Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays

Here are a couple of my favorite songs that I simply must listen to during the holidays.

Half Marathon Training Week 3: Personal Best

For the first two weeks it took me 30 minutes to run/walk 3 km, using the 3r/2w (3 minutes running/2 minutes walking) ratio.

On Saturday, I changed my ratio to 4r/1.5w, and I ended up going 6 km in 40 minutes, or 20 minutes to run/walk 3 km. And it didn't kill me!

After week one I was doubting my ability to finish the 21 km half marathon in less than 4 hours. However, in these past 3 weeks, I can actually see my endurance increasing, which gives me hope at this point of finishing in less than 3 hours.

Week	Date	Weight	Waist	Run
4 years ago	04/15/2008 (Arrival in Taiwan)	70 kg (155 lbs)	84 cm (33")	--
1	12/03/2012	75.5 kg (166 lbs)	94 cm (37")	30 minutes 3 km
	12/05/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/08/2012			-- [heavy rain]
2	12/10/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/12/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/15/2012	76.5 kg (169 lbs) +1 kg	91 cm (36") -3 cm	57 minutes 6.5 km
3	12/17/2012			33 minutes 4 km
	12/19/2012			31 minutes 4 km
	12/22/2012	76.3 kg (168 lbs) -0.2 kg	91 cm (36")	40 minutes 6 km

Half Marathon Training Week 2: Back on Track

I had a little setback at the end of week one: A combination of heavy rain, wind, and cold weather prevented me from my scheduled run on Saturday. No matter; I can make it up on Sunday.

I spent Sunday with friends, which included playing three rounds of Settlers of Catan. It didn't include running. Oh well.

So, although this is technically week two of my training, I followed the week one schedule again. I'm still doing the 3 minutes running/2 minutes walking cycle.

I'm proud of myself because I can see a bit of improvement: At the beginning it took me 60 minutes to go 6 kilometers; last night, however, I completed 6.5 km in 57 minutes. Of course, at this rate it would take me 3+ hours to complete 21 km. By next March I should have that time shaved down considerably.

Strangely, my weight increased by 1 kg, but my waist shrank by 3 cm. 

Week	Date	Weight	Waist	Run
	04/15/2008 (Arrival in Taiwan)	70 kg (155 lbs)	84 cm (33")	--
1	12/03/2012	75.5 kg (166 lbs)	94 cm (37")	30 minutes 3 km
	12/05/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/08/2012			-- [heavy rain]
2	12/10/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/12/2012			30 minutes 3 km
	12/15/2012	76.5 kg (169 lbs) +1 kg	91 cm (36") -3 cm	57 minutes 6.5 km