Well my streak of running every other day was just broken. On Sunday I came down with a stomach virus. This is the second time my kiddo brought me (this time mommy too) home this unwelcome present from daycare. Luckily it wasn’t as severe as last time, but it did knock me for a little loop. That meant no run yesterday (as scheduled) or today. I feel a little better today, but I’m still going to wait at least one more full day to get it out of my system fully. I’ll probably be back on the road on Thursday.

All I have to say is that it was so humid that you can feel it. I was up early, and out of my door at 5:45am. I at least beat the heat, but the humidity was enough to slow me down. I did maintain a steady pace, but I felt worn out early. I didn’t have my usual slow down point, which is a good sign. Rather I didn’t have the energy to up the pace at all. I made it 2.49 miles in 25 minutes (10:14 pace). Not too shabby given the weather conditions. Still right on track on the program. One more 25 minute run to go, then it’s up to 28 minutes.

I had another good run today. Not as good as the last one, but still good at this stage. I ran 2.55 miles in the 25 minutes (9:53 pace). I tried to start off a little slower to not burn myself out so much. I find this strategy tough to figure out. It seems no matter the pace, I still start to slow down at the same point (today at the 18 minute mark). It’s almost better to start off faster. I think I came to this realization last year too. I think I have to run more naturally instead of concentrating on the pace so much. I’m sure the pace will work itself out. I’d like to make it a full 3 miles without any slowing down. Once through with the C25K program (I can’t believe I have less than 3 more weeks to go), I’m going to push the distance out some more. I’ll also work in some sprinting/HIIT as I’d like to get back some athleticism lost throughout the years.

Today’s run called for a 25 minute run (or 2.25 miles). I’ve decided to stick to the time rather than the distance. I made it 2.64 miles in 25 minutes (9:35 pace). This is the best I’ve run in the last 2 years given the distance and pace. This morning was nice and cool and not so humid. That had to factor into this. Almost every other run so far has been in either heat or humidity and mostly both. This puts me well ahead of schedule on the C25K program.

I completed week 6 day 2 of couch to 5k yesterday morning. The only comment I have is that it’s much hotter at 8:30am than it is at 6am. I had a so so run. I probably fell short of a mile on the second 10 minute run. Given the heat, I’m not disappointed. This was the last interval run. Now it’s straight runs from here on out.

Finished W6D1 up without any problems. I’m not sure how my pace was since I changed back to the C25K app (for the last 2 interval runs), but judging how I did the 20 minute run I think the pace was fine. Although I’m not restricting calories (I am eating much healthier though) I’ve finally started to really shed some weight. Reading back to last year, I’m am in a much better groove this year. Now there is just one more interval run to go. I must, must, must run through the winter this year. I don’t ever want to start over from scratch again.

I ran the first non-interval run of the couch to 5K program this morning. It called for a 20 minute (or 2 mile) run. It was good to change gears a little and focus on my pace in addition to the time.

I had the CardioTrainer app at the ready. I wrote the developers last year and gave them a suggestion for a countdown timer so that there is enough time to get the app started and get the phone put away before the actual timing starts. I was happy to see that this feature was put into one of the last updates–and that actual pace time wasn’t taken up while getting my phone secured before the run.

I completed the run at a 9:50 pace (going 2.09 miles in 20 minutes). I’m very happy with that. I didn’t really start to slow down until the 17 minute mark. It was very humid out, so that had to play a role. Otherwise it was a very good run. I felt the pace, and it was the same pace I had been running at, so I can look back and confidently say that I’m ahead of what the program is expecting. I did maintain some of my cardio fitness after the 6 month layoff.

Only 2 more interval runs to go, then it’s straight time.

This morning’s run was good. And simple to follow (8 minute run, 5 minute walk, 8 minute run). I can’t believe I’m now down to just 2 more interval runs.  I really didn’t slow down to much. I felt I kept a good pace. I’ll know for sure how my pacing has been this Wednesday when the programs calls for a 20 minute straight run. Knock on wood I’ve kept up the every other day routine. Fatigue and/or weather conditions have yet to hold me back. Technically this shortens the program from 9 weeks to 8 weeks. The morning runs too have proven to be very beneficial in maintaining this streak.

I mentioned before that I haven’t started to restrict calories for weight loss yet. I’ve been weighing in daily on Wii Fitness. I fluctuate so much from day to day (even though I weigh myself at the same time). Overall the trend line looks nice and downward (albeit slow). I might reconsider restricting calories drastically in favor of a more moderate approach. I still might do a week to week cyclical approach, but just not ever push it too far. I’m certain that restricting too much while working out can put a strain on the entire body and immune system. I’d rather lose weight slowly than get stricken with colds.

I felt good this morning. I’m glad I got out early to beat the rain. Again, it was pretty steamy out at 7am. One more interval down, just 3 more to go. This one was 3 5 minute runs with 3 minute walks between. I never ran out of gas. I slowed my pace down a little from what I was running during week 4. Whether or not I have the right pace down will be determined Wednesday, when the first 20 minute straight run is scheduled. I’m definitely having an easier go at it this year. I can’t wait to getting the 5k nailed down and starting to shred some of this extra body weight.

Well I didn’t need an extra day’s rest, which I mentioned I might need in the last post. I’m happy that I’ve made it through 4 weeks of the program while sticking to running every other day. This speeds up the entire program. Last year I stuck to true weeks, and used 2 days rest each week.

I can’t believe I’m more than half way through the program already. Looking ahead, there are just 4 more interval days–the rest being straight runs. I look forward to switching android apps and going with CardioTrainer to really work on my pace, which at this point I can’t accurately judge (since I’m running the streets and I don’t have exact distances measured out).

Today’s run was good. Again I ran strong the first three intervals (3 mins, 5 mins, 3 mins). But I ran out of gas about half way through the last 5 minute run. This was better than the last 2 runs though. It was cooler this morning (I guess you can call 75+ cooler in comparison to other days this week), but it was more humid than it has been. I think I ran good despite the weather. Plus I didn’t have that “hurry up and end” feeling.

I’m also looking forward to the first straight 20 minute run (W5D3), which at this rate will come next Wednesday.

Running in the mornings has its pros and cons. There are many more pros, but I think a big con is not having the food energy in your body. Or course the pros is not having to wait to digest, getting the workout done (I keep thinking of the old Army commercials “we get more done by 6am than more people do all day”), and it helps with other things like not hitting snooze and getting to bed earlier.

I’ve been doing good with my Healthy Living Checklist. No real deviations there. I have put back some caffeine into the mix with some Green Tea two times a day (morning and dinner time). I mentioned that I might. I just have to leave it at this amount and not go back to consuming the amounts I was before going cold turkey. I don’t think caffeine is bad in moderates amounts–actually there are reported benefits. So I’ll be sticking to my Green Tea. It’s definitely helped to keep me from crashing early at night–but not too much to keep me from getting a good night’s sleep or messing with my entire day’s energy balance.

Also I mentioned in the last post that I’ve not been calorie restricting (just eating much better). Last year my weight loss was more dramatic, but it also ran me down (and I think got me a few colds due to the depressed immune system). I’ve been steadily losing, which I’m tracking on Wii Fitness Plus. I like the graphical progress chart Wii Fitness has. I dropped about 4 pounds so far. I actually have to resist temptation and stick to this longer-term plan. I don’t want any colds setting me back. Once I’m done with the program and am running at a nice casual pace, I’ll start reducing calories for more significant weight loss. I might even phase it in and out with some sort of periodization cycled approach (one week restrict, one week normal, etc). I’ll have to wait and see.