TRAINING UPDATE WEEK 4 & 5

I have been remiss in my training updates over the past 1.5 weeks but am glad to report that training has gone very well.

We have been dealing with some heavy rain and cold weather, which is something that has been a bit unusual for us over the past few years. We get rain and actual rain storms, but it seems that this year has been excessively heavy.

Training has been good nonetheless. I have been able to string together strong workout sessions in each discipline and am feeling stronger and more focused each day.

The highlights for each sport:

Swim: I have been averaging at least 3000 yards per swim. I'm feeling stronger and have focused on longer endurance sets. I have concentrated distance per stroke and form and have found myself feeling much more comfortable in the water.

Bike: My leg strength and overall base endurance has been improving. Although the weather has been a challenge, I have spent some lengthy time on the indoor turbo trainer. My coach, Muddy, holds two turbo training sessions a week at a local bike store and really works to build our aerobic engine. I have also been able to get some longer rides on the road when the weather is good.

Run: The past few weeks have been a steady build with my longest run at 2 hrs. I am focusing on very easy aerobic runs to build strength and aerobic fitness. This past Sunday, I ran the Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon in San Francisco. It's the first race of the year and a great start to the season. I have a ton of friends racing and it's great to see everyone during the race. Fast or slow, it's always nice to see your friends. I ran a 1:45:47 and was very happy with the time, though I can't seem to break 1:45 to save my life.

I am feeling and looking fitter by the day. My weight is still hovering around 195-197 lbs, but I am feeling much better than I was at the start of my training cycle.

I am still trying to make good eating choices and have really stayed away from fried foods and overeating. I did have Happy Hound for my birthday and also Burger Meister for my post Kaiser Permanente Half meal. It was worth it, but only for a treat.

That's all for now.

First Week Report

I am a few days late in updating my first week of actually training, but I have been busy with a work presentation and could not get to the update like I had planned.

The first real focused week went well:

Swimming: 4,000 yards
Cycling: approximately 65 miles (two coached turbo training workouts and 40 mile weekend ride).
Running: approximately 15 miles

All in all not a huge week of training, but it was a good start.

I have not swam or cycled for months, but I am in okay run shape b/c of my marathon training for the California International Marathon in December. My goal was to finish sub-4:00 and I made it: 3:59 gun time/3:57 timing chip time.

I have made a conscious decision to eliminate fried foods from my diet (doh!) and have been able to stay away from fries (my favorite) and other indulgent favorites. It's been an interesting experience and one that I have found to be satisfying when I make the right choices.

I have always had the weight (no pun intended) of my decisions in the back of my mind, knowing ordering greasy, deep fried foods was not a good one. At the same time, I knew that if I just made the decision to say no to those things, the experience (I imagined) would be empowering. I just always went with the impulse and not the disciplined choice.

After a week, I can say that my thinking was correct. Although there is a moment of indecision and teetering when ordering, I am always way more satisfied after the meal than I would be if I ate the side of fries. And it is empowering.

It's good to know that I have the will power and the ability to make the right decision. As strange as it might sound, that has been a very big experience for me. I have control and empowerment in other areas of my life, but for some reason food has always been a weakness.

I have also realized that I have strange anxiety with food, often fearing that I am not going to have enough to be full. This ultimately causes me to overeat. I know that my extra weight is caused not only by my love for fried foods but also and mainly portion sizes.

I'm really not sure when that programming happened. I came from a home that food was never scarce. It was around whenever I needed it--which really could be the reason I eat so much of it!

I invested in a body fat scale to track my weight and fat percentage progress. I didn't want to spend $100+ for a Tanita or any of the higher end models. I researched and decided to go with Trimmer Health Body Fat Scale I found on overstock.com, which is a great place to find good deals on everything. It was reasonably priced at $35 and my on-line research said the model was a decent one.

I weighed myself this morning:

196 lbs.
34% body fat (ugh!)
28% muscle mass
? total body water (I can't remember, but I was dehydrated according to the scale)

It's obvious that I need to get leaner. I was super disappointed with my body fat percentage, but it's a good motivator.

I plan to report my weight and body fat percentages once a week.

Overall, it's been a great week. I have a long way to go, but I am excited to be blogging and being accountable to my choices.