Week 4 - Day 1

My lower left leg was feeling a bit sore all day today, so I put off the walk as long as I could. I didn't get out until 11:00pm. The walk was OK, again feeling the same discomfort since the day I started all of this. Honestly it bothers me a bit as I ask myself where is the progress after 3 weeks? I guess it is in there somewhere, I just don't see it. Maybe someone will have to point it out to me.

Total Distance: 1.67 mi
Total Time: 30:00
Avg Pace: 18:01 /mi
Heart Rate: 115 bpm

Looking forward to the break tomorrow. Tuesday things get nasty. Stay tuned ...

Week 3 - Day 4 ... Part B!

Had a good time bowling tonight at the birthday party, although my score wasn't the greatest! Most everyone went to Apple Jack's for dessert afterwards. I ended up having a strawberry smoothy and a piece of chocolate cake.

By the time I got home I was feeling pretty guilty. I've really been trying hard to watch what I eat since I started this training. So what did I do? I strapped on the runners again! After feeling bummed about the results of "testing the waters" earlier in the week ... I even gave that another try and successfully completed 4 sets of run for 1, walk for 4! It didn't feel so bad either, although the in between walks were a bit slower than normal.

Total Distance: 1.1 mi
Total Time: 20:00
Avg Pace: 16:01 /mi
Heart Rate: N/A

I forgot to strap on the heart monitor, so as you can see that info wasn't available.

Since I'll have to do run for 1 and walk for 4 on Tuesday for 45 minutes, I'll go back to the normal schedule of 30 minutes walk tomorrow. Monday will be a needed break before the real stuff starts on Tuesday!

Week 3 - Day 4

Just back from the 60 minute walk. Still some tightness going on. Annoying. I even spent way more time stretching today, so I think that helped a bit. I'm wondering if I'm also tying my laces a bit too tight. I loosened them up a bit about 15 minutes in and that felt better, more so the left side than the right. Here are the results.

Total Distance: 3.29 mi
Total Time: 1:00:00
Avg Pace: 18:48 /mi
Heart Rate: 117 bpm

I'm going bowling tonight as well for the birthday party of a friend, so lots of exercise today.

Country Music Marathon - Nashville, TN

Well I had some family and friends running in the Country Music Marathon down in Nashville, TN. today. My brother-in-law Glenn ran the full marathon and his sister Krista ran the 1/2. Glenn's band mates Jason Germain and Jeremy Thiessen (of Downhere) ran the full, as well as Jeremy's wife Erin who ran the 1/2 with Krista. Last but not least Dave Lewis, the band's sound guy also ran the full. Great to see all of you guys participating!

Full Marathon:

Glenn Lavender - 3:40:01
Dave Lewis - 4:24:26
Jeremy Thiessen - 4:48:08
Jason Germain - 4:58:54

Half Marathon:

Krista Lavender - 2:46:24
Erin Thiessen - 2:46:24

Congrats to all of you for the hard work you put into training!

Glenn's other sister, Tracy, Dave's wife, Jess, and Jason's wife, Heather were all marathon water volunteers too! I'm sure your support was appreciated!

I feel inspired enough now to get ready and head out myself! I've got a 60 minute date with the pavement.

Week 3 - Day 3

Well today is what I would consider a bit of a disaster. I thought I would try and "test the waters" ... so at 10 minutes into the walk I started a slow run. About a minute later I stopped and never recovered after that. The same tightness came on strong and there was enough discomfort that when I hit the 20 minute mark, I didn't go any further. Man my lower legs where stiff ... can they really be this bad? Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 1.05 mi
Total Time: 19:15
Avg Pace: 18:16 /mi
Heart Rate: 115 bpm

This coming Tuesday I'm supposed to start running for 1 minute, followed by walking for 4. Then I repeat that over 30 minutes. I'm certainly dreading it now after this evening ... but I'll be out there on Tuesday attempting it anyway!

Week 3 - Day 2

Well this evening was a pretty good walk. I thought I'd feel it more than I did, and it wasn't as bad as I thought. Back into the pace where I'd like to be. Still some minor discomfort in the usual places. I look at my different walks in comparison and all I think is inconsistency. Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 1.78 mi
Total Time: 31:21
Avg Pace: 17:39 /mi
Heart Rate: 115 bpm

Oh and I've failed to mention that including today, my Mother has tagged along for the previous two walks. Props to Mom for thinking about her health too!

