Half Marathon training begins this week

I am back from Space Camp in Huntsville, AL having graduated from the program as a future astronaut, and sporting an awesome aviator flight suit. Thanks to all of my weight loss, I can actually A) fit into a flight suit now, and B) look pretty good in it!

But now it is time to get back into training before I get too comfortable not working out (I haven't worked out for 4 straight days).

On Monday, I did my regular Cardio program (TEAM Weight Loss). It all felt good and the left hamstring was behaving! I was a little worried about how it would respond so the result was pleasantly reassuring. This was also the first day wearing my new running shoes (Saucony ProGrid Ride4) and using a new Polar Sport Watch (RS300X G1). These new shoes feel great on my feet. I wear a Neutral shoe and out of the 4-6 pairs of shoes and brands I tried on at Dick Pond, these felt the best on my feet. They give me decent support, some good cushion (but not too much), and they look pretty cool too. So after going 3 miles in them on Monday, I thought it was a good start.

The new watch is pretty cool too. It supports both the S1 FootPod and the GPS device -- both are used for tracking distance, speed, and pacing. It also has a few other features over the RS200 that I was using before. I am going to ask my trainer to set the heart rate zones for me since they have to be entered as percentages rather than actual Beats Per Minute (BPM). The watch worked great with the FootPod, and the ability to upload the results from the watch to the polarpersonaltrainer.com web site worked without any difficulty.

On Tuesday, I went on my first Maintenance Run in the training plan that Meghan and I worked on last week. Ran 3.1 miles in the early morning and the legs felt fine. I used the GPS for that run to track my pacing and distance and everything worked great. And the feet felt good in the new shoes. I decided to listen to a "Treks In SciFi" prodcast for this run. It was all about the movie "The Last Starfighter". It worked great. So now I have two podcasts that I think will become regular companions on my runs -- Treks in SciFi and The Marathon Show.

So after the run, I did some good stretching and took my shower. Starting the workday after the run was a good way to wake myself up and to clear my head. I decided to order a second pair of the Ride4s since they are working for me. This way, as I continue training, I can switch between the two and avoid the possibility of shoes 'wearing out' right before Race Day. That would be terrible, right? Both pair will have the same amount of miles on them, and I will have two pair to choose from when the time comes. I ordered them from RunningWarehouse.com and then found out that as a member of ActiveAdvantage, I get a 15% discount on my order! Sweet! Next time I order shoes and stuff, I am going to check this site first and use that discount in the future!

So today, Wednesday, I went to the club for my Cardio program only to find that my regular trainer wasn't running the class. It was another trainer, who while competent, is just not the same as Meghan. She does things a little differently, which made the program a lot more difficult, but it was a 'good' difficult I guess. I worked out hard and my body responded well. I left my new sport watch with the new trainer to have her program it with my zones. I will pick it up tonight after work.

Now it appears that Meghan will no longer be teaching my class. I am NOT pleased about that at all! I think the trainer is more important than the actual class because trainers bring their own experience, personality, and motivational techniques to the training process. You build a relationship with your trainer; they know you -- what you can do, what your improvement areas are, your overall fitness goals and activities, etc. Changing trainers in mid-stride is not cool. I think I am going to complain given that I paid for this class and my expectation (barring illness or termination) was that Meghan would be running it. In fact, if it weren't for Meghan I wouldn't even have started this class back in April -- she personally talked with me about the class one day while I was on a stationary bike one morning. She was the reason I decided to give it a try.

I think it is funny that after having my article published in the Life Time Fitness web site, where I specifically mentioned the impact that Meghan has had on my successes in weight loss and my running, that now they would reassign her to different classes. I think I am going to have to say something about this to their management team.

Well, I guess I will end my little rant for now and see where this leads. In the meantime, I will do my second Maintenance Run tomorrow morning. Definitely looking forward to that! And then, the family will take a short Labor Day getaway where we will hook up with my Mom, Aunt, and cousins for the long weekend. I will be doing my Long Run in a foresty area of Michigan this Saturday (bug spray will be required). Yay for beautiful running spaces!

Taking a break this week but planning for 2012

Still giving my left hamstring a rest this week. Which is good timing because my son and I are going to Space Camp for the weekend, and other than doing a lot of walking, I am not doing any training during that time. There are times when you have to just listen to your body, and my body is saying 'take a break before the next push'.

So on Wednesday, I did my cardio program. The hammy was still complaining a bit but I was able to complete the full program without backing off of the incline work on the treadmill. Progress is good!

On Thursday, I spent an hour with my coach to discuss my half marathon training plan. I am using the Jeff Galloway plan published on the runDisney web site for the Disney Marathon in 2012. We went over the training plan in detail, making changes to accommodate the races I have scheduled, my schedule over the next four months, and merging this plan along with my Cross Training goals so that I do not overtrain. Avoiding injury is as important as developing the endurance and 'foot time' necessary to successfully running the Half.

So here is what I am going to be doing, starting next week:

• Monday: Cardio/Strength Training Program
• Tuesday: 30-40 Minute Maintenance Run
• Wednesday: Cardio/Strength Training Program
• Thursday: 30-40 Minute Maintenance Run
• Friday: 30 Minute Swimming Laps
• Saturday: Long Run (starting at 3 miles and ending at 11 miles in December)
• Sunday: Scheduled Rest Day

As my mileage increases, I will be making my maintenance runs more productive by using those runs for hill work, tempo runs, etc. to focus on increasing speed and stamina for dealing with inclines. And having Friday be a swimming day, will give my running muscles a rest the day before my Long Run which ought to be good for my body. I am 51 years old so I gotta listen to my body and not pretend to be some 30-something. I also plan on using the Jacuzzi on Fridays after the swimming workout.

One other idea I had was doing some water-based workouts in the evenings on Tuesday and Thursday just to make things a little dynamic. Probably won't do that every week but perhaps every other week right after work. It is like doing circuit training but it is all done in the pool so it is less stressful on the body and joints. We'll see.

Now it is off to Space Camp! I am SO looking forward to this event, and sharing it with my son. I am sure to post my reflections about it on my other blog sometime next week. I will continue to rest up and be ready for next Monday when my new training plan will begin!