Tools of the Trade
There are three things I’m using to keep my eating and my running on track:
Run Less, Run Faster - This is a book and training plan I’ve used in the past. It focuses on three “quality” runs each week (a speed workout, a mid-distance/mid-pace run, and a long run). A couple of buddies and I used this program when we trained for a half-marathon. One of them hypothesized that if less running = faster running, then even less running (i.e., no running) = even faster running. Race day was a near-death experience for him. Hypothesis proven false.
Lose It! - When it comes to eating, I live on the slippery slope. If I go off the rails for breakfast (hello, Bojangle’s), I see no need to return to the rails for lunch or dinner . . . or dessert . . . or midnight snack. Tomorrow is a new day. But imagine having to tell the little man inside your phone that you ate a different fast food fried chicken for each meal in a single day. The little man’s judgment oozes through the screen. The Lose It! app gives me a daily calorie goal and I record all of my food and my exercise. It keeps me close to, if not on, the rails.
Strava - I record all of my runs on Strava, which makes it easy to track progress and see mileage splits. Remember when you had to map out a course with your car and record your time on a stopwatch, like an idiot? Thank you, Strava (and Al Gore)!