The Running Thread Vol 2
Discussion
Smitters said:
With the caveat that you don't over do it. I use data on my LSD to make sure I'm going slow/easy enough, not hard/fast enough. You have to have a certain amount of insight into yourself to understand what you're feeling at the start of a long, multi-hour run and project it forward to the end, where it should still feel fairly easy.
See 90% of men on their first marathons as evidence of whether we excel at this level of insight and control...
I guess, that the thing I love about running. Going with the feel. Indeed, you can have some bad surprises but that part of the experience. As long as we enjoy, keep going! See 90% of men on their first marathons as evidence of whether we excel at this level of insight and control...
I'm just over a year into my running journey and a little envious of some of the progress and paces I'm reading about here!
I'm 37, 5ft9 and hover around 74kg so in reasonable shape. In August 2022 when I started running regularly I could just about do 5km without stopping in a little over 30 mins. I got that down to 25 mins by earlier this year.
After that I decided I wanted to be able to run a half marathon distanced, so started a Garmin coach half marathon plan. Part of that training so me get a 10km under my belt in less than an hour and recorded a time of just over 52 mins in June, followed by the half marathon in 1:55 in July.
Since the summer I've lost consistency which has seen my general running fitness decline, something I'm working on at the moment. Garmin reckons a current VO2 max of 49.
I never tried a 5km effort during half-marathon training, with hindsight it would've been good to see what time I could do with that level of fitness. Right now I think I could probably hit the 5km in 25 mins.
Reading some of your paces on here makes me think it's a case of mind over matter and that I'm probably capable of more. My main problem is stopping myself from running too quickly on easy days, I've calculated the top of my Z2 is around 151bpm and I need to be <6:30/km to do that which feels like walking! It's even worse on the treadmill at a constant pace, on the road the variable pace helps a little but I can't maintain anything in the 140s for any meaningful distance without a run/walk approach and I would've thought at over 12 months in my aerobic base should be good enough by now. I've been thinking about getting a bike trainer for the winter so I can do some focussed Z2 training.
So yeah, any suggestions gratefully received from some of the more experienced runners.
I'm 37, 5ft9 and hover around 74kg so in reasonable shape. In August 2022 when I started running regularly I could just about do 5km without stopping in a little over 30 mins. I got that down to 25 mins by earlier this year.
After that I decided I wanted to be able to run a half marathon distanced, so started a Garmin coach half marathon plan. Part of that training so me get a 10km under my belt in less than an hour and recorded a time of just over 52 mins in June, followed by the half marathon in 1:55 in July.
Since the summer I've lost consistency which has seen my general running fitness decline, something I'm working on at the moment. Garmin reckons a current VO2 max of 49.
I never tried a 5km effort during half-marathon training, with hindsight it would've been good to see what time I could do with that level of fitness. Right now I think I could probably hit the 5km in 25 mins.
Reading some of your paces on here makes me think it's a case of mind over matter and that I'm probably capable of more. My main problem is stopping myself from running too quickly on easy days, I've calculated the top of my Z2 is around 151bpm and I need to be <6:30/km to do that which feels like walking! It's even worse on the treadmill at a constant pace, on the road the variable pace helps a little but I can't maintain anything in the 140s for any meaningful distance without a run/walk approach and I would've thought at over 12 months in my aerobic base should be good enough by now. I've been thinking about getting a bike trainer for the winter so I can do some focussed Z2 training.
So yeah, any suggestions gratefully received from some of the more experienced runners.
samdy said:
I'm just over a year into my running journey and a little envious of some of the progress and paces I'm reading about here!
I'm 37, 5ft9 and hover around 74kg so in reasonable shape. In August 2022 when I started running regularly I could just about do 5km without stopping in a little over 30 mins. I got that down to 25 mins by earlier this year.
After that I decided I wanted to be able to run a half marathon distanced, so started a Garmin coach half marathon plan. Part of that training so me get a 10km under my belt in less than an hour and recorded a time of just over 52 mins in June, followed by the half marathon in 1:55 in July.
Since the summer I've lost consistency which has seen my general running fitness decline, something I'm working on at the moment. Garmin reckons a current VO2 max of 49.
I never tried a 5km effort during half-marathon training, with hindsight it would've been good to see what time I could do with that level of fitness. Right now I think I could probably hit the 5km in 25 mins.
