Captains log 04302013

I finished my project for the weekend today.  I really did not want to wake up and run so I didnt.  I woke up to get the oldest off to school, made bacon eggs and hashbrowns and put off my run until 1430 hrs, after I got my hole filled back in and other misc. labor.

I went out before another round of SNOW moves in, and ran another new route.  It ended up being only 3 miles but there is a good size hill that I hit right in the middle of the run, not too bad though.  3 miles in 34:00 or 11:20 mile run/walk at 4:1 ratio.  I think next week I will bump my ratio to 5:1, 4:1 is feeling natural now.  I cannot wait until I can run the whole 3 miles continuously and get a time under 30 mins :)

Here is the route I ran:



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Captains log 04292013

Today I had planned on heading to devils head to get a little hike in.  It turned out that I would work on a house project all day instead.  No walk, no run, but I am still tired.  Until tomorrow my friends...

Chris

Captains log 04282013

Good Sunday morning to you all.  I awoke fresh and ready to go after a day of mostly rest.  Started a yard project yesterday which included digging down to my water line at a depth of about 5 feet and big enough for me to move around in.  Burned a few extra calories.

This morning I went for my weekly long run and pushed it to 6.2 miles.  By far my longest and I paced myself a little slower for it.  Ended up finishing in 76:40 or about a 12:20 mile.  A little slower for sure and I did it at the run 2 min walk 1 minute ratio.  I did not push my walks at all, just caught breath, and ran for 12 minutes straight during a nice long downhill section, which I am sure helped my avg pace as it knocked out about 1.2 miles in that stretch in the middle of the run.

The oddest part of the whole run happened near the end though, I felt GREAT, other than my knee hurting a bit, but felt as though I could have run for another hour.  Had the wife not needed to leave by 0715 for her 5k color run this morning downtown, I think I would have pushed myself to run maybe a couple laps in the neighborhood just to get some more time in.  I feel good about the time, especially when it comes to the 4 miles I am running in a few weeks at the Colfax Marathon and a week later the 10k Bolder Boulder.  I think my Bolder time should be around 1:10 or less due to the "competition" I feel when I run with others.  I place it fully on myself, but I noticed the other night as I paced myself with the wife until she sent me on ahead, I was pissed when people passed me...  I am VERY competitive and I cannot wait to see how I feel when I have others around to "beat"!  Dont get me wrong, there are some that I dont stand a chance against, but I have always said that unless you challenge the best you will never be the best and I cannot wait to run in a crowd of like minded people!  Plus they have actual water stations at miles 2 3 4 & 5.  What is this new found thing.  I can get a lil gatorade for the next mile?  I run solo with no help for 6 miles and now I will be spoiled:P

Due to running off road the map is not an exact measurement of my run. Between points B &C you will see the powerline trail I ran down, then again between points D & E I cut north through an open space park.



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Captains log 4272013

Woke up this morning after a nice 8 hour slumber.  Got home and into bed at 2330 last night and slept in til 0730 this morning.  Rest day, going to go out to the farm and see about some fresh produce.  Have a good Saturday.

Captains log 4262013

Friday, which also coincides with my Friday as it does every 3 weeks.  3 weeks ago we were spending one last day at Universal studios.  Today I am heading in to work.  Seems quite unfair that I am not independently wealthy.

Today will be a day of rest and fueling in preparation for my first 5k tonight.  I am excited but not lose sleep excited.  I slept quite well and did not want to wake up this morning.  Ah, Friday.

Update:  Finished the first official 5k in ~ 40 minutes.  It was a trail run and hard to get any kind of pace going due to lack of lighting, and thus no knowledge of where you were putting your foot, and hordes of people walking 3 or 4 shoulder to shoulder at some points so passing wasn't an option.  All in all I liked the run and would like to do it sometime without all the people, not too much up and down.  Personally I do not think the run was 5k,  but I did not bring any kind of tracking device, so we are going with it.

