"Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary"

QUICKFEET

I agree with Waller - you can do it!!!!!!!!

Just don't put money on yourself to win the gold medal!

Seriously though, you have made such great progress so far, I'm sure you'll do it

DOHHHHHHH

Thanks guys. 

Been out for a Sunday morning stroll with the pooch earlier. 

It took us 2h 15 mins to complete 7.12 miles as of course we have to stop and sniff every 3rd tree trunk and every other puddle so it was a very leisurely pace. 

At the end I was very very tired!!!

When I think I have to get to a stage where I can run almost 2x that distance it's very daunting. 

I will get there, I'm very confident about that.

But will I get there by September? I'm gonna tryyyyyy

hhyftrftdr

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Fwiw I disagree with Geldy. I think aiming to run a half marathon is more than realistic, as long as you are prepared to put the training in. You're not probably not going to finish with a decent time, but there is no reason why you can't complete the run. It will give you a great sense of achievement, so I say go for it!
Posted by waller02

You giving out exercise advice is like me giving out nutritional advice.

GELDY

Once a party poop.r always a party poop.r I'm afraid. (which as you've just been walking the pooch I thought was an apt segway in, although apparently I'm not allowed to say it on the forum).

To try to go from one extreme (never exercised) to another (half marathon) isn't just ambitious it's totally stupid. (GELDY sitting on the fence as usual). 

I went from an occasional game of tennis via 3k runs to 5k runs several times a week. Next stop crutches as both my achilles rebelled against it. (And I've run a half marathon before! )

You are doing great. If somehow a half marathon happens then amazing. But to ruin all that great improvement through hairbrained objectives would be so upsetting. So regardless of how much well meaning support you get for it hit that nail on its head. A 10k city run would be an awesome objective in itself, something I've had to give up the idea of ever doing anytime soon, but if you want a stretch objective then go for that, nothing more. 

GELDY

When you get around to reading Candide in English you will then understand what I mean when I say:

"to do a half marathon by September would require you to have an incredibly Panglossian view of the world. "

waller02

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Once a party poop.r always a party poop.r I'm afraid. (which as you've just been walking the pooch I thought was an apt segway in, although apparently I'm not allowed to say it on the forum). To try to go from one extreme (never exercised) to another (half marathon) isn't just ambitious it's totally stupid. (GELDY sitting on the fence as usual).  I went from an occasional game of tennis via 3k runs to 5k runs several times a week. Next stop crutches as both my achilles rebelled against it. (And I've run a half marathon before! ) You are doing great. If somehow a half marathon happens then amazing. But to ruin all that great improvement through hairbrained objectives would be so upsetting. So regardless of how much well meaning support you get for it hit that nail on its head. A 10k city run would be an awesome objective in itself, something I've had to give up the idea of ever doing anytime soon, but if you want a stretch objective then go for that, nothing more. 
Posted by GELDY

But he has 6mnths to train. That is plenty of time. It will be tough but I think to call it "totally stupid" is far from the truth.

GaryQQQ

A half-marathon in 6 months is definitely a challenging target, but certainly not an 'extreme'. A full marathon for example is a much bigger ask, at least 4x tougher than a half marathon. Using a run-walk strategy is not against the rules, in fact it's recommended for beginners who might struggle to run the whole way. Thousands do it in the Great North Run, many even pretty much walk the whole 13.1 miles. Last year 3,808 finishers took longer than 3 hours, that's 13m 45s per mile pace or slower. It's a fun run, not a serious race. The goal is the make it to the finish and have fun on the way, not break a world record.

Actually getting in the race might be the hardest thing. These big city events are massively over-subscribed, getting a place on the start line can be very difficult. If you don't get in at least you'll have an extra year to prepare, or there are many other similar events to consider.

