Pheidippides’s BodyBlog

While I wait for split time information from the triathlon I’m going to move on to my next program, which I will call "Fight the Flab" (the masculine counterpart to the ongoing Fight the Fluff program headed up by TLC).   It will have two goals, which I hope work together: a) Reduce weight to 165 pounds (from current level of around 170-171, depending on when I measure), and get waist down to below 34 inches, and b) get base running mileage to consistently over 30 miles per week.  I will give myself until the end of July.  Why so long?   Because from July 4 through July 11 our family is going to be on a cruise to Alaska, with free food for a week, and it will take everything I’ve got just to keep myself from putting on 5 pounds that week.

The point of losing weight will be twofold: First, reducing bodyfat percentage to a healthier and more athletic level.  This morning it measured 20.4% on the scale.  Last week it was down to close to 19%.  I want to get it close to 17% or less by the time my program is done.  Second, losing weight should improve running performance.  According to Glover a 1% decrease in bodyweight should correlate with a 1% improvement in running time.  If I get my weight down into the mid-160s or lower I should be able to expect an improvement of a few percent in my running ability. That, plus added mileage, should be enough to get my 5K time under 20 minutes before the end of summer.  That, in turn, should set me up for my program to run a 10K in under 40 minutes before the end of the year.

The components of my program:

1) Very careful eating: not dieting per se, but avoiding junk, eating good food, and heating healthy quantities.  Avoiding eating a lot after dinner.
2) Increased aerobic activity, especially running:  Run at least 4 days a week, and try to get to 5 days a week by the end of July.  Try to get at least one swim session and one road/stationary bike session in each week.  Emphasis will be on steady, moderately paced aerobic activity to build overall endurance.  Have to be careful to avoid too much focus on speed so I can avoid the injuries I faced last summer.
3) Moderate strength training to supplement aerobic activity: plan will be to work out all major body areas two to three times per week, both at home (curls, situps, pushups, dumbell rows) and at the gym (using free weights and machines).
4) Logging all strength training and endurance activity on a daily basis.
5) Logging, roughly, the food I’m eating.
6) Logging total weight, bodyfat percentage, and waist measurement every day.
7) Taking pictures of mid-section to monitor progress.

According to scale, BF this morning was 20.4 and weight was 173, but that weight is inflated because it includes birthday weekend eating and last night’s 55.7 proof single malt Scotch (alcohol is like a weight magnet for me). So I will be good today and use tomorrow’s weight readings as the official start of my program.

Once I’ve built my running foundation (if) by the end of July I will review my running and fitness plans through the end of the year.  My tentative major goal is to target the late November Run for the Hungry 10K as my goal race, with the possibility of entering the California International Marathon the first Sunday in December.  But I’m not counting on that right now because of my Achilles tendon, which is not 100% and my not be able to withstand a rigorous marathon training program.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 at 6:43 am and is filed under Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.