Three Things Thursday - Things to Improve on

1. I want to run Injury free - I am still trying to figure out why my shins hurt occasionally. It is so frustrating! I would run every day if I could, but I know that they would hurt even more. I am using the process of elimination to figure out what is causing the issue. After weeks of trying to figure things out I've made some improvements by doing the following things: I only run 3 times a week (wish it was more) and all my runs are primarily done on the treadmill during the week. I make sure that I warm up at the beginning and don't run too fast and keep the incline on 1%. I run 3 miles on Tues. and Thurs. and 4 or 5 miles on Saturdays (wish it was more). I try to do my longer runs outside if it's at all possible. I went to my local running store and got fitted with new shoes about a month ago. I've been elevating and icing my legs each night. I'm beginning to think that maybe it has something to do with my calves and perhaps I need to do more stretching and strengthening. I notice that at times my calves get tight and my feet go numb. I did a Google search about it to see if anyone else had these issues and I read a couple of stories from people that were experiencing similar problems. I've read a few articles having to do with calves and shin splints so I decided to incorporate some calf stretches into my workout routine.

2. I want to do more strength training - I need to be more consistent with my core workouts and I want to add some weight lifting too. I try to do my core workouts at least 3 times a week. During the time I set aside for core workouts I'd like to maybe get some weights and work on my triceps and biceps. Another thought I had was to start using the rowing machine at the gym. I think that would probably be a good workout and would work a lot of different muscle groups. I need to do a bit of research on that and see how to get started.

3. I'd like to lose some weight - I've been eating healthier and I feel good. I don't think I have much weight to lose really. I think it's more of a matter of feeling fit and being toned. Maybe once I incorporate all the other things I've listed above (along with my biking almost 4 or 5 times a week) any extra weight I have will come off. Recently I have been hearing about the new book that's out by Matt Fitzgerald called Racing Weight: How to Get Lean for Peak Performance. It's sounds interesting, I might pick up a copy of the book.

Have you ever experienced shin splints even when you weren't running a lot?

Have you ever tried using the rowing machine? How did you start and was it a good workout?

Have you read Racing Weight? What did you think of it?
There was a table in Runner’s World awhile back that illustrated how much faster you could be if you lost weight. Of course, this would not take into account speed increases due to training.

According to RW author Amby Burfoot, the table is based on research that runners, on average get 2 seconds per mile faster for every pound they lose.