DOHHHHHHH

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Once a party poop.r always a party poop.r I'm afraid. (which as you've just been walking the pooch I thought was an apt segway in, although apparently I'm not allowed to say it on the forum). To try to go from one extreme (never exercised) to another (half marathon) isn't just ambitious it's totally stupid. (GELDY sitting on the fence as usual).  I went from an occasional game of tennis via 3k runs to 5k runs several times a week. Next stop crutches as both my achilles rebelled against it. (And I've run a half marathon before! ) You are doing great. If somehow a half marathon happens then amazing. But to ruin all that great improvement through hairbrained objectives would be so upsetting. So regardless of how much well meaning support you get for it hit that nail on its head. A 10k city run would be an awesome objective in itself, something I've had to give up the idea of ever doing anytime soon, but if you want a stretch objective then go for that, nothing more. 
Posted by GELDY

Geldy it's taken almost 11 months to get from the "never exercised" stage to where I am now, from the chest pains, prefuse sweating, heart thumping panic attack after walking 50 yards to being able to walk />7/8 miles and just feel tired the way most normal fat people do. 

So going from absolute zero to my goal would be a 16 month process overall. 

Fwiw my Dad agrees with you, he says I wont be able to get there within 6 months. 

He isn't being nasty or intentionally dissuasive when he says that, just honest. Same as you.

I like the encouragement, informative and supportive posts, they make me believe I can do it. 

I also need and appreciate your honesty and sceptacism as it fuels the fire of motivation that i'll need to keep burning bright if I'm to get there

----

Gary, I've given up on trying to get into the Great North Run specifically. 

I say given up, I haven't even tried. 

I'm just going to use that date as my target/deadline to get a half marathon completed somewhere. 

As far as I know, there isn't much difference in difficulty of different half marathons? The GNR isn't any more or less difficult than say the hypothetical Great Donny Run? So it really doesn't matter to me which one it is, the important thing is the date, 9/11. 

http://www.newforestmarathon.co.uk/#top

This one looks good ^

Hampshire couldn't be further away though

GNR would be ideal if I could get in. 

-----

Up @ 7 today. 

3 weetabix, 3.5 mile walk with the pooch and then a banana and shrek juice smoothie for the brekky!

Gonna be starvingggg for 'lunch' @ Midday. 

Hours kip after eating, then the dreaded 30 minute treadmill to complete last weeks "couch 2 10k" assignment. 

I can make excuses as to why I didn't complete last weeks assignment last week, but that's all they'd be, poor excuses. 

Then another 4/5 mile walk with the pooch afterwards. 

---

Might have to play some poker tonight too, don't want them to start a petition to move me over to the rail too!

---

Happy Mondayz! 

aussie09

hey dohhhhhh,

well done with your progress to get here.  incredible if you can get to wherever you are going.  one thing that you might overlook is your own strength and motivation.  this will be your success. 

a parallel is giving up smoking.  so many are supportive and give great encouragement.  however after a few weeks this external support lessens.  your habits have changed and the addiction is now controlled yet if you want to continue to become a non-smoker you rely more on your own strengths.  this is where i think you are.

i read you as someone with the ability to achieve your goal.   good luck man.



 

GaryQQQ

They're all exactly the same distance; 13.1 miles. Some courses are hillier than others, obviously the flatter the easier. If you decide to do the New Forest Half I'll happily come along and jog round with you if you think that'll help. I'd be there purely to give you moral support and encouragement, both of us going at your pace 100% of the way, no matter what that may be.

The Cardiff Half is a great event. Second biggest in the UK after the GNR, good crowd support, flat/easy course. It's not until November 2nd though.

Edit; I've just looked at the New Forest Half website. It looks like a fantastic event, multi-terrain through forests and stuff. The time limit is 6 hours, so no pressure there. We could literally crawl around it in 6 hours. It's near where my parents live. I'm thinking of entering it now anyway, whether you do or not.

Tikay10

If you don't "cheat" on the training, you can certainly do a leisurely half-marathon JJ.

Gill, my young lady, had never run or jogged anywhere, ever, until last July. She gradually built up her stamina, did her first ParkRun (5k) in November, another 2 weeks later, then completed "organised" 10k runs in December, January & February. She is now at the stage of tapering off in preparation for her first Half Marathon later this month. In training, she has managed a 13 miles run once a week for a while now. I don't know your age, but I would imagine Gill is a little older than you.

It's NOT about speed. She generally finishes in the last 5% of the field, but in that sense, it's NOT a race.
 
