Topic: Couch to 5K Accountability Thread (Read 71680 times)

Redball · « **Reply #250 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 07:03 »

Quote from: Barmymoo on 23 Jun 2012, 02:21

Decided on a new post because it's unrelated to the previous one.

I'm taking a week off from the programme, because a) my headphones don't work, and I'm finding it hard to run by time alone, b) I'm really busy this week and trying to find time to run is stressing me out, and c) my weight-loss has plateaued, and sometimes stopping exercising and then starting again can kick-start the metabolism again. I might go for a run a couple of times just for the sake of it, but I'll restart week 5 when I get back next Friday from my mum's. There's nowhere to run at hers anyway, she lives on a steep hill full of cow-mucky, windy narrow roads with tractors lurking behind every bend.

I'll update if I go on any random runs. I sort of want to go today, so I'll see how I feel later.

Steep hill = great path for power walks. I read your post at 6 a.m. But I couldn't find my wallet (what if I collapse on the street in a strange town, hey?). Couldn't find my iPhone (although I could have used my wristwatch; W5R3 is pretty simple). I finally found everything and decided to go, worried a little about getting too far out in front of my international pack as to discourage. So walk as you can during the week. And hope to hear from you -- and the rest, too!

Carl-E · « **Reply #251 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 08:10 »

Wires should be coiled, not wrapped around something with corners. It's the repeated sharp bends under tension that destroys them, the finer the wire, the quicker the damage. If you always wrap the same way, you just keep bending them back and forth in the same places. Not to mention the act of wrapping puts the wires under tension around those corners...

I've had earbuds that came with spools before, but they always bend somewhere, and do nothing for the wrapping tension problem.

I can't tell you how many computer charging cords I've spliced becauses of wrapping around the charger...

Omega Entity · « **Reply #252 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 10:38 »

Quote from: Barmymoo on 23 Jun 2012, 02:14

Hmm. So possibly the guy is right in refusing the return? How should I store the wires to avoid them being damaged, but also avoid them being tangled?

A few times of it won't kill them - it's repeatedly doing so over time that does it. The headphones sound like they're junk.

Proper storage would be how you find them when you first open the package, secured with a rubber band of twist tie, like so:

Barmymoo · « **Reply #253 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 10:41 »

My MP3 player doesn't have corners, it's got rounded edges. Obviously they're still sort of cornery, but certainly not sharp. I'll get new headphones and store them more carefully.

Omega Entity · « **Reply #254 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 10:49 »

It's not so much how the corners are, though, it's the repeated pulling against the object itself, and the strain on the cord being often in the same places, if you wrap it the same way every time. When you wrap it around something, you pull it tight against the thing, and that's what causes the wire fatigue.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #255 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 10:58 »

That makes a lot of sense, thanks. I'm still not convinced that the headphones weren't just a bit rubbish, because they were cutting out almost instantly, but I will not bother pursuing a claim against the seller.

Omega Entity · « **Reply #256 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 11:35 »

Oh, no. I said that the headphones sounded like junk - if they don't hold up for even that short a time, I hardly think it's your fault. It can take a while for the wires to break down, and a week or two isn't going to do it. I'd still go after the seller for selling a sub-par product.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #257 on:** 23 Jun 2012, 15:31 »

Yo, just back from week 4 day 1, after 3 days off with excuses of varying quality (heat advisory, left my phone at work, decided to get drunk and eat pizza instead) and it went... okay. We lost a minute or two around the end of the first walk when we stopped to meet a little pit bull, but I went back and restarted the second run, and I had to take about 30 seconds and walk during the middle of the last run, but overall it was okay. We went 2.23mi at 14:10 min/mi, which I think is my best time and distance so far. We actually had to go past the house and double back to finish the time, which the dog did not think was cool.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #258 on:** 24 Jun 2012, 01:15 »

The ebay seller has agreed to send me new headphones if I return the broken ones, which is good. I'll be very careful with the wires, and if they break again I'll know it wasn't me this time!

Carl-E · « **Reply #259 on:** 24 Jun 2012, 09:50 »

Quote from: bainidhe_dub on 23 Jun 2012, 15:31

We lost a minute or two around the end of the first walk when we stopped to meet a little pit bull...

See, this would be my whole problem. And not just the dogs, but the neighbors and kids, whether I ran with the dogs or not.

In other news, my leg is (slowly) healing. I was in KC MO last week grading AP exams, and having forgotten something I jogged from the hotel to the rehearsal room (about a block and a half) with no ill effects from the shock, and walked all over the damned convention center with minimal soreness showing up in the evenings. I've actually been more sore since I got home, but I think it's all the stairs...

