From alpha testing to the QUERCUS 200

Run
30 min
2.1 miles
165 avg hr
peak speed 6.9 MPH

It was 90 degrees and sunny, but I wore a long sleeve shirt since my arms are sunburned. This was a pretty tough run. The warmer weather is going to be quite and adjustment. It was more than 30 degrees warmer than my run 2 days ago. My heart rate was way high, but my breathing wasn't too bad.
 
Jeez, you guys sound like Chicago: two seasons. You seem to have winter and summer and not much in between.
 
Actually I was an 8 hour drive closer to Mexico for that Monday run. It was a gruelling week, but I managed some running.

Tuesday
30 min
1.9 miles
136 bpm avg hr
This was a recovery run. I had a 12 hour field day in the heat before. There was a dead duck in th epond that I was running around and I was goosed in the butt by a goose during my cooldown walk. I guess he thought I should keep running.

Wednesday
13 hours in the field
No run and Chinese buffet. I hadn't eaten in 8 hours by the time we got back and I tossed the veganism and pigged out.

Thursday
Run
30 minutes
2.13 miles
153 bpm avg hr

This was following another long day in the heat, but I think the big meal the night before and the adaption to the heat made me feel a lot better. This was easier than the recovery run on Tuesday, but not easy. This was my first time to lap someone that was running. They were at a minimum running pace and they may have walked or stopped while not in sight, but I'll take it. I passed them, lapped them and almost caught up again before my 30 minutes was up on a roughly half mile loop.

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Here's a Texas horned lizard (horny toad) that I saw last week. These are a Texas threatened species and this is the first one I have seen in south Texas. When disturbed they spray blood out of their eyes.
 
When disturbed they spray blood out of their eyes.
Click to expand...
This is a way cooler superpower than flight or invisibility.

BTW, saw Texas legend(s) the Reverend Horton Heat on Saturday night. Quite a show.
 
I've only seen 1 psychobilly show (Deadbolt). Not really my cup of tea, but RHH is great in that genre.

Run
5k (3.1 miles)
43:00
155 bpm avg hr

I chose 155 bpm beforehand. It's a couple bpm below the top end of the aerobic zone. I could talk in complete sentences, but got a really good sweat going. I think this is a good level for me.
 
A little number crunching:

My total overall average speed is 4.01 MPH

A month ago it was 3.94 MPH

2 months ago it was 3.82 MPH

This includes all of my runs from recovery to hard effort.

I need 6.2 MPH for my 30 minute 5K. So far 4.6 MPH is my peak speed across a half hour run. That's up from my initial half hour speed of 3.3 MPH. 4.75 MPH will be the halfway point between my starting speed and the half hour 5K.

The 12th will mark 3 months running and I have improved my half hour run speed by 1.3 MPH with another 1.6 MPH to go to reach my goal.

If I could maintain that rate of increase, I would hit my goal in less than 4 months. I am almost positive that it will not be the case and gains in speed will slow dramatically soon. It will be interesting to see where I am at the 6 months mark. With the same rate of progress I would be at 5.9 MPH.

I will fall shy of the 150 mile mark at 3 months unless I run 3.5 miles every day until then.

Thursday will mark my 100th day without alcohol. I haven't been counting the days, but a friend asked so I calculated it.

I have been without soda and energy drinks for more than a week now (10 days?). I didn't really keep track of when I had my last one, but I'm pretty sure it was before Saturday before last (10 days ago).
 
run
50:27
3.5 miles
150 BPM

That was dumb. Too much. It says I burned 1,445 calories. I wish that was right. I burned plenty though.
 
I'm toying around with the idea of monthly weigh-ins. It would be infrequent enough to remove the obsessiveness I tend towards with daily or even weekly weigh-ins, but it would be another indicator of progress. A lot of the calculations for determining calories burned, calories needed, and obesity assessment require weight.

I also need to start estimating my calories more consistently. I don't want to go back to logging everything, but I have to make a habit of keeping up with the calories for the day. It's not difficult at breakfast or lunch, but the evening is where I snack before running, eat dinner, and then snack. 2,300 is lower than the NIH estimate for fatloss based on my old bodyweight. I need a weight to do the calculations again and I need to estimate a number that is on the low side as I imagine that I rarely underestimate my calories.

I'll likely weigh tomorrow morning so I can redo my calorie calculations.

Whatever the scale says it will not take away the fact that I have gone from size 42 to 36-38 size jeans and from fitting 3xl shirts to pretty loose 2xls. I've also lost 2 inches from the gut since February. I had a 7 pound per inch loss rate before so if that holds I will likely still be over 300. 333.2 was my first weigh-in this year. I don't look forward to stepping back on the scale, but it does have a use at this point.

Even if the number says 350 I'm in much better shape and I have a completely different smaller wardrobe than 3 months ago. I have without a doubt lost fat, but whether I've lost any or much weight will be seen tomorrow.
 
With a weight guess of 290 and at age 39 my more accurate calorie burned calculator has you burning 887 calories during your run for a 793 net (the calories you burned on top of what you'd have burned sitting on the couch).

The calculator is here:



It also has the link to the actual formula and a reference to the research behind it.
 
I have to give that a whirl using my actual weight tomorrow. I love a sight with methods, equations, and source.

It's been 18 weeks since I weighed in at 333.2. With a middle of the road healthy fat loss rate of 1.5 pounds a week I'd be at 306.2. The range of 1-2 pounds a week being 315.2-297.2. 290 would be awesome, but I gave up the scale in part because the weightloss was sluggish even while doing everything right.

