Rapid weight loss

A bit of a funny week this has been... But a good one!

When TFR weighed in before the Wimbledon Common Time Trial 5k, he weighed around 100 kg (Saturday 23rd).

His WCTT run performance was dismal. Although he felt great around the whole course, and overtook a few people on each lap, when the clock finally stopped, it was very much the wrong side of 30 minutes... He was at a complete loss to understand why, although a bit of analysis on the Garmin Training Center software showed why. When compared with other (faster) runs around Wimbledon Common, it became clear that the run felt easy because it WAS easy... Basically, he didn't push himself hard enough - his heart rate was a good 5 beats per minute lower for the duration of the run...

So anyway, 100 kg on the Saturday.

Then his weight started to drop throughout the week, so that only 6 days later, he is weighing 3 kg less!!

So what might be the reasons for this?

1) Venom Hyperdrive!!! Actually, no. He hasn't been taking VH for a long time (and never really took it consistently... He has a stressful enough job without adding further anxiety with caffeine pills and other 'metabolic enhancers' in VH

2) Exercise? Well he's done a bit more this week than normally - a 1.5 hour bike ride (around 20 miles) on Monday, and a 30 minute run around Kensington Gardens on Wednesday evening

3) Diet? Not sure - although his lunch has become healthier (the Pret a Manger chicken salad rather than a big toasted sandwich) he has still been having a few drinks in the evening. In fact, yesterday's intake consisted of the salad, 1.5 bags of crisps, a few cans of diet coke, two slices of ryvita with smoked salmon, some shepherd's pie and two glasses of champagne. Not obvious diet food!!

So he's at a bit of a loss to explain why this is happening, but it has given him the motivation to watch what he eats more closely. In fact, he was in the office canteen this morning, where every friday they provide free sausage and bacon baguettes (and they're good!) but he went for the muesli instead.

The good thing is that he'll be hauling around 3kg less in this weekend's Nike 10k race.

Talking of which, I must be going so I can pick up my race pack!
Sun 99.1
Mon 98.6
Tue 98.2
Wed 97.7
Thu 97.3
Fri 97.1

Disappointment and motivation

Just a short post from The Fat Runner today.

>> Disappointment

I did the Wimbledon Common Time Trial on Saturday and came in at a disappointing 30 mins 1 second. There are no excuses - the groud was good, not too warm or too cold, no rain etc. It's simply down to the fact that I'm not training enough.

>> Motivation

So I've decided (perhaps foolhardedly) to enter the Nike Human Race - the 10k race which is hoping to attract 1 million people around the world. In London, the run will be starting off from Wembley and it's planned for 31/8/08.

Looks like I'll need to get serious about this training as I've only got three weeks to go from a slow 5k runner to a slow 10k runner...

Wish I had waited...

I wish I had waited before ordering my Maximum Momentum Sports Team tshirt.

Only a few days after I'd ordered the "Don't feed the animal" tee shirt, they produce a new one which I REALLY want for my slow performances around Wimbledon Common at the Wimbledon Common Time Trial.

Anyway, here it is:



It seems to sum up my running pretty well.

In fact, I would have really liked this tee shirt when I was younger and playing american football. I was a full back - a real power position - which meant I was never as fast as the wide receivers. This would have been a good tee shirt to have!

The Fat Runner becomes the Fat Cyclist

The Fat Runner used to be a cyclist before he was a runner. A childhood spent racing BMX bikes at regional level, and then graduating to a bit of mountain bike racing before deciding to get a road bike (as mountain biking in London can be a little pointless...)

But since he moved out of his house and into a second floor flat, his bike has hardly been used.

That was, until last weekend, when he bit the bullet and decided to give his bike an overhaul (inspired by a conversation he had with a colleague while waiting for a plane to Madrid).

Six hours later (there was quite a bit of work to do) he took his bike down to Richmond Park for a lap. The whole ride was around 20 miles, including the 7 mile lap around Richmond Park which he did in 24 mins 30 seconds. This is quite a way off what he was able to do (around 22 mins 15 seconds) and still short of what is seen as the unofficial target for Richmond Park of 20 minutes.

But he's quite happy - this being the first time he had been out on a bike for over a year. But clearly there is room for improvement!!

He'll be trying to finish work early over the next few weeks to see if he can get any more rides in while the nights are still relatively long.

While the cycling is unlikely to improve his running directly, he's hoping that he will have increased fitness and more weight loss so that his running will at least improve indirectly...

I'll keep you updated on how he does!

T shirts for the Fat Runner

I've just found a T-shirt designer who I think will appeal to The Fat Runner, and indeed to all of the larger runners out there. Check them out at Maximum Momentum Sports Team!

There are only a handful of designs up there at the moment, but there are a couple of good ones which I can imagine running in next time I do the Wimbledon Common Time Trial.