Reading some of your paces on here makes me think it's a case of mind over matter and that I'm probably capable of more. My main problem is stopping myself from running too quickly on easy days, I've calculated the top of my Z2 is around 151bpm and I need to be <6:30/km to do that which feels like walking! It's even worse on the treadmill at a constant pace, on the road the variable pace helps a little but I can't maintain anything in the 140s for any meaningful distance without a run/walk approach and I would've thought at over 12 months in my aerobic base should be good enough by now. I've been thinking about getting a bike trainer for the winter so I can do some focussed Z2 training.
So yeah, any suggestions gratefully received from some of the more experienced runners.
Get that book (I recommend it a few pages ago):I'm 37, 5ft9 and hover around 74kg so in reasonable shape. In August 2022 when I started running regularly I could just about do 5km without stopping in a little over 30 mins. I got that down to 25 mins by earlier this year.
After that I decided I wanted to be able to run a half marathon distanced, so started a Garmin coach half marathon plan. Part of that training so me get a 10km under my belt in less than an hour and recorded a time of just over 52 mins in June, followed by the half marathon in 1:55 in July.
Since the summer I've lost consistency which has seen my general running fitness decline, something I'm working on at the moment. Garmin reckons a current VO2 max of 49.
I never tried a 5km effort during half-marathon training, with hindsight it would've been good to see what time I could do with that level of fitness. Right now I think I could probably hit the 5km in 25 mins.
Reading some of your paces on here makes me think it's a case of mind over matter and that I'm probably capable of more. My main problem is stopping myself from running too quickly on easy days, I've calculated the top of my Z2 is around 151bpm and I need to be <6:30/km to do that which feels like walking! It's even worse on the treadmill at a constant pace, on the road the variable pace helps a little but I can't maintain anything in the 140s for any meaningful distance without a run/walk approach and I would've thought at over 12 months in my aerobic base should be good enough by now. I've been thinking about getting a bike trainer for the winter so I can do some focussed Z2 training.
So yeah, any suggestions gratefully received from some of the more experienced runners.
Road Racing for Serious Runners https://amzn.eu/d/am8zFgi
It completely changed my running life at the time I was racing. I always had heavy jobs in term of hours so getting the best out of my body was about getting the perfect training plan. This book is very useful. I use to do a lot of Steve Jones training sessions as well. Brutal but fun! I was heavy on mileage as my body was able to take it so it helped me a lot but you can do fantastic things without going banana.
A few views on how to improve at the running game (I've been running on and off for 18 years and am reasonably quick despite being a V45. Here is what I have learned over the years
- You get faster with consistent training - 16 weeks of consistent running is better than 8 weeks of really intense running if you get injured
- 1 long run, 1 tempo, 1 speed and anything else easy in a week
- running with others pushes you, so join a club or arrange to meet others
- rest and recovery are very important . Stretching/foam rollering (in front of the tele) will help
- don't run everything too hard . even some speed sessions should not be 100%
- Race shoes can help on a road race (alphafly for me) and honestly save 15 seconds a mile for me
- Running is a mental game and running with others will help you move more quickly that if you were on your own
Bike fitness is good but there is no substitute for running and hills are good !!
The jiffle king said:
A few views on how to improve at the running game (I've been running on and off for 18 years and am reasonably quick despite being a V45. Here is what I have learned over the years
- You get faster with consistent training - 16 weeks of consistent running is better than 8 weeks of really intense running if you get injured
- 1 long run, 1 tempo, 1 speed and anything else easy in a week
- running with others pushes you, so join a club or arrange to meet others
- rest and recovery are very important . Stretching/foam rollering (in front of the tele) will help
- don't run everything too hard . even some speed sessions should not be 100%
- Race shoes can help on a road race (alphafly for me) and honestly save 15 seconds a mile for me
- Running is a mental game and running with others will help you move more quickly that if you were on your own
Bike fitness is good but there is no substitute for running and hills are good !!