I have attended every one of those runs as "corner man", & you'd be amazed at the variety of ages, shapes & sizes (& degrees of disability) of those who take part.
 
Ladies in the 60's or 70's, obese people, non-sighted people, even Mums or Dad pushing a buggy with their child in it. 

If you want to do it badly enough, you can.
 
I have to add, for balance & truthfulness, that she has pulled, strained or torn an abductor muscle in the last week, so the Half Marathon is off. You may encounter a soft tissue pull or strain, too, which messes up the plan, but it won't kill you.        

shakinaces

I'd echo the text above from Tikay.

When I was fitter I used to be a member of a local running club and they had a section of the club specifically for staging new overweight members through from the very basics (some couldn't even cover a 100m fast walk when they first joined) through initially to completing one of the local 5k races, then working up to the 5 mile and beyond.

As long as you can commit to a challenging training regime and don't over-reach with the time you hope to complete the course in then the 1/2 marathon is totally doable in the timeline you are working to.

It's not even the case you HAVE to have bashed out a 13 mile training run before hand (although at least 10 would probably be the minimum), the adrenaline rush from being in a big organised event will always help you go a little bit further or a little bit faster than you ordinarily would.

If you are less like me and can do 9am starts on a Saturday, google Parkrun and have a bash at one of the regular 5k fun runs they hold all over the country.  As well as a good thing to add towards training for a 1/2, it'll invariably also put your mind at rest to see people of all shapes, sizes and ages from the whippets through to the plodders.

And re: different grade of 1/2s - there are 'easier' 1/2s out there.  Do a bit of research before you sign-up.  Avoid any with excessive hills.  Local to us the runners all hit their PBs on the flat Bath 1/2 and moan about the pain of the more hilly Swindon 1/2.

"GNR would be ideal if I could get in."

I totally read that and was about to get jealous that you were on the verge of blagging tickets to the semi-reformed Guns n Roses shows this year

Tikay10

".....If you are less like me and can do 9am starts on a Saturday, google Parkrun and have a bash at one of the regular 5k fun runs they hold all over the country.  As well as a good thing to add towards training for a 1/2, it'll invariably also put your mind at rest to see people of all shapes, sizes and ages from the whippets through to the plodders....."


I cannot recommend these ParkRun's highly enough, they are perfect to get you started, & the atmo at them is just wonderful.

They take place all over the UK (all over the World, in fact), are managed by volunteers, & they give results for everyone. 

Here you go.....


 http://www.parkrun.org.uk/

Tikay10

ParkRun's Yorkshire & Humberside.....

http://www.parkrun.org.uk/events/events/

Tikay10

ParkRun Sheffield Castle

http://www.parkrun.org.uk/sheffieldcastle/

ParkRun Sheffield Hallam

http://www.parkrun.org.uk/sheffieldhallam/

ParkRun Donny

http://www.parkrun.org.uk/doncaster/

VespaPX

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

They're all exactly the same distance; 13.1 miles. Some courses are hillier than others, obviously the flatter the easier. If you decide to do the New Forest Half I'll happily come along and jog round with you if you think that'll help. I'd be there purely to give you moral support and encouragement, both of us going at your pace 100% of the way, no matter what that may be. The Cardiff Half is a great event. Second biggest in the UK after the GNR, good crowd support, flat/easy course. It's not until November 2nd though. Edit; I've just looked at the New Forest Half website. It looks like a fantastic event, multi-terrain through forests and stuff. The time limit is 6 hours, so no pressure there. We could literally crawl around it in 6 hours. It's near where my parents live. I'm thinking of entering it now anyway, whether you do or not.
Posted by GaryQQQ

If you decide to do the New Forest Half I'll happily come along and cheer you on :-)

Its on my doorstep so if you need anywhere to crash let me know.

