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To run with hurt muscles?

guest — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 03:11:45 GMT

I am new to running so take my option with a grain of salt.

If I were you I would ask myself if I can realistically run a 5K so slowly and carefuly (including "little old man shuffle" and walk breaks) as to not hurt my hamstrings. If I thought it's possible for me to take it easy and not get hurt then I would just run for fun (not speed). It does take some discipline and control though. If I were not confident that I can slow down enough I would probably skip the race.

There are many races but we only have one body. I think your girls and you will be better off if you don't get hurt.

P.S. I don't know why you are trying to lengthen your stride but you might want to look into learning about "proper" running form. Speed doesn't necessarely come from longer strides. Here is a good starting point:

http://www.goodformrunning.com/

Good luck.

Running 20+ miles long runs in marathon training

guest — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 02:46:50 GMT

Thank you for replies guys.

I think I'm going to plan for up to 29 miles long runs but will adjust based on how I feel. If I feel like running 20-22-24 miles will be too much for me I will change my plan.

I think it's important to remember that plans are just numbers and you have to adjust them based on reality, feedback of your body and your life situations. You want to push yourself but to be sensible about it so that you don't push yourself over the edge.

Running 20+ miles long runs in marathon training

guest — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 19:44:49 GMT

I just ran my first half marathon a few days ago. I want to try to run a full marathon in May. So I am attempting to put together a training plan for myself based on everything I've read so far and by referring to the available training plans around the Internet.

The question I have is about the length of the long runs. The longest run I've done so far was 16 miles. Beyond that distance I am in uncharted, for me, territory.

Most training plans that I find take you up to 20 miles on your long runs. I've seen some people arguing that even 20 miles is too long and unnecessary.

There are others, like Jeff Galloway, that suggest that you run as long as 29 miles long runs in preparation for a marathon.

Matt Fitzgerald in his book "Run: The Mind-Body Method of Running by Feel" talks about the importance of doing whatever makes you feel confident in your ability to achieve your goal. I really think it's a good point. I certainly wouldn't feel confident racing a distance that I never covered in my training.

I do, however, understand the argument that running 20+ miles in your training puts a big strain on your body and requires for more recovery/easy runs which prevents you from running more quality workouts.

However, I feel like I should run 26.2 (and probably more) at least once before the race day.

What are your thoughts on running over 20 miles in preparation for a marathon?

Thank you.

I can't stand the pain

guest — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 14:28:10 GMT

I would also like to add that working on your running form should be a priority from the very beginning. For example, If you are heel striking when you run, you are killing your joints, not to mention slowing yourself down. There are many sites, articles and books on running form. Just google for good running form. Here is one that gives you basics ideas to start with:

http://www.goodformrunning.com/

Running faster overnight... What happened?

guest — Sun, 28 Oct 2012 03:01:48 GMT

Thank you, Brad.

A part of the problem with my newly found speed was that I couldn't slow down. I had my first half marathon race coming up in 2 weeks and I really needed to take it easy, but every time I came out for a run I found myself "sprinting" away. Finally, I managed to get my paces down by forcing myself to take walk breaks every 2 minutes. I was worrying that I completely screwed up my taper period.

I had a very modest goal in mind. I hoped to run 2:30. In the best case scenerio I figured I will be able to do 2:25. I just hoped to manage to slow down myself and not sprint right out of the gate.

Anyway, the race went much better than I feared. I ended up pacing myself fairly well and ran it in 2:19:20.

I am now working on my full marathon plan...

Running faster overnight... What happened?

guest — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 23:48:48 GMT

Thank you for the words of encouragement and for the advice, Coyote.

I was skeptical about the "breakthrough" concept. So I decided I will see how today's run will go. I went for an easy 4 miles run today and ran the whole thing without walking at under 10 mpm and without huffing and puffing much. CRAZY!!! I still can't believe that something like this can happen, and especially to me... :-)

As for the speedwork, I was not planning on doing anything very crazy. I run plenty of hills all the time. I was just thinking of adding an occasional interval training and/or fartlek here and there. I am very careful about not hurting myself. Goodness knows, I don't want to live through another surgery.

