Monday, December 6, 2010

Progress...

Hello boys and girls, just a quick note today...sorry it isn't a long winded race report ;)

I mentioned in a post last month that I was in the works of getting a plan together to lose weight and start knocking out more intense workouts. I'm happy to report that my 2011 Race Weight or Bust plans are in full swing.

Taken on 11/12 at 141 lbs




Blah

Oddly enough, I dropped a few pounds after JFK (and miraculously over Thanksgiving) so I seem to have a head start. This morning I weighed in at 136 lbs, which hopefully means 11 lbs more are mine to lose! 

The nutrition plan: I'm eating 8-10 "meals" a day, with every meal packing on 20-25g of protein, 20-25g of carbs, and a total of 30-40g of fat per day. I'm essentially eating every 2 hours, which is problematic at times but I'm learning how to cope. I take a few little tupperware containers of chicken and rice to school every day, and eat one of those every 2 hours. I think I have more food in my bag than I do books. I realize this much protein is a bit unconventional for an endurance runner's diet, but I think it's going to stir things up for my metabolism.

I've been struggling through P90X workouts a couple times a week, and I'm already noticing an improvement on my pushups and core exercises. Today I was able to complete the entire chest & back routine (for those who have done P90X...you know what I'm talking about!), which is a remarkable gain since the last time I attempted it and stopped/fell on my face half way through.

Tomorrow marks my first day back at the track in OVER A YEAR. I'm terrified and excited at the same time. I haven't run a sub-7 mile this entire year, so those 1000M repeats are going to kick my butt.

School is winding down for winter break, which means I finally have time to breath/sleep/bake/clean....or just work out a few more times a week :)

Hopefully in a couple of weeks I'll have even more progress to report!
Who else is trying to tone up before the spring racing season arrives?

11 comments:

  1. Are you going to be taking pictures of yourself with Flo's wig pretty soon? YAY for school winding down!!!

    P90X - Kicks it! Oh yeah.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amy, There has been some very important studies recently showing that there is no connection between meal frequency and metabolism and the common wisdom of eating frequently to keep the metabolism burning is not valid. (Believe me, I was as shocked as anyone!)

    http://www.fitnessspotlight.com/2008/11/05/eating-more-meals-does-not-speed-up-your-metabolism/

    I am happy to hear that you're eating mroe protein and I think you'll find it has multiple nenfits for you as an endurance athlete.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I expect that - in typical "before & after" fashion - you'll have a huge smile on your face when you get that gaunt, sinewy, fat-starved runner look.

    You looked good at the start of this; I'm sure you'll feel good when it's done.

    Cheers, ESG/Ron

    ReplyDelete
  4. Serioulsy I love that I get to follow this journey (like I did Flo's), but dang it you look great.

    You have a serious plan and you will get some serious results. I think just switching things up will give you some stellar results.

    I'm jumping on the more protein train too, but I've got to figure out how to get it within my low calorie range.

    Best of Luck and you may surprise yourself on the track.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yay, I loves me some Before & Afters! Sounds like it's going swimmingly so far, can't wait to see what you look like (and the times you post) when you're down at goal weight. Going to be impressive, for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Good luck! I'm a big fan of more protein myself, though I think all bodies are different.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Good luck! Eating 8-10 times a day: respect!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for the encouragement everyone! I'm happy to report that day #1 at the track did not suck, and I was rather fond of running at a somewhat reasonable fast pace in circles over and over again (in spite of the 25 degree weather and wind bursts of 10-15 mph). Hopefully that fondness will last all winter :)

    William- I'm not debating one way or the other that small meals will boost my metabolism, more the contents of these meals in combination with the intense workouts that will hopefully do the job. It seems that are a lot of contradictory arguments leading to both sides of the subject. I think I really just need to be on a cattle-feeding schedule, so i know what I'm going to eat and when I'm going to eat it.

    ESG- I would rather not look like a starved runner...I think I'd have to lose 20 lbs for that to happen.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great luck :) I love following your blog!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good luck, but I want you to know that you're totally hot and toned. Also, I know that won't do anything if you are just unhappy with your body. Thanks for the blog comment, it made me smile :)

    ReplyDelete