But they feed us so well I've put on nearly 5 pounds... Dammit,dammit, DAMMIT!

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #260 on:** 24 Jun 2012, 10:01 »

Patrick has been unpredictable around small kids so we generally give people space - plus enough people seem nervous of a 100-lb german shepherd, no point in upsetting anyone who's scared of dogs. But if there are dogs out that seem calm and the owners are ok with it, I don't mind stopping for a minute to let them do the whole butt-sniffing thing.

Akima · « **Reply #261 on:** 24 Jun 2012, 16:42 »

Quote from: Skewbrow on 18 May 2012, 11:06

I use sports-tracker. Requires (?) a smartphone (or whatnot) with a GPS-receiver. You can upload your exercises to your account on the site, review the workouts on google maps, share them with your facebook friends and all that. If you are of the techie type, you can also collect data from a compatible heart rate monitor.

Somebody very nice bought me a Garmin Edge 200 GPS cycle-computer for my birthday, and I've been messing around with the "free" Garmin Connect web-based tracking tool. It has the usual tracking, analysis and sharing tools. The biggest drawback is that it is strictly proprietary, and only works with Garmin devices.

It is nice that the Edge stores my rides (supposedly it can store up to 130 hours-worth before the memory fills up) automatically and allows me to upload my data once a week instead of keeping notes by hand and manually updating a spreadsheet. It is also nice that it has one rechargeable battery, instead of the three annoyingly short-lived and unreliable "coin" cells that my old wireless set-up needed for the computer and its sensors. I can live without the missing features of Garmin's more expensive comps; a cadence sensor would be nice, but I've never used a heart-rate monitor, power-meter etc.

Don't expect me to share my rides on Facebook though. I won't have anything to do with Suckerborg's mothership. Hmm... Maybe I should have posted this on the cycling thread instead?

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #262 on:** 25 Jun 2012, 17:28 »

I just did week 4 day 2, went 2.36 mi at 13:21 min/mi. I feel like - I dunno - a ninja or something! An awesome, butt-kicking, disgusting, sweaty ninja. I'm gonna go shower now.

Oh yeah I remember the other reason I don't want to run in the morning. I don't like to shower in the morning, and I definitely need a shower after running.

Redball · « **Reply #263 on:** 25 Jun 2012, 17:38 »

Did W6D1 this morning, about 7:30, temp about 60. It didn't get past the mid-70s here today. But I'm nowhere near ready to run at 80 or above. And since I'm retired, showering isn't an immediate necessity for me.
I learned 15-20 years ago that I could run in hot weather, but it was training for and during an upstate Michigan relay race in mid-July. So if running becomes a daily or near daily routine again, I might take the heat more in stride.
Keep up the good work! Brag a little!

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #264 on:** 25 Jun 2012, 18:10 »

Oh yeah it was breezy and cooler today too, I can't find any sites that will tell me what the weather was just what they think it's going to be, but it's 72 now. I don't doubt that helped. I don't know if I'll be able to run much next week though... We're doing fireworks in Shepherdstown, WV from Friday to Sunday, Suffolk, VA from Tuesday to Thursday, and Fulton, MD Friday and Saturday. And temperatures will be back in the high 90's! Oh boy!

Redball · « **Reply #265 on:** 25 Jun 2012, 19:02 »

Doing = producing the display?
Check this site for local weather reporting: http://www.wunderground.com. Enter the city and state. Go to the bottom of the page that opens, and it should show you local weather stations. Choose one that looks like a familiar neighborhood or intersection or community. At the bottom of that page, it should show you the temperatures recorded during the day.
My station, for example, is here: http://classic.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KMIREADI2

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #266 on:** 26 Jun 2012, 05:07 »

That is pretty cool. I looked at Weather Underground but I guess I was on a different page because it only had a couple readings for the day. This is the one closest to me: http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KMDGERMA9

Quote from: Redball on 25 Jun 2012, 19:02

Doing = producing the display?

Yep! Building, shooting, and breaking down the shows. So it's not so much a matter of finding a time or place to run, as whether I'll have any energy left.

Redball · « **Reply #267 on:** 26 Jun 2012, 05:34 »

At the bottom of the page you linked to is tabular data since midnight, updated every 5 minutes. Above that, you can change the date and review 24 hours of data, updated at the same intervals.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #268 on:** 26 Jun 2012, 08:00 »

Yeah I was looking at this page, which looks like a general city report instead of a specific station, and it doesn't have any temp readings after 2:15pm.

