Friday, June 29, 2012

It's Time

Yep. I've been saying for about 8 months now that I've got to get serious and get my eating on track. Well after that sufferfest of a 70.3, once I got back home, the diet was on.

I decided that I wasn't going to mess around either. I'm going to go with the one thing that has always worked for me in the past. Low Carb or Modified Atkins. Which is terrible for someone training for an endurance event but it's got to be done. Up at the Mont Tremblant race, they had you weigh in at registration. I saw the highest number I've seen since 2008 I think. Not good.

So I'm already 4 days in. The first 2 days my legs were still sore from all the cramping at the race. The only work that got done was Ab Ripper.
Then I had a short bike last night 45 min and a 2000m swim today. Without carbs, there is only so much fuel in the tank. I'm fine with that, as long as the number on the scale keeps dropping.

I'm also bringing back more of the strength work. The pushup plan has started. Ab Ripper is in the mix along with planks. I've got to make it to the gym to do more leg workouts. What I'm able to do at home falls short of what I'd like to get done.

Being 19 weeks out from the marathon, it's also time to start running OFTEN. I think I'm going to up my frequency but keep my distances reasonable for awhile. Then once I've got some carbs back into my diet, I'll start adding longer runs.

I still think a PR at the 70.3 distance is possible this year. I've just got to focus for 7-8 weeks. That sounds do-able. I'm looking forward to it! Other than the weak workouts for the first couple weeks and being hungry... It will be over before I know it.

6 comments:

catmarlson said...

6 days in. I allowed myself one beer at the party I was at last night. I only have to work 3 days this week. As long as the scale keeps moving, I think my motivation is going to hold this time. Finally!

Dawn said...

If you want to lose weight the safe way, read a book called "The 80/10/10 Diet" by Dr. Douglas Graham. It helped me shed pounds and get a lot more energy and have faster recovery.

catmarlson said...

This is definitely very short term. It's breaking me of bad habits. (simple carbs).
It's a disaster for training of course. I made it 45 minutes into a bike ride yesterday before being depleted. I had a gel with me which got me another 30 or 40 minutes. It was interesting to experience exactly what those little packs actually get you.
We start vacation soon. At that point I'll be going back to a ratio very close to what you've mentioned. The big key for me is to pay attention to the glycemic index of the foods. Total calories for the day and making sure I eat the simpler carbs right before and after workouts. Sugar should only be during longer workouts.
I'm hopeful that I can get on track. A marathon sounds much more possible if I'm 15-20 pounds lighter than I am now.
I'll check out the book. I was hoping it would be kindle format. Ah well.

Dawn said...

If you want a video to watch instead (along a similar theme but less extreme) I suggest watching the video "Forks Over Knives". It's very informative about the connection between diet, cancer, and health in general...a must see if you are concerned about being healthy!

catmarlson said...

Just watched that video. (free if you are an amazon prime subscriber).
Perfect time for me to see this. Definitely motivated to change things up a bit again.
I think that for me to pull this off, I'll have to be tracking my food again. That way I can see exactly what my percentages are from carb/fat/protein.
I'll be interested to see how we come up with enough protein, without adding too much fat from foods like nuts.

Thanks for posting this.

Dawn said...

Well, a random mix of fruits and veggies contains 8% protein, more than enough to meet our daily needs.

I always eat better when I keep a food log...just the idea of writing down "Snicker's Bar" keeps me from eating it in the first place!