I decided to update you all on my progress toward my first half marathon! Another 30 Day Challenge has come and gone, and this time, my body was pretty unhappy with me for it. My hip flexors and knees were, at times, painful to walk on. Even though the 30 Day has been over for a couple of weeks now (and I've only been back to practice a few times since then), I still don't quite trust my knees... they've been doing funny things, like hyperextending at random when I walk. It's not cool.
So, I'm a little afraid to start a running program with unstable/unhappy knees and hips. Instead, I've been working on a hard walking program and LOTS of weight training to build up muscle around the knees and build more stability! I'm doing something that looks like this:
- 15-20 minutes on treadmill: start off with 2 minute warmup, then jack up the speed to a fast walk. Alternate between fast and brisk walks every 2-3 minutes. Or, bring on the hills by jacking up the incline, alternating between mountain size and big-but-manageable-hill size. One minute cooldown.
- 20-25 minutes of weight training: LOTS of squats and lunges to build lower body strength and raise the heart rate. I've been trying to incorporate movements that work both the lower and upper body at the same time (e.g. squat with press, lunge with bicep curls), and of course, working the core muscles!
- 5 minutes of abdominals: alternating different types of ab workouts, mainly planks and side planks, with some traditional crunches and variations mixed in.
- 5 minute stretch and cool down.
I'm doing this 2-3 times per week, and trying to fit in a yoga practice at least once a week as well. It's been tough with midterms/final essays winding down and final exams starting to sneak up! I'm hoping to keep up this routine until the beginning of December, then evaluate my knee situation. Hopefully I'll be able to get into some actual running, and will post on my progress then!
I'll also start posting about nutrition needs for endurance training. We've started learning more about how the body metabolizes nutrients, and debunking some of the myths surrounding exercise physiology and nutritional needs (e.g. what do those gels/goo's do? How much water do I need to drink and how often? What's "carb loading", and is it really necessary? What's the deal with electrolytes? What foods are the best to choose, and what should you avoid before training runs?) I know! Exciting, right?!??
I just got an email today from the Toronto Women's Half Marathon saying that it is already over 80% sold out! WOW!!! I'm so excited that I signed up early and get to be a part of this awesome event! Oh yeah, there's also a chocolate rest station. And um, can we all say FIREFIGHTER WATER STATION??? Yeah. No wonder it's already 80% sold :P!
