Running My Arse Off.

It’s a little over half way through the original training schedule of 9 weeks to run a 5K (remember folks, a 5k is 3.1 miles). Of course, I have lengthened that schedule out to a total of 15 weeks in order to accommodate my desire to hit 5.75 miles. Don’t ask me how many K’s that is, its more math than I really want to attempt right now.

Ok, before I could continue, I had to figure the K’s involved in running 5.75 miles. So, a little fact checking, and a little multiplication, and the answer was simple. 1 mile = 1.61 kilometers. So, simply put, we multiply 5.75 by 1.61, and the answer is 9.25K. Of course, no one wants to say, “I’m running a 9.25K.” So I’ll let it suffice to say, “I’m going to run 5.75 miles.” Although, it sounds like I’m going a longer distance by saying 9.25K.

At any rate, let me get back to issue at hand, a sort of progress report.

Anyone who knows me knows I am sort of a geek when it comes to planning things. I like to do all sorts of research. I like to have graphs. I like to have detailed and written plans. So when I started this plan, I did some research. I was looking for a training schedule that would accommodate my specific needs. After a little looking, I came across The Couch to 5K Running Plan. It’s a 9-week plan, training three days a week. When I first came up with this plan I was saying I didn’t want to make excuses for myself. And I still stand by that. However, I do have limits, and I have to approach this whole idea with a certain amount of caution. This plan seemed pretty reasonable, and pretty attainable.

And so I embarked on my mission. First thing I did, I got a notebook. Then, I transcribed the weekly plan to my notebook, along with some various graphs in order to keep track of distance, calories, and a simple weight routine in order to provide an overall fitness as opposed to just simply running and building up the cardio endurance. And for the most part, I have actually stuck with the plan. However, this last week, I faltered a little bit. The end result on this is going to be a repeat of Week 5.

For a little reference, here is the general prescribed routine:

1 – Three times a week I am on the treadmill. Since beginning, I have been increasingly changing the ratio of walking to running. As it stands right now, I’m running more than walking.

2 – On the off days, I am either using the elliptical or taking the day off.

3 – On run days, I am doing a light weight lifting routine. Remember, I’m not looking to bulk up here. I have no ideations of heading down to Malibu and showing off my pectorals to the locals (after all, I live on Lost Coast, and in order to accomplish something like I would not only have to actually have huge pectorals, but I would also have to hit the tanning booth, given the lack of sun around here).

So, since I started this endeavor, I have stuck to the plan with surprising regularity (this last week being the one exception, which I’ll get to in a little bit). So, generally speaking over the last 4 weeks, I have been at the gym 4-5 times a week. Even when we were in Denver, I managed to make my way to the gym and run in the morning. This week, however, I only made it twice. This is not due to my being lazy, or a lack of motivation. It was simply circumstances. In light of this week’s inactivity, though, I’ll be repeating week 5, just for good measure.

So, without further ado, I’m going to put some stats, covering a period of the last 5 weeks:

Official Count in Weeks: 5

Total Number of Trips the Gym: 19

Total Distance in Miles on the Treadmill: 28.17

Total Distance in Miles on the Elliptical: 13.43

Total Calories Burned on the Treadmill: 3,991

Total Calories Burned on the Elliptical: 1,605

Time Spent on Running Days with Weights: About 60 minutes

Time Spent on Elliptical Days without Weights: About 30 minutes

Average Miles Per Trip to the Gym: 2.1 miles

Average Calories Burned per Trip: 294

What do these numbers really mean? Not a lot. About the only thing it really does is prove I have actually been attending and sticking to the plan (which, in and of itself, is a real accomplishment).

So, Week 6 begins today. However, as stated before, I’ll continue my program be repeating Week 5 due to my poor attendance.

Stay tuned for more.