I am very aware that is none of my business and I will never say anything…
Yesterday I mentioned that the race I signed up for, the half sold out in 10 minutes. I asked my sil if they got in the half. She said yes that all 5 of them signed up for the half. That’s great but they sign up their kids for these races and they never do them. Never. Last year it was the full and the 10k. And no one did it. Both of those races sell out but the 10k sells out within a week and the full a little later. The full participant was injured and had surgery so I get that. The 10k people just didn’t feel like it that day. They could have but wanted to sleep in. The year before it was the half and again the kids didn’t train and didn’t do it.
Now I know my H is crazy. He said we are going, there are a bunch of people who didn’t get into this race so we have an obligation to go because we can.
I have no problem signing up for a race and then not doing it. But a race that sells out in 10 minutes and you know that the kids are not going to train and are not going to run. Ugh! Pick another half, there are tons that don’t sell out.
I’m sure they have aspirations that the kids are going to do it and the money is no big deal.
My rant of the day. I will never say anything and maybe I’m too sensitive but I read the posts yesterday from so many who really wanted this race and couldn’t get through.
^^ that’s totally annoying. The least they can do is put up their bib/registration for exchange (if the race allows it). I see that all the time on the running club website here.
At the cost of races for a family - that’s still a good chunk of change! If the intent is just to donate to the “charity/cause” they could just let the charity know that and make the donation, but not take up bib space.
I suspect Seawheeze is the same way, deb…it appears that it sells out very quickly but the number of actual participants is far lower than those registered. I’d be frustrated as well, and no - I don’t think you’re too sensitive.
Back to Pilates this morning - lots of stretching, leg and ab work. So very glad to see my trainer.
Sabaray, yes, there are a lot of “runners” who enter Seawheeze just for the shorts and access to the special edition clothes at the expo. So annoying. I too understand that injuries can wreck plans sometimes (been there!)… but when people enter a race with no intent to be there and then even brag about it on the Internet, it irritates the heck out of folks who were hoping to run it with a friend of two and could not get the “team” in.
The first race I did was a popular lottery half that allowed team registrations - I have to say I like that if you’re really looking to run with someone at a popular event. I am guaranteed my entry to MCM next year, but am really not sure that I still want to do it. I read so many negatives about security at the start and it honestly is so large it may be overwhelming. I know two of my training buddies are interested, if they get in it’s more likely that I’ll do it. Otherwise I may end up transferring the bib.
Am looking for moral support. DS’s got us an elliptical as a holiday gift (thank you, sons!) and I have to get in shape for an upcoming ski trip in 8 weeks. Have weight to lose and have to get into shape!! I have been on the elliptical twice, but the first time was just to play, and today I lasted only 10 minutes, with a break! (set it on “lose weight” so it had an incline and resistance, which I ultimately adjusted). Any tips on how I should pace myself or targets to set? Thanks!
jym -I think the reason the Couch to 5K program works is that it starts you out at a pace (1 min running, 1 1/2 min walking, 8 repeats) where you finish and say, “That was not too hard, I think I could do more next time”. Then the next time you do just a little more, etc. Mentally, this kept me very motivated. I think you could work out an elliptical program based on the same idea - you don’t want to end any session miserable and disappointed, but rather triumphant & looking forward to progressing the next time.
jym- Does it have a HR feature? I have had to do elliptical during some injuries. If the setting is too hard, you can’t last long enough to get much benefit. I would start with it feeling like a brisk walk and get your heart rate elevated. It should feel like gliding and not like hard cranking on the foot pedals. You can then add intervals of harder resistance. I would aim for 20–30 minutes at whatever easiness it needs to be to get you there.
As we have said many times on this thread, unfortunately, food (calorie) intake and kinds of food seem to be more important than exercise for the actual loss of weight.
Agree that it is annoying when people habitually don’t show up for races and take someone else’s spot. Some races do allow bib transfers but some do not.
The elliptical was my BFF when I was just starting to exercise - I relied quite a bit on pre-planned workouts. I didn’t use the pre-programmed routines other than the hill climbs (if you look back through the thread, you’ll see me climbing Kiliminjaro several times a week). These might be a good starting point:
I’m wondering if Jym can use the theory of C25K as Gertrude mentioned or the Galloway method type exercise session.
With C25K, you could actually use the timing of the actual app - you’d just be doing it on the eliptical instead of on pavement - during the “run” periods you would “elliptical” at a good pace. During the “walk” periods, you would slow down to a “resting” pace.