Redball · « **Reply #269 on:** 26 Jun 2012, 08:08 »

Surprising since it looks like an airport station. But it happens, including sometimes to my $200 weather station. Then you look for data from the next nearest.

Redball · « **Reply #270 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 05:11 »

W6D2: This is getting serious! And today was the last of 60-ish morning temps for at least a week.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #271 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 05:13 »

So it is... It's actually the little airport next to my husband's warehouse, which is a 10 mile drive from our house (about 6 miles directly) and technically in a different city. And has really sketchy temperature readings.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #272 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 11:51 »

Still no running, but I went to the zoo today and we walked a good deal - a woman I spoke to was wearing a pedometer and had walked 3.3 miles. We went round the entire zoo and did a lot of doubling back, so I'm assuming we did a similar distance.

They're actually doing a 5k run on September 29th, which I would love to enter. The problem is that I think I need to back at uni that day, and it's hundreds of miles away from uni. So I will keep it in mind and look into it nearer the time. You can sign up until midday the day before so no hurry!

Tomorrow night I'm going to a Zumba class with my mum, which will also help me keep up fitness this week.

Skewbrow · « **Reply #273 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 11:57 »

I continue to be somewhat constrained by my assorted aches. Anyway, adding another orienteering course (I mostly walked) and 25K on my bike. I commuted to and fro. That counts, right?

nobo · « **Reply #274 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 12:48 »

I ran an actual 5k this past weekend, and it sucked. My wife called on Friday to see if I was interested in running on Sunday. My runs had been suffering recently due to the heat where I could not manage more than 15 minutes at a time before giving up. I ended up doing fairly well in this race, but it was a struggle the whole time. Looks like I have to work on my endurance some more.

Here is a blurry pic of me getting close to the finish.

.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #275 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 14:41 »

I've discovered that there is a group in Cambridge that runs 5k every Saturday morning, and it's free to join in. I'm considering going in the autumn, by which point hopefully I'll have reached 5k and be running that distance reasonably regularly. I've also found a 10k run in early October, but I'm not sure whether I'll be up to it or not. I'll see how the summer goes.

The more I think about the weekly runs, the more I like the idea. It would be a nice way to keep fit, meet new people who aren't students, and get going on Saturday mornings. I'll be a little lonely next year because most of my friends are graduating this weekend (of the ten people I spend the most time with, seven of them are leaving).

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #276 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 17:21 »

I came home from my run to find an invitation on Facebook to do a 5K in September with some girls from the area who are just starting the program. The run was good except for the part where the dog suddenly decided, about 50 feet from the house, to take a shit in the middle of the sidewalk. I stuck him in the backyard in case he decided he wasn't done yet and went back to clean it up. I was Not Amused. Patrick did Not get any ice cubes tonight (his usual treat after a run).
Week 4 Day 3 - 2.28 miles, 13:50 min/mi, 83 degrees.

Redball · « **Reply #277 on:** 27 Jun 2012, 18:46 »

I don't know of any 5k groups in my rural part of Michigan, although there might be one in the nearest town, Hillsdale. But if I'm comfortable with 5k, I may run, say, 2 miles more days than not, which I was doing before I retired.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #278 on:** 29 Jun 2012, 19:06 »

I did Week 5 Day 1 tonight in the hotel gym. I go much slower on the treadmill apparently, I went less than 2 miles. We got to the setup at 9am, and worked until about 1:30pm. The heat index was something like 115F, but after dinner I was feeling good and went down to run. For the last 20 minutes or so now we've been getting hit with the severe thunderstorms that came across Ohio this afternoon, the parking lot lights went out, and what sounds like a tornado siren has come on and off twice. Should be super fun to see how much water is inside our fireworks tubes tomorrow...

Redball · « **Reply #279 on:** 29 Jun 2012, 19:24 »

Those are empty tubes, I assume, so I don't have to imagine the sight and sound of igniting damp powder and oxides. I'm sure I'll end up on a treadmill sometime this summer. I have a hard time with extended work on a treadmill. 15 minutes is my usual maximum. I think I managed 20 minutes once. At the same time, with a little forbearance, I can use the iPad for a movie or the iPhone for an NPR podcast. It all sounds slightly forboring.

Carl-E · « **Reply #280 on:** 29 Jun 2012, 23:52 »

Quote from: Redball on 29 Jun 2012, 19:24

It all sounds slightly forboring.

Forboding + boring, or a typo?