Here is the trail system we ran on last night:


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Captains log 4252013

Thursday.. T minus 36 hours until the wife and I are ready to run my first 5k.  I am ready. This morning I was up @ 0420 and on the road by 0500.  I ran/jogged for the first 18 minutes before my first walk break.  Not necessarily in the training manual but I wanted to push myself for greater lungs and I think I did well.  Got the 2.9 mile loop done today in 31:18.  My first 18 mins got me 1.7 miles so I slowed down a bit after that.  I feel good though and ready for tomorrow night.

Here is a the route I ran today.  Point D is where I got to by 18:00.  5.6 mph by my calculations, but non stop.



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Captains log 4242013

Hump day folks.  Woke up after a nice night of sleep.  Went to work, got a 68 minute walk in at crestmoor park at a pace of 3.2 mph.  It was chilly out.  Not much else going on.  Gonna get a run in early tomorrow before work.

Captains log 4232013

Called in today to work.  There was a 1.5 hour drive and I did not want to get to work all pissed off.  So I went to the gym instead with the lovely.

Ended up running for about 40 minutes on the hamster wheel as it snowed again last night..  It is April, how in the world is it still snowing?  Ran at 5.0 mph constant for 20 minutes straight and never felt winded.. felt pretty awesome!  I then did a few exercises taught by Josh the trainer last Thursday, and now I am  a little sore. 

My plan this time is not to lose all the muscle mass I lost last time.  I plan on fat going bye bye and so I am going to incorporate some strength training into my regimen.

All in all a good day.

Chris

Captains log 4222013

Woke up late this morning.  On purpose...  slept in a bit...  so my walk was taken at work today.  Went to horseshoe park and got about 40 mins of walking and a little over 2 miles in before I received an order.  Not too bad.  I may make it to the gym tonight and get a light workout in.

I woke up feeling well after the run yesterday.  I'm still a bit sore from the pt session last Thursday and I have been drinking about a gallon if water a day trying to flush the acids...  getting old sucks I guess.

Tomorrow it's supposed to snow so I am going to try and get a 2 mile run in the morning but we will see.  5k this Friday night, Vampire run. 

Captains log 4212013

Sunday, long run day, and I worked a 16 hour shift yesterday and had to be back at work 8 hours later this morning.  That being said I ate minimally today knowing I would want to get my run in this afternoon.  I hate running on a belly that is full of food, I get wicked uncomfortable.

I got home from work and went for said run.  1 hr run, a brand new route and when all was said and done I got 5.3 miles in.  Pace was slow but man was there some hills.  At least half, if not more, was up hill and that slowed me down.  Started off with a long down hill and that was the nice part.

I guess that would be the only problem of living on this hill like we do.  There is always an up hill run on the return to the house.

Time for a steak and potato!

Here is the run I got in today:



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Captains log 4202103

Happy 420 day Colorado, enjoy your day.  I will be out for 16 hours making sure your lights stay on Denver. 

I am feeling 2nd day soreness from the pt session on Thursday compounded by a Hills workout on the hamster wheel so my quads are really burning.  Hopefully it subsides by tomorrow so I can get my long run in.  It may become a long walk...  we will have to see.

Chris

Captains log 4192013

Sorry about being a day late, I got called in to work last night just as I was headed to the gym.

I ended up walking hills for about 50 minutes and jogging for 10mins.  I was a bit sore from the PT session on Thursday, and after this work out I know I will be even more sore tomorrow.  Work until 11p tonight then back at her at 7a tomorrow.  Day of rest Saturday tomorrow....

cant wait...  oh wait a minute.. I am working 16 hours!!!  Doh.

Captains log 4182013

Thursday, oh how nice it is to have a day off from work.  You see I work a 21 day schedule where I work every Wednesday.  So I start on a Wednesday, work 8 days through the next Wednesday, get Thursday Friday off, then work 7 days through the next Friday and get 4 days off and head back to work on Wednesday.  So essentially I get a 2 day weekend (Thurs Fri) every 21 days and get a 4 day weekend (Sat Sun Mon Tues) every 21 days.

