Archive for the ‘Exercise’ Category

Fitness Goals for 2009


2009
02.22

After running 100k (62 miles) on a trail at Bandera Texas I have found a void in my trail running training .  so this weekend I dusted off my bike and on Saturday I rode 10 miles. Today I drove my truck down to the 24 Hour Fitness near UT and rode my bike 23.5 miles back to Cedar Park.  Tomorrow I’ll do my first bike commute in 2009.

While I was riding back home facing mild head winds I thought about my training goal for 2008 and how I ran 1,100 miles instead of 1,000 miles.  I decided that this year I would plan on running 1,000 miles and riding my bike 2,000 miles.  I have never kept track of my yearly mileage since I moved to Texas.  When I lived in Portland, Oregon I rode 3,000 to 4,000 miles for several years.  Bike commuting is the key for me to do that sort of miles in one year.

So I plan on riding my bike a few times a week and running on the weekends and see how I fell. I am glad that I have reduced my weight by 20 pounds and lost several inches off my waist and theigs.  I really noticed my trim legs when I rode my bike because there was more clearance between my theighs and my saddle than the last time that I rode it 8 months ago.

20.36 miles, My longest run in my life


2008
09.20

Last weekend I ran 16 miles.  This weekend I ran 20.36 miles.

The LBJ Lake loop (minus the MoPac to Ist street 2 miles)

Total distance: 8.05 mi

Total Time: 1:34

Avg Pace: 11:40 per mi

Total Ascent: 1214 Ft

Total Descent: 1208 Ft

The Barton Creek loop

Total distance: 10.31 mi

Total Time: 2:26

Avg Pace: 14:12 per mi

Total Ascent: 3280 Ft

Total Descent: 3277 Ft

Total distance 20.36

RunTex training for the Nike Human Race 10k


2008
07.11

I have a correction on the time of the running class. The class starts at 6:30 PM. Here is a link for more information.

RunTex

The training is part of the

Nike Human Race 10K
11th and Congress, Austin, TX, US
Sunday, August 31, 2008
6:30 PM Race 8:30 PM Concert

If you go to the web site you will see that Austin is among several cities was picked out of all the cities around the world to participate in this event.

Besides talking about running the owner of RunTex, Paul Carrozza, discusses health and diet as well. Paul has a background in bio-chemestry. During a break in the training he was asked how much water do we need to drink. His answer surprised me. He said that most of us are drinking too much water. Most of the hydration that we need should come from fresh fruits and vegetables.

If we eat the correct balance of whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables and balance the source of our protein we can make our bodies less susceptible to cancer. When you get most of your protein from meat your body becomes more acidic. Cancer cells thrive in a body that is acidic. When you get your protein from other sources like vegetables and grains you body will maintain a natural PH and cancer cells do not thrive in this environment.

Please note that I have summarized Paul’s talk. What amazes me about Paul is that he is genuine in his care for everybody to be fit and healthy. He started selling shoes out of his own need to get the right fitting shoe for himself. Personally I have heard and read all my life about exercise programs and how to be healthy by eating right. None of this really motivated me to change until I started running again. That is when I noticed how my cravings for a Snickers bar at 4 PM when away as my body started to crave less sugar and craved more running.

Hope this inspires you all to keep up your efforts on being healthy.

RunTex training


2008
07.10

I am participating in a RunTex free running class that meets each Thursday 6 PM meet at Stevie Ray Vaughn statue. This Thursday is meeting 2. This is the same class that folks pay big bucks for. This is the same class that was offered at HT two years ago. I was in the HT class and I went from walking a mile to running 10 to 15 miles several times a week.

This class is for all levels from walking to running. The owner of RunTex was the coach of the first class. He talked about how exercise makes your body not crave sugar. When your body is mostly inactive it craves serotonin which makes you feel good. Serotonin is found in foods that contain sugar. The best way to lose weight is to eat less sugar. The way to eat less sugar is to remove the body’s craving for it by exercising.

I will be participating in this class with my wife so I hope to see some of you in the class.

I plan to run 1000 miles in 2008


2008
01.05

I have never been a person to make New Year’s resolutions. This year is different and I am starting the year by creating the possibility of being a runner. I have set similar goals for bike riding in the past. One year I had the goal that I would ride my bike to work more miles than I drove and I did it. I rode almost 5,000 miles that year. In one month I rode 1,000 miles.

Today I ran 10 miles around Lady Bird Johnson Lake in Austin. this was the first run of the year. My last run of 2007 was a 2.5 hour run along the beach in Port Aransas, Texas.  So in order to make my goal I will have to run about 20 miles a week for 52 weeks.