Jogging, Training, and double YUCK!

I've decided to create a new short term running/jogging goal. This one is based on distance. My goal is to be able to jog one mile straight without walking. I want to achieve this goal by Thanksgiving and I think that's reasonable. This morning I was able to jog 3/4 of my first mile. I had to really push myself, but I made it :) Stay tuned for updates on the progress of that goal!

My personal training has been doing good. I've been doing 2 sessions a week then having one day of doing it on my own. So far I feel good and like I'm making progress. I've increased weight on everything and a rep on the planks. I think I've toned up a bit as well! My least favorite part of this routine is the Planks! It's the only one that does not seem to be getting easier! Last week Friday I learned an important lesson with my PT: Don't do cardio before the session. By the end I was really drained and had a hard time finishing the exercises. She told me she understands wanting to get it done and out of the way, but it just doesn't work so well. I am hoping to pick up a few 1 hour sessions after my initial ten pack of sessions is done. Then I'll really get my butt kicked!

Now for the double yuck! Last night while packaging my lunches and snacks for the week I looked down and noticed a "crumb" on my shirt that looked like a piece of the Kashi cereal. So out of habit I picked it up and put it in my mouth. A few seconds later I'm like wait this is gross it tastes like how a ladybug smells when you pick it up. I immediately spit it out and realized it WAS a ladybug! EWE! I was mortified and quickly grabbed the closest thing to me, which was chocolate chips and put a handful in my mouth and drank a whole glass of water!

My second yuck has to do with the gym. There is a lady there in the mornings that is nice but I don't know if she doesn't believe in deodorant or what. Usually as soon as you pass the glass separating the lounge area from the cardio area you can smell her it is so gross! This morning was particularly bad. I almost passed out when I crossed the glass! It was all I could do to start my workout and not gag! Luckily I did my strength training first so I only had to endure 20 min of the horrible smell! Has anyone else run into a situation like this? How on earth do you handle it? She's a nice lady, but just really smelly!

Lessons Learned

Over the last few weeks I learned an important lesson when it comes to my fitness journey: Take it slow! Previously I had been working on my jogging, trying to work up to doing a 5k. I found some information about getting up to speed and training for a 5k. A lot of what I found was geared for starting at 5 mph for 1 min then going back down to 3.7 for 4 min and Increasing the time for running each week. I had been doing a few min jogging at 4.5 mph so I figured I could do 2 min at 5 mph followed by 3 min at 3.7 mph. Turns out this was not such a good idea. After my second set of this my asthma kicked in and I felt like I could not breathe, even after taking my inhaler. I decided to just do walking after that point and used the incline to up my heart rate. After this I was afraid to jog anymore in fear of starting a bad asthma attack.

This week I decided to try it again, and vowed to take it a bit slower. I did not push for 5 mph and I went back to doing 1 min 5mph followed by 4 min 4.5 - 4.7 mph. This worked much much better for me and I was able to complete the workout without the use of my inhaler! Yesterday I pushed a little further because the 1-4 ratio was not getting my heart rate high enough. I bumped it up to 2 min at 4.5-4.7 mph followed by 3 min 3.7-3.8 mph and added some incline work to the 3 min. sections. I also jogged at 4.7 for a stretch of 5 min. This ended up working out perfectly! I even upped the length of my workout to 60 min from 45 min. I felt awesome after wards!

There is no need for me to be ready for a 5k in a few short weeks, so I decided there is no good reason to push myself hard enough to bring on an asthma attack. I will slowly work up to my goal to run the 5 k next fall and by then I should be able to push myself that far without an asthma attack.

The scale is still my enemy, but this week in Dance it Off I noticed that my legs are starting to look pretty darn good! So I'm avoiding the scale for the next few weeks. I'm also going to ask my trainer about the weight issue I've been having!

Week 4 re-do

As planned I redid week 4 of the 100 push-up challenge. Day 1 was easier this time around, but I still struggled with day 3. I did the exhaustion test this morning and got to 50 push-ups. Not bad, more than I could do the last time so I can't complain. This puts me in the third column once again for week 5. Only 2 more weeks left before I find out if I can do 100 or not!

Today I decided to take the dogs on the long morning walk we used to do instead of doing the elliptical. It felt good, really really good. I think I miss that long 45 min walk in the morning and the dogs really enjoyed it too! It was also refreshing to see that a lot of the houses that have been on the market in the area for the last 6+ months have finally sold.