Redball · « **Reply #281 on:** 30 Jun 2012, 03:16 »

[bad(bad pun)] No TV in front of those treadmills, and the personal entertainment doesn't quite cut it.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #282 on:** 30 Jun 2012, 04:19 »

Quote from: Redball on 29 Jun 2012, 19:24

Those are empty tubes, I assume, so I don't have to imagine the sight and sound of igniting damp powder and oxides.

Yeah, we're dropping shells today. We built all the racks yesterday, then tipped them on their sides or upsidedown so they wouldn't fill up with any rain, and somebody was supposed to put tarps over the finale, but that never got confirmed. But the way it was raining sideways last night, plus the fact that some of the racks were tipped uphill, we'll have to see... Fun fact about black powder, though - it won't fire when wet, but it's all ready to go once it's dry again.

Redball · « **Reply #283 on:** 30 Jun 2012, 04:55 »

So do you have a very careful way to dry powder? All I've known about gunpowder was learned in series of historical novels: Flashman, Aubrey-Maturin, Hornblower. And I don't remember much of it. One of the funniest moments in the 20 Aubrey-Maturin stories (Master and Commander was the movie) was when Aubrey's ship went into battle with gunpowder intended for celebrations. The dazzling colors during the battle stupefied captains and crew, friend and foe.

OT: I thought I was funny when a friend would announce she was going to the powder room. "Keep your powder dry." It never got a laugh. Hmmm.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #284 on:** 30 Jun 2012, 11:20 »

Basically, yeah. If a shell doesn't go off, and for whatever reason you can't just attach a new fuse and try again, you have to use a special pin (it looks like an eye bolt without threads, but it's made of a metal that won't cause sparks & set the thing off in your hand) to puncture the charges, and then soak the shell so the powder all gets wet and goes into the water.
If a shell goes into a tube with an inch or two of water at the bottom, there's a chance it will soak into the lift charge (see diagram, we use shells like on the right) and when the fuse is lit, the shell will not get to full height before the effects charge goes off, aka a low break. I guess it could also maybe weaken the paper-tape cone that attaches the lift charge to the effect, and they could separate. If the shell goes off inside the tube that is a Bad Thing and can destroy the entire tube and several around it. Here's my husband with a 5" tube that had the shell go off in it, from a show two years ago. Fortunately that was on a barge so it was electronically fired, so nobody was close when it happened.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #285 on:** 01 Jul 2012, 09:44 »

Update - good show, good strike, might go running this evening when it cools off. I need to get new steeltoe shoes today, my old ones finally died on Friday so I had to wear my running shoes and a spark burned a hole in one of them, and I'm really not interested in risking more burns for the 2 more shows we have this week.

Redball · « **Reply #286 on:** 02 Jul 2012, 05:29 »

Stay safe!
My big toes poke holes through my shoes, but I gather that's fairly common.

Week 7 Day 1 today and a reminder that 25 minutes is not 3 x 8 minutes. It's not 3x harder to run; it's easier.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #287 on:** 02 Jul 2012, 15:16 »

I repeated week five day one yesterday morning. I was going to do day two tomorrow but I think I'll be too tired, we're recording 10am-10pm and I need to be awake for all of that. So I'll maybe wait until Thursday when I have less choir.

Redball · « **Reply #288 on:** 02 Jul 2012, 17:57 »

10 to 10! Exhausting! I have mixed memories of making recordings: pleasure, frustration. It helps to like the result.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #289 on:** 03 Jul 2012, 01:39 »

Well, I went running anyway! I woke up at ten to eight with no hope of getting back to sleep. We will have time off 1-3 and 6-7 for meals, so maybe I'll have a short nap (although I have elaborate plans for cooking curry which might take up that lunchtime slot).

Barmymoo · « **Reply #290 on:** 05 Jul 2012, 01:32 »

Hoof. Week five day three finished! I also discovered that running for twenty minutes takes me no further than for 16 with five minutes' walk. Actually it took me less far, but I think I started running sooner than on other days (I normally don't start the five minute warm-up walk until I've left the college grounds). I think it's a mental barrier for me that is the problem, rather than any physical issue - I slow down because I think about the fact that I'll be able to stop in x number of minutes, and then I can't get myself to speed up except for the last two minutes.

Redball · « **Reply #291 on:** 06 Jul 2012, 08:35 »

W7D2 in 72F and 95% humidity after dithering between running on my road or going to the fitness center and running on a treadmill, which I've resisted. The outdoor run wasn't bad, even though it was clearly warmer than 72 once I got out in the morning sun -- it's headed into the low 100s today. My heart and lungs seem OK with the effort so far, and the legs can push my 180 pounds. But they're not lifting me very far, and that's something I should probably work on, with squats at home and similar moves on machines. Now that I see I can jog 25 minutes, I'm thinking of some of the mountain hiking my wife and I did in the 80s in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I'd love to be able to do that when my grandkids are ready for it. But that's serious lifting: 25 pounds on the back, a maximum climb of 3,500 feet vertical in 3.5 miles. Doesn't sound like a lot, but it wasn't easy when I was in much better shape. Those posting on the spreadsheet, there are easter eggs -- plural. If you post, you might add. Just be sure they're hard-boiled.