DOHHHHHHH

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

If you don't "cheat" on the training, you can certainly do a leisurely half-marathon JJ. Gill, my young lady, had never run or jogged anywhere, ever, until last July. She gradually built up her stamina, did her first ParkRun (5k) in November, another 2 weeks later, then completed "organised" 10k runs in December, January & February. She is now at the stage of tapering off in preparation for her first Half Marathon later this month. In training, she has managed a 13 miles run once a week for a while now. I don't know your age, but I would imagine Gill is a little older than you. It's NOT about speed. She generally finishes in the last 5% of the field, but in that sense, it's NOT a race.   I have attended every one of those runs as "corner man", & you'd be amazed at the variety of ages, shapes & sizes (& degrees of disability) of those who take part.   Ladies in the 60's or 70's, obese people, non-sighted people, even Mums or Dad pushing a buggy with their child in it.  If you want to do it badly enough, you can.   I have to add, for balance & truthfulness, that she has pulled, strained or torn an abductor muscle in the last week, so the Half Marathon is off. You may encounter a soft tissue pull or strain, too, which messes up the plan, but it won't kill you.         
Posted by Tikay10

If she isn't you are doing superbly well  

Although I am getting on abit now haha. 29. 

I've never really suffered with strains, tears and niggles etc. 

I was very active as a kid from 10 to 19/20, playing cricket, football, rugby and latterly getting into keep fit and weights etc, and the only injury I ever had was a broken bone in my foot which was caused on impact playing football. 

Also made the mistake of not wearing a box once and copped an unfortunate blow from a back of a length in ducking seamer.

Not wearing a box and being punished for it is like taking £1.2k to play style after 12 cans and half a bottle of vodka. 

The type of mistake you only ever make once!!!!

I am of course older now and nowhere near as fit as I used to be so the niggles are certain to creep in.

They'll have to be really bad to stop me!

----

8.5 miles walked today to go with 7 yesterday, and a 30 minute higher intensity treadmill workout inbetween. 

I wish I could say I've felt great throughout, but it's been a real struggle, especially this morning. Constantly fighting tiredness before, during and after the exercise. 

I wish it would go away. 

But alas I'm resigned to it being here to stay. 

spierjioerwjvgopj

---

Thanks for the continued support and advice. 

The Park Run seems a perfect stepping stone once I finish the couch to 5k training. 

I'll make it part of my schedule for sure, my uni campus was on Eccy Road, I know that area v well. Sheffield.

Exciting times ahead 

Nothing more exciting as the short term tea and hot bath though!

----

Oh I doubt anyone cares, but I played some poker today too. 

Won a couple of buyins. ($10nl)

Sessions since last roll update have beeen.....

+£2.89

+£3.42

+£14.81

Hashtag Heat. 

DOHHHHHHH

Good Morning. 

It's week 4 of 8 weigh in day, so here is the much anticipated result. 

DOWN 2.5 lbs.

Total loss after 4 weeks of the challenge = 13.5 lbs. 

Total loss since Jan 1st = 28 lbs. (2 stone hypeeee) 

----

It's been a frustrating week. 

1 which I hoped to go really really hard with the exercise whilst maintaining the diet. 

It started that way, my records show me I walked 19 miles in 3 days between Monday and Wednesday, as well as grinding the treadmill with higher intensity bursts too. 

However on Wednesday night I "took ill". 

I've had a pretty bad head cold, nothing serious but more than enough to put the block on my fitness hype. 

Yesterday morning I weighed in 3/4 of a pound lighter than todays official weigh in, which just goes to show if I stand still I will go backwards. 

I need to get over this man flu and get back on it asap. 

However we are 4 weeks into the 8 week challenge now, the goal is to lose 2 stone, and I've lost 13.5 lbs. 

So we're on course. 

I'm aware the 2nd half of this will be more difficult, as I lose weight, it will become more difficult to lose more weight, the work required to do so will go up, but I'm happy to embrace that and get it done.

As ever though, the body will have the final say and I hope it co-operates.

Otherwise I might get P'd off and abuse it with pizza and alcohol

The cold is a little better today, and it's a nice morning so I'm going to take the hound out to keep things ticking over. Wont be able to do anything more strenuous than that though. 

With poker, it's important to maximise your gains when you have the best hand and try to lose the minimum when you don't.

I guess with dieting it's the other way round, we wanna lose the max when we feel good and gain the minimum when we don't

Have a gd weekend y'all. 

