So, remember when I put out a call to all of you asking if I should sign up for a sprint triathlon? Thanks to everyone who gave me some advice (either on the blog or in real life) and even though I had an overwhelmingly larger number of people telling me to “just DO IT!!!” I’ve decided… not to.
Ahem.
My reason? Well… I’ve had something else on my mind lately. Another goal has been percolating around in my head, and I know that if I don’t go with what I want to do in my heart, I’ll end up being miserable for the next 8 weeks. And nobody (least of all me, or Angelo) wants that.
So the first thing I have to do is confess something to you all – and this is difficult for me to fess up to… Remember this picture:
Yeah. Well, it was sixth or seventh in a series of pictures that Angelo took after my run. This particular picture was taken after he told me to “suck in that belly!”. This is what I ACTUALLY look like:
So as you can see, that belly area has a little more ‘push’ than I would like. 
And even though I’ve been really good at doing crunches and other abs exercises as part of my strength training, the muscles are somewhat hidden by a little layer of ‘softness’.
But while I was training for my race, I didn’t want to try to limit my calorie intake or anything like that, because I wanted all the energy I needed to train as well as I could.
Well, now that the 5k training is over, and now that I’ve got some time before 10k training begins, it seems like the perfect time to shrink that waistline! So I’m going to pay particular attention to the snacks and treats I indulge in for the next six weeks, and I’ve decided to do the 30-day Shred by Jillian Michaels. I know that I’d tried it once before with no success (I tend to prefer more positive feedback from video instructors, as opposed to her tough love approach) but I feel that now I’m in the right head-space to get over Jillian’s do-or-die attitude and get what I need out of the workout. I’ve seen this workout work for so many people, and at ~20min a day, I think I can actually fit it into my morning routine. So… Here is my updated training schedule for the next 6 weeks:
Some notes on the plan:
- I gave myself weekends off, as I will still be doing a long run on the weekends.
- I removed all of my weight training workouts during this period. That’s because, while I’m hoping to see big results in my waist, the 30-day Shred is a full-body workout, so I figure it’s covering my weight training needs.
- Wednesdays will be my intense workout days. With tempo runs and intervals, this is my high-octane day. It fits with my natural rhythms, as I’m usually more tired in the beginning and end of the work week.
I will do before, halfway, and after measurements. Look for my before measurements in the next post. What, you want pictures too?? Hmmm… Maybe.
