jfrankovich's Third NF Challenge

[jfrankovich]

After a rough ending to my Second NF Challenge, I was thinking about not doing another one right now, but then I read a few of Steve's motivating blog articles and decided to come back for more!  So, without further ado:

 

GOAL ONE: Train for my first marathon!

I'm registered to run in the Lansing Marathon on April 21, 2013.  I'm following a beginner's training program with 4 runs each week, and I will be tracking my training runs in this spreadsheet.  I ran a half-marathon distance for the first time on December 30 and had a bout of runner's knee afterwards, so I'm going to be more careful with it from now on, along with making sure I strengthen my legs (see goal two) and get adequate rest (see goal three).  Edit: As part of the leg strengthening goal, I will incorporate hill/incline work into one of my training runs each week.  As a side goal, I'll try to achieve at least one new personal record time during the six weeks, if practical (knee recovery being the priority).

 

GOAL TWO: Do more strength training.

Last time around I slacked off too much in this goal area.  This time I want to try something different: instead of having a goal number of workouts for each week, my goal will be to do at least 50 sets of strength exercises each week (machine, free weight, or body weight), in any number of workouts.  This will give me the freedom to work towards my goal whenever I have a spare moment, without needing any particular block of free time.  Particular emphasis will be on leg exercises (squats, lunges, and raises).  As a side goal, I'll try to do at least one set of something every single day of the challenge.  I'll track my sets and reps in this spreadsheet and I'll continually push for new personal records.

 

GOAL THREE: Get enough sleep.

My goal will be to get at least 6 hours of sleep each night, and to make up for any failures with more hours the following nights.  I'm not going to set a rigid bedtime, but any time awake after midnight should only be for accomplishing something constructive (ie, no TV or games).

 

GOAL FOUR: Cook more meals and try new recipes.

My goal will be to cook at least one real dinner (not from a package) each week, with at least half of them using a new recipe.

[german]

Great goals, specially the part where you put your health first, they seem realistic and well balanced, wish you best of luck.

[Relic]

Welcome back!

sleep... I was very close to having that goal. Poor sleep has a tendency to throw everything off.

Good luck in the marathon training. Yay distance!

do you have a foam roller ? Knots in your quads are often a major contributor to runner knees and foam rollers do a really good job in loosening your quads and I.T. band.

[Aeryn]

I'm so glad you came back! Getting sick is definitely demotivating. 

 

Love the goals - and I share your cooking goal, so post any good new recipes as you try them!

[bbrown4]

Good job for sticking with it and continuing to challenge yourself. Running your first full marathon is a great goal!! I fully believe that the marathon is 90% mental and only 10%physical! (although the next day your body might be telling you differently.)  Good luck with everything. Remember to always listen to your body and hills are your friends! Hill runs are really good for training and strengthening your knees and hips. http://www.runnersworld.com/running-tips/side

[shortstuff]

Great goals, I'm looking forward to seeing what you cook up

[Shukar]

I shall be watching this thread with interest, strange how many of the Scouts have goals that so closely mimic each other. (or maybe they just all have goals that remind me of my life so I assume they mimic each other) Good luck with the marathon training!

[18ck]

*running distance envy*

 

I like your goals. Not sure about the 

make up for any failures with more hours the following nights

bit though. I think you can drive yourself mad trying to catch up. By all means try and do 7 if you only had 5 the previous night but don't get into "i'm 5 hours behind - i have to be in bed at 6 after a big mug of horlicks". It's obsessive and not even good for you. 

 

 

Sorry if I'm taking you more literally than I should! ;^)

[jfrankovich]

Do you have a foam roller? Knots in your quads are often a major contributor to runner's knee and foam rollers do a really good job in loosening your quads.

 

No, I don't have a foam roller yet, but I'll be making an extra effort to strengthen, stretch, and massage my thighs more to support my knees and training in general.

 

Remember to always listen to your body and hills are your friends! Hill runs are really good for training and strengthening your knees and hips. http://www.runnersworld.com/running-tips/side

 

Thanks for the advice and the link.  I hereby pledge to incorporate hill/incline work into one of my training runs each week!

 

I think you can drive yourself mad trying to catch up [on sleep].

 

To be sure.  Ideally I won't have any failures in the first place, and if I do, they'll be small and I can catch up over the next night or two.  Anything beyond that, I'll just move on anew.

 

Thanks to all for following my thread and for the tips and encouragement!

[jfrankovich]

Week 1 Update #1

 

Monday was a rest day in my marathon training (I ran each of the four previous days for a total of 20 miles, with no knee pain... yay!).  I did 8 sets of various strength exercises and logged them in my spreadsheet.  Sunday and Monday night I got exactly 6 hours of sleep each... Sunday I squeezed in a 7-mile run and Monday I prepped food for Tuesday's planned home-cooked meal (stir-fry with chicken and veggies).  I'm sure I would have goofed off more and slept less each night without the six-week challenge commitment.

