Plan the plans, not the results

There is a saying in 12-step groups that floats around every once in a while: Plan the plans, not the results. Meaning it's good to be prepared, but you never know what's going to happen.

Lori commented yesterday with this sentence: "Wow, a woman with a plan!"

Do any of us ever begin the march to better health without a plan? Even if it's as simple and vague as 'eating better' or 'getting off my ass more often' – a plan is a plan is a plan.

I just happen to need a little more browbeating structure.

The problem with plans is that they sometimes don't produce the desired results. You've probably noticed in your blog-hopping adventures that some of us can follow a food plan for days, weeks, months on end and then hit a wall. What worked yesterday doesn't make a bit of difference today. [I found that principle holds true with baby care, as well. One day the bouncy seat is very soothing. Next day? AnNOYing! Heh.]

A couple of people who read here have brought up the mind-over-matter principle in the past. It's interesting to me that I totally, totally believed the training program I started last January would produce a finish at the Country Music Half Marathon in April. And it did. I totally, totally believe the current plan will get me across the finish line in Raleigh on November 4. If I do X number of miles each week for the next 13 weeks, I will have the stamina and heart and legs and lungs to complete the task.

I have no doubt.

My experience with food plans, however, is not as cast-in-stone. Food plans work for a while, and then – so the experts say – your body becomes accustomed to what you've been giving it and you have to shake things up a bit. I believe that's how the Wendie Plan evolved, and also is the philosophy behind plans that suggest you take a day or a meal off once in a while, such as Joy Bauer's 90/10 plan.

I have battled my weight almost all my life, and I'm pretty convinced that I'm always going to. Controlling my weight will never be as easy as running 20 miles a week.

Naturally, as long as I keep telling myself that, it will remain my truth.

Clearly we have a bit more work to do in the mind-over-matter department. Transferring my conviction about running plans to food plans isn't really much of a leap. But in my mind, it really is.

Need some help creating your own plan? SparkPeople has some tips.

Before I leave today, if anyone here is running the New York City Half-Marathon tomorrow morning, you're going to be in good – nay, esteemed – company. Haile Gebrselassie will be leading the pack, the first time he's ever run this event. Lynn Zinser writes an inspiring story about him in today's New York Times.

Crunching the numbers

First, today's Daily Candy writes:

P.S. Thanks to all you April Fools who wrote in about Friday's article on WholesomeWear.

Oh, those crazy kids.

Okay. It seems like a lot of you keep track of your accomplishments and progress with spreadsheets. My Mac and I don't have Excel, but we do have an old piece of software called AppleWorks – a suite of programs which includes a spreadsheet. When I bought the Calorie King program I abandoned the two spreadsheets I'd set up last year. Calorie King has a check-in page where you can record your weight, measurements and a journal entry. I've been using the journal entry to keep track of my running miles.

One of my AppleWorks spreadsheets tracked pounds lost, starting January 1, 2006. The other logged miles walked; I started that one May 1 and stopped using both of them October 1. Incidentally, I reached my lowest weight October 1, as well. As of last Tuesday I'm seven pounds heavier than I was six months ago.

Sigh. Moving on!

I downloaded NeoOffice last week, which includes a spreadsheet program. I haven't even launched the program yet, but it's been recommended to Mac users as a nifty office suite, and it's free. I'm all about free! In the meantime, my Mac and I have a little calculator widget that comes in handy when I feel the urge to figure out just how many miles I actually have run lately. I started the half-marathon training January 22, but I started tracking my mileage January 1. So here's how it stacks up, walking and running, for the year:
I'm not surprised that the average minutes per day has stayed the same. I've done very little exercise above and beyond what's recommended on the training schedule. In fact, I skipped four days in March because I was sick, so this month's numbers might have been slightly, but probably not significantly, better had I been able to get those days in.

I'm thrilled that my pace is getting better as time goes by. That's something that feels pretty static to me, but there it is in black and white – I'm now running one minute per mile faster than I was last month.

