30 days

[dwalter]

No pain no gain indeed!  I ran 2 miles last night (that's the farthest I've ever run in my life!). I probably could have gone further but I accidentally hit the emergency stop button on the treadmill and deleted all of my progress.  I took it as a sign that I had done enough for one day Today is my day off, I'm hoping to go for 3 miles (5K) on Sunday.  It will probably take me about 40-45 minutes judging by my pace last night but that should improve over the next couple of weeks.  Then I'll go back to 2.4K and try to reduce my times for that.

troopersgirl if you can find a Pilates DVD that focuses on abs I highly recommend it.  Mine really helped me with situps and basic core strength.

Keep up the great work ladies and have a wonderful weekend!

L2C

Congrats on the personal best run L2C, and to the rest of you keeping up your fitness. One piece of advice though. Running on the treadmill for X amount of miles may make you think everything is peachy, but it's about twice as easy as running on pavement. See the treadmill is actually moving the ground for you, you just need to move your legs to match, but you don't actually put any resistance against the ground as it is moving already. When you get out and start running for real, it is going to feel a bit tougher, so I recommend heading out and seeing what you can do on a nice flat easy stretch of pavement. Pace yourself, take it easy, and run for time, not distance. See how long you can run at a decent base pace (If you can't hold a conversation, you are running too hard). Don't be afraid to take 1 minute walking breaks either. The best running routine starts off with X mins of running followed by 1 min of walking, then running again.

Keep up the good work.

 

[Luvs 2 Curl]

Thank you for the advice Intelligent Design.  I have a date to run outside with a friend next week, weather permitting.  I pre-determined my course (measured 2.4K in my neighborhood) and I'll leave my watch at home.  She's a Muay Thai (kickboxing) instructor and is in fantastic shape so I'm sure she'll kick my butt. 

 

[Goose]

Hey- thanks  ^-^ but I don't know if I'm the ROCK- maybe a pebble aspiring to be a rock... and getting bigger as I roll downhill and collect moss... lol- anyways, it sounds like you are doing quite fine yourself troopersgirl! I love pilates, but I've got a stack of DVDs because I can only watch them once or twice before I get completely boored with the predictability, but that's just me. (uh, I also watch them once through while I'm sitting on the couch, just to see if it's too hard for my mood that day). Hey- don't underestimate the awesome power of the mighty-mower! Cutting the grass the 'old fashioned way' is one of the best back/bicep/thigh workouts known to man! Just remember to keep the heart rate up, because it can get pretty easy to stroll along. Sounds like you are right on track girl- don't EVER be afraid to post because you don't think you did enough. This is the SCRATCH club- we're all going to fail, and we're all entitled to days off whenever we honestly believe we need one - theirs no point in working hard if you are going to ultimately through the mental health thing out the windown right? I know one of these day's I'm going to post a big lazy-nacho-and-ice-cream day, but hell, it will be well deserved!
Anyways, I guess this was day no.5 - went alright, though work was 9 hours longer than it was supposed to be.  (sigh), such is life. The only time I had to get to the gym was at 6 this morning, so I warmed up and met with my trainer at 7 for half an hour. She's nuts. I worked the chest again till failure at four different exercises, and then pushed out three very painful military-style push-ups. I ran/ walked for about 20 minutes (my thighs are still so sore from the first couple of days that I'm finding it hard to do anything longer than 5 minutes at a time on the treadmill). Then I hit the bike for 15- sweating bullets at this time. Did a few sad ab workouts, and hit the punching bag for a few. Then, off to work.  Odds are that I'm not going to be able to get to the gym or do anything tomorrow- have to go buy this new bike and do alot of other shopping, but I'll try my best and keep you all in the know tomorrow night- day no. 6!  Later guys/gals! Keep it up! The biggest push to keep me going is you!
"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresea, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein."

~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr

 

[Goose]

HEY L2C! CONGRADULATIONS!!!!! Personal best- that's AWSOME! Man, the competitive juices are flowing now, I'll have to pick up that running to match you! Keep it up and keep us all posted.

