Signed up and raring to go

It was back on 11 January that I first mooted the idea of running a 10k. However, despite liking the idea in principle, it remained just that and was put to the back of my mind. I had more important things to focus on with the birth of my son, his surgery and recuperation. Then there was the small matter of getting back into the routine of having a baby in your life. Understandably, the running was shelved.

Quite what made me decide to hit the gym and embrace the treadmill when I was at a conference in May I really don't know. Part of it was bloody-mindedness I suppose, having joked over drinks the night before that I'd be up early to exercise. I'm so glad that I did haul myself out of bed though as it provided a springboard for what came next.

I've typically gone to the gym three times a week, primarily to run. It wasn't easy to begin with. Indeed I found it quite a frustrating experience as my asthma combined with poor level of fitness would not let me do what I wanted. Through much perseverance, my stamina improved and got me to a point where I wanted to test the water with an organised run.

My first ParkRun came in early July. A 5k weekly free event, I puffed and wheezed my way round the course in just over 30 minutes. In subsequent Saturdays, I have improved week upon week, notching up a sub-27 minute finish last time out. I look forward to Saturday mornings, and often find myself visualising the course, trying to work out where I can cut out a few seconds next time out.

So having moved forward on the exercise front in recent months, what am I to do next? Well, the logical thing is to go back to that subgoal for this year and participate in a 10k. And that is exactly what I am going to do. Yesterday I registered for the Moor Park 10k event on 29 September, and together with colleagues who are fellow rookies at running, we are looking to complete the course and in doing so fundraise for a worthy charity. All donations are welcome 

In the next 8 and a half weeks, I'm going to have to up my game. I've never come close to running 10k, so I will have to find time to run beyond what I'm doing already, and get my legs and lungs ready for the race. If I can continue to lose a lb a week as I have done recently, I'll be getting close to my target weightloss around the time of the race. Wouldn't it be great to hit that mark and then cross the finish line? One can hope! The important thing is to get myself physically ready for the run and if by doing so I can close in on my goal in the process, that would be a nice bonus on the side.

Some hard miles ahead then. 8 weeks doesn't seem nearly long enough to get ready, but then in less than 8 weeks I went from completely unfit to finishing a 5k. I can do this, and look forward to the challenge.

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Keep on running

Tomorrow is the first Wednesday in a while I am looking forward to. Over the past week, I've stuck to my guns by keeping to a three meal a day no snack diet plan, and got off my flabby backside and exercised. Lots of it too. I've run on six out of seven days and quite unexpectedly I am starting to enjoy it. Things are becoming that little bit easier every time I hit the treadmill, presumably because my body is adjusting to being used rather than abused, while my pathetic lungs are showing signs of playing ball too.

How do I know that things are improving? Well, having taken snaps of the workout summary most of the days I've been at the gym, I can monitor my progress and the images tell their own story. The first was my session last Friday when in just under 24 minutes I covered 3.53km in a mixture of run and walk. The second pic shows my workout today, when in a similar time of just over 24 minutes I managed an additional half a kilometre.

Gym on Friday

Gym on Tuesday

Simply put, I've been able to increase the intensity of my running, both by upping the pace (I now run at 12k/h, walking 7k/h) and by being able to maintain running for that little bit longer. My aim now is to extend my running time, building up my stamina until I'm able to run 5km flat without needing to slow down to catch my breath.

Physically I'm feeling better for all this exercise. I thought I may have a few aches and pains from running, but barring some slight tight calf muscles, I'm feeling good and hence able to run again the following day. I'm expecting to see a weight loss when I get on the scales tomorrow which be welcome. The challenge is to replicate the past 7 days so that it becomes the norm rather than the exception.

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The Power of Three

Don't worry folks, I'm not about to break into a blog article about that wretched Charmed programme that I occasionally have inflicted upon me. No, the title today refers more to looking at exercise in a cumulative manner.

As regular readers will know, I've been trying to get into an exercise regime. I've not been very good at it so far, but today marked my third straight day of going to the gym.

I'm not there to work with weights. I'm focusing on cardio to aid my weight loss while hopefully raising my atrocious fitness level in the process. Earlier in the year I pledged to run a 10k before 2014, and while I'm a long way from that yet, every little bit of running helps.

It can be quite disheartening to find yourself huffing and puffing after a relatively short distance. As an overweight guy with a touch of asthma, this comes around quite quickly for me. However, while I'm in no condition to run the full ten k's at the moment, I can look back on my combined efforts of the last three days with a small amount of pride.

This is for several reasons. Firstly, I keep going back for more. At the moment I'm focused and determined, which makes it so much easier to pull on the trainers and shorts. Secondly, I'm already starting to feel better for it. A sneak peek at the scales would tell me I'm already better off than I was at the last weigh in, which will hopefully .be confirmed on Wednesday. But it is not just the potential weight loss that is making me feel good. The getting off my backside and physically doing something is working too. Going in my lunch break helps break up my day and gives me a boost for the afternoon that sitting quietly in a lunch room can't match.

But perhaps most importantly, when combining my exercise over the last three days it adds up to a much more impressive total. By my flaky Friday night arithmetic, approximately 75  minutes on the treadmill, over 11km travelled, more than 1100 calories burned. Granted a fair chunk of this was achieved with warm up and warm down walking, but any way I look at it, this was the most productive week of exercise I've had this year, barring the 15 mile charity walk. And I've not destroyed my feet in the process this time!

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Going into the weekend there will be some old demons to conquer. I won't have the gym readily available for a start, so will have to see how motivated I am to be active at home. Can I avoid my bad habits of eating too much? Do I have the will power to keep that 8 pack of bulmers untouched?

I guess we'll just have to see. My early success in January was achieved through consistency. If I can keep to my diet plan and maintain regular exercise, I know I will succeed again.

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Wednesday Weigh-In 29 May

So, let's do this with minimal spin. I'm ballooning!

Don't blame the scales

The number on the bathroom scales is not unfriendly. It is a fair reflection of the fact I've been letting things go for a number of weeks now. Almost five months into Year Of The Diet and my net weightloss is 1 stone. My aim for the year was 41 lbs. After a promising start, things have regressed pretty badly of late, and that is entirely down to me.

I could write about new beginnings. Picking up the pieces. Whatever cliche takes your fancy. Ultimately weight management is my own personal responsibility. I know how I've lost weight before, and I know only too well how easy it is to gain. The phrase I'm going to go with is Back to the Primitive - a nice little track by Soulfly which I plan to listen to every morning to offer motivation - which is essentially what I need to do.

Consume less. Exercise more. Lose weight.

A very simple equation. A pity that it is so much easier to do the reverse.

So, with today being my first at getting Back to the Primitive, my day so far has included Shredded Wheat, Cup-A-Soup and 30 minutes of huffing and puffing on a treadmill. A pretty sight it does not make but needs must.

Reach for the inhaler people - it is wheeze o'clock

I enjoyed my Magners last night, but that was the last drop of alcohol I plan to consume for at least the next three weeks. Remove that, the muffins, the cheeky bags of crisps, the slide of bread while cooking dinner and all the various little extras and I'll be on my way.

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Coe, Cram and Ovett have nothing on me!

Call it sibling rivalry if you want, but having read my sister's article on this blog yesterday, I felt compelled to pull on my running shoes. This morning I paced the mean streets of Britwell - well, a small part of it anyway - and did my first outdoor run since I was a teenager.

A couple of years back when I was a regular at the gym I was able to spend quite a bit of time on a treadmill, but doing that in a controlled environment is very different to running in the elements, particularly if like me you have asthma. That was a contributory factor in my 'run' this morning lasting not very long, though 95% of the reason was because I'm hideously unfit. However, it is a start and a foundation to build upon.

Mo Farah is quaking in his boots

My asthma played up and a few hours later I'm still coughing and spluttering at regular intervals. Looks like I've got a lot of work to do if I'm going to get myself fit for a 10k this year. However, after spending the last few weeks gaining weight and eating like a pig, it was good to do something positive and try to get Year of the Diet back on track.