For BG fitness fanatics, a question..

[*Shinzon*]

When gauging progress made running, What would be considering good progress, and bad progress? Essentially I'm training to get a 1.5-2 mile run down to 15 or so minutes. I'm having trouble gauging if I'm making any kind of progress. I'm just wondering how one gauges progress and adjusts to training to meet timed runs.

[Zoolander]

Are you timing yourself on certain distances? I would say gtfo the treadmill, but maybe thats just me. Constant forced pace is unnatural and makes it very difficult to gauge your progress and subtly increase the intensity. You have to push a damn button to up the pace which to me is just lol. (To me its more of something to do once your gains are going to be rather slow and steady and you are really aware of exactly what you are doing and why you are doing it. Early on your gains, like weight lifting, will be of a much higher % than later on and for that reason it, to me, makes much more sense to have the most natural and easy way possible to keep the intensity up and push the pace).

If you are already running outside, then map out specific courses (google maps is great for this, as is http://www.runningahead.com for mapping out courses and keeping track of progress) and buy a cheap ass digital stop watch to wear while you run. $5 at walmart or wherever. You should be able to kind of tell how you are doing, just listen to your body and make sure you are keeping the intensity level roughly the same. Some days will be better than others, but over time the trend should be to go faster and/or longer. If you are doing it right and keeping the intensity the same, the time should get better and the distance should increase.

Best thing for my mile time, at least personally, was run more than a mile. Now if you are aiming for a specific amount of distance you need to practice that distance from time to time to learn how to pace yourself and be comfortable with that distance, but when you go from training for 5 miles (or whatever) to running a mile, that mile feels like a god damn breeze even with much higher intensity.

[*Shinzon*]

I've started running on the treadmill just to get an overall sense of where I stood and it's convienant since I have to drive to the gym anyway. I plan to start running outside but mainly I'm just concerned with figuring how to gauge progress and I just want to understand what I should expect really.

[Zoolander]

Idk, its not exactly like weight lifting where you will add more weight to the bar, but if you just continue to push yourself and time your runs and figure out what kind of pace you are doing, you should notice that times are getting lower and you can add more distance. At some point (I have no idea where you are at) though, as far as TRAINING goes, your pace will likely pretty much level off to around 8-10 minutes per mile. At this point you will likely need to increase the mileage a bit and/or maybe do some other work (long slow distance, HIIT, normal interval training, maybe some incline work, etc) because chances are you will run into problems (injuries) if you push yourself to the brink going for PRs on the 2 mile every single time you go run.

I'd probably map out a 1.5 (or 2) mile course, whatever your target distance is. Are you training for something in-particular? I would maybe time yourself on that target distance every so often to kind of gauge your progress, like maybe once every week/couple weeks or something along those lines. That will definitely give you a good indication of how you are improving and how close you are to reaching your goal.

Edit: and really man, mapping out a 2 mile course is easy as shit with something like google maps, or just search for local running routes or something like that. If you are still in NYC im sure there are a fuck ton of solid routes online people have mapped out. Oh and stay off the sidewalk if at all possible ffs, its pretty much the worst surface you could be running on.

[Nyx]

Oh and stay off the sidewalk if at all possible ffs, its pretty much the worst surface you could be running on.

Yeah. Definitely can't stress that enough.

[Oreth]

All those shake suggestions and pre-gym/workout meal should i be taking some of those if my primary goal is too loose weight first?

Im mainly doing this to get fit and loose weight. Seems from those suggestions all you guys are ripped mofos trying to gain more weigh to turn into muscle?

[Vade]

All those shake suggestions and pre-gym/workout meal should i be taking some of those if my primary goal is too loose weight first?

Im mainly doing this to get fit and loose weight. Seems from those suggestions all you guys are ripped mofos trying to gain more weigh to turn into muscle?

I'm drinking one WPI drink post workouts, but that's about it.

[Meat]

All those shake suggestions and pre-gym/workout meal should i be taking some of those if my primary goal is too loose weight first?

Im mainly doing this to get fit and loose weight. Seems from those suggestions all you guys are ripped mofos trying to gain more weigh to turn into muscle?

yeah, plain shakes are low in calories which is the bottom line when it comes to weight loss

[Weiing]

All those shake suggestions and pre-gym/workout meal should i be taking some of those if my primary goal is too loose weight first?