 

[Goose]

This is the end of day no. 6 I guess. Funny thing, its exactally what I was talking about in my last post. I did NOTHING today. No deliberate effort, at all (unless shopping for hours on end counts). I would have if I had the time, so the drive isn't lacking- just the opportunity. I did however throw down near a grand on a fantastic bike- which I am very excited about getting on the road tomorrow. You know what? normally after a 'wasted day' I'm discouraged and it's twice as hard to get 'back' into the swing of things... but I'm slowly coming to realize that days like this are part of the swing, and nothing to feel angry at yourself about.
Well folks, short and sweet. Tomorrow marks the first full week of the 30 days... till then.
Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.
William Shakespeare

 

[troopersgirl]

Hey Y'all - WOW - thanks for the encouragement... I wasn't expecting that, because my goal was to be here for you guys.

That being said, I cranked out the bike today in this heat and left the gears at one speed (I have no idea which one) that gave me enough resistance.  Along the way I happened to stop at a garage sale and found an old-fashioned Nordic-Trak (manual not powered) for $5.00
I couldn't believe it!!! FIVE BUCKS!!! and yeah it works!!!  I'm going to have to take the leaf blower to it though and get rid of all the spiders and snakes that have obviously collected over the years - I thought it would be good to have when there are electrical storms and/or 30-below/30-above weather when the breathing outside gets hard.
I told them to hold it for me because I wanted to finish my ride.  Now I have to find a couple of strapping dudes to take it out of my car.

Funny you should mention the punching bag - I had the punching bag set up in my garage, but it was shaking the rafters and I didn't want the roof to cave in on me, so I have to MacIver something up somewhere else.
Re: Chin-ups... when we were kids and door frames were "well built" we used to jump up and grab onto the top of a door frame to do pull-ups... I'm going to have to build something in the garage on the wall for chin-ups.  It was harder for us "athletic kids" with developed bi-ceps to do chin-ups - yet the weaker kids without biceps had no problems and I always found that weird. Huh! oh well, just typing out loud!

Here's to a Sunday to remember in the fitness books - I want to hear from both you ladies by 2200hrs -  :threat:  :rofl:

 

[Goose]

Wow- day seven down. A whole week! Damn that went fast! I feel great! Hope everyone who is following this little crunch and all of the fellow 'from scratch' members is feeling the same. So how did I celebrate day 7 out of 30? Well, I went for a run outside (which I hardly ever do, but after the post about the treadmill doing half the work for you I realized just how unlikely it will be that we run at 6.7 on a 1% incline at basic  : ). I did 3k! (minus a 30 sec break half way to change songs and tie a shoe) but still- very very proud- probably the longest I've run on pavement in years. Man! If I can do this after a week- imagine what I'll be able to do after the whole 30 days! So excited to find out. Then I went to the gym and did my upper body program again, and went home to clean. Just now I pulled off 75 full sit-ups and 50 push-ups in sets of 15 (again on the knees). That's it- but trust me, it feels like enough!
Great shopping troopersgirl- five bucks is awesome! Spend 1500 on mine and I've been waiting for three separate replacement parts- been 4 months since it's worked!  :rage: ahha well, again- more incentive to hit the road instead. As for pull-ups; kudos to you if you are going to train for those. They are completely out of my range right now, and I don't know (since they aren't mandatory) if I'm going to work on them at all- but tell me how it goes. I don't know many women who can do any, so it'll be cool to follow your progress. Anyways folks- our group is getting pretty exclusive, so if theirs anyone out there reading and not writing, feel free to add your 2 cents.
Talk to you all again tomorrow, day no 8!
"A man's health can be judged by which he takes two at a time -
pills or stairs."
Joan Welsh

 

[Luvs 2 Curl]

Hi Ladies!  Sounds like a good weekend all around.  I was out of town helping my parents with some hard labour at their house in the country.  Digging sure it hard work!  I managed to fit in a bit of Wii Fit yoga and went for a short run outdoors on Saturday.  Their house is by a lake in the mountains and the roads are really hilly so it was quite the workout!