Thanks again for the suggestions and ideas.

Running faster overnight... What happened?

guest — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 19:20:26 GMT

Hello fellow runners,

I woke up one morning and ran much faster than I had in the past. Seriously. I'm not complaining, of course, but I am confused by what happened and I need some help interpreting the results. But first, a little background.

I'm a 41 year old man and I'm a very new to running. I hated long distance running since the high school days. I always thought it was the worst torture. However, I did pretty good at sprints and I regularly played soccer. Then I spent many years smoking and generally leading a very unhealthy lifestyle. Ten years ago I quit smoking, cleaned up my diet and started playing soccer again. However, in 2010 I completely tore ACL off, partially tore MCL and had some damage to meniscus in my right knee. I had a new ACL installed, but recovery wasn't as fast as I hoped it would be. Finally, 6 months ago I started to run regularly.

I'm slow and I have to take walk breaks on longer runs. 3-4 months ago I was only able to run distances over 3 miles at 13+ mpm pace (2 minutes running, 1 minute walking). But I'm feeling better and stronger lately and I've been challenging myself a little with longer runs on a hilly course, fewer walk breaks and occasional hill reps. I also work on my running form and try to improve my breathing. My comfortable pace seems to be anywhere between 11:30 and 12 mpm nowadays. Sometimes, I would "sprint" at the end of my runs for about a quarter of a mile but my "sprinting" pace seems to be only around 10 mpm.

So, this Saturday, I ran 12 miles at my usual 11:45 mpm pace. The next morning, I was going for an easy recovery run but "something" whispered into my ear: "Can you sustain a 10 mpm pace for a mile? Can you? Can you?"

I went out hard and quickly found a voice in my head laughing at me: "Yeah right! You won't be able to sustain this even for a half of a mile." When I ran past first half-mile marker the voice said: "Okay. One mile. But that's it. Then you have to take a break." Huffing and puffing I went forward. I looked at my watch at one mile mark and was shocked to see 8:50. And I kept running.

"Can I keep it up for 2 miles?" I thought. At this point my brain went into a panic mode: "STOP! STOP IT NOW!!! HEEEEELP!!!" But somehow I had the presence of mind to assess the situation: "Am I hurt? No. Am I really tired? Not even close. What is the problem then? I don't know. I guess I'm just breathing super hard and it freaks my brain out. I just need to calm down." I pushed through a series of nasty hills and clocked my second mile in 9:10.

"Holy smoke! What is going on here? Can I do the entire 5K at this pace?" As I was startling walkers and ducks with my loud breathing and intense look, I thought that the biggest challenge for me was not being tired but controlling my breathing and keeping my brain from completely flipping out and shutting the whole thing down.

I managed to get myself to the 3.1 miles marker in 27:47. It's about 5 minutes faster than my previous best and almost 7 minutes faster than my 5 months old PR. I ran the last half of a mile in 4:16. I was completely out of breath for a couple of minutes but otherwise I felt fine. I was not hurting anywhere and didn't even feel very fatigued. I felt great actually.

I was in a bit of a shock, however, as I tried to make sense of what had just happened. How did I just instantly go from a 12 mpm pace to 9 mpm? And this is after a 12 mile run the day before... What does it mean? Am I too easy on myself in my training and need to crank it up? Or did I train smartly and this is simply the result of months of hard work? Where did this high gear come from? Where was it before? Is it going to go away tomorrow? Did somebody secretly swapped my body for a faster one over night? Was it all the wine I drank last night? Something in the wine? A lot of questions and not so many answers.

The only thing that is clear to me is that I need to start incorporating interval training in my running schedule. Breathing like I did on this run is just not comfortable and very stressful. Not to mention that I frightened people and animals all around.

