A few weeks ago we went to a barbecue at the house of some friends. There were four families and we all headed to the pool before the burgers and birthday cake. At the pool I was sort of caught by the fact that of the four guys, really, not one of us should have had his shirt off. Not that any of us was terribly out of shape, but all of us are a bit pasty and a at least a little flabby. Standing there looking at the three of them and then down at me I had an idea. With a moderate amount of work I could be in by far the best shape of the bunch by the end of the summer. I know it is kind of vain and more than a little stupid, but I think it will be enough to keep me motivated.
I’ve not done a very good job staying active since the marathon. I’ve gained back most of the weight I lost training for the marathon and I’m starting to feel a bit ughh. This time around I want to branch out and do a bit more than just run day after day after day after day. It gets pretty boring after a few months. Plus I’d really like to build a bit more muscle. The plan going forward is pretty simple: work out six times a week.
What constitutes a workout? Also pretty simple.
- Swimming 30 minutes or more
- Running 30 minutes or more (really my shortest runs are 45 minutes or more)
- Cycling 60 minutes (to work and back basically)
- Lifting Weights
For the weight lifting I’ve pulled out my old workout sheet from when Amber and I were excercising 6 days a week (3 days lifting, 3 days cardio). I’ll alternate upper and lower body just like before. I hit the weightroom a few weeks ago and I’ve clearly lost a lot of strength. I basically just cut whatever I had been doing (in 2005) by two-thirds. Still I was sore for days.
Starting now (Memorial Day) and ending Labor Day I hope to meet the following goals:
- Cut my body fat to 10%. It floats around 15% now. I’ve had lower body fat (single digits), but it involved little to no eating which I don’t plan on doing this time around. I’m not making a weight goal (I’m 160 now) because I think it is at cross purposes. If I do succeed in building muscle I will be gaining lean mass. So I don’t want to focus on the weight.
- Be able to swim laps for 30 minutes without stopping. (I can do a lap now and though I’m slow it does not take me 30 minutes).
- Run 8, 8 minute miles. Ideally this would be 8 miles in under an hour, but I’ll start here.
- Improve to be lifting 75% or more of what I had been lifting when we quit.
Aside from just working my butt off I do have a plan for success.
- Eat plenty, but less than I was when I was running 30-40 miles per week. Last time we were doing Body For Life and I didn’t eat nearly enough. I think my lifting potential was hurt by lack of calories and energy.
- Stretch every day. I know I’ve said it before, but I really need to do this. If I can’t manage to stretch every day I simply won’t be able to keep it up. I’ll get hurt and have to drop off my workouts.
- Run in the mornings. With the heat here during the summer I just can’t run very fast or very far. So I need to run before work or on weekend mornings when it is only 75F instead of 95F like it is in the afternoons. Heck it is still 85F well after 8pm most nights. I can hit the weightroom at night they keep the AC at 70F.
Well, I’ll keep posting on this as the summer progresses. Hopefully by the time Labor Day rolls around I’ll be able to take my shirt off without feeling embarrassed (okay the ever increasing body hair will still make me a little unsightly).
Tags: fitness plan