August Goals: 45 min run, 5 lb loss, increase in speed

I think I've put my finger on it: when I have a concrete short-term goal, I find it a lot easier to keep it top of mind than when I make some six- or nine-month commitment where halfway through I've lost all of my enthusiasm for it and there's still a zillion months to go before it's met. So from now on, I'm not committing to any fitness-related goals beyond a three-month window. Which means I won't be talking about that February half-marathon (you know, this one) until at least November.

But I will be talking about this run! 9.5 km around the Seawall (which should have reopened by then) on October 28, and my personal challenge is to complete it in under 60 minutes. It would be nice to graduate in speed from Slowest Human Ever to possibly Slightly Faster Than Turtle. To accomplish this, of course, requires two things: lose some of the padding around my waist, and a strong emphasis on speed intervals. For August, I'll be following the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss program, combined with 3 run sessions per week. A typical week will look like this:

MON - TT weights session with treadmill interval workout
TUE - 30 min run
WED - TT weight session
THU - 30 min run
FRI - TT weight session with treadmill interval workout
SAT - 35-45 min run
SUN - rest day

Instead of obsessing over meal plan choices, which is my usual MO, I'm going to focus instead on getting the workouts done, no matter what, and keeping the fridge full of veggies, fruit and whole grains. The protein part of a meal generally takes care of itself, and good nutrition choices come much more easily to me when I'm working out regularly.

Because today is a holiday, I can't get to the gym. I'll just switch around my weight and run sessions for this first week. First run is later this afternoon!