Fitness 2014

[Maladict]

Starting off with a long walk after the customary watching of the Vienna concert and ski jumping.

[Liep]

I'm planning to do more mountain biking in the new year. Last year before the road cycling season began I was only out once or twice.

I have already ruled out the Copenhagen Marathon in may.

[Legbiter]

I'll be lifting more this year, less regular Crossfit workouts.

[crazy canuck]

Men's League basketball starts in a couple weeks.  I am on a team made up of former college players.  My main concern is whether I can play a full game while keeping up with my team mates.  I have scrimmaged with them but I haven't played in a real game for a long time.

[Scipio]

Getting back to brutal calisthenics and bike riding. Got my mostly vegan diet going and sorted, so it's time to kick up the activities.

[alfred russel]

I fail to reach most of my goals every year. But these are what I'm aiming for:

Running:

1. Run a marathon in the spring in a maximum of 4 hours. Real time target: 3:56 (a 9 min / mile pace). Stretch target: 3:47:33 (the slowest Olympic medaling time--granted it was in 1904 and run during the middle of summer in Saint Louis, but it is a realistic target for me).

2. Run a sub 50 minute 10k. This is a repeat goal for the past few years. I have been so very very close for about a year. I just need to do it.

Other Stuff

1. Be able to do 20 pull ups. I'm no where near this right now. I've got to start branching out my fitness routine beyond being so running centric.

2. Join and regularly show up to a climbing gym. One of my cousins is in this with me.

[alfred russel]

I'm trying to get ready for a marathon on March 22.

I just did a 14.4 mile run. Cardio and muscle wise I'm okay, but my left groin ached like a motherfucker during the second half of the run. It may explode before the marathon date, and I don't think I can take it easy as there are only 2 months to go and I still have to build up almost 12 more miles.

Generally on a long run I just run at a comfortable pace, which is about 8:40 a mile for me. But the second 7.2 mile leg of my run today my pace fell to 9:00 per mile, and the last mile was even worse.

At a minimum I want to run 9:00 / mile for the marathon, so suddenly I'm worried about my pace too.

[alfred russel]

The bottom line is that Ray Lewis would find a way to get it done, and I will too.

[Brazen]

That's some speedy goal AR, but don't bust your groin (hip flexor?) just for one race, it's not worth it. Get some physio, do the ice and ibuprofen thing and maybe invest in a foam roller. I'm still suffering from struggling on with hip bursitis that came on while marathon training three years ago until it seized up altogether and sidelined me entirely. It's flared up again recently and I haven't run properly for about 6 months.

Taking two weeks out to heal now is more likely to get you round a marathon in a fit state that training through it. A lot of training programmes only take you up to 20 miles anyhow.

I've had a chest infection and the lingering after-affects that affect us weedy asthma sufferers for about three weeks now and I just can't hit it hard. I'm aiming to get to my goal weight (19lbs down) and a healthy body fat percentage by summer, and while I can't run I'm ramping up my swimming to 100 lengths by the end of February and adding in circuit-style resistance training.

I've started tracking my food seriously again and I'm 6lbs down from Christmas so far.

[Darth Wagtaros]

I wanna try the Iron Man in August. Will be trying for that.

[alfred russel]

That's some speedy goal AR, but don't bust your groin (hip flexor?) just for one race, it's not worth it. Get some physio, do the ice and ibuprofen thing and maybe invest in a foam roller. I'm still suffering from struggling on with hip bursitis that came on while marathon training three years ago until it seized up altogether and sidelined me entirely. It's flared up again recently and I haven't run properly for about 6 months.

Taking two weeks out to heal now is more likely to get you round a marathon in a fit state that training through it. A lot of training programmes only take you up to 20 miles anyhow.

I've had a chest infection and the lingering after-affects that affect us weedy asthma sufferers for about three weeks now and I just can't hit it hard. I'm aiming to get to my goal weight (19lbs down) and a healthy body fat percentage by summer, and while I can't run I'm ramping up my swimming to 100 lengths by the end of February and adding in circuit-style resistance training.

I've started tracking my food seriously again and I'm 6lbs down from Christmas so far.

Brazen, are you the only person here that has done a marathon?

I'm interested in your advice...last June I really hurt what I think was my left groin. A day or so after a run it would be very difficult to walk--I was basically hopping on one foot. I saw a trainer who recommended the rest, ice, ibuprofen thing. I basically took two months off from serious running. She thought I might have a touch of tendonitis.

It got better, but since then whenever I do a run I've felt the left groin injury. Not painfully, but I knew something was still there.

Starting last week, when I started back log runs again, it began to really hurt. Not like last June--I can walk with only a mild limp after a long run. But it really slows down my pace at the end and is quite uncomfortable.

I don't want to rest because it didn't fix the problem before. I also want to run the March 22 marathon because I know others in the race and if I miss this race I will have to fly somewhere and run alone. I also think my fitness is reasonably close to a marathon right now, and I want to do this just for the bucket list - 26.2 miles is more distance than I want to run consistently.

[Eddie Teach]

I think you should probably ease up on your speed requirement. But then I'd be ecstatic (and possibly near death) to run a single mile in 9 minutes.

[Brazen]

I'm pretty sure there are other Languish marathon runners here who've finished in half my time!

If you've really got to do this one, investing in a few sports physio appointments would be well worth it. If there's long-term inflammation, ask about getting a cortisone injection in the joint to get you through training.

In training, if not in the race itself, think about walk/running your long runs so you're swapping between different motions. Friends do sub-4-hours marathons using Jeff Galloway's methods.
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/marathon-training/

Run-walk-run ratio should correspond to the pace used (Runners).
8 min/mi—run 4 min/walk 35 seconds
9 min/mi— 4 min run-1 min walk
10 min/mi—-3:1
11 min/mi—2:30-1
12 min/mi—-2:1
13 min/mi—-1:1
14 min/mi—30 sec run/30 sec walk
15 min/mi—30 sec/45 sec
16 min/mi—30 sec/60 sec - See more at: http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/marathon-training/#sthash.p3C8BLwK.dpuf

[alfred russel]

Thanks Brazen!

I think I will go see a doctor tomorrow, and also a trainer to see about some physio training.

[alfred russel]

I think you should probably ease up on your speed requirement. But then I'd be ecstatic (and possibly near death) to run a single mile in 9 minutes.

With the caveat I don't know what is really going on, I don't think that the pace is what is doing me in. A comfortable long distance pace for me is ~8:40 a mile--normally I run a decent bit faster. I think what is causing my pace to fall is my groin, and I think that is breaking down because of the distance/repetitive use. Running slower may not help things (the run / walk option brazen mentioned is probably different because that would change my gait and may keep the groin from flaring up).