Today I used the first of 5 planned PT sessions.  I did not really learn anything new from the session but it is nice to have some coaching.  I have been doing everything on my own for so long that I found it nice to have someone tell me to do what I know I should be doing but dont usually:P  Needless to say, I am going to be sore, or I am sore now.. I am going to drink a lot of water and make sure I flush my body of all the lactic acid.  I did walk for about 3/5 of a mil up a hill on treadmill for a warm up before the session so I did get a good solid workout in!

8 days until Vampire run.  I am pretty psych'd.  That and wife and I signed up to be volunteers at the Tough Mudder this year with the anticipation that next year we are doing it.  Also today we discussed doing the Run Disney half in Orlando next January (in fact all the Run Disney events look fun here).  I think I should be able to train for that and it would be a great way to spend time with the wife. Goals people!  I can already get 5.5 to 6 miles done in an hour, running for two hours and some change seems like a good goal.  After this 10k training program we will see where I stand.

Weighed myself today: 243 (I saw 242, but I am rounding up the tenths).  Clothes are fitting better.

Update: Just did this for wife and I...  yep yep yep....  

Thank you for registering for the 2013 BolderBOULDER! 

Captains log 4172013

 Good morning all, I just got back from a 3.1 mile run in 35 minutes.  Run walking at a 4:1 ratio still.  Again I am sluggish on the first mile, but after that I gain my wind and seem to feel great.  I think if I ever go to do a PB I will warm up first and then go for it after warm.  Supposed to snow today, highs in the 30's.. happy april.. off to shower, I am almost late to work..

I plan on walking a bit later this morning.

Update: I got a few laps in around the north lake at Washington Park today.  Each lap is close to 1k and I got 3 in before I was sent on another order.

here is the route i took earlier:


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Captains log 4162013

It snowed last night and I finally broke down and played video games so it ended up being a day of rest.  Stayed below my calorie goals though, and after yesterdays heavy burn it felt ok to take today off.  Until tomorrow!

Captains log 4152013

Monday!  Happy tax day!  Woke up this morning feeling pretty good.  I really thought I would be sore after the long run yesterday but nope.  Makes me feel good about the training program.  Today it is chilly again in Denver with a wind chill in the 20s.  Got a good 8 laps in walking at horseshoe park.  It was brisk to say the least but it was a bit of low impact exercise.  I might go with the wife to the gym tonight, we will see how I feel after work.

On my walk today I reflected on how it has been a month since was had to put Cassie down.  She was a great dog and maybe even better than I originally thought.  Since she has been gone I have noticed Alex's behaviors change.  Alex is 3 years old now and she has always been the aloof pup, testing limits and what not.  Now I see little changes that she had to have learned from Cassie.  For example, when the kids are outside playing in the front yard Cassie used to keep an eye on the through the storm door.  I came home the other day and Alex has secured that post.  Just laying there, not nearly as alert looking as Cassie was, but still keeping an eye on the kids.  I am intrigued and wonder how much more Alex learned from cassie.  I guess we'll find out.

update edit:  I went to the gym with the wifey and hit the hamster wheel again for another low impact burn.  36 mins of 2.5 mph at 15° incline and another 24mins at 3.5 to 4 mph at 5° to 9° incline, around 950 calorie burn.  2 hours of walking today

Captains log 4142013

Sunday, Long run day.  Today I set out on a run walk at a 4:1 ration of running to walking.  My body responded well to the change as I have been doing my short distances all week at that ratio.  I went out for 60 minutes and accomplished a 5.7 mile run according to google maps.  The hills beat my ass today near the end,  I felt as though I was barely trudging along as I slogged through 4 minutes of an up hill.  I assume it gets better over time.