Jane, I wouldn't consider day 6 a wasted day.  You need to give yourself a bit of a break now and then to avoid burning out.  It's easy to be gung ho and work out every day in the beginning but it's very difficult to maintain that pace for any prolonged period of time.  The sites I've consulted all recommend taking 1 day off every week.  Sometimes it's hard to do because my brain keeps telling me I need to work out but I feel like my body appreciates the break and any soreness from the week disappears.  I've also been told that it helps give your metabolism a boost (bonus!).

 

[Bplante]

I think you may think getting more that 1 day off a week ! Your BMOQ starting soon and if you're going to strong for too long, you good overtrain your body and I don't think anyone wants to start a BMOQ with overtraining ! I'm starting BMOQ on august 25, ans I start taking it more relax to do not start it with too much stress on my body.

Anyway, I like to read your progress ! Keep going. When your training will seem easy looks at crossfit.com, a good all-around program !

 

[CFR FCS]

I applaud your efforts however a word of caution. I have had a couple of selected applicants who were getting ready for BMQ / BMOQ going Gung Ho and they hurt themselves. All missed their course start date and one, who had been enrolled, was released. I have another who gave himself stress fractures from running and will need surgery to fix them, maybe career ending before it starts.

Please temper your efforts and do not over exert yourselves. BMOQ's come every three months (maybe)so be careful, BMQ 's are easier to to get on at a later date.

I'm sure CFRLS will take into account that most new recruits will need to shape up and I know they have a program designed for that purpose.

CFR FCS

 

[Goose]

Thanks for the words of advice guys, and the words of caution- I'll take them to heart. I'm doing more PT than normal, yes, but I'm not exactally hardcore. I just want to know that I meet the minimum standards at least before I'm off to BOTP- it's a personal confidence thing. Of course I'm not going to jeopardize my training/career, but at the same time I'm not going to waste time here at home eating cheesecake waiting for the Sargent's at basic to get me in shape. As far as overtraining goes, I don't really think that I need be too concerned with that. I try very hard to listen to the body and not to go too far overboard- I find myself getting more tired mentally than physically. And no, I don't consider day no.6 to be a waste. If I knew that I could take every second day off and still be in shape for BOTP, that's exactally what I would do.
Anyways y'all- today was day no. 8. It's late, and I'm exhausted, so I'll keep it simple. I biked 6 km to the gym where I ran on the treadmill just over a mile, then walked 5min and ran another 5... took me to about 2 miles total at 6.8mph. Then I hit the bike for 20 minutes and did a very very short ab workout. (Doing abs gets SO booring ). Biked another 20 minutes throughout the day, and then the 6km home. I'm always on my feet for work (waitress and lifeguard) so my legs are feeling it at the end of the day. When I got home I did a few sets of sit-ups and 50 push-ups on the knees in sets of 10. That's it that's all. Felt like alot more at the time naturally.
You've all got me thin king though- It would be great if someone with a little fitness training/experience could read over this last week and tell me if I'm really on the right track- will keeping up what I'm doing get me ready for basic in time? Anything else I should be doing? not doing? Thanks everyone- keep in touch. Tomorrow is day no. 9.
I am only one,
But still I am one.
I cannot do everything,
But still I can do something;
And because I cannot do everything
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.
      - Edward Everett Hale

 

[Goose]

Day no. 9 down- tired, busy, so this is going to be brief. Today I biked to the gym (6k), elliptical for 25 min, arm circuit, biked 15 more minutes, went to step / bosu class, and biked 6k back. That's it. Can't believe that tomorrow is day no. 10! 1/3 the way there baby!
It is easier to go down a hill than up, but the view is from the top.