Here's an example:



It seems to be an American company - all of the prices are in dollars, but it doesn't seem to work out too bad for a T-shirt - $20.99 for the shirt and then $10.99 shipping to the UK (I think the US is only $6 or so). So US equals about $27, and UK equals about $32 - or £16...

Anyway, I'm going to buy one of these Maximum Momentum Sports Team tshirts for the Fat Runner and see if he likes it...

Fat Runner back from holidays

Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun sun - as the theme from Red Dwarf states. Also a pretty good description of The Fat Runner's recent holiday!!

Unfortunately he has no photos of where he was running to post here, so he'll just describe it for us in his own words:

"I step outside of the house, set on an island in Scandinavia, and breath in the fresh air - warm from the many hours of sunshine which have been blazing already this morning, and heavily laden with the scents of the nearby fields and forests.

Strapping on my Garmin 305, two quick checks to make sure it has locked on to satellites and to my heart rate monitor, I walk down the gravel track by the side of the old barn and towards the deep blue sea. Once I'm at the boat house, a sharp turn right up to the fence which marks the end of our property, a flick of the 'start' button on my forerunner, and I'm off!

The trees close in a little over the gravel track, but it is still possible to peer through the trees to my left and see a small motor boat humming its way out to sea.

The gravel track merges with the road after about two minutes of running, the trees pull back slightly, and the air feels a little less close.

Now is the time to relax and not push the speed too much - make sure that I have enough in the tank to push harder towards the end.

To the left of me is a steep bank down from the road to the sea and I see some locals getting into their boat at their small pier, almost falling into the sea itself now.

Around a right hand corner, away from the sea and a short and deceptively steep hill. I make sure I slow down even further here, as running up hill stretches the plantar fascia and risks triggering my injury again. But soon I'm past the steep part, and around the next left hand corner is the old school for the island. It is only a few rooms - I think it never had more than about 30 students or so, and closed down over 50 years ago. It's now owned by the local landowners who collectively rent it out to a lady in her seventies. It's also where the traditional midsummer activities are held.

Past the school, and eventually the road plunges downwards and I let my speed pick up naturally with gravity. One of the things I do have is gravity!!

The hill again flattens out, probably about 15 metres or so above the sea. Again, to the left is a very steep bank, covered in pine, spruce and fir trees with the odd house. I'm sure the first one has its own smoker, because the smell of strongly smoked fish comes up towards me - I really need to get my own smoker, as I've been getting better at catching (and filleting) pike this holiday.

But before I know it, the smell has gone, and the only monotonous part of the run starts - I'm about 1.5k in now, and I'm only doing 5k runs.

The few things to look at are the yellows and purples of the roadside flowers which are left to grow virtually unmolested - there is very little traffic which comes down this road. And sometimes peeking out between the flowers you can see the bright red of a wild strawberry - which looks like a normal strawberry in miniature - about the size of a large pea, and as sweet as candy. No time to stop to pick one up though, and I press on.

Once again, the trees give way, this time to farmland which is used to raise cows - dairy cows I think. Only a minute or so and then I reach the fence which marks my turning point.

Back into the trees, past the wild strawberries and the fantastic smoking smell, check the forerunner - could be a good time!

Up past the school, and now downhill back towards the sea - let the speed build up but not too much, and carry it onto the straight. Past the public pier and back down onto the old track. Again check the forerunner - this will definitely be a personal best!

Push for about 90 seconds down the gravel track and get to the fence, stop the forerunner, and yes! A personal best by about 25 seconds!

Quick stretch before walking back up to the house past the barn, and time for a well-earned shower!"

Sounds rather idyllic!

The Fat Runner is dead...

...but still running...

Well that's what his Garmin Forerunner 305 is saying.

Before he bought the Forerunner, he researched a bunch of running forums, including the Runner's World forum to see what other runners were saying about the Forerunner 305.

Most runners seemed to be complementary about its features - fast GPS lock-on to satellites, able to track satellites while running in the woods, virtual trainer feature etc. Many of the negatives seemed to be around two things. Firstly, one of the metal contacts seems to go black, stopping the forerunner connecting to a PC and also stopping it from charging. Secondly, some people felt that the Forerunner battery didn't get close to matching the 10 hours battery life promised in the specification.

TFR decided to take a risk on the first concern, and realised that the second concern would be unlikely to be a concern for him - 10 hours of exercise in one go? He's not The Fat Ironman!!

But TFR has a third issue with the forerunner 305 - and that is the life of the battery in the heart rate monitor chest strap. Garmin promises that it will last 3 years, used 1 hour per day - in other words around 1200 hours. TFR, however, has had to replace the battery three times in two years - and this is running on average (perhaps) a few hours per week. So he's getting at most 100 hours out of a battery.

Hence the title of this post. According the his Forerunner, TFR now has no heart rate...

Does anyone else find the same? Perhaps the strap "switches itself on" even when it's not being worn? I'll contact Garmin to see if they have any idea...