DOHHHHHHH

Another Friday, Another weigh in. 

....

DOWN 4lbs exactly. 

Total loss after 5 weeks of the challenge = 17.5 lbs. 

Total loss since Jan 1st = 32 lbs. 

.....

3 and a half weeks left....

10.5 lbs required. 

It's going to be a slog!

....

It's been a tough week. 

Although I officially weigh in on a Friday, I do unofficially weigh myself each day to see how I'm going. 

Apparently this is bad, but being results orientated, on this occasion it's worked well for me. 

The first half of the week I went really hard, and was seeing little/no progress on the scales. 

This forced me to up my diet and exercise game over the last couple of days, doing some of the most difficult training I've ever done ("not hard" you might say).

As a result I've gotten the weight down enough to make it a very pleasant result. 

----

I've completed week 3 of couch to 5k, which involved 4 treadmill sessions of 90 seconds running/walking, then 3 minutes running/walking. x2. With a warm up and warm down either side. 

Also started running sessions outside, and some incline walking. As well as chilled walks with the dog and been through to walk the rescue dogs too. 

Each week from now on in the intensity and volume of the exercise is going to increase significantly. 

It's really really difficult on its own for me, but this week the tiredness has been bad too, which makes it even more so. 

I'm over half way there, and I have a realistic chance of being successful in the challenge, so I'm determined to give it my all. 

Let the week 6 grind begin..................

----

I played some poker. 

30 mins of cash = + £6.71

4 HU sngs, W2 / L2 = - £0.28

= + £6.43

Roll = £2181.41

Send me to the Railllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.

QUICKFEET

Well done!

DOHHHHHHH

Thank ya Quickfeet. 

Weekly weight in....

DOWN 3.5 lbs.

Total loss after 6 weeks of the challenge = 21 lbs. 

Total loss since Jan 1st = 35.5 lbs. 

.....

2 and a half weeks left....

7 lbs required. 

....

Bitter sweet result this week. 

I'm happy with it overall and would've taken it had I been offered it last friday. 

However, as always, I do unofficial daily weight ins and the weight had gone on Tuesday.

Which means the last couple of days despite eating 'impeccibly' and walking/running 18 miles in 2 days it hasn't moved. 

Maybe I'll see the benefit of that over the weekend. 

----

Poker update...

Played 1 HU sng with a free £5 ticket skybet gave me.

Lost.

....

The grind continues . . . . . . .

MattBates

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Thank ya Quickfeet.  Weekly weight in.... DOWN 3.5 lbs. Total loss after 6 weeks of the challenge = 21 lbs.  Total loss since Jan 1st = 35.5 lbs.  ..... 2 and a half weeks left.... 7 lbs required.  .... Bitter sweet result this week.  I'm happy with it overall and would've taken it had I been offered it last friday.  However, as always, I do unofficial daily weight ins and the weight had gone on Tuesday. Which means the last couple of days despite eating 'impeccibly' and walking/running 18 miles in 2 days it hasn't moved.  Maybe I'll see the benefit of that over the weekend.  ---- Poker update... Played 1 HU sng with a free £5 ticket skybet gave me. Lost. .... The grind continues . . . . . . .
Posted by DOHHHHHHH

This is quickly turning into Lambo's diary

Tikay10

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Thank ya Quickfeet.  Weekly weight in.... DOWN 3.5 lbs. Total loss after 6 weeks of the challenge = 21 lbs.  Total loss since Jan 1st = 35.5 lbs.  ..... 2 and a half weeks left.... 7 lbs required.  .... Bitter sweet result this week.  I'm happy with it overall and would've taken it had I been offered it last friday.  However, as always, I do unofficial daily weight ins and the weight had gone on Tuesday. Which means the last couple of days despite eating 'impeccibly' and walking/running 18 miles in 2 days it hasn't moved.  Maybe I'll see the benefit of that over the weekend.  ---- Poker update... Played 1 HU sng with a free £5 ticket skybet gave me. Lost. .... The grind continues . . . . . . .
Posted by DOHHHHHHH

That's a little misleading JJ, it does not really work like that. Think of it like poker, & short term variance. The daily weigh-in is irrelevant, it's the long term results that matter.
 
