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Jeff's training blog: 3 months, 30 pounds lost!


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Been pretty lazy about updating this. After getting over my neck & shoulder injury, I wound up getting some sort of horrible indigestion for about a week, so I've really worked out very little the last month and a half compared to the usual.

 

2/9: 2.06 miles, 22:26, pace 10:52, avg HR 124, max 139.

2/12: 7 miles, 1:10:20, pace 10:02, avg HR 140, max 165

2/13: biked 10.67 miles, 55:20, avg HR 107, max 126

2/15: 3.12 miles, 32:57, pace 10:34, avg HR 130, max 150

2/16: 5.05 miles, 48:07, pace 9:32, avg HR 140, max 157

2/17: 2.80 miles, 30:49, pace 11:00, avg HR 124, max 143

2/19: 4.19 miles, 45:48, pace 10:56, avg HR 134, max 163

2/21: 43 minutes on the bike trainer, avg HR 91

2/23: 26:54 on the trainer, avg HR 94

2/26: 53:33 on the trainer, avg HR 92

2/27: 29:31 on the trainer, avg HR 102, max 131

3/1: 25:08 on the trainer, avg HR 99, max 114

3/3: biked 17.20 miles, 1:19:44, avg HR 122, max 153

3/6: 3.55 miles, 38:03, pace 10:42, avg HR 134, max 162

3/10: 37:09 on the trainer, avg HR 94

3/13: Ran a "Pi" race--3.14 miles. Not that it was any big surprise, but I am REALLY out of shape! Time 29:26, pace 9:24, avg HR 165!!! (max 175) Oh well, at least my weight didn't go up that much this winter. I'm in the low 160s, about 10 lb. over what I weighed back in October or so.

3/14: 2.75 miles, 27:26, pace 9:57, avg HR 143--around 13 bpm faster than it was at 10 minute pace back when I was in good shape.

3/15 or 16, not sure which: played basketball for about 45 minutes with my son and 2 other kids. Another huge surprise: not only am I out of shape, but after not playing for months and months, I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with a basketball!

3/16: 72:27 (split into 2 segments) on the trainer, avg HR 95.

3/17: 4.43 miles, 41:23, pace 9:20, avg HR 150, max 162. I have a 7k (4.34 miles?) race this weekend, so hopefully I can break 40 minutes. It's a modest goal, but I'm in no condition to go much faster than that.

3/18: played 45 minutes of basketball with my son. Damn, I hate being out of shape!

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7k race today. Slow, but better than expected--covered the 4.34 miles or so in about 38:35, pace 8:49, avg HR 159, max 170. That's more than 30 seconds per mile faster than my time last week, despite it being over a mile longer race. Hopefully the trend will continue for the next race.

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Mon. 3/21: 20.93 mi. bike ride, 1:43, avg HR 117, max 145.

Tues. 3/22: 2.86 mi., 25:26, pace 8:52, avg HR 149, max 159.

Thur. 3/24: 5 miles, 44:45, pace 8:57, avg HR 152, max 165. Ran the first 5k (3.1 mi.) briskly to see what kind of 5k shape I was in. Did it in 26:41, about an 8:35 pace. So, I'm already more than 2 minutes faster than I was a couple of weeks ago.

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5k race yesterday (3/26). Not fast, but better than expected given that I took over 3 weeks almost entirely off from running last month. Time 25:03.5, pace 8:03. Heart rate data for first mile was inaccurate, but averaging over the next 2.1 it looks like it was about 161 with a max of 178.

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  • 3 weeks later...