I need to increase the number of minutes of intentional activity per day in order to lose weight. I keep remembering those two-hour gym sessions, back when I lost weight 10 years ago. The increase in minutes doesn't need to be – and probably shouldn't be – road work. More weight training would be most beneficial all the way around.

My day yesterday ended up being in the car and at the mall – no intentional exercise at all, but it was a scheduled rest day anyway. I accomplished everything I set out to do and got home in plenty of time for the opening pitch at 8 p.m.

I was sound asleep by 8:30. And then, woke up completely at 3:30 a.m., ready to start the day. So here I am. I need to run four miles today and I think I'll make it an interval session. Obviously I have plenty o' time to play around with the dumbells and barbells and weight bench, oh my!

Still no update from Lainey herself, but it's so cool that Shauna was there to see her cross the finish line! I can't wait to hear all the juicy details.

Obviously my little cheerleading from the Middle of Nowhere will not reach Atlanta. But just in case: Go, Bucks!

Twenty-six days until race day.

Friday Quote Day

The important thing is this:
to be able at any moment
to sacrifice what we are
for what we could become.

~ Charles Du Bos

Now there's a deep thought for ya.

I wish I'd had today's quote in my head yesterday. I was supposed to have done one of those "easy" three-mile runs. All I did was walk to the post office and back, which is about half that distance. I guess I was still pretty wiped out from Wednesday. But I had the time and I could have talked myself into it, if I'd been in a more sacrificial frame of mind. I was feeling more indulgent and, frankly, lazy than anything else.

So I think I'll swap today [a rest day] for yesterday, but not try to break any records. Because Saturday will be the longest distance I'll have run so far, if I make it the entire nine miles. These training wizards seem to think tacking another whole mile onto a previous distance is not a great big deal. And I'm not sure what the science is by throwing that easy week in there. Last Saturday? Four miles. Tomorrow? Four-plus-five!

But I want to become someone who not only crosses the starting line, but also crosses the finish line. I have a whole day to change my attitude about running nine miles.

I'll think about it today, when I'm running three. Heh.

Fifty-seven days until race day.

Speed kills drills

My half-marathon training schedule sets Wednesday aside as the day you may unwittingly commit suicide. Each middle-of-the-week run – except last week, which was four "easy" four-milers – has either been a tempo run or speed drills.

A tempo run consists of a one-mile warm-up, a longer distance [three or more miles] at a sustained speed and a one-mile cool-down.

Speed drills include the warm-up and cool-down miles, but the middle distance alternates fast miles with half-mile jogs. It's the interval training idea, but harder. Because even a fast mile, for me, takes 12 minutes and that's a long time to run continuously.

Yesterday I was supposed to do seven miles total, including the first and last non-speed miles. I was supposed to run the miles at an 11:35 pace, with jogs in between. Remember, now, my running speed is a taller person's jogging speed. And remember, too, that I'm a compulsive sort of person with a poor memory. Not only did I have to remember where the mile and half-mile markers were on my route, but I had to try to guess how fast I was going, since I don't have any kind of gear that gives me that information. Like a watch. Heh.

Oh, and I was on a two-mile road, so I thought I'd go ahead and do two round trips. What's an extra mile?

The key concept here is compulsive. I couldn't just do the drill and hope for the best. I had to do the drill better.

You can call me Wonder Woman from now on. I did eight miles in 90 minutes. That's 5.333333333 mph, or an 11:15 pace for the entire eight miles.

And then I pretty much died for the rest of the day.

Denise, thanks for the McCann's information. I really appreciate knowing that it might make it back on my grocer's shelves. Although with two very large tins already shipped from Honeyville, I won't have to think about that for a long time.

Today, being the first of the month, is when I usually post a then-and-now progress photo. There's been no progress, however, although Mr. Shrinking Knitter thinks my body is rearranging itself. I'm going to wait until May to post another photo, and hope for a continued downward trend of the scale until then.

Fifty-eight days until race day.

