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What to do on the days I don't run?

Biblio — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:59:48 -0800

Doing Couch to 5k 3 days a week...what should I do the other 4? I started C25k a few weeks ago. It took me 2 weeks to get through week 1, but I started week 2 yesterday and passed with flying colors. I really like the way running feels, but I know you shouldn't do it every day. So I am looking for suggestions of other workouts to do on my non-running days.

Some details: I'm a 36 year old woman. I am 5'4" and 196 lbs. My goal is to lose 40 lbs in a sensible fashion. I don't currently belong to a gym, though I may join the Y in the fall. I have a treadmill, a Wii Fit and some yoga DVDs. I want to do something that will improve my overall fitness and help me on my runs...I'm just not sure what will give me the best result.

So I've mastered Sitonmyassana

Eudaimonia — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 10:57:42 -0800

I'm losing the stress with yoga, but how to lose the pounds, too? Similar to this thread, I’m wondering if my Ashtanga yoga practice is enough to get healthy and lose weight (I’m 5’4’’, around 160ish – I’ve lost almost 15 pounds since the beginning of the year with Weight Watchers and moderate exercise, but have hit a solid plateau for the last few weeks. I need the scale to MOVE. Yes I know that weight isn’t everything, I feel better, look better too, but 160ish is still too heavy and I would like to get healthy.)

Reasons I’m not a fan of “traditional” forms of cardio: gym membership + yoga membership is COSTLY, especially to someone unemployed and fresh out of grad school. I tried to do C25K and start a running program, but I have bad knees and am in pain for a good 2 days afterwards, at least (yes, I have special running shoes purchased from a specialty store, and I stretch a lot). Kind of a Catch-22 as I get the feeling that once I lose more weight I can run again with less pain (less stress on the joints?). Plus running seems to counteract the effects of my yoga practice and I’m pretty devoted to my yoga as it feels like I’m actually learning something, and its keeping me sane while I search for a job.

I’m going to yoga 3-5x times a week and although my heart is racing for a good part of class, I don’t know if its enough cardio. Will hot yoga (Baptiste or Bikram) be useful cardio alternatives? I’m never sure that the kind of elevated heart rate you get from being active in a hot environment is the same kind of elevated heart rate you get when you’re engaged in something like jogging or interval training. Basically, are all forms of cardio equal?

And if any of you have managed to lose weight with yoga, how did you do it? If you think I should just suck it up and try out running again, what is an appropriate way to incorporate both yoga and running without overdoing it or hurting myself?

Will my heart explode?

bonheur — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 09:26:10 -0800

When I jog, my heart rate goes to 195 beats per minute. Is that bad? I've recently started jogging, following the couch to 5k program. I've led a moderately active life thus far, but I've never been an athlete and I'm about 30 lbs overweight. I bought a heart rate monitor and wore it during my last run. I was surprised to see some very high numbers on the monitor. My resting heart rate (HR) is 65. I thought my max was 185. Brisk walking brought my heart up to about 140, and when I started to jog (slowly!) the monitor hit 195! I can jog for about three minutes at that level before I have to walk again.

I'm definitely huffing and puffing and sweating and red in the face at that level, but I don't feel like I'm going to barf or die. Now, here's my question: According to the materials that came with my monitor, I should be training in the 65-85% zone. Does this mean I can't run at this fitness level and should just be walking? Am I harming myself in some way by pushing my body and heart too hard during exercise? How long will it typically take for my heart to adjust to the strain of running and slow down a bit? Tips, thoughts, experiences all welcome. Thanks!

Too heavy for Couch to 5k?

aebaxter — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 17:35:15 -0800

I just had a doctor tell me I'm too heavy to run the Couch to 5k program. Is this really true? I'm 25/F, 5'6, 240 lbs with a sedentary job and no exercise routine to speak of for the past 6 years. About 3 weeks ago, I decided I was fed up and I started the Couch to 5k program at home on a treadmill. I made it through week 3 feeling great, still motivated and really enjoying the challenge. I was also doing lighter walk/runs and weights on the in between days of the program.

In order to work out with a friend, I started running outside at the track. Within 2 workouts running outdoors, I started having crippling pain in my knees. Worried I'd injured myself, I went to an osteopathic doctor. She told me that I was "100 lbs too heavy to be running" and that it was an unacceptable form of exercise for me. She said that "all the extra weight had pounded my knees into a severe sprain." She told me to stop eating too much (without even asking about my diet habits, but oh well) and to stop exercising period until my knees healed, and then to only do low-impact exercise.

I agree that my knees are injured (obviously, the pain tells me that), but is it really that I'm just too heavy to run? Have others been successful doing the Couch to 5k program beginning at a similar weight? Is my being overweight truly the problem, or did I just overdo it by exercising with a bit too much zeal on the off days instead of resting as is recommended with the Couch to 5k program?