i signed up to a running club and its just a bunch of folk who like running and chatting. theres no real focus fitness wise apart from 'keep up' and 'lets get a coffee afterwards'. its very social. that said they enter a team in alot of marathons etc and stage their own race around a local lake. one old dude prides himself on the marathons hes done. doesnt give a damn about improving the times. hes a 6min/km diesel engine and hes proud of it. Hes there for the atmosphere and the free tee shirt- You get faster with consistent training - 16 weeks of consistent running is better than 8 weeks of really intense running if you get injured
- 1 long run, 1 tempo, 1 speed and anything else easy in a week
- running with others pushes you, so join a club or arrange to meet others
- rest and recovery are very important . Stretching/foam rollering (in front of the tele) will help
- don't run everything too hard . even some speed sessions should not be 100%
- Race shoes can help on a road race (alphafly for me) and honestly save 15 seconds a mile for me
- Running is a mental game and running with others will help you move more quickly that if you were on your own
Bike fitness is good but there is no substitute for running and hills are good !!
RabidGranny said:
i signed up to a running club and its just a bunch of folk who like running and chatting. theres no real focus fitness wise apart from 'keep up' and 'lets get a coffee afterwards'. its very social. that said they enter a team in alot of marathons etc and stage their own race around a local lake. one old dude prides himself on the marathons hes done. doesnt give a damn about improving the times. hes a 6min/km diesel engine and hes proud of it. Hes there for the atmosphere and the free tee shirt
Where I live there are lots of little social running clubs that have sprung up- many since parkrun has become a thing, where competition is almost discouraged and it's all about taking part. Maybe worth looking for a more established "athletics club" or road running club with a bias towards competitions as they're are more likely to have proper coaches and structured training sessions.RabidGranny said:
i signed up to a running club and its just a bunch of folk who like running and chatting. theres no real focus fitness wise apart from 'keep up' and 'lets get a coffee afterwards'. its very social. that said they enter a team in alot of marathons etc and stage their own race around a local lake. one old dude prides himself on the marathons hes done. doesnt give a damn about improving the times. hes a 6min/km diesel engine and hes proud of it. Hes there for the atmosphere and the free tee shirt
I'm sorry to hear that and if you would share where you live, I would hope that someone on this thread would live close enough to be able to recommend a local club. If you in Berks or South Bucks, then I can happily recommend a few.My club do speed on a Tuesday night, easy run or tempo on a Thursday and there are also Sunday long run groups as well as a Monday track session.
The jiffle king said:
I'm sorry to hear that and if you would share where you live, I would hope that someone on this thread would live close enough to be able to recommend a local club. If you in Berks or South Bucks, then I can happily recommend a few.
My club do speed on a Tuesday night, easy run or tempo on a Thursday and there are also Sunday long run groups as well as a Monday track session.
That's pretty much what we do except we alternate what nights are speed and tempo so people who can only regularly make one night get both workouts.My club do speed on a Tuesday night, easy run or tempo on a Thursday and there are also Sunday long run groups as well as a Monday track session.
Most of the clubs around here (near Norwich) have a mixture of the serious runners out to win their age categories in races down to people who are happy to jeff and getting round a 10k is an achievement.
Some clubs lean towards getting quick times and training, some lean towards the social side but I think all of the England Athletics affiliated clubs put on races, have club kit, have quick members, etc.
Track session last night.
1600m warm up at 9 minute mile pace.
7500m split into 6 lots of 5 minutes with 90 second recovery in-between at 6:30 minute mile pace.
1200m cool down at 10 minute mile pace.
Some of the fast runners are bloody fast! Feel good this morning other than my achilles complaining a bit again
1600m warm up at 9 minute mile pace.
7500m split into 6 lots of 5 minutes with 90 second recovery in-between at 6:30 minute mile pace.
1200m cool down at 10 minute mile pace.
Some of the fast runners are bloody fast! Feel good this morning other than my achilles complaining a bit again
redrabbit29 said:
I don't know what's wrong with me but everything hurts these days. Not proper pain, just discomfort really and I know I'm not injured.
I am trying to get back into running after a break. I'm only doing 1-2 runs per week on feel and usually run/walks to keep the heart rate down. They're not too bad.
However, my knee hurts when squatting or lunging, even with light weights or bodyweight
My shoulders ache a lot
My left ankle hurts despite having correctly fitted trainers and once I know and trust (they've only done about 80 miles)
My left shoulder hurts too, usually when doing light weights or just reaching for something
I'm 39. My diet is the only thing which is a bit rubbish and could do with improving. I'm not overtraining, no idea what the issue is.
