Fitness Friday (on a Sunday)

I decided to hop on the Fitness Friday bandwagon!  Oh boy, in the fall I went from being super active to super sedentary.  Not so good for my waist line!  If I’m not careful I won’t be able to wear the wedding dress that is hanging in my closet.

I’ve got a plan of attack for how to get back into things:

1. Set a goal: I’ve signed up for the Calgary Police Half Marathon in April and I’m thinking about signing up for the Calgary Half Marathon in May.  I find I need something to work towards to keep me motivated to run.  I’m an engineer and I like spreadsheets and schedules…which leads me to…
2. Come up with a plan to reach said goal: My plan involves running three days a week.  One day is a fun 30-45 minute lunch run.  Another day will be either hill repeats or speedwork.  Not only will hills or speed help my running, they will also be great for kicking up my metabolism.  The final day will be a long run building in duration towards my half marathon.
3. Mix things up to keep things interesting: My schedule isn’t all running.  I am doing TRX bootcamp one night per week.  Class is an awesome mix of cardio and strength training.  I’m also going to spin class one day a week for a high powered anaerobic workout.
4. Don’t be afraid to ask for help: My awesome BM Debbie gifted me with a one-on-one session with a personal trainer for Christmas.  One of the best presents ever!  I met with my trainer last week to discuss my goals and I gave him a copy of my running schedule leading up to my half marathon in April.  We talked about how to structure my schedule and then he worked up a strength training plan for me to do on my own one more day a week.  He gave me a great mix of upper and lower body exercises that would recruit multiple muscle groups in one exercise that would also help my running. 
5. Keep track: And finally, keeping track helps a lot with motivation.  This includes keeping a little notebook where I jot down my weight and measurements so I can track my progress.  I also keep track of all of my physical activity on Buckeye Outdoors, an online training log.  I’ve tried a lot of different training logs out and this one is my hands down favourite.  You can easily keep track of different activities and you can create personalized activity types (like core, TRX bootcamp or cross country skiing).  And since I run with a GPS device I can upload directly from that device to Buckeye Outdoors. I highly recommend it.

What keeps you motivated?  I’d love to hear your tips!