Week 3 - Day 1

Went out for the 30 minute walk before supper. It pretty much felt like Tuesday again ... discomfort! Felt really tight and stiff about 5 minutes in and this continued to the end. I stretched before-hand and during, and it just didn't make a difference. So I was below pace where I would have liked to be. I'm assuming walking two days back to back probably contributes to a result like this as well.

Total Distance: 1.66 mi
Total Time: 30:12
Avg Pace: 18:09 /mi
Heart Rate: 116 bpm

I'm glad I don't have to walk tomorrow. Hopefully with Monday being a break, Tuesday will be better.

Week 2 - Day 4

Just got back from my 60 minute walk. I was a little bit uptight before heading out. In the back of my mind I was thinking about how crappy I felt on Tuesday while out for my 30. Today went very well though and I kept up a good walking pace beating last Saturday's 60.

Total Distance: 3.44 mi
Total Time: 1:01:41
Avg Pace: 17:57 /mi
Heart Rate: 120 bpm

Feels good to see the improvement. Let's see if I can set a best for my 30 tomorrow!

Week 2 - Day 3

Today after work I stopped by Dave Hipperson's place in North York. We were roommates during my Laurier days! We probably haven't seen each other in almost in 10 years! It was nice to hang out and talk about old times. Well Dave came out with me on my walk. The pace was slower, but we walked longer than 30 minutes and we went a further distance. The legs didn't bother me like Tuesday, so that was a relief. Maybe it was the pace and another days rest? I didn't use my heart rate monitor today either.

Total Distance: 2.32 mi
Total Time: 46:34
Avg Pace: 20:03 /mi
Heart Rate: N/A

Sorry to keep you waiting Sherri!

Week 2 - Day 2

Well I'm just back from my walk and I can't say I enjoyed it that much. I stretched and all, but a few minutes after heading out my legs felt like bricks and it never got better after that. The strength just didn't seem to be there and I'm not sure why. It was a fight to keep up a decent pace and all I was feeling was tightness and burn. Maybe I pushed too hard on Sunday's walk. I didn't sleep the greatest last night either, so maybe that contributed in a negative way. I've been eating well though and getting in plenty of fluids. Here are today's stats:

Total Distance: 1.66 mi
Total Time: 30:41
Avg Pace: 18:32 /mi
Avg Heart Rate: 118 bpm

Let's hope Thursday turns out different than today.

Week 2 - Day 1

I was a little late heading out for my walk today, but I got out there none the less. Headed out at about 8:45pm and it was dark, so I stuck to the sidewalks under the cover of street lights rather than the dark path. Here are the stats for today:

Total Distance: 1.72 mi
Total Time: 30:13
Avg Pace: 17:32 /mi
Avg Heart Rate: 136 bpm

Pushed myself a bit on this 30 minute walk, and I think it shows compared to Saturday. Tomorrow should be a nice break before Tuesday.

Week 1 - Day 4

I took the Garmin Forerunner out for my 60 minute walk. My mother tagged along with me again which was nice. The lower right leg was much better today than the previous 3 training days. Here are the stats from today:

Total Distance: 3.58 mi
Total Time: 1:08:53
Avg Pace: 19:14 /mi

Heart rate isn't included here as I didn't have the heart rate monitor directly to the skin as instructed, so the results were wrong. My Total Time and Average Pace were likely inaccurate as the device didn't automatically stop the timer when I came to intersections. I've changed the setting to do so, and will stick to my regular off-road path tomorrow to avoid stopping altogether. This is what I get for not reading the owners manual.

So nothing impressive here overall of course, but the less discomfort in my right leg is progress!

The Garmin Has Arrived

My Garmin Forerunner 305 arrived at work yesterday via Purolator. Being the techie guy that I am, this afternoon I downloaded and installed the most up-to-date firmware and software for the device as follows:

PC Software:
WebUpdater Ver. 2.4.1
Training Center For Windows Ver. 3.2.3

Device Software:
Forerunner 305 Ver. 2.60

Device Firmware:
GPS Chipset Ver. 2.90

Keep your firmware and software up-to-date for best operation and accuracy!

Week 1 - Day 3

Still on track with the training and another 30 minutes down in the history books. Still some tightness in the lower right leg, but hey it isn't holding me back. There, short and sweet.

60 minutes on Saturday, here I come!

Garmin Forerunner 305

In a previous post I made a comment about acquiring a Garmin device to keep better track of my distance, pace, calories burned, & heart rate. Well I started looking around on the web and found a great deal on the Forerunner 305.

If I were to head over to my local Running room, it retails there for $409.00! That's not cheap!! I was able to get it at GPScity.ca for $334.95. On top of that I don't have to pay provincial taxes because they are located in Alberta, and Garmin is also offering a $50 US rebate if purchased before May 14, 2007. So in the end I get it for $277.95 before tax and shipping. Still not cheap, but that's a considerable savings!

I should have it before the end of the week, so when it arrives you'll start seeing some proper stats here regarding my training!

Week 1 - Day 2

I just completed another walk and this time my Mother tagged along. We didn't take the same route that I have on the previous two walks, so I can't be certain of the distance traveled.

It seems my lower right leg is still bothering me, and feels as if the muscles are tightening up or are not stretched? I did stretch today before heading out. Why only the right leg and not the left as well? It isn't the calf muscle or achilles tendon either, it's more the muscle(s) or tendon(s) on the outer right side and over towards the front. This worries me a bit as what I describe could possibly be explained here as shin splints. Maybe it's just because I've been inactive for so long. Suggestions from any experienced runners out there?

Well 35 more minutes down and the discomfort isn't turning me off yet. Let's hope it goes away in the next few weeks ...

Bring on Thursday!

The Training Has Begun!!

Well we are getting pumped for Disney. Mark has started his training and so has my sister Tracy. I'm pretty sure my other sister Krista is in too. I am quite excited and proud of the fact that so much of my family has taken steps to improve their physical health. Just the fact that they get outside and do something a few times a week is awesome!

If you want to join us in this adventure let us know in the comments and we'll talk about posting Mark's training schedule. He is starting from absolute scratch as of two days ago and this whole month all he will be doing is walking. So c'mon!! Join us. Let's have a big old party down in Disney in January. You need to move quick though since the half marathon fills up fast! It's already at 65% capacity. Follow the link in the sidebar for more details.

Hopefully see you there!!!

Glenn

Week 1 - Day 1

For those of you reading this blog who are not familiar with this type of training, it's going to be happening 4 days a week; Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. For the month of April, the first 3 days of training out of the 4 will be 30 minute walks. The 4th day of training (Saturday) will be 60 minute walks. During the off days I hope to do some strength training, so stay tuned for info on this as I work out the details.

For my 30 minute walk today I had picked up the pace a notch since I hit the 1 mile mark at 15 minutes. I probably over did it a bit though as from that point on I felt increased stiffness in my lower right leg. It wasn't painful, although it came pretty darn close! I had to slow things down, so the walk ended up being 35 minutes instead.

It looks like I'll need something like a Garmin Forerunner once the actual running starts in May. Then it will be much easier to accurately track distance travelled, speed, etc. So I covered 2 miles today that was still above pace from Saturday's 60 minute walk. Monday should be a nice break until my next walk on Tuesday.

Life Changes

I've registered for the half marathon at Disney and started my training TODAY! I walked 1 hour and traveled a distance of 3.1 miles. Felt some ever so slight tightness in the calves and shins (didn't stretch before hand). I also felt a bit of numbness in my left big toe just after the 1/2 way mark. Loosened the laces a bit which was an easy fix. Thanks to Glenn and Sherri for tagging along, the company was great!

The month of April will only be walking and the running won't start until May. The training schedule has been planned out (thanks Glenn) right up to Marathon time.

Hopefully in 9 months from now, I'll be a new man! Tag along with me here at my blog and let's see where this journey leads!

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Gender: Male
Age: 32 years
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 194 lbs.
Max Heart Rate: 186 bpm