Treadmill vs. road

Yesterday was a rest/cross-training day, as Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays always are during the 14 weeks of my half-marathon training. I've always done something on Tuesdays and Fridays, because I am not just training for a race; I'm also trying not to be the fattest old lady on the course.

The YOAD strength workout was very easy, incorporating many familiar-to-me moves and convincing me that I'd probably be better off sticking with a couple of weight bench and yoga sessions each week. I need to do more work on flexibility and leg strength.

For the rest of yesterday's workout, I went for a two-mile walk/run. The first mile of my loop is all uphill, and is walking by default. [At one time, long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I was able to run up the first hill. 'Twas in another lifetime.] Naturally it was an easy choice to run downhill all the way home.

Although running downhill has its own set of rules to prevent knee injuries. And you have to be careful not to slip on the gravel.

Anyway, my last road run was probably a month ago, maybe longer. Quelle difference! If I ever wondered which was more effective – the treadmill or the road – I am wondering no more. The road wins, hands down, no question.

It's a good thing I gave myself 14 weeks to train, because I feel like I'm starting over.

Today is another four-mile 'easy' run, and will happen probably in the early afternoon. It rained all night, but the rain is moving out and the temperature should be up to about 50 by the time the roads are dry.

I went to a meeting last night and wore a pair of pants that I was sure would fit snugly. I told Lori how surprised I was that they just slipped right on. Some of you suggested that even though my weight was staying the same, I was probably losing inches. It's certainly true of my waist [thank you, YOAD!], but being able to wear those pants comfortably was a nice surprise.

I also Googled for something like 'losing weight while training for a marathon' and came away further convinced that I'll be maintaining for a couple more months. Cross-training on rest days might help, but probably won't make much of a difference. So if you're stopping by here looking for weight-loss tips, you might want to come back in May. I think the only thing that's going to happen for the next 10 weeks is staying the same, same, same.

Of course, I could be wrong. Heh.

Sixty-six days until race day.

More snow

The ground, roads and driveway are once again covered. I'm officially sick of winter.

Snow in December is fun – you know, the whole white Christmas thing and all. And it's prettier in December, too, because all we've looked at for two or three months is dead leaves.

Snow in February is just tiresome and banal.

Today's oh-so-appropriate for weight-loss bloggers "Quote of the Day" on my Google home page is:

A waist is a terrible thing to mind.
~ Jane Caminos

Three words, Jane: Thanks for sharing!

The doll:

As I said yesterday, this pattern is from one of the little Vogue On the Go baby books. I did the ruffle around the neckline differently. The instructions said to knit a long narrow strip of garter stitch, gather it and sew it on. When I sew, I use one needle and it's usually attached to a machine. Since I'm knitting, I just picked up stitches at the lower edge of the head, then increased in every stitch every other round. A total of five or six rounds was all it took.

Invincible was pretty good, although nowadays rating a movie means how far did I get through the treadmill run before I looked at the mileage? Heh.

It was Rocky Balboa, The Rookie and The Natural but for pro football instead of boxing and baseball. When are they gonna get an old guy trying out for a spot on the Boston Celtics bench? And it was Hoosiers and We Are Marshall for heart and inspiration.

It kept me entertained for eight otherwise-boring treadmill miles. I thought I was supposed to do nine yesterday, but I looked at the wrong week of the schedule.

The first three miles, at 4.5mph, went by really quickly. The remaining 20 laps? Not so much. The first time I looked at how far I'd gone I was on the 12th lap [they're quarter-mile laps]. So maybe the key is to just never look at the digital displays. I'm afraid that would mean I'd have to run blindfolded, and somehow that doesn't seem safe.

I slowed it down and ran the last five between 4.3 and 4.4mph, for a total of eight miles at a 13:75 pace.

Today is a rest day, but I'll probably do a weight-training session and 30 minutes walking or rowing. Next week we pick up the pace slightly and do four easy runs – 13:53 instead of 14:01 – for four miles. There is no long run at all, and no speed drills.

