Sunday, April 9, 2017

Fitness after 50. Running Plan for Beginners

This is my series about fitness.  I am certainly no expert.  Posts will be about what's working for me.  There will definitely be running plans, flexibility, and basic weight lifting.  You can also expect nutrition ideas, recipes, and, well, probably lots maybe a little bit of whining.  ;-)  I hope I have the courage to tell you about the failures.

  If you'd like to read the premise for my journey, that's right here:

Rest and Heal
Week 1. Book Review

As I progressed though, these posts were written.

Week 2. Plan for Stair Climbing
Week 3. Basic Workout from a Personal Trainer
Week 4. Weight Loss Challenge
Week 5. Breakfast Recipe
Week 6. Walking Strategy  
Week 7. Meal Planning and a Giveaway
Week 8. Struggling with Two Setbacks
Week 9. Packing Lunch  

Being on vacation bumped my weekly schedule.

Positive Snowball
Positivity is Contagious

I hope you've enjoyed all the posts from my co-worker, Jay.  He is such a great person!  This week, though, I wanted to let you know what I've been doing!  The weight loss challenge from Week 4 ended on March 31.  I lost 7 pounds or 3.9% of body weight which put me in Third Place in the group!  Woot woot!  I was pleased with my loss and very grateful to have the support of that group!

My co-worker, Deana, invited me to join join her in a free 10 week running clinic thru Women Run Arkansas .

"The mission of the WRA is to address the special needs of women's fitness, while promoting health and fitness through running and walking."

It's been super helpful on my journey back to fitness!  I'm guessing there are about 50 or so of us participating in our city.  Four beginner groups are offered depending on whether you prefer to walk or run.  I chose Beginning Runner Group A - Your goal is to train to run/walk up to 3.1 miles. You are not running any and want to complete a 5K.

Here's how the plan has worked for my group.

Week 1.  
Warm Up 5 Minutes.
Walk 4 Minutes.  Run 1 Minute.  Repeat 6 times.

Week 2 and 3. 
Warm Up 5 Minutes.
Walk 3 Minutes.  Run 2 Minutes.  Repeat 6 times.

Week 4.
Warm Up 5 Minutes.
Run 4 Minutes.  Walk 1 Minute.  Repeat 6 times.

I love my group!  Everyone is very supportive and there's really no pressure.  Let's face it.  Some weeks are more difficult than others!  I'm really hoping I can participate in another Mud Run or two this year!

April 2016  Warrior Dash  Tulsa, Oklahoma

Here's a pic from last year's warrior dash.  That's me on the right.  Yeah!  We're jumping over fire!  I want to do that again!

;-)  -Marci

14 comments:

  1. Running together makes a huge difference! :) Go group fitness!

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  2. I don't like running, probably because when I was running one time a fly flew in my mouth. But I do agree excercise is so important for all of us and we just need to find what works for each one of us.

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  3. Having fun with others must make this so a breeze and rewarding too. Great ideas!

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  4. Great job on the 7 lb loss! Even a small amount can make all the difference in the world.

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  5. I don't like running. . .but if I could run with your group, I'll bet it would be lots of fun! Fitness after 50 is a little harder to achieve, but really important, isn't it?

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  6. I used to run lots of miles, but my knees for bad so i'm just riding my bike now.Thanks for the inspiration post. Excerciseis very important when you are getting older.
    Maria

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  7. I'm on an exercise regimen too, and I feel so much better! Running is not my thing, but I applaud you for doing it. Whine a little, I always say. Well, let's rephrase that...gotta whine a little or it's not real.

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  8. Wow, jumping over a fire is impressive. Glad you are enjoying your training program! :)

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  9. WOW! You go girl, you hot foot! Wish I had someone to exercise with. Thank you Marci for attending the #WednesdayAIMLinkParty. I shared your post on Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, and Twitter.

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  10. I am so impressed. Fire? Awesome! I have to start walking again as soon as the pollen disappears. No fire though! ;)

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  11. We have a friend who did this clinic and became a dedicated runner. I don't know that I'll ever work up to running but I admire those of you who do. Congratulations on your successes.

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  12. Oh wow you are brave to jump over the fire. I would have been really scared I would trip or something silly like that. I love running and can not wait to get my miles up again :) Thanks for sharing at The Weekend blog hop.

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  13. I am a walker, not a runner, but I have always wanted to learn to run. Thank you for sharing your running plan for beginners with us at the Healthy Happy Green and Natural Party Blog Hop. I'm pinning and sharing.

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  14. Running in a group makes a huge difference I'm sure - and the fire would help too! Thanks for sharing with #PoCoLo

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