I did 30 minutes on the Arc Trainer (love that thing), then ran for 60 minutes. For my run, I did sprint intervals for the first 46 minutes, and then ran at 6 miles per hour for about 14 minutes...just so I could get in a full hour. Total distance was 5 miles.
I have posted about sprint intervals before. The last time I did them I could hardly finish. And this time it was a BREEZE. It felt great to finish these intervals with a good strong finish. My ponytail was dripping with sweat by the end. Love it.
Some details on the sprint intervals....here is what I do. I do 2 minutes of each of the following:
- Walk at 3.0 speed
- Run at 5.5 speed
- Walk at 3.0
- Run at 6.0
- Walk at 3.0
- Run at 6.5
- Walk at 3.0
- Run at 7.0
- Walk at 3.0
- Run at 7.5
- Walk at 3.0
- Run at 8.0
Once you have done the intervals increasing in speed, go back down. After the 8.0 speed run, walk for two minutes, then run at 7.5 speed, and so on. The whole workout takes 46 minutes, and should get you about 3.6 miles.
I had always heard that sprint intervals will help your speed, and make the weight fall off of you. I can definitely see how it makes the weight go, simply because you get so sweaty. In doing some Google research, I read that sprint intervals is one of the most over-looked running workouts. It is important for runners to practice these every now and then, in order to increase overall speed and endurance.
If you are looking to spice up your runs a bit, try a sprint interval workout. It is important to note that a runner should have a good base of strength when trying to do this workout. As in, if you are new to the sport, 'don't try this at home,' as they say.
The results of trying to 'overdo it' on a interval workout could be injury preventing you from future runs. As evident in my first experience with sprint intervals. Clearly I was not ready to turn it up a notch and had to bow out early. Not fun or impressive.
Now that I have a concrete base of strength this workout will be beneficial for me. I think if you are to the point where you can jog for about 45-60 minutes without stopping, you could do this workout. Please note that I AM NO DOCTOR, this is just my personal opinion.
If you do not have your base built up yet, try the intervals listed above, but alter them to your intensity level. Maybe try walking for three minutes instead of two. And starting your run at a 5.0 speed, and only go up to 6.0, increasing your speed by .25 each time.
If you are more advanced, try walking for one minute, running for three....or something like that. Tweak it to what works for you.
On a completely unrelated topic, did anyone watch the Biggest Loser last night? Melissa of the red team got kicked off. She weighed like 178 when she left the ranch so she doesn't have far to go. When they showed the 'where is she now' clip at the end, they showed her and her husband (who was her partner on the show....got kicked off a few weeks ago) finishing a half marathon. Awesome, right? Well, sorta. They finished in 3 hours and 56 minutes.
Now I'm all about 'run your own race,' 'finishing is winning,' and all that warm fuzzy-ness. But 4 hours? That's just crazy. For a half marathon, that's like an 18 minute mile. That's walking. Slowly. Was she hurt? Did she train? There is no reason it should take a 178-pound woman 4 hours to run 13.1 miles if she trained for it. Interesting, yes?
Weight Watchers Update: I just got back from weigh-in and I gained 1/2 pound. No biggie, I am still under my 'pay' weight, so I don't have the pay the $55! Woot Woot! I hope to be at 150 by May 12. 4.5 pounds to go!
No comments:
Post a Comment