You WILL fluctuate day to day, ignore that, just as you'd ignore one bad night at the poker tables.
 
Your diet version of a Sharkscope graph shows a bright green, steep graph. That's all that matters. The daily blips mean nothing.

Congrats on progress so far - they are very impressive numbers.   

DOHHHHHHH

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary" : That's a little misleading JJ, it does not really work like that. Think of it like poker, & short term variance. The daily weigh-in is irrelevant, it's the long term results that matter.   You WILL fluctuate day to day, ignore that, just as you'd ignore one bad night at the poker tables.   Your diet version of a Sharkscope graph shows a bright green, steep graph. That's all that matters. The daily blips mean nothing. Congrats on progress so far - they are very impressive numbers.   
Posted by Tikay10

That makes sense TK. 

I remember leading up to the challenge I was working hard and not seeing any deviation on the scales at all, I was just maintaining my weight and starting to get frustrated. 

Then the challenge began and it suddenly started to drop off. 

Timing

Hopefully this mid-weeks efforts will begin to show on the scales over the weekend to give me a boost going into the penultimate week of the challenge. 

----

Just done some poker to keep Bates and the other poker enthusiasts happy.

...ok just Bates then.

Variance - Sky sent me "deposit £10 get £10 tokens free"

Brag - Played a £5.25 HU Hyper with half of it and won.

Beat - It was in the form of 4 x £2.50 tokens, so it actually used 3 x £2.50 to enter me and left me with only 2 fiddy left.

Never let it be said sky dont try hard to bring fun players back into the game. 

mrsduck

Did you watch any of the marathon yesterday? Seriously inspiring!

DOHHHHHHH

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Did you watch any of the marathon yesterday? Seriously inspiring!
Posted by mrsduck

Hi MrsDuck. 

No, I have to be honest and say I hate watching owt like that on TV. 

I dislike the whole atmosphere, people cheering and whooping all the time and dressing up as Elmo and waving into the camera etc.

6 hours of Cramb and Foster going on about how wonderful the support is.

ugh.

I dno why, but it just annoys me. 

Probably because I'm a miserable g it. 

Having said that, I would love to do it one day !!!!!

----

The weekend for me has been a struggle. 

Yesterday I weighed in 1 lb up.

5 days of grinding myself into the ground with exercise and barely eating a thing that isn't green, rewarded with a gain in weight. 

Safe to say morale throughout yesterdays poultry 4 mile walk was very low. 

I slacked abit on the diet as a result, eating a sizeable chilli dinner and then an excessive portion of chicken stir fry for tea.

It wasn't the best diet meal planning, but I felt properly "full up" for the first time in 3 weeks. 

----

This morning I was up for the exercise grind @ 6, and out walking by 7.

I had no real plan of action, aside from doing the 4 miles which is the bare minimum the dog needs per day, and then to 'see what happened' after that.

What happened was a surprise to myself, as I walked/ran on and on and on and on until I I checked my app and saw I was closing in on 9 miles. 

I was still quite a way from home, so would clear 10 easily.

And 10 isn't a million miles away from 13.

Only 3 in fact.

So I decided to walk round in circles until I reached half marathon distance. 

http://imgur.com/rUkwGQR

So my first shot at an unofficial 1/2 marathon gives me a PB target of 3h 42 mins!

Now I just need to learn how to run it . . . . . . .

----

I'm going to weigh in mid-week this week. 

Partly because it's a 2 month challenge, not an 8 week one. 

And partly to get this 'bad spell' out of my mind and feel like im starting fresh again.

Such a fish. 

So I'll weigh in then have 2 full weeks to finish off. 

Maybe publish dailyy weigh ins for the last 10 days to try and spur me on. 

I need the scales to start moving soon to stand a chance though, 5 days of break even-ness at this stage is almost challenge destroying. 

----

Played 200 hands of 4nl on PP.

Won a fiver.

Turned £10 of tourny tokens on here into £16.50. 

-----

The grind continues to continue.........

