Back in training: Update #5

Here is the latest update on my training for the sold-out Phillies’ 2nd annual 5k race on March 31 as part of my current effort to lose a total of 40 pounds. This is the fifth in what will be a series of updates here…

This week, I managed to get in a 3.2-mile run* on Wednesday and a 2.4-mile run* on Friday. I finished Wednesday’s run in a tidy 33 min., 33 sec. It was a little bit slower than my previous runs of that distance, but my back actually started hurting halfway through so I slowed up a bit to ease the pain a bit.

Friday’s run was cut short by a) an appointment, and b) tightness in my left calf muscle that slowed me down to the point that I wouldn’t have been able to finish another lap and get to where I needed to go. Anyway, I finished that run in 24 min., 19 sec.

*My Nike+ sensor is still messed up. I have confirmed that one lap around my neighborhood is 0.8 miles, so four laps should be 3.2 miles. I’ve decided that I’m going with that distance no matter what the Nike+ sensor is telling me.

As far as weight-loss is concerned, I lost another pound this week. That means, I’ve now dropped 8 of the 40 pounds I need to lose to reach my weight-loss goal.

You can read my post from Jan. 28 for specifics, but I finished my only real 5K race in 27 min., 54 sec. back in fall 2006. However, I had been running regularly in the months leading up to it (the first time I ever ran like that in my life) and had lost 35 pounds. Now, after putting all the weight back on and being five-plus years older, my goals are to finish the Phillies 5K in less than 30 minutes and lose 40 pounds.

I’ll be posting updates on my progress here once or twice a week.

Here is a table with my run distances* and times charted during this training period: