It's true, I swear!!
Anyway, I did my second 25-minute run today. The beginning was rougher than the last time, but I think that's because I didn't sleep that well last night (I've slept like crap for the last week for some reason). Once I got into a groove, it was ok. I even sped it up for short periods. I went just over a mile and a half, which is a bit further than I did on Friday. I've decided I'm going to stay on this week (Week 7 of the C25k) until I can do 2 miles in 25 minutes.
I've been lazy and haven't started the ab routine yet. I know the reason I'm not doing it is because I'm worried about what my roommate will think/say. It's stupid and I need to get over it. I'm going to start it tonight. I can "go to bed" a half hour early and shut the door.
On another note, I realized that if I get my butt in gear and start pushing myself, I could be in OCS this time next year. I'm debating whether to talk to a recruiter this week to find out what I need to start collecting, learning, etc, so I can be fully prepared by the time I'm at the max weight. I really see no reason why I shouldn't have a 300 PFT (or darn close to it) by that time either.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Saturday, November 15, 2008
25-minute Run Complete
I did my first 25-minute run on Friday. I had to take a few days off because my hip was hurting pretty bad after my run on Sunday and I didn't want to push it. The last 5 minutes of the run were rough, but I pushed through. This next week is all 25-minute runs, no more interval running.
The week went pretty well calorie-wise, too, except for yesterday, when my roommate bought pizza. So I made myself behave for the most part today to make up for it (Saturday is usually the day I don't worry about it too much). I did splurge and get a Pepsi, however. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!
As for reading, I finished Ender's Game in less than 4 days. I have no idea why I didn't read it before now. It was fantastic. I love the fact that it was on the Commandant's reading list, too. I totally understand why and it was really enjoyable to read. My next books are Band of Brothers and Fields of Fire. Not sure which I'm going to read first.
I also watched Run Fatboy Run this week. Not the funniest Simon Peg movie I've seen, but it was great nonetheless. I think I liked it so much because I'm trying to become a runner myself. I don't think I'll ever be able to run 26 miles, though. That's just nuts!
The week went pretty well calorie-wise, too, except for yesterday, when my roommate bought pizza. So I made myself behave for the most part today to make up for it (Saturday is usually the day I don't worry about it too much). I did splurge and get a Pepsi, however. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!
As for reading, I finished Ender's Game in less than 4 days. I have no idea why I didn't read it before now. It was fantastic. I love the fact that it was on the Commandant's reading list, too. I totally understand why and it was really enjoyable to read. My next books are Band of Brothers and Fields of Fire. Not sure which I'm going to read first.
I also watched Run Fatboy Run this week. Not the funniest Simon Peg movie I've seen, but it was great nonetheless. I think I liked it so much because I'm trying to become a runner myself. I don't think I'll ever be able to run 26 miles, though. That's just nuts!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Ab Routine
I figured I'd post the ab routine I'm going to try, just in case some others who read this are in my position and need a bit of help. This was sent to me by Munzino, from marineocs.com. Thanks Munzino!!
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Core strength is the key to all upper body strength. So a good ab workout is a start. Practice crunches the same way you will be doing them on the PFT. If you don't have someone to hold your feet, just pop them under a couch. Cross your arms across your chest, and move up until your elbows touch part of your legs. Now you need to see what your max is. So keep going and don't take a break longer than 3 seconds or so. Once you hit your max, whatever that may be, round it up to the nearest multiple of 5 (ex: max was 13, round to 15, max was 26, round to 30). Once you have rounded this number up that is your target goal. I'll come back to this in a second.
Next, pushups. What you want to do is find your target goal for this exercise also. If you have trouble doing pushups straight away, just put your knees on the floor for now. You won't be lifting your whole body weight, but this will help build initial strength until you can do full pushups. So reach your max, round it up to 5 like you did with the crunches.
Now that you have target goals for both pushups and crunches it's time to start a program everyday. We'll keep it simple for now.
- Do 3 sets of crunches to your target goal
- Do 3 sets of pushups to your target goal
On both of these exercises try to maintain proper form, and complete the whole set without stopping. In saying that it's more important to maintain proper form than finishing each set weakly. So take a quick break if you have to but keep pushing. Also, between sets try to keep the break down to 1-3 minutes. So do a set, break 1-3 minutes, another set, break 1-3 minutes, etc.
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Core strength is the key to all upper body strength. So a good ab workout is a start. Practice crunches the same way you will be doing them on the PFT. If you don't have someone to hold your feet, just pop them under a couch. Cross your arms across your chest, and move up until your elbows touch part of your legs. Now you need to see what your max is. So keep going and don't take a break longer than 3 seconds or so. Once you hit your max, whatever that may be, round it up to the nearest multiple of 5 (ex: max was 13, round to 15, max was 26, round to 30). Once you have rounded this number up that is your target goal. I'll come back to this in a second.
Next, pushups. What you want to do is find your target goal for this exercise also. If you have trouble doing pushups straight away, just put your knees on the floor for now. You won't be lifting your whole body weight, but this will help build initial strength until you can do full pushups. So reach your max, round it up to 5 like you did with the crunches.
Now that you have target goals for both pushups and crunches it's time to start a program everyday. We'll keep it simple for now.
