This is the first week where each run wasn't my personal best. Last week's record of 31:52 still holds, but I ran three times this last week and started using a great tool to help with my diet. It's called My Fitness Pal and you can join for free too at www.myfitnesspal.com. My brother, Trent, told me about it. I started using it and have logged my meals ever since. If my soul-less pursuit of financial analysis has taught me one thing, it is that the very act of tracking behavior, improves behavior. Record your life and you'll live one worth recording.
Week 5 - Counting calories
Basketball Events: 1
Running Events: 3
BEST Time:
- Distance: 3.5 miles
- Time: 32:13
- Minutes per Mile: 9:12
Weight: 279 lbs
Let's analyze some data:
This is a graph of all my 1st laps to date. I run a 3.5 mile course, which is a "there-and-back-again" endeavor. I log the lap time there and obviously the final time when I finish. This graph shows that with the exception of 2nd event, which had icy conditions, my 1st lap has been around 15:40 consistently.
This graph is more interesting. It demonstrates the improvement of my cardiovascular strength in the short time I've been running. On the left y-axis we have the total time for each event labeled on the x-axis. In the secondary y-axis we have my 2nd lap times.
Look at how strongly correlated they are. I actually did the regression analysis and the r-squared value is 0.92. So the math proves what is obvious visually. My 2nd lap got better as my cardiovascular endurance improved, and this improvement led to better running times. Eventually the difference between the 1st and 2nd laps will decrease and then I expect to see decreases in my 1st lap.
I should note that the last run of this last week was terrible. It was the worst time yet. I ran it on no food. And I felt it on the second lap. Don't run without eating.
This is insanely complicated for what I view as a relatively easy activity - Run until you are tired--then stop running. But, since I know you, I know that this analysis makes the whole project worth doing! Hey, a better benchmark when you are my age....I have been working out very seriously this last year, probably about 9 or more hours a week. This last year my total cholesterol dropped 23 points, but even more amazing, my high density HDL's nearly doubled and my triglycerides dropped in half! That makes it all worth it.
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