Another week and weights...

It's been another good week of running. Through Saturday, I ran 50 miles for the week. The fact that Garmin ends the week on Saturday and Strava ends the week on Sunday is a constant source of annoyance because I end up trying to reach my mileage goal on both. Sounds like a small thing but it means that I ran 9 mile's yesterday to "hit the goal" and now I need to run ten miles today to "hit the goal."

I skipped the Signal Mountain race I mentioned last week because squats left my legs feeling dead.

I've been edging closer to starting a weight training program. I'm intrigued by the Hypertrophy Training Program Galpin posted with a podcast. Here's the program

However, it requires machines and a spotter. I hired a personal trainer to help me get started in a gym I have free access to. The personal trainer promptly quit the gym and I wasn't wild about going to the gym. So I plugged the plan into ChatGPT and asked for a modified version I can do at home with a bench, dumbbells, and kettlebells. Here's what I got.

 Workout A (Upper Body Focus + Lower Body Strength)

  1. Dumbbell Bench Press (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 6-10 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 2. Dumbbell Row (Back, Biceps)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps (each side) - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 3. Dumbbell Overhead Press (Shoulders, Triceps)

- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 6-10 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 4. Kettlebell Goblet Squat (Quads, Glutes)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 5. Kettlebell Swing (Hamstrings, Glutes, Lower Back)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 15-20 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 6. Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Shoulders)

- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 1.5-2 minutes

 7. Dumbbell Calf Raise (Calves)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 12-15 reps - Rest: 1.5-2 minutes

Workout B (Lower Body Focus + Upper Body Strength)

  1. Kettlebell Deadlift (Hamstrings, Glutes, Lower Back)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 2. Dumbbell Lunges (Quads, Glutes)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps (each leg) - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 3. Dumbbell Chest Fly (Chest, Shoulders)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 4. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift (Hamstrings, Glutes)

- Sets/Reps: 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 2-3 minutes 

 5. Kettlebell Single-Arm Overhead Press (Shoulders, Triceps)

- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 6-10 reps (each arm) - Rest: 2-3 minutes

 6. Dumbbell Tricep Extension (Triceps)

- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 1.5-2 minutes

 7. Dumbbell Bicep Curl (Biceps)

- Sets/Reps: 3 sets of 8-12 reps - Rest: 1.5-2 minutes

There's a Workout A and a Workout B. Each is performed twice a week but not on consecutive days. For example, Workout A on Friday and Sunday and Workout B on Saturday and Monday.

Galpin indicates that in 8 weeks his version produces approximately a 10%+ increase in strength, a 13% to 16% increase in muscular endurance, and an average of 1.8 kilos of added lean mass.

A few problems:

• If you do these sets and take the prescribed rests, the program takes 90 minutes. The personal trainer I had saw that issue and rearranged each workout program into two circuits. Rather than rest after each set, you move to the next exercise in the circuit which works a different muscle group. So you work another group while resting after each set.

• The lower body exercises leave my legs extremely sore and that makes running effectively difficult or impossible.

So what to do? I'm going to do the program at home using dumbbells and kettlebells. Rather than doing the entire workout, I'll do the entire upper body program but only one set of all the lower body exercises. Eventually, I'll increase number of lower body sets while limiting how sore I am after the workout.

What's the goal? I'd like to get stronger to help me stay healthy. And my arms and chest are smaller than I like so I want to add muscle there.

When I had the Dexa scan in August key metrics were the following:

• Weight - 170 pounds

• Body fat - 24.1%

• Lean mass - 123 lbs

• Visceral fat - 2.63 lbs

What would I like to see?

• Weight - 155 pounds

• Lean mass - 135 lbs

• Body fat - 13%

• Visceral fat - <1 lbs

The Dexa scan was on August 1st. Since then I've run approximately 40 miles a week. Have I made any progress? I can't know without another Dexa scan but I probably haven't made a lot of progress. My Renpho scale indicates my body fat percentage and fat-free body weight are basically unchanged. I ignore the readings on smart scales and look at the trends.

To a degree, I am also ignoring the trends. I was sedentary in April and running 40 to 50 miles a week now. It's impossible to think that I'm not realizing gains from being newly active whether those gains are reflected on the scale or not. While the scale says I have the same amount of body fat, my jeans and a tape measure say that I've lost nearly two inches in my waist.

I know full well what is required to address the weight and body fat. Eat less. However, the top priority is running well and you can't run well in a caloric deficit. When I try to control calories, I can feel the difference in my running.

I'm not trying to diet to hit the goals. Instead, I will live the lifestyle of one who is 155 pounds with a body fat percentage of 13%. Exercise regularly, avoid things I shouldn't eat (alcohol, soda, desserts, fast food, processed food and snacks) and over time my body composition will align with the goals. A weightlifting program should accelerate the process.

If I avoid the things I shouldn't eat and continue running and lifting, I should be close to the target profile in a year.