3/28: 8.31 mi. bike ride, avg HR 116, max 139

3/30: 3.26 mi., 34:58, pace 10:42, avg HR 126

4/2: 7.78 mi. on bike, 42:30, avg HR 105

4/4: played 3 games of racquetball

4/5: 24 mi. on bike, 1:58:32, avg HR 115, max 145

4/6: 34.3 mi. on bike, time about 3:15:00 (accidentally turned off watch for a while), avg HR about 110, max 151

4/7: ran mile in about 7:30--watch battery gave out so no exact data

4/8: 4.04 mi. in 38:13, pace 9:28, avg HR 138, max 150

4/11: played 4 games of racquetball

4/12: 22:41 on trainer, avg HR 98

4/13: 4 miles on bike, avg HR 97, max 124

4/14: 4 miles on bike, HR data inaccurate due to wind

4/14: 5 mi. in 44:14, pace 8:50, avg HR 147, max 170

 

Feet have been bothering me a lot, so running has necessarily been pretty limited. Weight is holding steady at about 161. Tomorrow is a 5k race--we'll see whether I'm in any better shape than I was 3 weeks ago. I sort of doubt it.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Sat. 4/16: 5k race, 24:21.2, HR data not really usable. Time was over 40 seconds improved over my last 5k race even though it was a hilly course. It will be tough to get in better shape with my feet preventing me from running much other than on race days, but I'll keep trying!

4/17: 4 miles on bike

Mon. 4/18: played 4 games of racquetball

Sat. 4/23: Did 6 30+ second sprints on bike trainer, max HR above 140 on each one, 161 on the last one. Just 10 minutes total riding, avg HR 130.

Sun. 4/24: 22:23 on bike trainer, avg HR 128, did 7 or 8 sprints interspersed with some slower riding.

Mon. 4/25: 10 min. slow riding on bike trainer

and played 3 games of racquetball

4/26: 13: 46 on bike trainer, about 8 sprints with the hardest reaching max HR of 166. Avg. HR 133.

4/27: 15 min. slow on trainer, avg HR 91. The weather has been terrible lately, which is why I haven't ridden outdoors much this spring.

Played 5 games of racquetball!

4/29: Rode 21.4 miles, 1:35, avg HR 117, max 134.

4/30: 5k race, 23:57, avg HR 157, max 170. Splits were 7:22, 7:53, 8:03, and 40 seconds for last 10th. Good race for me, because it was a hilly course and I'm obviously not in mid-season shape.

Edited by veginator
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Weight up to about 164 (from 161 or so in mid-April). No idea why. In any case, I need to get strict about my diet again. Just watching the sugar and fat and processed flour most of the time doesn't seem to be enough for me to maintain a good weight unless I exercise more than I sometimes have time for.

 

5/2: Rode bike trainer, 43:52, avg HR 92

5/3: Interval session on bike trainer, 15:05, avg HR 137, max 162. Did 7 intervals ranging from 30 seconds to 1 minute.

5/4: interval session on trainer, 10:20, avg HR 130, max 160

Biked 5.33 miles, 29:25, avg HR 109

5/5: Biked 17.87 miles, 1:23:28, avg HR 120, max 160

5/6: Biked 25.30 miles, 1:44:08, avg HR 124, max 162. Started this ride at an easy, slow pace, then picked it up considerably after the first 5 miles, as I was trying to keep up with a couple of other riders faster than me. Roughly, it looks like I averaged about a 135 heart rate for nearly 20 miles.

5/7: Interval session on trainer, 10:06, 5 intervals, avg HR 136, max 153.

Edited by veginator
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Been pretty strict the last 2 days about following a diet that meets McDougall's Maximum Weight Loss program guidelines, only broke it once for dinner last night and had some alcohol later in the evening. Yesterday I was at 163.4, and this morning I was at 162.8.

 

Monday and Tuesday I didn't get any exercise other than walking the dogs due to end of the semester grading.

 

Sunday 5/9: about 5 miles to/from grocery store. Forgot to re-set my watch, so no way to separate out data from that day and the subsequent workout.

Wed. 5/11: 9.32 miles, 43:57. Avg HR about 118.

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Thur. 5/12: about 17 miles, about 1:15, about 14 mph, avg HR 126, max 147. Pretty solid effort on the bike, good preparation for today's 5k.

Fri. 5/13: 23.5 miles, about 1:50, very leisurely pace with avg HR 107. I was tired, plus didn't want to wear myself out for today's 5k.

