Shift

Day 87

Yesterday I sat down with my trainer and discussed my goal to run the 12k trail race. First he looked at me in shock and made me reiterate that, yes, it was indeed a 12k. Then we discussed nutrition and training. To be able to get to a point that I can finish this race I need to a) drop as much fat as safely possible in a short amount of time and b) increase endurance.  This is a bit of a shift from the muscle increasing workouts I've been doing.

Training:
Instead of high weight/low rep training, I will be doing low weight/high rep training, which burns fat faster. Also, I will be spending more time running, alternating between distance and sprints with a little bit of elevation gain training mixed in because it's a trail race. (The race has a 650 foot elevation gain. May not seem like much to some, but for me, it's a bit daunting.)

Nutrition:
I've done some research - including talking with my trainer - and I will be sticking to a nutritional plan geared toward the body of an endo-mesomorph. (For a basic understanding of body types and how it affects your diet, click here.) Basically, my diet should be higher in protein and lower in carbs with basically no "added sugar" because I am sensitive to sugar and my body will hold onto it.

Now, I'm kinda wary of high protein diets. I really don't like them. They're a bit hard on my digestion. That being said, I'm going to try and keep my nutrients to a more moderate percentage breakdown, with it slightly elevated towards proteins. My new macronutrient balance will be proteins: 40%, carbs 35% and fats 25%. We'll see how that goes for a couple weeks and adjust later if I need to.

Lets talk calories a bit. There are two main schools of thought when it comes to calorie intake. (Actually, there are about a gazillion, but we're just gonna simplify it.) One is simple calories in/calories out. As long as there is a deficit, you'll lose the weight. The other is a bit more complicated. It is argued that low-calories lower your metabolism - which they do because your body will prepare for famine and hold onto your fat. Those who follow this school of thought believe you should keep your calories high and mess with the macronutrient ratio to help you lose weight.

I will be doing a slightly more complex, but reasonable compromise between the two. For 4-6 consecutive days (depending on my energy level), I will be lower calorie at about 1600 calories. Then I'll have one day at about 2200 calories. This "cheat day," as some might call it, should keep my body from going into starvation mode. All the while, I will stick to my macronutrient ratio mentioned above.

So here's the catch to all of this: I have just shy of 4 months until race day. In order for me to lose enough weight to where I can finish the race (FINISH - not be competitive), I have to be spot on in my nutrition EVERY DAY!

Ugh! That's my biggest hang up!

But no-one said it would be easy, right?

Time to do this thing!