Fitness 2011

[mongers]

Nice run this morning. New pb at 1.34.50 for the half-mara.

That's a fairly impressive performance.

[mongers]

Went on my new route through some of the hillier bits of the New Forest today, 50kms in about 1h 50 minutes so an average of about 16.5 mph. 

In my defence some of these hills are 350 ft and I start out in a river valley near the sea; my gps doesn't do height climbed. 

Again hardly anyone about, I was overtaken by just 16 cars, 2 lorries and one motorbike on over 30 miles of road, weird. 

[mongers]

Took the bike I've knocked together out of some old bits, so I can have something to going shopping on, for a bit of a spin around some local towns.

My gps failed but it seemed to do 32 mile or so with relative ease, for all I know it might be my fastest bike. 

[PDH]

Another 65 miles of biking this weekend - I figure I am around 1000 miles total for the summer.  That is a Lettowesque vision quest.

[mongers]

Did my now standard route around some of the hillier bits of the New Forest today, 50kms in again about 1h 50 minutes so not too bad and I still had quite a bit left in the tank when I got home.

It works out that rather than just going to Brockenhurst and back, if I go to the gates of my old college, stop for a drink and turn around, the extra bit takes the route to just over 30 miles, just the right length.

Again hardly anyone about, no car overtook me over the last 8 or 9 miles. 

[Slargos]

My new exercise schedule has 4 sessions per week at the gym. I'm going to do mostly cardio for a few weeks, but I'm slowly adding a bit of weights.

Yesterday I had a personal trainer help me with stretching the muscles in my thighs and buttox. I endured pain on a level that I've rarely done before.

Right up there with the time I had an inflammation in the lung sack. Top 4 easily.

It hurts, and I'm tired, and I'm jonesing for a smoke, but I think this time things got real.

[Legbiter]

My new exercise schedule has 4 sessions per week at the gym. I'm going to do mostly cardio for a few weeks, but I'm slowly adding a bit of weights.

Why? Chronic cardio is the most boring, most soul-crushing form of exercise known to man. All you'll do is lose the will to live and you won't gain any greater overall fitness above what you'd get from doing basically anything mildly active. Stop punishing the elliptical and start doing whole body lifts with weights (deadlifts, squats, etc) and throw in an interval-based sprint session once a week (say, 15 minutes tops).  Combine that with enough sleep and eating lots of dead animals and veggies and you'll be golden.

Basically you should lift very heavy things 2-3 times a week with a rest day inbetween and sprint once on the weekend. Boom, good job.

Yesterday I had a personal trainer help me with stretching the muscles in my thighs and buttox. I endured pain on a level that I've rarely done before.

Right up there with the time I had an inflammation in the lung sack. Top 4 easily.

It hurts, and I'm tired, and I'm jonesing for a smoke, but I think this time things got real.

Your PT sounds like a tool.

[Slargos]

I've been having back problems and he suggested that a likely reason was the connected muscle groups being too short and in dire need of stretching.

The stretch itself hurt like a mother fucker, but afterwards my muscles felt really good so I have to assume he did something correctly.

As for the cardio, I haven't trained regularly for years now, and I need to get my lungs and heart working again aside from the necessity of dropping some fat. I figure on 3 sessions per week with weights. I think it's a solid plan, and with the circumstances I am currently in there is no way for me to avoid it.

[mongers]

Popped out to buy some stamps, didn't bother in the end, besides it was such a nice afternoon I headed off into the Dorset countryside; briefly visited Wimborne to check out the thift shops for old cameras before taking the old blandford road to Badbury Rings hillfort to take some photos, I'll see if any are worth posting.

Had a very fast trip home what with the tailwind and having to keep up a reasonable pace because of the traffic on the A31.   

[mongers]

For my age I don't think I'm going to get much fitter, without taking extreme measures and that would be pointless.

Fitness plan for the Autumn and Winter is to cycle around the New Forest to Brockenhurst and back, twice a week at its start and end, though maybe not Friday as there seems to be more of traffic about then.

If I can do this as soon as I finish work, late afternoon/early evening, that will be be about 250 miles cycling a month through the colder months.  The rest of my getting about/utility cycling could get me another 100-150 miles a month, that would leave me with a good but realistic target to aim for and keep motivated.

[Lucidor]

I did a 30 km race cross country this weekend. Personal best of under 2.44 but now I hurt. 

[Iormlund]

So I tried, after a few months, to use the skiing machine at the gym again.

Big mistake.

[Slargos]

Going pretty well. Lost a few kilos. Mostly water weight I presume. Ran into my first wall today.
A bit of a flu going, and I can't summon the energy to power through it. Started on the crosstrainers today, and intended to continue on the spinning bikes but I just felt drained. Typically I can will more energy into being, but this time I was just tapped out. Frustrating.

[Brazen]

That's not flu, that's man-flu, or you'd never have made it out of bed, let alone to the gym Either way, if you're ill, take a couple of days off before trying again.

Not sure I'm match-fit for the half marathon next weekend. I may turn up at the start line and have my Oyster card in my pocket to get the Tube to the finish

In other news, after about 10 years of trying I've got my first London Marathon ballot place (with no charity obligation) for April 2012. Pretty stoked to have got it in London Olympics year!

[fhdz]

Started running again yesterday after a several-month hiatus from that activity. I'd been lifting weights 3x a week (the Stronglifts program) but had fallen out of doing that after going on vacation. Since I'm feeling fat and irritated enough to do something about it again, I've decided to try a good daily run followed by a circuit of bodyweight exercises. Yesterday I ran 1 mile (don't laugh, I'm basically starting over) followed by 5 pullups, 10 dips, 40 running planks, and 30 pushups.

I intend to do the same today. Tuesday I'll do the same but increase the running distance by .1 mile. The eventual goal is to be running 5k/day after gradual increase.