Help me meet my goals!

hobbitabroad

I know the usual answer to everything on here is "what are your goals?", so here I am jumping the gun and asking for advice.

Im currently reasonably fit, but looking to take it to the next level. When I'm at home I can easily commit to 4-6 workouts per week, but this is disrupted a few times a month when I need to go out for field work (I live in Papua New Guinea). I have little to no space or privacy during those periods so fitness essentially drops off.

I'm looking for advice how to allocate my time to meet my goals.

Anywho, My goals are:
- Improve my cardio fitness.

I currently run 5k on a treadmill at least 3 times a week, I'd like to work up to a half marathon around March time and not die on hills. I'd also like to improve my hiking fitness, though this is already reasonably good.

Unfortunately I can only run outdoors very occasionally due to the security situation of Port Moresby.

- Tone up

I currently do some rather sporadic heavy lifting, mostly compound lifts and some kettle bells. I feel great about shape from the waist down, but need to up my game on the waist and up.

I'm finding that after runs I just do not have the energy to dedicated to a good lifting session,

I'm happy enough with my weight so changing that is not a goal at the moment.

All advice graciously received!

alesia9

Hello! I am a runner and started my journey 3-4 years ago with couch to 5K and then worked my way up to half marathons. You can totally work yourself up to a half in time for March. As for your toning goal, you probably won't get there with it being sporadic. I learned this the hard way when I would go hard with workouts for 2 weeks and then fall off the face of the earth for 2. Have you ever considered home workouts (DVDs) that come with a schedule of workouts for each day (and rest days). Personally, I have been able to shed inches from my waist, gut, etc by focusing on clean eating (somewhat clean lol) and committing to follow a workout program at home every day.

jaquelynny

you have to eat for your goals, and if you wan to look muscular (toned) you have to lift. try lifting before running or doing on different days or different times of day, i do cardio in the morning weights at night, yes i go 2x a day but i don't mind

jacksonpt

Run slower for longer to improve overall endurance.

Adding some HIIT will address both your goals, but can be cumbersome to do on a treadmill. Try it a few times and see how it works on yours.

Keep up the compound lifts/kettlebells when you can. This will also help with body comp for the toned look.

Keep your diet in check (appropriate calorie intake and sufficient fats and protein) to help maintain muscle while you lose weight (i.e. tone up). A toned look is pretty subjective, so at some point you may have to do a controlled bulk to add a bit of muscle - but you can cross that bridge if/when you get to it.