Week 4 again

Last night as planned I restarted week 4. I was a bit worried it would be really hard since I haven't done a single push-up in 2 weeks. But to my surprise Sets 1-3 seemed easy and the last 2 didn't feel impossible, they weren't great, but not impossible. All in all I'm pretty impressed that I was able to do them without struggling too much.

Week 5 - fail

I failed week 5 as I got totally wrapped up in getting the house ready for our party on the 20th. I have not picked them back up this week as I'm now preoccupied with getting ready for my trip up north. I leave on Wednesday and return on Monday. I know that I will not be doing push-ups during this trip as I tend to be busy the entire time I'm visiting. Therefore, I'm taking this week off too and will resume on Tuesday the 30th starting with a redo of week 4. I felt like I struggled with that week and even though my exhaustion test proved I was still on the right track I just feel as though repeating that week (especially with the 2 week break in there) would be better than going on with things. I also haven't done my elliptical workouts yet this week. I haven't been getting good sleep and when that happens it's SO hard to get moving! However, I have been keeping up with the dog's exercise routine of an AM walk and an evening hour or so at the dog park.

Week 4 wrap-up/Exhaustion Test

Week 4 was tough. I feel like I'm losing steam and often felt like I should have been back one column. However, the exhaustion test at the end proved that I seem to be on track. After doing my cardio this morning I fit in the exhaustion test. I am now able to do 42 push-ups! Almost half way there! This keeps me on track in column 3 for week 5. Then there will be another exhaustion test. So far so good. The scale hasn't moved, but I feel better and that's all that matters.

Week 4

I noticed I've fallen a bit behind on my blogging lately. I think I will cut back to doing weekly updates on day 1 of the new week. I've found that week 3 got harder and harder for me as the days go on. Week 1 and 2 didn't seem as hard to me! But I've been able to complete the weeks and started week 4 last night.

I thought I wasn't going to make it and I should move down to column 2 instead of 3. Then I decided to take a little bit longer break in between the sets. The first 3 sets were HARD! I thought I wasn't going to make it. So I decided to get up let the dogs out, and rest for a couple min before doing the 4th set of 21. It worked like a charm! I was able to do that set much better and I felt as though I could make it to the last set.

So before the 5th set I let the dogs in, did a couple mini tasks and came back (no more than a 5 min break if even). The first 12 or so were ok, then it went downhill. By 20 I had to keep thinking come on you can do it over and over. By the last 5 or so I was shaking and weak, but in the end I did all 32!! What an accomplishment for me to push myself through it.

Turns out doing Biggest Loser Weight loss Yoga the next morning was not such a good idea as my arms were not happy doing more strength exercises. But I got through that too!

Week 3, Day 1

Last night I completed the first day of week 3. The first couple sets went well. Then after the 3rd set it all went down hill. On the last set of 20 I had to pause for a second because the dogs got in the way and it was so hard to get started again. I was shaking for a long time after completing last night's sets and I can feel it this morning. But it's a good pain and it's worth it!

The elliptical kicked my butt this morning! I'm still trying to adjust to my new schedule and getting out the door on time. I have yet to be successful at that one, somehow when I set the alarm 10 min earlier I still run 15 min late. Today I wasted a few extra min. because Rick left his phone on and had the alarm on and I could not figure out how the heck to turn it off, so I ran that upstairs to him. Then once I got back down stairs I realized that I left my MP3 player upstairs! All in all I wasted 5 min before I actually got going on the elliptical. But I got on and it kicked my butt and all is good.

Week 2, Day 3 and Test

Day 3 was on Saturday and went okay. It was tough again, but I was able to finish all of the required sets. I think that maintaining proper hydration makes a difference with them feeling easier/difficult to do. Saturday I wasn't great at keeping hydrated, same with day 1 of week 2. I am usually pretty good at getting my water in over the week, not so much on the weekends, so I will have to try and focus on getting in the 8 glasses every day.

At the end of week 2 I was scheduled to do another test. I did that test this morning after walking the dogs and hitting the elliptical for 30 min (and drinking a bottle of water). I purposely did not look to see what the requirements for each column would be, I wanted an accurate count without a limit based on that. In my mind I though that it would be great to do 26 ~ completely doubling my initial test amount. In the end, I managed to squeeze out 30! I did 30 push-ups at one time!!! I absolutely cannot believe that! It's totally awesome and a great day to start off a Monday!!!