Like I said it's not an injury, it just feels like I'm weak. Maybe that's the answer? Weak and just need to give it time to get stronger?
Have you checked your thyroid - i had similar symptoms and turned out it was all linked to an underactive thyroid. 6 months of tablets and all my aches and pains have disappeared.I am trying to get back into running after a break. I'm only doing 1-2 runs per week on feel and usually run/walks to keep the heart rate down. They're not too bad.
However, my knee hurts when squatting or lunging, even with light weights or bodyweight
My shoulders ache a lot
My left ankle hurts despite having correctly fitted trainers and once I know and trust (they've only done about 80 miles)
My left shoulder hurts too, usually when doing light weights or just reaching for something
I'm 39. My diet is the only thing which is a bit rubbish and could do with improving. I'm not overtraining, no idea what the issue is.
Like I said it's not an injury, it just feels like I'm weak. Maybe that's the answer? Weak and just need to give it time to get stronger?
Waitforme said:
Well , no running for me this week after my easy 12k last Sunday, came down with the lurgy.
Managed 2 x 8 and 1x 3 mile walks though so keeping the legs used to something.
Does anyone do any kind of jogging when they have a chesty cough , even zone 2 ?
Not me... It's counter productive IME once your lungs are affectedManaged 2 x 8 and 1x 3 mile walks though so keeping the legs used to something.
Does anyone do any kind of jogging when they have a chesty cough , even zone 2 ?
MesoForm said:
Thought I’d give the Z2 running thing a go, usual 6k route, set off at a dead slow plod, felt good that I managed to keep my heart rate in the second zone on my watch (green on Garmin) for about 20 minutes. HR went up after that but I was happy that it started in zone 2.
Until I checked the results on my phone after I got home -
Obviously I was looking at the wrong section on my watch!
Think I’ll try power walking to get up into Z2, normal walking won’t get into it and I can’t run any slower to get HR down to it.
Until I checked the results on my phone after I got home -
Obviously I was looking at the wrong section on my watch!
Think I’ll try power walking to get up into Z2, normal walking won’t get into it and I can’t run any slower to get HR down to it.
smn159 said:
I'd suggest that you need to be sure that your HR zones are set correctly and that your watch is reading them accurately before you do that
30 mins at threshold heart rate would definitely not leave you feeling good, so something is amiss
After a bit more investigation, Garmin has a different definition of Zone 2 to Strava, looking at the Strava results for the same run I did much better:30 mins at threshold heart rate would definitely not leave you feeling good, so something is amiss
Advice sought pls: have done a half marathon once, on my way home from work, not planned, ended up deciding to do another 10k as the trains were screwed. It was hot. I had no water and I hadn’t planned it at all took me just over 2 hrs whereas Garmin reckons I should manage 1hr 50.
Was thinking about having another go, but maybe with a bottle of water or some fuelling. Even a lucozade half way would help.
Any thoughts on light fuelling for this sort of thing - both timing and type.
Cheers all. Austin.
Was thinking about having another go, but maybe with a bottle of water or some fuelling. Even a lucozade half way would help.
Any thoughts on light fuelling for this sort of thing - both timing and type.
Cheers all. Austin.
Austin_Metro said:
Advice sought pls: have done a half marathon once, on my way home from work, not planned, ended up deciding to do another 10k as the trains were screwed. It was hot. I had no water and I hadn’t planned it at all took me just over 2 hrs whereas Garmin reckons I should manage 1hr 50.
Was thinking about having another go, but maybe with a bottle of water or some fuelling. Even a lucozade half way would help.
Any thoughts on light fuelling for this sort of thing - both timing and type.
In terms of hydration, my main consideration is what you do in the hours before the run, so consistently taking on water. That way I find I don't really need to take on any during the run. You could also consider sipping on High5 Energy Drink in the hour before you go out. Mid run, maybe a gel, but you'll have to work out how you react to them. I sometimes find the sugar content in them actually results in a bit of a slump, so I don't normally bother with them,Was thinking about having another go, but maybe with a bottle of water or some fuelling. Even a lucozade half way would help.
Any thoughts on light fuelling for this sort of thing - both timing and type.
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