I'm thinking about the next race, after the Country Music Half in April. There are half-marathons in Virginia Beach Labor Day weekend, and in Huntington, WV, in November. It'll be one or the other, because they're too close together to do both. Unless, of course, I end up hating running races.

I'm not hating the training, though. It's good discipline and puts a focus on my workouts that is more than just losing weight.

Gettin' strong now ... won't be long now.

Sixty-nine days until race day.

Bonus weekend quote

Losers are people
who are so afraid
of not winning,
they don't even try.

Grandpa

If one must use a treadmill to do a long training run, it's good to have visual entertainment at hand, so you don't have to think about the remaining miles. It's so interesting to me that I can do a long run outside with music, but inside it's nearly impossible. Of course outside the visuals are constantly changing and evolving, from day to day and season to season. Slow-motion entertainment, if you will.

Yesterday I watched Little Miss Sunshine – an hour and 44 minutes, which left me just the last eight minutes of my 112-minute session to get through on my own. Which I did! Eight miles in 112 minutes = 14 minutes per mile. That's one second faster than the schedule dictated, but who's counting?

When I ordered the Pay-Per-View movie, I happened to choose one which allowed me to view it all day, so Mr. Shrinking Knitter and watched it again together last night. And I didn't even knit. It's that good.

One suggestion if you want your boyfriend or husband to watch it with you without complaint: Don't mention that it involves a children's beauty pageant. Instant sneer from Mr. SK when I said that. I had to quickly say how darkly funny it was; throwing Alan Arkin's name [playing the Grandpa role] into the conversation also helped.

And to the men who stop by here – pay no attention to the beauty pageant aspect of the story. It's just another vehicle, along with the VW bus, to get the family from Arizona to California.

I found that after the run yesterday I was able to participate in normal daily activities, such as Scrabble, fixing meals and cleaning the floor. The first time I went a long distance I slept for the remainder of the day. I guess this is what training is all about – your body adapts to the demands you place on it.

I wasn't an athletic child, preferring sedentary and creative activities like drawing, painting, reading and talking on the phone. I played on a girls' softball team for two years in junior high, during which we never won even one game. I wasn't the cheerleader type.

When I lost a lot of weight several years ago, my 'training' was just hours of aerobic and strengthening exercises performed in a gym in a rather haphazard way. The goal was to get rid of as much weight as I could, as quickly as possible. I had to start slowly, since I was in terrible physical shape, but once I lost about half of the weight I needed to lose, I could and did spend an inordinate amount of time both in the gym and running to and from the gym.

I rather like the way this race training is making me focus on improving my endurance, strength and speed with a different goal in mind. I do have to plan my life around it, to a certain extent, to make sure I get it all done and am able to rest properly for the next session. But it doesn't feel like I'm a slave to it. I just matter-of-factly get it done and move on to the next thing on my list.

Seventy-six days until race day.

Once again …

I can't think of a relevant title for a post.

Yesterday I actually got to go to town. Twice! I went to the grocery after I worked out [30 minutes rowing machine, 10 minutes weight training] and then Mr. Shrinking Knitter and I took his mother out for dinner [Chinese] for her birthday. Since I hadn't eaten much all day, I probably overindulged at the buffet, but since y'all are telling me to shake those calories up, I figured I was just following orders.

Heh.

Today is a long-run day on the half-marathon training schedule. So far the long runs have been seven miles; today I increase it to eight. But what's another mile? I kind of feel like Lainey, also in training for a half-marathon, who recently said: "4 miles sounds so easy! That feels good to think that. Weird, but good."

I would, of course, be much happier if I were going to be running eight miles outside. It is currently 10, um TEN degrees here in the Middle of Nowhere, and it feels like 0, um ZERO. So I'll be treadmilling today for Eight. F-ing. Miles.

Don't you feel sorry for me? I've been pretty lucky so far finding movies that have started and ended the same time I do, and I'm heading over to the DirecTV website to see what's on this morning. I might even spring for Pay-Per-View.

Because I'm worth it.

Seventy-seven days until race day.