Weight this morning: 161.6. Not sure why, but the scale was reading up around 164-165 all day yesterday, so this morning was a relief.

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5k race: Not one of my best but not horrible. 24:17, splits were 7:30, 7:47 and 7:59 with the last 10th in 1:00. I pretty much died the last 2/10 or so. Heart rate went way up even though I slowed down. Avg HR 162, max 172, although I'm pretty sure my watch hit 176 at one point near the finish. Not sure what accounted for the colossal lack of stamina.

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Sun. 5/15: elliptical machine, 32 min: avg HR 115, max 140. Did bench presses, squats, curls, upright row. I've gotten noticeably weaker since I've been lifting weight so infrequently the last few months, so I need to get back on that.

 

Mon. 5/16: Biked 23.99 miles, 1:48:47, avg speed 13.2, max 36.3, avg HR 115, max 132. Took it easy this ride because I was playing racquetball later. Played 5 games of racquetball. Intense workout day!

 

Tues. 5/17: Weight this morning 160.4. Still a little sore from Sunday's weight training, so I may hold off 'til tomorrow on doing more.

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Thur. 5/19: Weight holding steady at 160.4 this morning. Geez, what have I got to do to keep losing weight every day, run 20 miles?

 

Tuesday I went for a long (75 min.) walk with my dog.

Wed: 23.16 mile bike ride, 1:38:44, 14.1 mph pace, avg HR 121, max 138. Warmed up with slow first 4 miles, then averaged over 15 mph and avg HR a little over 125 the rest of the ride.

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Thur. 5/19: 20.55 mi. bike ride, 1:26:41, avg. speed 14.2, avg HR 114, max 137.

Fri. 5/20: 18.61 mi. bike ride, 1:13:40, avg speed 15.2, avg HR 125, max 149.

 

Weight was at 160.8 this morning. Wasn't as strict with diet yesterday, had several glasses of wine and ate a lot at a vegan potluck. Back on track today!

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Weight this morning: 159.2 Under 160 for first time in several months.

 

5k race this morning: 24:37. About 20 seconds slower than last week's, but this course was somewhat hilly whereas last week's was flat as a pancake. Humblingly, the winner did it in about 15:30! My splits were 7:43, 8:20, and 7:45, with the last 1/10th at 6:30. I'm pretty sure I was under 7:00 pace for the last half mile or so. Avg HR 161, max 179.

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Mon. 5/23: Total of about 11 miles biking, running errands and biking to/from gym, very leisurely pace.

 

Played 4 tough games of racquetball.

 

Tues. 5/24: Ran 3.26 miles, variable pace due to having my dog with me, 10:47 pace, avg HR 133, max 151. Walked 1 mile to and from park.

 

Wed. 5/25: 30 min. interval session on bike trainer. Intervals were 2 min. long (x 7), with average heart rates of 115, 127, 133, 139, 144 (4 min.), 150, and 155 (20 seconds), reaching max heart rates of 126, 134, 144, 145, 156, 161, and 157. Average HR for the whole session, which include a 5 min. warmup and mostly 1 min.-90 sec. rest periods, was 127.

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Sat. 5/28

 

Weight this morning: 157.2.

 

Rode this morning with a bunch of older gentlemen who do group rides every weekend. Leisurely pace, but the route had lots of hills so I took advantage of the opportunity to push myself on the hills some. 31.56 miles including trip from house to park and back, about 2 1/2 hours, avg speed 12.2, avg HR 105, max 160.

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Sun. 5/29: 40.35 mi. bike ride, 3:07:59, avg speed 12.9, avg HR 111, max 141. Took a similar route to yesterday, just went a little farther north, and also detoured to take photos of some of the tornado damage we had west of town.

 

Weight this morning: 156.4.

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Tuesday 5/31: Once again, really, really hot. Ran a total of 4 miles in the park, walked 1 mile to and from. Did .6 mile warmup at 10 min. pace, then tried to run 3.1 at a 5k pace but was a little slow, about 26:00, due to the heat. Avg. HR was about 156, max 170. .2 mile recovery jog, then did an interval where I got my heart rate back up to 164.