With Galloway type method, you could institute a series of intervals for a designated period of time. Something like:
Elliptical good pace 90 seconds, Rest pace 30 seconds for a total of 20 minutes (work up to 30 minutes)
or
Elliptical good pace for 3 minutes, rest pace for 1 minute for a total of 20 minutes (work up to 30 or 30+ minutes)
Jym, just FYI, the C25K app has each workout totaling 30 minutes. It’s a 9 week program so pretty suitable for what your time frame. You can download it on your smartphone for free (I think) - I really recommend the one by Active: http://www.active.com/mobile/couch-to-5k-app
If I remember correctly, the app is geared toward 3x/week workouts. You could perhaps do 4 a week and get er done by your trip!
Several of us here are proud C25K grads. Like in our 50’s! So it truly is doable!
Jym - lots of great suggestions. I recommend typing up a plan a la c25k as suggested above, printing it, and taping to the wall. Then, when you finish a workout and cross it off, you will have a physical record of that accomplishment!
Heard from the runner who finished the
Seattle Marathon after not being able to train much (longest run was 15 miles). The person was alive and very happy! said that it got colder as the race prigressed (it was below freezing at the start!), the hills got steeper, and the Gatorade got progressively more disgusting.
Jym - I’d consider maybe purchasing a Fitbit Charge so you could measure heart rate (for exertion measurement) and have the added benefit of measuring steps to help you achieve weight goals.
@jym626 , here’s what I would recommend. First, you have to achieve aerobic base conditioning to serve as a foundation for what comes next. Without a good foundation, you will not have the cardio-vascular conditioning, muscle and tendon strength and endurance or metabolic pathways to support more intense training. Because you have set a short time frame to achieve your basic fitness goals, the progression of your program needs to be accelerated but remain effective without causing premature overtraining or burn-out.
I would not worry about heart rate at this point nor use that as a marker for your workouts. Too many variables involved. Instead, use a version of the “talk test” to gauge and set the intensity of your workouts. Start out at a 15 minute duration at a pace just below where it becomes a bit uncomfortable to speak in a complete paragraph. Recite something familiar, like the pledge of allegiance, to test your ability to talk. Shoot for 15 minutes on the eliptical and favor pace over resistance to avoid undue muscle fatigue. Do the eliptical 3-4 times per week and control the intensity so that you can do the full time just below the point where it becomes uncomfortable to talk. Over the course of 3 weeks, increase the duration 10% each week until you hit 20 minutes.
At that point, you want to start incorporating higher intensity intervals at a rate of exertion that makes it difficult to to speak in a paragraph. Start interspersing these higher intensity intervals for 1 minute duration and take 2 minutes to recover after each at the “just below uncomfortable to talk” pace. Do this during weeks 4, 5 and 6. During this time, gradually increase your total duration each workout until by the end of week 6, you are hitting the 30 minute mark. Again, about 10% increase in duration each week. Also, start start increasing the intensity of the workout by
lengthening the duration of each work interval. Eventually, you want to increase the duration of the work intervals so that by the end of week 6, the work intervals are 2 minutes long. Keep the recovery intervals at 2 minutes duration.
In weeks 7 and 8, throw in some intervals of 30 seconds duration at a talk test intensity where you are struggling to complete a full sentence. Give yourself 2 minutes recovery after each one. Only do this for one to two workouts per week. By the end of week eight, your cardio-respiratory fitness should be ready for your ski trips.
As you focus on your cardio, don’t forget to do some resistance training 2-3 days per week… You want to build and maintain lean muscle tissue as you are working on your cardio conditioning.
@jym626, just to follow up, if you have a heart rate monitor, if you want to use your estimated max heart rate to structure your work out, if you feel like calculating your target zones, then use 50-60%, 70-80% and 85% and up as the 3 zones. But calculate the zones using the heart rate reserve formula of (Max hr - resting hr) X hr% + (resting hr). These are approximate zones and might have to be adjusted to better correspond to your actual exercise response.
Chilly and a bit windy this morning, but at least the rain has stopped. Managed to slog out a little over 5 miles. I need to drink more water - I am falling back on my diet Coke habit at work and that’s not hydrating. At all.
Scheduled myself for a Reformer class tonight - we’ll see how that goes!
Like in our 50’s! So it truly is doable!