I had about 12 oz of water and my protein shake about 30 mins prior to the run and a shot of Odwalla Blueberry B vitamin mix 5 minutes before the run as I knew I was not going to have anything for 60 mins.  I think that if I were to go any longer I would want a little something to keep the sugars up as I was shaking a bit when I got home, my body's way of saying low sugar.

My next week shakes down like this:

mon: xt (light lifting, Non impact workout) or walk
tues: run 35 minutes
wed: xt or walk
thurs: run 35 mins (I also have a personal training session this day)
fri: xt / walk
sat: off day
sun: long run, 60 mins

Here is the route for this morning, now I am going to be late for work.



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Captains log 4132013

Saturday, off day.  I woke up a little sore from my workout last night, just proof that walking hills is still my best bet for fat loss.  In the whole 45 minutes of walking I stayed in the zone for 30+ of them.  my fat loss zone is 123 to 140 BPM.  I am going to incorporate a few of these weekly.  They are the exercises I did daily last time and ultimately led to very quick weight loss while eating 1200 to 1500 calories a day.  Like I said at the beginning, I am not restricting myself that much this time.  While the overall goal is the same, I have more time this time and while the results are slow I am making progress.

2 Weeks until the vampire run.. oh and good news.. it looks like I will be off graves for the whole year..  worst shift ever!

Captains log 4122013

Today I found some free time at work to walk some laps around some metro parks.  I started with the ole faithful, Horseshoe Park in Aurora, and got 4 laps done before they called me to an order.. That was around 30 mins and 1.75 miles.  I then completed said order and found my way to a nice park called Crestmoor Park I believe.  I got 2 laps done there in about 40 minutes, about 2.3 miles total, for a grand total of 70 minutes of walking while at work.  It was nice to get outside and not be cooped up.

The wife and I are heading to the gym tonight and I will get in a bit more walking and a bike ride to cap off the night before my off day tomorrow.  I will refresh with an update later.
Update: ended up walking a slow walk 2.5 mph at 15° incline on hamster wheel for 40 mins and another 13 on the elliptical to round out the day.
Here is Crestmoor Park in Denver.



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Captains log 492013

Today I headed to the gym, it was a snow day for the kids so I got a late start but got 30 mins of running, 15 mins of walking, and 10 on a recumbant bike in.  Crummy Colorado weather.  Good weather should be back by the weekend.

Captains log 4112013

Thursday...  I didn't do anything yesterday.  And I almost gave up first thing this morning.  The alarm went off at 0400 and I did not want to get out of bed.  I hit snooze twice and finally made my way up and out to the gym.  I knocked out 2+ miles of running around the turf field in the half hour.  I had to use the gym because the lovely colorado weather got crummy out.  I ran walked at a 4 to 1 ratio for the first time.  I did not feel good doing it but got her done.  I gotta try to get a walk in tomorrow, then Saturday is off day..

Captains log 482013

Today was a great day, Monday.  Kids back to school, truck registered (that kind of sucked), and a lovely day with the wife and daughter.  The wife is on a 2 week cleanse and is on a strict diet for the next 14 days in order to cleanse all the toxins out of her body.  For $200 I sure hope it works.

As for me I am back on training schedule.  I got a late walk in today after dinner.  Ended up walking 6.5 miles according to google maps, in about 100 minutes.  It is supposed to snow again tonight, another 8-12 inches, so outside training will be put on hold once again and I will be forced in to the gym.  I need to get about a half hour run walk in tomorrow to keep on pace.

here is the route I walked today:



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Captains log 472013

Well, back at her again...  after a week + of inconsistent training, as well as a trip to sea level for 5 days, today's long run was difficult to say the least.  I was sluggish throughout and never hit a groove.  I walked to the high school track a little less than a half a mile away, run/walked 4 miles in 46:00, a total of 4.25 miles of run/walking, then walked home.  I felt as though I had not trained in a while.

