Finding what works for me

I'm a goal setter.  I always have been.  I think that's why I have been able to train for and run marathons and why I enjoy doing them.  If I have a deadline and a plan, I'm unstoppable (well kind of).  I thought that signing up for the 12 week challenge would be like training for a marathon.  I have a deadline, I have a plan, so boom it should all just fall into place, especially my six-pack.  Um... not exactly!  I have found out that unlike training for 26.2 miles, fat loss/muscle gain is not quite as easy for me as I thought it would be.  I hesitate to say easy because none of my marathons have been easy, but I put in the time and I got the result. The problem: I don't think that I have found what works for me yet.

In my last blog I wrote about counting calories.  Well, that was pretty much ruining my life.  I had become so obsessed with how many calories that I had burned and how much I had consumed that I was miserable.  By the end of the day, if I had calories left, I would eat even if I wasn't hungry.  I also made some poor choices because they fit into my calorie allotment for the day.  Then if I went over on calories, I got discouraged.  By the end of the week I was eating chocolate covered pretzels and old Halloween candy and hating myself.  So, I decided that I am going to not "count calories" for 3 weeks and see how that goes.  I put it in parenthesis because I have been counting calories on and off for so long that I pretty much know how many calories are in certain meals.  I usually eat five 300 calories meals per day and then a protein shake in the evening if I'm hungry.  I also eat when I'm hungry, not just because I need to meet a certain quota.  This has worked really well for me in the past, so hopefully it will work again.  I have found that when I look at food as fuel, that I eat so much better and feel better too.

I also need to set some more concrete goals.  I have the goal to PR at the June marathon, but other than that I feel like I am floundering.  I have a certain weight that I want to attain, but I need to get over it.  I have tried to get rid of my scale or hide it, but I am honestly too attached to it.  It's another obsession.  All it does is discourage me.  I have had so many people tell me how good I look, but I have a hard time believing it because the number on the scale won't budge.  I guess my next goal should be to quit worrying about numbers and just continue on this journey of getting into the best shape of my life- pretty much just kicking my own butt every day!  That was an aha moment right there!

Bodybugg update:  The jury is still out!  Last Monday, I wore it all day.  I ran 8 miles and I averaged about 90 calories per mile, which is what I assumed.  Then I went to pilates and I burnt 190 calories for the 45 minute class, again, what I assumed.  The big surprise was the kettlebell class, where I only burnt 290 calories.  On Tuesday I did upper body strength training for about 75 minutes, and I registered a little under 300 calories again, which isn't surprising.  What I really want to assess, however, is the after burn.  Since kettlebell is circuit training, I think that the after burn is going to be greater.  This week I will compare my Monday and Wednesday workouts, which include the kettlebell circuit training classes and my running intervals to Tuesday and Thursday cross training, lower intensity days.

Marathon training update:  On Saturday I did my 17 mile run by myself because Priscilla is having back problems. I wanted to start early, but I didn't want to pack my headlamp so I decided to split my run up between the treadmill and the road. I ran the first 6 miles on the treadmill and then I ran 10 miles outside and finished the last mile with 100 meter sprints on the treadmill. Evelyn had told me that when she runs long she takes in a 1/3 of a Gu every 2 miles. I had also told her that I get really bloated when I run more than 6-8 miles. She suggested drinking some protein. I took her advise and put some branch chain amino acids in my water. I took a short walk break every 2 miles and I took in 1/3 of my Gu pack and drank my BCAA infused water. I felt so good! I felt like I could have done more sprints even at the end. Considering that 5 miles were running up a gradual incline, my average pace of 9:21 was pretty decent.  I'm excited about bettering my pace, but I'm more excited about how I felt.  I had terrible stomach issues at my last marathon and I would love to avoid that happening again.