Skewbrow · « **Reply #292 on:** 06 Jul 2012, 14:36 »

Repeating last weeks plan of a single orienteering course and 30+k on my bike. I expect to add to those numbers in weeks to come. Feeling much better - even though my choice of underwear today was not right for riding a bike :-/

Akima · « **Reply #293 on:** 08 Jul 2012, 18:30 »

Quote from: Skewbrow on 06 Jul 2012, 14:36

my choice of underwear today was not right for riding a bike :-/

I strongly recommend cycling shorts and no underwear at all to avoid chafing. You can always wear baggies over the cycling shorts if you are shy.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #294 on:** 10 Jul 2012, 00:17 »

I was planning on starting week six before I left (I go in three hours) but just discovered that I am meant to be out of my room in an hour, so I can't. Looked up the weather forecast - Boston is currently warmer than where I am now, and it is 3am there. I am potentially not going to be able to run during the choir tour, because I won't be able to be up early enough to miss the heat - hopefully once I get to Eed's, I'll have more control over what time I get to bed, and therefore can get up at 5am or something to try and find some cool weather.

Redball · « **Reply #295 on:** 10 Jul 2012, 03:28 »

It's 6:30, the temp here is about 18C and I'm about to run. The temp in Fort Wayne is 17C. I think you can get used to running at temps in the 20s, though. Youth helps, but I was able to run in the high 20s as I reached 60, although I only did that as part of a team, and briefly.

Barmymoo · « **Reply #296 on:** 12 Jul 2012, 06:11 »

I'm kicking myself because the hotel we stayed in had a gym, but I didn't find that out until I was showered and dressed - I had been lying silently in bed waiting for the other girls in my room to wake, so I could have gone and run there. But I have decided to accept that I won't be able to run much on tour, and start up again at Edith's.

Redball · « **Reply #297 on:** 12 Jul 2012, 06:21 »

Maybe you'll be able to walk a lot.

Discrepancies, discrepancies:

1) I did Week 8 Day 2 today, which didn't match my spreadsheet entries. I checked the iPhone app, which shows dates of each run. I hadn't logged runs on the spreadsheet.

2) My app says my last run is Week 8, Day 3, which is 3mi/30min. But a C25K website says Week 9, three days of 3mi/30min, is the last. Doesn't matter to me.

bainidhe_dub · « **Reply #298 on:** 13 Jul 2012, 20:39 »

I did week 5 day 3 today, a 20 minute run, with only a short walking break around the 12:00 mark to try & fix my hair clip, because the first time I tried I kept running and it really didn't last. My husband has been out of town so I ended up going out to run at 9pm yesterday and today, and I think I prefer it. It's marginally cooler (this week was better than last week anyway) and there aren't so many people out to deal with. And I'm not really concerned about safety because my running partner is a 100lb German Shepherd. People tend to give us space.

Redball · « **Reply #299 on:** 14 Jul 2012, 06:10 »

I guess I finished C25K this morning: W8D3, 30 minutes.

But 5K? Not even close: More like 3 1/2K. I don't feel too bad about that, considering age. My heart rate was 115-125, my cardiologist will probably be pleased, and I'll start using a GPS app to track speed and distance as well as time. The C25K app I used didn't use GPS. I did track it today. My total distance, warmup and cooldown included, was about 2.9 miles, max speed was 5.8mph.

Years ago, I used to do 9-minute miles. A 10-minute/mile speed would give me 5k in 30 minutes.

I intend to keep posting in the thread, hoping it'll keep me on course.

Thanks for the participation and interest. I'm not sure I would have tried this if May hadn't asked for support, if we hadn't started the thread, if you hadn't signed on.

I'm not ready to add a dog to my household, but running with a four-legged friend sounds like a pleasure. As for time of day, I'd run at night if that was the only time available, but it was about 68F/20C when I started out at 8 a.m. today, and it's likely to be 80 at 9 p.m. Clara and I prepping for an event in the late 90s would drive into an Indiana park late in the evening, running in the dark on a paved road we could hardly see. It's a good memory.

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Author Topic: Couch to 5K Accountability Thread (Read 71680 times)