September 2017 Fitness Summary

This is just a short summary of how my September went in sports. Basically, it consisted of 3 parts:

  1. Tapering before marathon (slowing down and recovering before the race)
  2. Marathon
  3. Recovery after the marathon and rest

So the main event during September was my first ever marathon which I completed on the 9th September. I covered this event in my previous post. After that I had a couple of really lazy weeks where I didn’t do any sports and was just resting. This is the total summary of September in numbers:

As you can see from the above, the biggest part of time was spent in the gym because I finally started a new strength building program at the end of the month. I am now going to the gym 4 times a week.

I think it’s important to do strength training due to several reasons. Firstly, strengthening your muscles prevents you from injuries. There are a lot of amateur runners who constantly have pain in their legs, back etc. Having a strong core and leg muscles works as a prevention to such injuries, at least to some extent. Furthermore, let’s be honest, we all want to look good. Strength training helps with that. I know that having bigger muscles would slow me down at some point due to bigger weight, and elite runners are very light. However, I am not an elite runner and I am not aiming to win prizes from running – it is just a hobby for me. So, I would rather find a balance between running and strength training.

That’s it for this month. It was not an impressive month looking at the numbers but I am happy that I managed to complete my first marathon and it’s quite an achievement for me.

How was your month? Are you doing any sports? Any events happened during September? As always, don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!

8 thoughts on “September 2017 Fitness Summary

  1. Nice! Now get back to the gym! 🙂 I would love to do some strength training as well, but I guess I’m just too lazy haha. Not doing any sports at the moment, but I’m riding my bicycle 30 km per day (to and from work), so that gotta count for something, right?

    1. Hi SD,
      That definitely counts for something! 30km per day is a lot, in my opinion, and riding a bicycle makes you energetic at the start of the day. I am talking from experience because I used to go to work by bicycle a few years ago. I am now living near my workplace (10 minutes on foot) so it doesn’t make much sense to go there by bicycle. That’s some first world problems!
      I guess the Netherlands is one of the friendliest countries to cycle. I was in Copenhagen, Denmark a few times and was jealous how convenient the infrastructure is for cyclists there. I haven’t been in the Netherlands yet but I guess it’s even better there. Are you riding your bicycle all year round?
      -BI

      1. Hi BI. Yeah, the bicycle infrastructure is very good here in the NL. Bike lanes everywhere. I have never been in Denmark, so can’t say how it compares. I’m driving my bicycle pretty much all year round, although in the winter (if it’s really cold and snowy) I will shorten the trip to work a little bit by using the public transportation for 12 km and cycle the other 3 km.
        – SD

  2. Good to see you actively building on your health. My goal is three activities per week. So that means indoor soccer and two times endurance/strength training.

    @Albert, 30km definitely counts for something!

    1. Hi Mr. Robot,
      Thanks for visiting! It’s great that you also manage to do some sports during your week. Are you in some soccer team or just playing with your friends? Participating in some Sunday league or something? 🙂
      -BI

  3. Good job BI. I think it’s really good you’re doing those exercises. I’m slowly trying to get back in the gym. Not so much for running, but to look good. It’s still tough. I watch you tube videos to help keep me motivated.

    1. Hi DP,
      It’s great that you are trying to get back to the gym 🙂 I think those videos not only motivate you but also teach you how to perform some exercises correctly which is really important 😉

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