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Achieving Fitness Milestones: From Strain to Strength

Posted on 1st May 2025 by Baron in Monthly Blog, Uncategorized

Well it’s been a busy time, facing new challenges and trying things out, so far this year I’ve participated in two half marathons – Hamilton and Karapiro, I set goal times of 1 hour 45 minutes to complete these and I’m pleased to say i was right around there, 1.44.52 and 1.46.07, pretty good. Since November I’ve seen my V02 increase from 42 to 55, so I feel I am a lot fitter and confident with my progress.

Activity

My next planned half marathon is Cambridge in September, a little bit away, but after Karapiro i strained my hamstrings, over training and getting back into training too quickly after and with too harder sessions, so i haven’t been running at all for two weeks, finding other things to keep active, weight sessions, Hakarimata steps, cycling and walking parkruns. I’ve also delayed any marathon plans until next year. I’ll build into it properly, this gives me plenty of time to recover, plenty of pavement time, and I think it’s smarter than just going for it and sustaining an injury.

Pictures

Some pictures of the past few months, Hamilton half marathon, Cambridge parkrun, Adidas Auckland fun run, Karapiro half marathon.

Goal progress

I’m pleased to say I’ve hit my goal weight and maintained there since December, so the focus has been on stamina and muscle gain, both of which are going well.

Next Steps

So the next step of the journey will be building back up properly to finish the Cambridge half marathon. I’ll set myself a goal of 1 hour 40 minutes, I think, this gives me something I think I can achieve, but still a challenge, I’ve been researching heaps of ideas for training plans, with two main running days, an interval run on Wednesday along the lines of 6x1km at my 5km pace with 60 seconds rest between, slowly building it up to more intervals and longer distances and a long run on Sundays something along the lines of 20 minutes easy, 40 minutes half marathon pace and 20 minutes easy, maybe split up more than that, with warmups, cooldowns and stretching built in too., with recovery runs, easy runs mixed in on other days. So I’m confident with what I’ll start and continue with, hoping to also mix in a good amount of strength training and other things beyond running, bush walks, swimming, and cycling. I’m looking to start this within the next few weeks, once I feel my hamstrings are ready to go again. I don’t want to get back into it too early, only to have them strained again.

Something to look forward to

I’m counting down the days to my holiday trip to Australia, most of the itinerary is pencilled in, with a mixture of fun activities, relaxing, theme parks and shopping. I think it’s needed to get away from the stresses of work and day-to-day life and just have some time out.

Feedback

Have you got any training tips you would like to share? What’s your favourite run for the week? Ideas for future content?

AI Running Program Success and Upcoming Challenges

Posted on 11th Jan 2025 by Baron in Monthly Blog

Seasons greetings. It’s been such a busy time of the year, with Christmas, New Year, and school holidays. I’ve been very busy completing an AI running program to make my 10 km faster, participating in Parkrun, spending time with the family, doing hikes, walks and runs.

The AI running program was great all through my watch/phone app, it had me working a lot on low heart rate runs, pace, distance and frequency. My V02 raised around 5 points and now says its at 46.

I’ve just started a new program for a half marathon, I’m on day 6 of 70, 5 days a week, with a goal to complete the event in 1 hour and 45 minutes. Hopefully achievable! The last program i managed to finish every day except the very last day because I went on a hike with a group to the Pinnacles Summit. So not like I had the day off, the app wouldn’t let me postpone it, but all good. It was six days a week for 6 weeks, I really enjoyed it, I recommend using one if you are not sure where to start or what to do, helped me a lot.

Hikes Review

The Pinnacles Summit was really good, featuring swing bridges, a rock climb and plenty of steps, great views from every angle, a long day but well worth it I’ve also done the Karangahape gorge track this was really cool, seeing the old gold mining equipment and walking through tunnels, Hakarimata steps such a good workout, the Tama lakes in National park, this was really great scenery, a real challenge and a long day (as Tongariro crossing was cancelled due to bad weather and the trail from the Hakarimata steps over to Parker Road. If you would like anymore information, send me a message

Karangahape Gorge

Pinnacles Summit

Goals

This year has a few goals set already, including my first half marathon, in Hamilton, New Zealand in March, also I’m looking to do my first full marathon in November, so once the half is done. The next training plan will kick in, I haven’t decided which marathon I’ll do, but I have looked at the Queenstown one and the Auckland one. Both look good, I guess I’ll look at which one will work better for me.

In November I finished the Round the Bridges event in Hamilton, a 12 km race in which I managed to get a time of exactly 1 hour. I was so happy with this. I put a lot of effort in and it kick-started my training effort, proving to myself that I can do things if I set my mind on them. Thanks to those who encouraged me along the way!

Some Holiday pictures

reflection

A great time of the year, with awesome weather and good experiences. I’m really enjoying the new challenges I’m setting myself. The hikes have given me a huge confidence boost. The training program has given me structure and I’m thoroughly enjoying trying new things. I’m really looking ahead to what this year will bring.

Let’s make some changes

Posted on 18th Oct 202418th Oct 2024 by Baron in Monthly Blog

From June through to now, I’ve faced some significant challenges, prompting a deep reflection on myself, my goals, my future, work, health, and well-being.

Myself: I’ve needed to explore what truly makes me happy. This has involved focusing on self-care, taking time to reflect on my needs, reading books, starting a journal, and reaching out to peers, friends, and co-workers for support and guidance. It’s been important to just have people to talk to.

Goals: I’ve set various fitness and personal goals. I have the Tongariro Crossing coming up in about three weeks, followed by the Round the Bridges 12km run in Hamilton, New Zealand, the week after. I’m also considering entering the Hamilton half marathon in March next year. Additionally, I’ve set specific time goals for 5km, 10km, and the Hakarimata Steps walkway, along with the objective to walk and run 100km each in October through workouts. So far, I’ve completed about 70km walking and 80km running so far, with 12 days left to reach my goal. I’ve established targets related to weight, muscle mass, VO2 max, body fat percentage, and BMI, and I am making good progress towards these ambitions.

Future: I’ve been creating plans and budgets for the next 18 months to secure my future.

Work: I’ve started training some staff to upskill into my position, allowing me to progress into a new role that will transition me from shifts to a daytime position.

Health: I’ve reassessed my eating and exercise habits, making significant changes to improve my health for a brighter future. I’ve cut out snacking, ensuring I eat fruit daily, along with porridge and protein.

In September, I walked 130km and ran 16km. My VO2 max has risen back to 42, I’ve reduced my body fat by 2%, increased my muscle mass by 2%, and lost around 6kg over the past two months.

Training walks are ongoing in preparation for the Tongariro Crossing. I’ve ascended the Hakarimata Steps about seven times now, with my best time being just over 40 minutes—walking up and running down. My goal is to finish under 40 minutes. I also walked up Mt. Kakepuke with friends, and this weekend, we plan to walk the Hakarimata trail, which is approximately 9km, including the steps. I’ve been running every few days, completing a 10km run in 54 minutes today, mixing it with walks and some weight training. Last Friday, I experienced hill runs for the first time!

Here are some photos from the past month or so.