How should I interpret this? Any ideas?

Thank you in advance.

How often is too often?

guest — Mon, 28 May 2012 00:31:22 GMT

Thank you for your thoughts guys.

I try to take it easy for the most part. I'm recovering from a knee surgery, so I try to listen to my body and not do things that feel like they might lead to injuries. One surgery was quite enough for me.

Today I ran 10 miles for the first time in my life. Wow. It was pretty amazing, But I have to say that I definitely don't feel like an extra run today... :-)

How often is too often?

guest — Fri, 25 May 2012 02:27:27 GMT

Two months ago, just before my 41st birthday, I began learning how to run long distances. I run 3 times per week. I ran my first 5K recently.

I'm trying to figure out how many times per week is safe/good/smart to run.

Most beginner training plans seems to suggest 3 times per week. There are articles stressing how important the rest is and how lack of recovery time can lead to injuries. I understand. It makes sense.

Yet I see that elite runners run 2 times per day almost every day. Don't they need rest? But I also understand that they are the elite and I am not, so there is no point in comparing myself to them.

I am slow and have to take walk breaks on my runs, so I am not looking to run 12 times per week.

But every once in a while I feel like running an extra time or two. And sometimes I even feel like running in the evening on the day when I already had a run in the morning.

So far I resisted doing any of these extra runs because, based on things I read, I'm concern that I won't give my body enough time to recover.

However, some sources seem to suggest that easy/recovery runs while fatigued could be beneficial. Here is an example:

http://www.active.com/running/Articles/A_fresh_perspective_on_recovery_runs.htm

Needless to say I am a bit confused. Is it okay to sometimes run 4-5 times per week for a beginner like me? Is it okay to occasionally run 2 times per day, given that the second run is an easy and short one? Or should I stick to 3 times per week routine until... well... until when?

What do you think?

Two months ago, just before my 41st birthday, I began learning how to run long distances. I run 3 times per week. I ran my first 5K recently.

I'm trying to figure out how many times per week is safe/good/smart to run.

Yet I see that elite runners run 2 times per day almost every day. Don't they need rest? But I also understand that they are the elite and I am not, so there is no point in comparing myself to them.

I am slow and have to take walk breaks on my runs, so I am not looking to run 12 times per week.

But sometimes I feel like running an extra day or two. And sometimes I even feel like running in the evening on the day when I already had a run in the morning.

So far I resisted doing any of these extra runs because, based on things I read, I'm concern that I won't give my body enough time to recover.

However, some sources seem to suggest that easy/recovery runs while fatigued could be beneficial. Here is an example:

http://www.active.com/running/Articles/A_fresh_perspective_on_recovery_runs.htm

What do you think?

Two months ago, just before my 41st birthday, I began learning how to run long distances. I run 3 times per week. I ran my first 5K recently.

I'm trying to figure out how many times per week is safe/good/smart to run.

Yet I see that elite runners run 2 times per day almost every day. Don't they need rest? But I also understand that they are the elite and I am not, so there is no point in comparing myself to them.

I am slow and have to take walk breaks on my runs, so I am not looking to run 12 times per week.

But sometimes I feel like running an extra day or two. And sometimes I even feel like running in the evening on the day when I already had a run in the morning.

So far I resisted doing any of these extra runs because, based on things I read, I'm concern that I won't give my body enough time to recover.

However, some sources seem to suggest that easy/recovery runs while fatigued could be beneficial. Here is an example:

http://www.active.com/running/Articles/A_fresh_perspective_on_recovery_runs.htm

What do you think?

Re: Mystery tightness in the back of my head...

guest — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:29:38 GMT

Thank you, James. You provided a lot of useful info. I spent a lot of time in the front of computer and I know that my posture is a problem. I will definitely try to correct my posture and do some neck exercises to see if it solves the problem. Thanks.