 

Wed. 6/1: Did 8 intervals of in the neighborhood of .2 miles, pace between 6:00 and 6:30 except 7:22 on the first one and 5:43 on the last one. Recovery jogs in between. Ran to the park and back (11 min. and 9:45 pace respectively). Total mileage for the day: 5 miles.

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Weight this morning: 156.6.

 

Yesterday: 5k race, 1/2 mile warmup at 11:00 pace. Time: 23:28, my fastest of the season so far, on a hilly course. Splits 7:28, 7:36, 7:27, avg HR 158, max 170.

 

Later: 20.43 mi. bike ride, avg HR 103, max 135, pace 12.9 mph, time 1:35:09.

 

 

Today (Sun. June 5): 33 mi. bike ride, 2:35, avg HR 101, max 148.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Mon. June 6: Biked 12.2 miles, 15.1 mph, 48:22, avg HR 106, max 1200. Later, ran 5.08 miles, 45:48, pace 8:59, avg HR 136, max 166.

 

Tues. June 7: Biked 19.4 miles, 11 mph, avg HR 101, max 122. Did 10 min. worth of intervals on trainer, 5 intervals of about 1 minute each, avg HR 128, max 155.

 

Wed. June 8: Ran 4.83 mi., 45: 03, pace 9:20, last 2 miles were 8:33 and 8:19. Avg HR 132, max 163.

 

Thur. June 9: 3.02 mi., 31:41, pace 10:30, avg HR 118, max 148. Weight this morning 155.8.

 

Fri. June 10: 5 min. worth of intervals on trainer, data didn't record right. Weight 155.0.

 

Sat. June 11: Ran about 2 miles but forgot my watch. Did a few laps in a pool.

 

Sun. June 12: No exercise.

 

Mon. June 13: Ran 2.5 miles, 24:15, pace 9:42, avg HR 128, max 1:47. Later: Ran 5.01 miles, 56:40, avg HR 118, max 129, pace 11:19.

 

Tues. June 14: Biked 8 miles, slowly, to/from store. Avg HR 94. Ran 5.13 miles, 50:14, pace 9:47, avg HR 127, max 163. For run, warmed up 2 miles, then did 9 intervals of about 1 minute each. Pace between 6:16 and 6:49 for all but one of them, which was 30 seconds at 5:24.

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Thur. June 16: Ran 5 miles, 43:02, pace 8:36, avg HR 140, max 155. Weight is essentially unchanged from June 10.

 

Sat. June 18: 5k race. It was pouring down rain and thunderstorming just before the race, but the rain gradually lessened as the race got under way and continued. Had my best time of the season, 22:37; splits were 7:14, 7:18 and 7:12, watch said there were .14 more miles covered in 51 seconds, pace of 6:16. Avg HR 154, max 166.

 

Sun. June 19: speed workout. Warmed up for .63 miles at an easy pace, then did 11 intervals ranging from .1 to .2 miles, with paces generally in the 6:30 range but 6:00 and 5:30 for the two shortest intervals. Recovery consisted of jogs of about 60-100 seconds, mostly in the 9-10 min. pace range, but walks for the last 3 intervals. Avg. HR 139, max 165.

 

Mon. 6/20: 5.17 miles, 8:58 pace, with the first mile a slow jog and the rest between 8 and 9 minutes. Picked it up to below 8 minute pace for the last half mile or so. Avg HR 133, max 164.

 

Tues. 6/21: 7.12 miles, 68 minutes, pace 9:58, avg HR 123, max 143.

 

Wed. 6/22: Sprints, about 30 seconds each, mostly in the neighborhood of 150 meters, pace ranging from 5:03 to 5:42 with most around 5:30. Did 7 sprints altogether. Recovery was similar distance, jogs at first and walks later, with a warmup run of about half a mile and cooldown of .6 miles. Accidentally shut my watch off for most of the warmup, but I think I covered about 3.5 miles overall. Avg HR 133, max 164.

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