BMImpossible

Off target

Today's run (street): 3.5 miles

It's always nice to have a three day weekend, because it gives me an extra day to run during the week. If I'm lucky, the weather will cooperate. Unlike yesterday when the rain chased me indoors, today looked sunny and clear. Except for the near freezing temperature, it looked like ideal conditions for a run.

I dressed for cold but didn't put on too many layers this time. I stepped outside and confirmed that my gear matched the weather. I noticed that the driveway, that was covered by a shadow, had a thin coating of ice. When I reached the sunnier road I was happy to find it ice-free. That happiness was short-lived. By the time I reached the half mile point, I was dealing with patches of ice where the sun didn't reach the road.

It wasn't bad enough to stop, but I needed to be careful. I put aside any thoughts of performance and focused on landing on my mid-foot to maximize my stability. I didn't have any close calls like yesterday, but it didn't make for a very pleasant experience. For a fairly short run, it was exhausting.

I've continued to watch my portion sizes and have already lost a few pounds (I believe this is the primary reason women resent men). Based on the advice I recently got from a nutritionist, I did 12 push ups after finishing my run. I considered doing 15, but didn't want to invite upper arm soreness on top of of my diminishing (but still present) sciatica. Fellow running blogger Renee recommended the Matt Fitzgerald site to calculate my ideal racing weight and BMI (see graphic at top). Will I get down to 14.8% body fat? That would be a no.

Good data can make you thin

BodyMedia, FitBit, Withings

Tuesday and Wednesday's workouts (treadmill): 50 minutes (total)

Yesterday was a busy day for me and I didn't get a chance to post. During the first part of the day, I attended a session on the future of journalism that was put on by the MIT Media Lab. I've been representing my company at MIT for over a decade and I always find it interesting to hear views on the direction of media from students and faculty. The theme that repeated throughout the dozen or so talks centered on the way data and data visualization is shaping news reporting.

On the same theme, I just read an article in the November issue of Men's Journal called, "Living By the Numbers" that examines how targeted data can directly contribute to personal fitness. The writer used tools like BodyMedia, FitBit and the Withings Body Scale to capture and track calories and performance metrics.

For some reason I expected the article to present a negative view of these devices, but  it actually supported their use. The writer started off at 195 lbs with a BMI of 25.7 and ended up losing over twenty pounds by the end. He didn't specify the time period for when that happened, but my own experience tells me that your weight can come down quickly once you've committed to a program.

An important point that the writer made was that interest in these tools diminishes over time. He likens it to the infatuation stage of new relationship that gives way to a more realistic viewpoint. In addition, the process of tracking certain things (like calorie intake) can become a real burden. The key point is that good data helps an athlete maintain awareness of diet and effort, and that can lead to improvement.

This may all seem self evident, but the way data is acquired and the way it's applied can make a big difference. In the end, it's not the gadget that puts us into better shape, it's the effort that we put into the process. However, good data seems to provide the type of feedback that will help keep us on track.

Nutrition, running and weight

I've written before about my observations related to workout effort and weight. The key point is that maintaining an ideal weight should not be viewed as a complex series of actions related to diets that force unnatural behavior and/or over-training to burn off calories. Simply put, if your focus on fitness and weight maintenance isn't sustainable your results won't be sustainable. Last August I decided that my diet and level of activity were unacceptable and chose to change my behavior. I never considered any changes related to quick weight loss because that wasn't the point. The point was more about managing cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure by introducing more activity, reducing portion sizes and making better choices for foods. Everyone has their own unique body chemistry and what has worked for me won't necessarily yield the same results for others. But I have been successful in meeting all my goals to date.

This morning I weighed in (I only check weight once a week, always in the morning before my run) and noted that I have largely stabilized at a weight that is 13% lower than my benchmarked weight from August '09. My BMI has gone from 27.2 to 23.6, and my cholesterol, triglyceride and other vitals have all moved well into the normal range. My average running distance has increased almost 30% since August and this is also key to getting to full equilibrium. As weight has come off the effort required to run an equivalent distance has decreased. Increasing distance while maintaining the same safe and satisfying diet has allowed me to reach a level that is both sustainable and healthy.

Now that I have reached this point I need to think about where I go from here. I do plan to keep increasing distance and I'll need to build more muscle to increase my performance. I may need to eat more to do that because without the right level of protein a runner can do damage to muscles when pushing hard. I suspect that may be why I experienced a hamstring pull doing tempo runs a few weeks ago. It's all about balance. This is my typical diet. You can compare it to Sedentary Man's:

Pre-Run
90 calorie Special K bar (high complex carbs, low sugar, low protein)
Half cup coffee, .5 oz. non-fat milk

Breakfast
200 calorie Larabar (nut varieties, high protein)
6 0z. coffee with fat free milk

Lunch
Stir fry with tofu, vegetables, brown rice and low sodium soy sauce

Whole fruit

Dinner
Boca burger, whole wheat bread
Sun Chips
Trader Joe's Omega nut mix (1.6 oz.)
Whole fruit










I've been introducing small portions of chicken into my dinners, typically mixed with vegetables, to increase protein levels. I also add edamame to increase protein. As I've said before, it's really about listening to your body. At this point I believe I have the balance right. Compared to August I have significantly more energy and I am far less stressed. Good results are motivating and the level of effort required to maintain my balance is reasonable enough so that I look forward to my daily workouts.

Fitness equilibrium - what's your natural weight state?

After four months of focusing carefully on diet and training I believe I have reached my equilibrium point. Based upon my normal workout routines, nutrition choices and portion sizes I have stabilized my weight. Only if I consciously change my diet and/or increase the level of my routine will I further reduce my weight. Now the question is, "What do I really want?" According to the BMI calculators I am in the category of Normal. I have a friend who watches his diet and runs over 40 miles a week and his BMI score is Obese. He sure doesn’t look it.

I don't have the time to exercise more frequently but I can increase the intensity of my workouts and runs. I should probably do that anyway to increase strength and performance. I could eat less but why? If I eat the same and work out more intently will my weight go up because I'm building more muscle mass? If my weight does increase will I care? Is it worth thinking about everything you eat to maintain a weight that could not be achieved through a healthy diet and normal exercise?

I will benchmark this to see how things go over the next few months with no change in diet but a modest increase in workout effort. I really don’t care about my weight as long as my HDL, LDL, triglyceride and blood pressure levels are normal. Maybe it is time to buy that HRM watch.