Have you heard of interval training?
I’ve always loved to run, and in the past I ran distance and killed enormous hills. When I was living in Roatan, I began running from the marina in Parrot Tree Plantation up the hill to the main road. It was brutal.
On the very first day, I was running up the road with my husband and our delivery crew. We were huffing and puffing, and having to stop periodically. Then this older gentleman came trotting up behind us, and as he blew past us, called out a cheery, “Hey you guys!”
He didn’t sound winded at all.
I ran into him at the video store later, and asked the obvious question.
“WTF?”
He said the secret was “Guerilla Cardio” or interval training. He said that his normal training consisted of 20 minutes of running, and it quickly developed his endurance, so that when he felt like doing a longer run or a hill, it was easy! I zipped home and googled it. I started doing run/sprint intervals around the lagoon, and it worked.
After my pregnancy, I was hobbled for years by plantar fasciitis, I walked as much as I could but running was out of the question.
Here’s what worked for me after my heel pain finally dissipated:
I bought a used treadmill on craigslist and started doing interval training again. I walk for 2 minutes to warm up, run/sprint for 20 minutes and walk for 3 to cool down. I sprint for 30 seconds every minute and a half. I gradually built up the speed of my run/sprint intervals.
I wear a heart rate monitor that calculates the calories I burn based on my age/height/weight. I use the myfitnesspal app to keep track of calories consumed and burned. It’s super helpful because it makes me accountable for everything I eat.
I kickstarted the weight loss with the Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox.
You can download the .pdf file here: 3 Day Detox
It was tough because I had a bit of a caffeine habit, and had to suffer withdrawal headaches for a couple of days. After that I felt great. I dropped 3 pounds and felt super motivated to continue. I kept drinking 2 of the Dr. Oz smoothies and added some regular snacks and a meal, usually lunch.
It was tough because I had a bit of a caffeine habit, and had to suffer withdrawal headaches for a couple of days. After that I felt great. Now I like to do the 3 Day Detox periodically, just because it feels so good.
Since learning about interval training I’ve done several 1/2 marathons, including the SeaWheeze in Vancouver.