Im mainly doing this to get fit and loose weight. Seems from those suggestions all you guys are ripped mofos trying to gain more weigh to turn into muscle?

You can drink protein shakes as a great way to nourish your muscles and ensure you get enough protein. Usually, protein powders are roughly 120calories for 24g protein. If you just have 1 scoop of powder in water, that's only 120 calories, which isn't bad at all...given how much protein it has.

I'm currently trying to cut a bit more so I can still fit in my wedding dress in October. >_> So yeah, I'm no ripped male mofo with tons of testosterone. You can definitely still lose weight while having some protein shakes.

[Atreides]

I've been cutting for a while now, and I still have 2-3 scoops of whey/casein a day. Makes it a lot easier to get adequate protein while not going over my calories for the day.

[Lucavi]

How filling are these shakes? The problem for me is hunger. If I'm not hungry, I don't eat, but it seems that the only things that really fill me up are unfortunately full of lactose, which tears my stomach to pieces.

If I can get a 500 calorie shake that fills me up to the point where I only need to drink 2 a day, then yeah, losing weight is fucking EZ mode. I suspect that's not the case, however.

[Nyx]

How filling are these shakes? The problem for me is hunger. If I'm not hungry, I don't eat, but it seems that the only things that really fill me up are unfortunately full of lactose, which tears my stomach to pieces.

If I can get a 500 calorie shake that fills me up to the point where I only need to drink 2 a day, then yeah, losing weight is fucking EZ mode. I suspect that's not the case, however.

Do you like vegetables at all? You can seriously eat boatloads of some vegetables like spinach or green beans without consuming too many calories. I know a lot of people don't like the taste of them, but raw green beans are my snack of choice when I'm starving.

Have you tried consuming 8-16oz of water before your meal/shake/whatever? It may not leave you feeling incredibly full for a long time, but you will certainly feel full sooner and after eating less than you normally would. You should also eat far more often than twice a day. If you can get your stomach and head accustomed to eating ~6 small meals a day, then losing weight is EZ mode.

[Weiing]

Well, shakes can fill you up fast, but then you get hungry again fast. You can most likely make a shake/smoothie worth 500 calories. But I hope you're not suggesting you'll only need to drink 2 shakes a day and that's it.

Are you still working on the idea that you need to workout to burn calories and you shouldn't take in calories if you don't workout that day?

[Jefe]

When gauging progress made running, What would be considering good progress, and bad progress? Essentially I'm training to get a 1.5-2 mile run down to 15 or so minutes. I'm having trouble gauging if I'm making any kind of progress. I'm just wondering how one gauges progress and adjusts to training to meet timed runs.

Have an excel sheet and write down your times and distances then compare it vs other sets of values. Heck, I even have temperature there to see how much it affects my performance.

When I first started a long ass time a go I started 1 mile per 60 min. Then 2, and 3.. n+ until I got it to 7 miles per 60 min. My next goal was to reduce my time, so my lowest is 7 miles per 53 min. During the summer my performance goes way down, it's just too goddamn hot. Waking up around 4am is a pain in the ass ;/

But yeah the most important thing is to record your data and compare it later on w/ other results you get.

[Lucavi]

Do you like vegetables at all? You can seriously eat boatloads of some vegetables like spinach or green beans without consuming too many calories. I know a lot of people don't like the taste of them, but raw green beans are my snack of choice when I'm starving.

Have you tried consuming 8-16oz of water before your meal/shake/whatever? It may not leave you feeling incredibly full for a long time, but you will certainly feel full sooner and after eating less than you normally would. You should also eat far more often than twice a day. If you can get your stomach and head accustomed to eating ~6 small meals a day, then losing weight is EZ mode.

Oh I LOVE veggies. If it wasn't for the gas, I could eat broccoli for an eternity. The only veggies I'm not a fan of is asparagus, and that stems from some childhood tramua that I won't disclose, lol.

I currently have peanuts and yogurt as my go-to snacks of choice (for the protein and calcium), but I'd rather just get those supplements from other, non caloric sources, so would switching to raw carrots be a better choice? I'm looking for something filling, but with an extremely low calorie count.

I drink 4 liters of water a day, and am constantly drinking half-liters throughout the day. I drink before, during, and after my meals, unless its cereal, as mixing water with milk tastes disgusting to me.

