mile for the first 30 minutes and 15.3 minutes per mile over the whole 5K.

Perspective

I seem to be stuck forever on this plateau - it's been a year I've been right around this weight.  I had to step back and say its not terrible, but also it is possible to get lower.  Also, I just like to make a graph to make myself feel better.

Weight from 1988 to present, with "goal" dots for the future.

Week #2, Session #3

I was slow to get started on this Friday morning. Last night wasn't a great success, either.  I simply flopped on the couch after dinner and only got up to snack. I didn't set up the coffee pot on "auto" either, so that was my excuse this morning - I was slow to get out of bed, knowing I'd have to first make the coffee, before drinking the coffee, and finally getting down to the treadmill.

But of course I went.  I bumped my run (jog) speed up to 5.3 mph and added a seventh jogging interval at the end. This morning's music choice was my absolute favorite in the classical music canon: Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto.  I know from previous exercise experiences the version I was listening to is 31 minutes long, and it turned out the fast happy third movement started just as the sixth jog interval ended. The music gave me the push to add the extra interval.

These tiny changes meant I hit 2 miles at 28:30 minutes, and overall I did 2.1 miles in 30 minutes for an average of 4.1 mph.  My heart rate didn't hit 140 until the third interval, but was staying around 140 instead of climbing higher as I went on. And two minutes walk was plenty for it go back down under 120.

The next week starts to add a lot more jogging a lot faster.  Excelsior!

Sitting Down

It is surprisingly hard, but surprisingly effective, to make myself sit down at the table for every bite.  I have a lot of unconscious eating, apparently, and this resolution to sit down to eat brings it all up to conscious level.  Yesterday, I made a big dinner with several dishes and several steps, and I found myself snacking steadily throughout the cooking.  Some was on relatively healthy stuff (peeled extra carrots and crunched them right down) and some much less so (cake pops, to pick an example at random).  None of it was conscious or planned.  Today, at work, I had the afternoon munchies and luckily grabbed my apple which was close at hand, but ate it absentmindedly at my desk. Far better to take a break at my table and really enjoy it.

This evening, after dinner and truly tired, I grabbed some leftover Christmas candy and just shoveled it in.  But then I remembered, and walked away before too much damage was done. I grabbed a piece to eat in the car, then remembered: only at the table.  I put it in my pocket and by the time I got home the moment had passed; it went into the fridge for another night.

So this is more of a struggle than I thought it would be, but seems like it will really pay off.

Week #2, Session #2

Down on the treadmill at 5:50 am.  Stats same as Sunday because the speeds and the workout were the same:  turned 2.0 miles just short of 30 minutes, for an average speed of 4 mph.  I was curious how quickly the heart would respond - it had no problem shooting up to around 140 bpm in the first jog, but went back below 120 bpm during every walk.  For the last five minute cooldown, I increased the slope and got the heart rate back up. Apparently my race course has a big steep hill in the last mile on the way back.

Back to work. Holidays are over. So is the eating season over.

Resolutions

I'm in the process of reading a book on willpower, fittingly called Willpower.  This book co-authored by New York Times health reporter John Tierney expands on the research and concepts of decision fatigue, ego depletion, and willpower, that was written about in the New York Times earlier this year last year and that I first wrote about here.  It is very typical for me to start the new year by reading new diet-and-exercise books as a way to motivate myself. This is more general psychological information, but very applicable to the point of this blog.

I'll write much more fully about the concepts in the book later, but to recap the general notion:  "willpower" can be thought of as a muscle. Like a muscle, it can get exhausted and fail. Also like a muscle, it can be exercised and trained to become stronger.  The book explores what depletes willpower and how to strengthen it.

The reason I bring it up now is because one of the early points in the book is to not take on too much stuff all at once.  Do not try to quit smoking the day you get sworn in as President of the United States, for example. And, more relevant to us, do not make bunches of New Year's Resolutions and tackle them all at once.  Knock them off one at a time, starting with the easiest, and as you have success and have strengthened your abilities, tackle the harder ones.  When things become habits, they take less willpower to execute.  Another point:  public disclosure strengthens willpower.  Accountability and peer pressure work.  So here we go, folks.

I've already signed up for my Epic Win, running a 5K this spring. I've written about it here, and I'm talking about it at the gym.  My first commitment for this is to carry out the Couch-to-5K workouts, three times a week for nine weeks.  That, plus maintaining my training sessions, is it on the exercise front. Anything extra, like walks at lunch or on the treadmill, are bonus.

I am going to take on some stuff on the eating side as well.  I am half successful at tracking on WW, and I'm going to aim for about 85% on that, or six out of seven days tracking.  I want to add a habit recommended by the Beck Diet Solution, the book I leaned on when I first started this blog a couple of years ago.  I am going to pledge to only eat when seated at the table.  She recommends not reading or watching TV while eating, either. I'm not willing to sign up for that, but sitting at the table is a good thing and will whittle away some of my weak spots, especially the evenings flopped on the couch.  I can do this even at work.  I often bring my lunch or buy it for eating alone in my office, and I am fortunate enough to have a table and chairs in the office.  I can walk away from the desk and computer for eating.

So that's it on the diet and exercise front. I am also trying to develop a couple of other habits on other aspects of my life, but I'm parsing it out judiciously, I hope.  I have some additional aspirations on all fronts, but they will not be tackled as daily habits for a while.  Let's master these few tasks, and get to the Epic Win.

What are you folks aiming at this year?

The Year in Review

Happy New Year, everyone!

Here is an annotated graph of my weight for the whole past year:

New Year's Day to New Year's Day is eight pounds total.  And each and every one of them has been a grim battle. I blink and it starts going back up. This past week, I was not able to withstand the leftover sweets everywhere, and it added up quickly.

Perspective really matters. I could see this as a nearly wasted year. Or, I could see this as evidence that "blitzes" work.  Both last January and when I got back from vacation, I hunkered down, paid attention, spent my time on cooking and planning, and it really worked.  Last January, I lost weight every week for six weeks; in the summer, I only sustained it for four weeks.

There is no mystery why the weight loss stalled, and started to turn around:  I crawled under a rock and became a slug.  Look at my daily calorie burn, since I got the magic BMF at the beginning of 2010:

This graph shows daily calorie expenditure, with a rolling weekly average (dark green) and a monthly average (light green).

All of 2011 was lower energy expenditure than 2010, and September, October and November were signficantly lower than any previous months. The good news is, I've spotted the issue and have taken steps.  You can see the calories rising throughout the last month shown here, December 2011.  This mostly reflects the new treadmill and so my new focus on burning up some additional calories every day.

I have discovered there is a whole culture of folks like me, who love to graph and analyze themselves.  I stumbled onto a website for us, The Quantified Self, Self knowledge through numbers. They list over 400 software tools you can use to keep track of yourself.  I am continually searching for that thing that will make me organized and completely successful (my friend Linda reminds me to get two when I find it - one for her) and maybe its on this website!

My iPhone Ate my Post!

I typed in Week #2, Session #1 stats, and it said it posted.  But apparently not.

Anyway, it is 90 second jogs with 2 minute walks.  I did exactly 4 miles in 30 minutes, for an average of 4 mph.  My jogs were at 5.2 mph, and my walks were the usual 3.5 mph.  Any faster makes me break cadence and go into a jog.  By the third jog, the heart rate got up to 140 bpm, but it easily went down to under 120 bpm during the generous two minute walks.