I miss spoke earlier, our first 5k is April 26th so I have a few weeks to train.  This is the beginning of week 5, and I am currently on the 10k training schedule, so that means that Monday, Wednesday, Friday is XT or walking, and Tuesday, Thursday is run walking for 40 minutes.  Next Sunday's long run will be a 3 minute run to 1 min walk and will be the official change for the rest of my run/walks.

Today is the last day of spring break and I am taking D5 to Disney on Ice.  A nice little cap to the end of busy week.

Captains log 462013

First blog post in April.  I just got back last night from 5 days in Orlando, FL.  I vacationed well, and need to get back to training.  lets see...

monday 412013 was a marathon of packing fam in car, catching 7 am flight and settling in the condo we rented at The Seasons Resort.  Did not drink enough water and had a wicked headache that night as I went to bed.

Tuesday 422013 woke up with a small headache and went for a run.  I really wanted to do this as I wanted to see the difference of altitude.  I found that while I was able to breathe much better, and I did not run out of breath, the muscle felt exactly the same.  I ran/walked for about 2.5 miles in a short 30 min activity before getting on the road and heading to Universal studios for day 1. 


We stayed at the Universal Studios side for about 6 hours and rode Shrek 4d, Men in Black, The Mummy Returns, Twister, and I sat with D5 while the rest of the family rode ET.  Lunch was an abhorrent 1.75 hr ordeal, but we did walk the whole park and see the sights.  A little research shows that the act of walking and standing in line burns about 175 calories extra per hour, and I believe it, I was a little sore for being on my feet that long on just day 1.  We learned a lot this day and had a meltdown by D5 at the 1630 mark and decided to call it a day a bit early to go back and get some swimming in at the hotel.

Wednesday 432013 Hit the theme park at 1100 hours this time and went to Island of Adventure..  Splurged on the express pass, and promptly went and waited 2 hours in line to ride the Harry Potter ride.  Knocked it out with the Dragon Challenge, had some butter beer, had fun at the Hogsmeade experience, and by that time the rest of the family showed up.  Rode the amazing spiderman, Jurassic Park river ride, Dudley Do Right's river ride, took D5 back to Dr Suess land to ride the Carousel and prevent a meltdown, then left Island of Adventure and went back to the Studios park and used our express pass to gain an expedited entry into the minion mayhem ride.  We ate dinner at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville which was delicioso.  We attempted to stay for fireworks and a presentation of 100 years of studio works but got rained out.  All in all I think we were at the parks for 10 hours and 8 of which was walking or standing.  Easily we walked 4 miles that day.

Thursday 442013 Headed out by 1000 to Kennedy Space Center and took a tour of the center and the Apollo launch viewing area where they have a rocket inside and all the components of the Apollo missions.  It was really cool.  Not nearly the same amount of walking today but definitely not just sitting around.  After that we had to get the kids feet wet in the ole Atlantic and then ate at a great little spot in Cocoa Beach.  Got home around 2200 hours.

Friday 452013 Check out of condo by 1000 hrs, headed back to Universal and got 1 ride in, the Hollywood Rip Ride Rock it.  2+ hour wait in line again and at least another 1.5 miles of walking.  My feet were very sore by this time, I was ready to head to the airport and make our way home.  We made it out of Orlando on time and home by 2230 MST or 0030 EST Saturday.  Looking back it was a bit of a whirlwind.

My diet this past week was not good.  I did not drink nearly enough water, ate entirely too many Dunkin Donuts (we dont have them in Colorado and I missed them) and all in all thoroughly enjoyed myself.  The kids had a blast, S6 met Spiderman and got his autograph, a picture with Optimus Prime, and D5 danced with Dora and met Spongebob, Patrick, Gru, Agnes, Scooby and numerous others.  S11 rode every ride I did and while he was a bit old, and too cool, to get excited about the characters he had fun.

Today is a day of rest!!!  Back to training tomorrow morning.

Here is a map of the run I did on Tuesday... 
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