I'll go with 315.2 or less and I've done right for the entire 18 weeks. More than that and I need to cut calories because I know the exercise is where it needs to be.
 
Whatever the scales say Q, & I'm sure there will be a fair drop, you are going great guns! Your running regime is awesome & you are being so positive & supportive to others, including me. 16 pants retired is amazing! Cheers, Cate.
 
Thank you Cate! You're sweet as ever.

Run
54:56
3.5 miles
143 BPM avg HR
I took it easy pace-wise so I could make the distance. I did some dynamic stretching before. I'm feeling good. My wife has been going out with me some. She's done some running too. She walked for almost the whole time I was out tonight and that was a looong time.

I'm under calories so far I'll likely snack my way to 2,300 before bed.
 
Just popped in to let you know that you & Mr Vee inspired me to get back on track today! Thank you Q. I feel great! I had forgotten how good exercise makes me feel. Crazy I know. Thank you! Cheers, Cate
 
Awesome! That makes me happy Cate!

311.0 this morning which is -22.2 pounds this year and 1.23 pounds a week. This is higher than I want, but exactly where it should be. I will do better with tracking my calories. Not tracking my calories has allowed me to overeat some and that has slowed the rate of loss for sure. I would like to lose weight faster and I was hoping to be below 300, but I will do what needs to be done in a way that I can sustain my entire life and it will take as long as it takes.

Part of what prompted me to get back on the scale is that I haven't had any change in my belly measurement since 3/20. Which probably means I haven't been losing much if any fat since then. I have averaged in the past around 7 pounds per inch. It's 7.4 so far this go round. I should expect an inch a month so 3 weeks of no change indicates a stall. I know if I track my calories and stick around 2,300 that I will get that inch a month.

Actually I have gotten better than an inch a month so far as I was 55" at the first of the year, 54" on Feb. 7th, and 52" on March 20th. If I had continued at that rate I should be 51.25"ish currently. So a minor correction in my eating by tracking my calories and things should start moving again.

Slow and steady wins the race.
 
^ LOVE IT Q!

It feels great to be back on track. The cooler weather has arrived so I need to be on the ball. I'm glad I didn't put it off any longer! Cheers, Cate
 
That's great Cate! Spring is here and pollen is everywhere.

Run
54:45
3.5 miles
139 bpm avg hr

This big jump in distance is taking its toll as I am tight and sore. The good news is that I ran the 3.5 miles 12 seconds faster with -4 bpm avg HR compared to yesterday. I also think that runnig 3.5 miles through Saturday will make it easier to transition to running 5Ks much more frequently. I think the quickest path to a 30 minute 5K needs to be a combination of 30 minute runs and 5K runs until the twain shall meet.

I was under calories again last night. This hasn't been intentional or the norm previously, but with these longer runs and things to do around the house I've been busy up until the moment I go to bed and so the snacking hasn't been there. I'm pleased that I am still able to do a lot after the 3.5 mile runs. Yesterday I made a minor repair and relocated a compressor, cleaned the yard up in preparations for the overdo mowing, made 2 batches of tofu and 1 batch of almond milk, cooked my own dinner, and cleaned up in the kitchen afterwards.

At a bit more than an inch a month it will take a year from now to reach the <40" waist measurement that's associated with a big reduction in health risk (in men 35" for women). That would put me under 220 pounds if the 7 pounds per inch holds. I've adapted exercise and a veganish diet for life, but it's nice to know when I will hit a statistically much healthier milestone. I also need to figure up a MPH increase per pound lost. That one is unlikely to be very linear, but it will make an interesting trend.
 
Run
49:59.94
3.5 miles
142 bpm avg hr
4.2 mph
2 min recovery 149 to 128 21 bpm
Didn't start until 10 pm and I still haven't had dinner at 11PM. Not the way to do things, but it's Friday night and we didn't want to go straight home from work. Moderate difficulty, pretty easy breathing and the legs felt heavy at the very end.
 
Run
3.5 miles
52:17
149 bpm avg hr
24 bpm 2 min recovery (walking)

Quite a bit slower than Friday and with a higher HR, but for whatever reason it felt easier.

That makes 150.1 miles run in 3 months. Yesterday was the actual 3 month date, but I brought my stuff into town to run with my cousin and his gf and forgot my damn shoes. Oh well, I was going to take 1 day off this week anyway.

This has been my highest mileage week so far at 20.6 miles. I intend to go back to half hour and 5K (3.1 mile) runs for now with some longer runs sprinkled in for variety. It's starting to warm up and the heat will be an added wrinkle. I've run in 93 degree heat already this year in south TX, but once it is hot for good and I adapt it will be easier. The challenge will be to stay hydrated when I'm running after a day in the field when it's in the 1teens.

This has been the easiest allergy season I've ever had so far. I also have made the last 3 runs without using a rescue inhaler beforehand. That makes for a total of 3 times in my life that I've done something aerobic without using the inhaler or having an asthma attack during. It has to be a combination of my diet and the running.

So here is 311 pounds and 150 miles ran. I intend to take a comparison photo and hit the scale every 100 miles for a while. I'll do another at 200, but figured I'd do 150 since I just weighed and didn't thinl of it at 100 miles.

View attachment 21943

6.76 miles ran per pound thus far. It meaqns nothing, but might be an interesting trend to look at. I would assume it will go up as I get faster and lighter.
 
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