GaryQQQ

I did watch the London Marathon. Loved every minute of it and wished I as there. As I have every year since 1992 when I completed the course in 3 hours and 20 minutes. For the record my #oneinamillion number is 203,474. I'm wearing the t-shirt with pride right now. Once you've been there and experienced yourself it you're hooked for life. 

I'm seriously impressd to read you've managed to walk/run 13.1 miles aleady. You don't even mention the 1,525 feet of ascent it included. If that data is accurate your route was much hillier than nearly all courses used for official half marathons. To put it in perspective The Shard, the tallest building in the EU, is 1,016 feet tall. If there was a staircase inside that went from the ground floor to the very top (the observation deck is at only 802 feet), you did the equivalent of walk/running up and down it one and and a half times during your 13.1 miles. 

Time is irrelevant when you eventually do enter your first official half marathon, all that matters is completing the course. You are guaranteed a PB no matter what. You can then take a shot at lowering it second time out.

You probably know a lot more about this than me. But I'm pretty sure plateaus are totally standard during weight loss, and that the last few pounds are always the hardest to shift. A bit like poker it's the long term results that count. I think you're doing great, keep it up and run well

DOHHHHHHH

Thanks Gary, can you give me some advice on training schedules?

It's been suggested that I may be 'over doing it' with my cardio volume at times.

How important is rest, and how much do I need?

For example after I did that this morning, I've taken the day off, and will be out walking again same time tomorrow.

I'm not saying I will, or want to, but if I was to attempt a similar sized 'session' would that be bad, as my body wont have had enough recovery time between big sessions?

I was thinking of doing one really big effort day (such as today) followed by a more relaxed day, then keep repeating, so it would be every other day that I push myself hard.

But I need to balance that against the time constraints of the weight loss challenge I've set myself.

It's a tough balancing act, especially when I don't really know what I'm doing.

Any advice and your continued support is much appreciated, thanks for the nice comments. 

GaryQQQ

In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary":

Thanks Gary, can you give me some advice on training schedules? It's been suggested that I may be 'over doing it' with my cardio volume at times. How important is rest, and how much do I need? For example after I did that this morning, I've taken the day off, and will be out walking again same time tomorrow. I'm not saying I will, or want to, but if I was to attempt a similar sized 'session' would that be bad, as my body wont have had enough recovery time between big sessions? I was thinking of doing one really big effort day (such as today) followed by a more relaxed day, then keep repeating, so it would be every other day that I push myself hard. But I need to balance that against the time constraints of the weight loss challenge I've set myself. It's a tough balancing act, especially when I don't really know what I'm doing. Any advice and your continued support is much appreciated, thanks for the nice comments. 
Posted by DOHHHHHHH

Rest is very important, crucial in fact. The training effect relies on it.

A big session or weekly long run should always be followed by an easy day. Even elite runners go by that rule. Your every other day plan sounds great to me. It could be either a complete rest, or a very easy day between the big efforts, experiment and see what works best for you.

Since returning to running two years ago I've stuck to four days of running per week. So that's three every week with no running at all. I've staying completely free of injury and my fitness has come on leaps and bounds, so it's worked for me. In that time I've gone from being a non-runner of 12 years (though admittedly reasonably fit from my work and long distance walks) to running a half-marathon in 1h-43m this February, 6 months before I turn 50yo. I wasn't doing it for weight loss, but I've also dropped over a stone without making any changes to my diet.


Building up your weekly mileage slowly is definitely the way to go. The couch to 5K does it perfectly for beginners. Too much too soon can back-fire, either by causing injury or by making you over-tired, which in turn leads to a loss of motivation.

There are tons of good training schedules available for free online. Have a look around and see if you can find one that fits what you're aiming to achieve.

Tikay10

Really surprised you don't enjoy the happy vibes from marathons & the like JJ.

The atmo at these things is human nature at its best. No money involved, people just doing their best. It's perfectly lovely.

I accompany Gill to all her runs, & I love it to bits. Nice people doing good healthy things. Hard to know what's not to like about that.

In related & very sad news, it looks like ParkRun are going to state charging runners to take part. Can't blame them really, it's all volunteers, but it is rather a shame.