Week 2 Day 2

Day 2 went a lot better than I expected. I didn't struggle nearly as much as I did day 1 and I even did 2-3 extra push-ups for the first set. Bella was distracting me and I temporarily lost count and before I knew it I was at 17! The remaining sets went well, and by the end I was able to do the 17 but just barely.

I'm shocked that this was a lot easier than day 1. Perhaps the 3 day weekend spent painting and doing other misc stuff took more of a toll on me than I thought it did. Anyways I'm pumped about this now, thinking I might actually do decent on the exhaustion test after week 2 is up!

I've noticed an increase in my energy level as well. A combination of the push-ups and the elliptical workouts and some healthier eating has done wonders. It's good motivation for keeping with the routine. I also noticed that using my MP3 player on the dog's early am walk helped me keep a quicker pace...thus more of a workout. I feel great today!

Week 2 Day 1

I started day one of the 100 pushup challenge last night. At first I wasn't sure if I should do them at all due to the fact that I pulled something in my upper back yesterday morning by twisting around to grab something. But I decided to give it a shot and if I had pain in that area I'd stop. I completed the first set (14 pushups) and there was no pain during the pushups so I figured I'd be good to complete the remaining sets.

I was relieved for a brief minute when I got to the 3rd and 4th sets which were 10 pushups each. Then the final set was a minimum of 15. I thought I was not going to make it. By time I got to number 15 I was shaking and could barely do it. I did it, but I'm a little nervous that I won't be able to complete the requirements for week 2. By day 3 will need to do 20 in that last set! Based on last night's performance I'm wondering if I'll have to repeat this week. I guess only time will tell. I also know I shouldn't look ahead to the remainder of the week I don't want to psych myself out; but it's SO hard not to look!

Of course the dogs had to participate with me. Nothing like a big mouthful of dog fur when performing the down of a pushup!

On other fitness news today was day 2 this week of my new routine. The plan is to get up by 5:30 hit the elliptical for 30 min. then walk the dog for 30, and get out the door by 7. I'm nervous to find out how this will work on a day when it's not raining in the morning. I skipped the dog walks today and skimped on yesterdays due to the rain. I didn't make it out the door until 7:10 this morning!

One benefit I noticed of this new routine is I wasn't dead dog tired by lunch time yesterday, which was extremely nice for a change. Today I'm tired, but not exhausted (yet)!

Week 1 Day 2 and 3

Upon logging in to do week 1, day 3 I realized I did not post about day 2. That was Friday. I did the push ups before I went to work in the morning. I was SO sore from day 1 that I hurt by time I finished the second set. By time I reached the end, I could barely do the 12 push up for the last set! I remained sore throughout the day, then I was pleasantly surprised that I did not feel sore at all on Saturday!

I just completed day 3. The first set seemed easy, then the second set a bit harder, then I really struggled with the last set. Rick did them with me and was teasing me that it was hard. Then at the end said it was easy for him and that I need to exercise more. Needless to say he just took the fun our of it. I can definitely feel the burn!

Week 2 starts on Tuesday! Have a great Memorial Day!

Day 1

Day 1 for me was yesterday. After giving myself 12 or so hours of rest after the initial test I proceeded with the training. I actually did 49 push ups in one day in one session! I think it was the 60 second breaks in between the various sets that really helped. I am sore today, but it's a good kind of sore, so I welcome that! Tomorrow will be day 2 and 50 push ups.

Initial Test

I tried the initial test this evening. First I did regular pushups and realized that after only 2 I could not do any more with good form. This being the case I decided to give modified pushups a try. I was able to do 13 modified push ups. I'm actually pretty surprised by that number. This will put me in the third column for the training.

Next week I will start the Monday, Wednesday, Friday routine. For this week I'll modify it and do Wednesday, Friday, Saturday.

The One Hundred Pushups Challenge

Today marks my start in the One Hundred Pushups challenge. A friend of mine started the challenge on Monday and asked if anyone wanted to join. I've been looking for ways to further my fitness goals and thought what a great place to start. You can watch his progress as well at here.

Tonight will be the initial test. During the initial test I will be doing as many push ups in good form as I can. I know push ups and I have not been the best of friends, so I may be doing one of the alternative methods, such as the "girlie" kind with knees on the floor.

Feel free to join in the challenge and don't forget to have fun!