- Do 3 sets of crunches to your target goal
- Do 3 sets of pushups to your target goal
On both of these exercises try to maintain proper form, and complete the whole set without stopping. In saying that it's more important to maintain proper form than finishing each set weakly. So take a quick break if you have to but keep pushing. Also, between sets try to keep the break down to 1-3 minutes. So do a set, break 1-3 minutes, another set, break 1-3 minutes, etc.
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I Lost!
When I weighed myself this morning, it hovered right around 200.5. That means I've lost about 7 pounds since this whole thing started. I was expecting it to go up a good pound or two since I ate so much crap yesterday and I didn't do all that well on staying in my calorie limit this week. It was a nice surprise to start the day.
I did Week 6 Day 2 of the Couch to 5k today. The whole routine was 33 minutes, but I added time on and went a total of 65 minutes. My next run on Tuesday morning will be 25 minutes. Then Thursday or Friday starts Week 7, which is all 25-minute runs. No more interval running from that point on. Whenever I'm running, I get passed by people who are taller, skinnier, and probably have been running a lot longer. I have to keep reminding myself that right now it's about endurance, not speed. I need to be able to run 3 miles before I can try to run those 3 miles in 21 minutes.
This week, I'm also going to start an ab routine to build up crunches and push-ups. I've been putting it off because I know it's going to be hard. But running was hard too, and look where I am now. I have no excuse.
I did Week 6 Day 2 of the Couch to 5k today. The whole routine was 33 minutes, but I added time on and went a total of 65 minutes. My next run on Tuesday morning will be 25 minutes. Then Thursday or Friday starts Week 7, which is all 25-minute runs. No more interval running from that point on. Whenever I'm running, I get passed by people who are taller, skinnier, and probably have been running a lot longer. I have to keep reminding myself that right now it's about endurance, not speed. I need to be able to run 3 miles before I can try to run those 3 miles in 21 minutes.
This week, I'm also going to start an ab routine to build up crunches and push-ups. I've been putting it off because I know it's going to be hard. But running was hard too, and look where I am now. I have no excuse.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
A Quick Quote
I wanted to share this quote I just saw in someone's signature on SparkPeople.com.
"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls aren't there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show us how badly we want things." -- Randy Pausch
Very motivating. I can't wait for my run tomorrow.
"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls aren't there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show us how badly we want things." -- Randy Pausch
Very motivating. I can't wait for my run tomorrow.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Just a Quick Update
I'm pretty proud of what I accomplished this morning, so I figured I'd pass it on.
I kept telling myself yesterday that if I got up at 6:30 this morning and ran before work, I could get Starbucks. I think it's the best Starbucks I've ever had. I got up as soon as my alarm went off (I usually hit snooze once or twice if it's an early morning) and got ready pretty quickly. Drove down to the park where I run and did 10 minutes of warm-up. I initially planned on doing the 8-5-8 run again, but decided to give the 20 a shot at the last minute. I think it's the best run I've ever had. After some initial soreness, my legs warmed up pretty well and I kept my breathing slow and steady. I wasn't very fast, but at this stage, that's ok. I ran for the whole 20 minutes without stopping (about 1.25 miles), and I know I could've gone longer. I'm definitely proud of myself today.
I kept telling myself yesterday that if I got up at 6:30 this morning and ran before work, I could get Starbucks. I think it's the best Starbucks I've ever had. I got up as soon as my alarm went off (I usually hit snooze once or twice if it's an early morning) and got ready pretty quickly. Drove down to the park where I run and did 10 minutes of warm-up. I initially planned on doing the 8-5-8 run again, but decided to give the 20 a shot at the last minute. I think it's the best run I've ever had. After some initial soreness, my legs warmed up pretty well and I kept my breathing slow and steady. I wasn't very fast, but at this stage, that's ok. I ran for the whole 20 minutes without stopping (about 1.25 miles), and I know I could've gone longer. I'm definitely proud of myself today.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
I'm such a slacker
Sorry I haven't updated in a couple weeks. Last week, I just plum forgot.
Today, I did "Week 5, Day 2" of the Couch to 5k. Run 8, walk 5, run 8. I completed it with flying colors. I was a bit tired, but not too bad. According to the schedule, I'm supposed to do a full 20-minute run next (Monday). However, since Daylight Savings is over, I have to run in the mornings now. I'm not sure how well that will go, so I'll either repeat Day 2, or move on to Day 3. We shall see.
As for reading, I got Band of Sisters from the library. The writing itself seems very Freshman English-ish, but she seems to be sticking to the facts and doesn't interject her opinions too much, so that makes up for it. A couple of the stories are making me want to go for aviation, though I don't know how likely that is, considering I have so-so vision and I'm fairly short. I'll have to find out what I qualify for when I'm to the point where I can talk to a recruiter.
Today, I did "Week 5, Day 2" of the Couch to 5k. Run 8, walk 5, run 8. I completed it with flying colors. I was a bit tired, but not too bad. According to the schedule, I'm supposed to do a full 20-minute run next (Monday). However, since Daylight Savings is over, I have to run in the mornings now. I'm not sure how well that will go, so I'll either repeat Day 2, or move on to Day 3. We shall see.
As for reading, I got Band of Sisters from the library. The writing itself seems very Freshman English-ish, but she seems to be sticking to the facts and doesn't interject her opinions too much, so that makes up for it. A couple of the stories are making me want to go for aviation, though I don't know how likely that is, considering I have so-so vision and I'm fairly short. I'll have to find out what I qualify for when I'm to the point where I can talk to a recruiter.
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