I get psuedo-hungry when I get bored, and I'm typically bored whenever I'm not working, gaming, or working out. I also have a huge problem with portion sizes. We're a leftover-based family, but we're also a "heaping helping" family. I've been working on cutting down the portions, but I still wrestle with feeling like lunch was a waste of time if I didn't walk away from it feeling relatively full. I don't like going through the day with that "half empty, half full" feeling constantly, but I'll work to get over it.

[Lucavi]

Well, shakes can fill you up fast, but then you get hungry again fast. You can most likely make a shake/smoothie worth 500 calories. But I hope you're not suggesting you'll only need to drink 2 shakes a day and that's it.

Are you still working on the idea that you need to workout to burn calories and you shouldn't take in calories if you don't workout that day?

Double post, but kinda sorta. I'm trying to make it all about the numbers, even though its not as simple as calories in vs. calories out. Since I'm not constantly raping my abs to try to burn this fat off, I don't like the idea of eating anything major if I'm not either working out twice a day, or at least doing a huge hour and a half workout session at some point.

[Weiing]

I don't think you need to substitute perfectly healthy foods (peanuts and yogurt) for lower calorie (not non-caloric) foods, such as carrots. I mean, yes, carrots are fun to snack on, too... But carrots are not a "better" choice compared to nuts, yogurt, or other whole foods. It's all about moderation and amount. Yes, 1/4 cup of nuts may be a lot of calories, but it's delicious and nutritious...and would keep you full for a bit longer due to the fat and the protein.

I hope I'm wrong, but I just have this really bad gut feeling that your line of thinking could evolve into something extremely restrictive and unhealthy. Please prove me wrong on this, as I hate thinking like that about someone. But know that I only have this feeling and am sharing this with you because I care for your well-being.

edit:
In reply to your post
What do you mean by "anything major"? And raping your abs to burn fat? ha...that's funny.

[Moss]

I kept track of all of my nutritional intake yesterday, finished with 3265 calories, 230g protein, 295g carbs, 134g fat. Just looking at it the carbs seem a bit high, the fat a bit low. What kind of ratio should I try for? I'm 6'1" 150 lbs, and think I can be described as a "hard gainer."

[Lucavi]

I don't think you need to substitute perfectly healthy foods (peanuts and yogurt) for lower calorie (not non-caloric) foods, such as carrots. I mean, yes, carrots are fun to snack on, too... But carrots are not a "better" choice compared to nuts, yogurt, or other whole foods. It's all about moderation and amount. Yes, 1/4 cup of nuts may be a lot of calories, but it's delicious and nutritious...and would keep you full for a bit longer due to the fat and the protein.

I hope I'm wrong, but I just have this really bad gut feeling that your line of thinking could evolve into something extremely restrictive and unhealthy. Please prove me wrong on this, as I hate thinking like that about someone. But know that I only have this feeling and am sharing this with you because I care for your well-being.

edit:
In reply to your post
What do you mean by "anything major"? And raping your abs to burn fat? ha...that's funny.

I -WANT- to restrict myself. Its the best way to counteract the indulgence that led to this belly in the first place. I want to do anything and everything I can to shave it off, no matter how strict my diet has to become.

Apparently having an extremely low caloric intake will burn fat, and it stands to reason that the more fat I burn, the more will eventually vanish from the waistline, which is the ONLY place that is problematic, so yeah, I'm ready for "panic mode".

I look healthy, I feel healthy, and I know I'm healthy. I just want a thin waistline to compliment the muscles that are tightening up and increasing everywhere else. I don't want to look like an E. Honda or some starving African kid with a skinny body and bloated belly.

[Weiing]

@Lucavi - No. Extremely low caloric intake will not just burn fat, but also your muscle storage. No. Restrictive thinking is the most unhealthy thing anyone can ever do to themselves. Yes, you may think and believe you feel healthy, but really, you are not. Obviously, me saying this won't register in your head because you seem really stubborn and set in your ways. However, honestly, believe me...it's really not the way to go.

@Moss - Carbs do seem high. I usually target my carb intake at 100-150 (at most). Usually, I try to stay around a 40/35/25 fat/protein/carb breakdown. I tried doing 50/25/25 but... I can't seem to eat enough fat, and usually eat more protein to keep that macronutrient ratio. See what works best for you and keep track of your energy levels, too. (Edit: It's most important to keep track of how you're feeling to know what is the more optimal macronutrient ratio or whatever for your body)