[KillerGriller]

With Runner's Knee and ITBS it's more important to maintain the weekly base miles vs. the long runs.  Yes, long runs are important, but if it comes down to skipping a workout for rest skip the long run.  my $0.02

 

Also, ensure your long runs are SLOW and EASY, many people run these miles too fast and it's easy to give yourself an overuse injury

[jfrankovich]

Thanks, KG.  I'm definitely going to go slower for the 10-miler I have scheduled this weekend and the 14-miler the weekend after that.

[Talia]

Hey JF!

Love your goals - Marathon is my big focus this year too! You are off to an awesome start! I will second whomever mentioned getting a foam roller - that has helped me a ton with my knee pain. Can't wait to see your successes!

[jfrankovich]

Week 1 Update #2
 
Tuesday I did another 8 sets of strength exercises (including push-ups for Streak Club) as well as a 4-mile run with incline intervals ranging from 1 to 6 percent.  The run was a good challenge and I think it will help with my knees a lot.  The chicken/veggie stir fry turned out really tasty too, and there are lots of good leftovers for the rest of the week.  Last night I got another solid 6 hours of sleep, although I could have gone to bed sooner.  I should aim for 6­½ or 7 so that I have a little wiggle room instead of always pushing it to the limit.  At any rate, 6 is a lot better than 4!

[ellisd012]

It's great to see that you're going for a marathon...I've read that hills are a poor man's strength training...and I believe it. Don't forget to work on visualizing success and thinking about some of the things that may go wrong and how you will cope during the marathon while running your long, EASY runs...it really helped me, especially when that hint of a cramp hit at mile 22. I don't know about that 90-10 idea, but I do believe that mental training is as important as physical. Cheers to your success for this challenge!

[shortstuff]

Great work on getting more sleep.

[jfrankovich]

Week 1 Update #3
 
Wednesday night I was feeling really good, so I ran 10K in a personal-record 48:49!  I only did 2 sets of strength exercises (including push-ups of course), so I have some catching up to do there.  Also up to 4 nights in a row with 6 hours of sleep.
 
And for those of you who followed my previous challenge thread, here's a photo of the completed crocheted baby blanket I made:
 

[KillerGriller]

Excellent progress! Congrats on the PR

[18ck]

Week 1 Update #3

 

Wednesday night I was feeling really good, so I ran 10K in a personal-record 48:49!  I only did 2 sets of strength exercises (including push-ups of course), so I have some catching up to do there.  Also up to 4 nights in a row with 6 hours of sleep.

 

And for those of you who followed my previous challenge thread, here's a photo of the completed crocheted baby blanket I made

Pretty! That's one lucky baby! Funny how goals seem to have trends, isn't it? Last challenge everyone was knitting and crocheting like billy-o, this challenge... not so much.

 

Well done on the PR and the sleep too. With all that rest, you'll be full of energy for catching up on those strength exercises, I'm sure!

[shortstuff]

Wow your good, like really good. That baby blanket looks really good

[jfrankovich]

Week 1 Recap

 

Friday night I ran 4 miles at my marathon pace and then Sunday night I ran 10 miles at a slower pace, in 1:32:14.  That brought me to 24.2 miles overall for the week.  I've been thinking I should run in a 10K race sometime before the marathon in April... there's one in a town nearby in two weekends that I might register for.

 

With 16 sets of strength exercises Thursday thru Saturday and 16 more Sunday night, I reached my goal total of 50 sets for the week (including push-ups each day to stay alive in Streak Club).  I'm liking this format so far... maybe I'll go for 60 this week and then 10 more each following week, which would get me to 100 in week 6.

 

Thursday night I had a minor fail on my sleep goal, with only 5.5 hours, but I made up for it with 7 and 9 hours over the weekend (45.5 total hours for the week, 6.5 on average).  But last night was a major fail, with only 4.1 hours... I stayed up late doing my long run and strength workout, plus a shower afterward along with some household chores.  Gotta hit the sack much earlier tonight to atone!

 

I exceeded my cooking goal for the week by making a nice batch of white chicken chili on Thursday to use up some leftover ingredients from stir fry night, and Sunday morning I made veggie and sausage omelets.  This week we're planning on a cabbage casserole (stuffed cabbage ingredients, but layered like a lasagna).

 

Thanks to all for the encouraging comments.

 

Cheers, JF

[KillerGriller]

You nailed it, great work!

[Talia]

Hi JF!

Nice work on your run times! You're an inspiration - I can't wait to be hitting numbers like that with my runs

 

 

You're kicking ass and taking names - great job!

[jfrankovich]

Week 2 Update #1

 

Monday was a rest day, running-wise.  But I did some push-ups, squats, lunges, and planking.  The big win was getting 7.5 hours of sleep Monday night.  I also set a new personal record with a set of 20 push-ups this morning.

 

The other exciting news is that today is our delightful daughter's first birthday!

[KillerGriller]

Week 2 Update #1

 

 7.5 hours of sleep Monday nigh - new personal record with a set of 20 push-ups this morning.

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