Arnold Bennett

 

[troopersgirl]

I never thought I'd see the day where pain would not allow me to function properly.
The weather here has been playing havoc on my fingers, wrists, elbows, and knees.
The ibuprofen :skull: is not kicking in, and I am at a loss with keeping up. 
I shall return mightier than ever when I return... I'm giving this pain one more day!
:threat:

 

[Luvs 2 Curl]

I hope you feel better soon troopersgirl! Isn't getting older wonderful  :crybaby:

I ran about 3.5K outside monday night with a friend, felt great!  Tonight I'll try to bust out the 2.5K in -15mins.  Wish me luck!

 

[Goose]

Great work with the running guys~ I've been slacking off in that department.  :-\ And whatever you do, don't hurt yourself! If your body is sore and its telling you to take it easy, then take it easy - a few days off by choice beats a few months off due to injury any day.
Well, today was, what, day no. 10? I biked to town (6k) and met with my trainer who did more arms (ooooh my arms)... I did push-ups for her for the first time in a week or so and got to 9!!! Mind you, the last few were pretty sad and would get me absolutely ripped apart at basic, but I'll take what I can get for now. I didn't do much else after that- a few abs, and then worked all day before I biked the 6k back home and did my 50 push-ups in sets of 10 (on the knees). I took a few benedril when I got up this morning and didn't think about the 'may cause drowsiness' effect- which proved to completely wipe me all morning. Gonna run when I get up tomorrow though- wish me luck.  Seey'all after day no 11!
[color=redGo back a little to leap further.
John Clarke][/color]

 

[troopersgirl]

THANKS! L2C THANKS!
I'm going for the 2K walk and run tomorrow.  I'll time it and report back.
Kick that 15min threshold girl!

 

[Luvs 2 Curl]

Okay, so 15 mins was a little ambitious.  My time for the 2.4K last week was 20:13.  Last night I did it in 18:59.  Not 15 but still knocked over a minute off my best.  w00t!  At this pace I should break 15 in about a month.  Thinking about buying a session or two with a personal trainer, Jane how has it helped you? I don't have a lot of money so I thought I would wait but I'm thinking I should do it now to make the most out of my workouts.  thoughts?

 

[jacksparrow]

Okay, so 15 mins was a little ambitious.  My time for the 2.4K last week was 20:13.  Last night I did it in 18:59.  Not 15 but still knocked over a minute off my best.  w00t!  At this pace I should break 15 in about a month.  Thinking about buying a session or two with a personal trainer, Jane how has it helped you? I don't have a lot of money so I thought I would wait but I'm thinking I should do it now to make the most out of my workouts.  thoughts?

Was this on the road on a treadmill? I am going to try the track at the school near me this weekend, while my wife times me.

Now at st jean, how is the 2.4km race tested, do we do it in groups? I just thought that might help boost one another

 

[Luvs 2 Curl]

I ran on a treadmill last night.  From what I can find the testing is done indoors in a gymnasium in small groups but I think the whole platoon is there in the gym.  Please, someone correct me if I'm wrong.

I am going to try the track at the school near me this weekend, while my wife times me.

That's a great idea, nice to see your wife helping you out. 

 

[Goose]

Alright guys, sorry I didn't get to post last night- didn't have the time. So what did I do on day no. 11? I ran 3k outside (It's quite hilly, but I didn't time it) and then biked 6k to the gym. Did some abs and legs there, and then biked to and from work. Then, after both jobs I biked the 6k back home. I know it doesn't sound like much, but I'm feeling pretty good for it. I meet with my trainer again tomorrow- yeah, it's expensive, but it's worth every penny. It's amazing what you can/will do when you have someone jabbing you in the ass with a hot poker- when I've done 2 sets and I'm totally exhausted, theirs no way that I would finish another if my trainer wasn't there keeping me accountable. Do cardio on your own so you don't have to pay for training time that you are just spending on the treadmill, you'll be surprised by how much work you can do with just a half-hour when a trainer is urging you on.