Wow almightyD! I'm sorry... that does sound depressing! I think it is really rude that they lost you... and then the instructor just left when you got back and told you to skip the last one?! jeeze. If they are going to treat beginners like that they should really be more clear in their advertising that the course isn't for beginners, or something. How many days/weeks is the class? You must be a pretty perservering person because I can tell you, I am 100% sure that I would never go back to that class ever, ever, again! haha.

    Raynarunner- or anyone trying to lose weight by running I highly suggest taking 3 really important measurements .....thigh, hips, and stomach!   I'm working with a Dr for weight loss and lost really fast before i started running then really slowed down but when I went in for my appt yesterday I was depressed to have only lost 2 lbs in 2 weeks but then found out I had lost 5 inches of belly fat the hardest to lose!  So I'm gaining muscle but losing the bad stuff and the scale doesn't always show the whole picture

    Greeneybeaney-   I so hate all the negativity given to people who don't act or look in what is concidered a "normal" way or the people who have put down to feel better themselves that last night although hurtful really set me harder to not quit and be there if someone like myself joins the group.  The actual course and workout is not that hard I did it pritty easily I am just alot slower than everyone else. I am trying really hard to not push it so I can stay injury free, which for me means slow and steady.

    And someday when they are all nursing injuries from pushing too hard  I will smoke them all. I was the only one able to carry on a conversation at the end of the run and not gasping for air. 

    Really helpful article on breathing by the way!   Gonna try that next time , I have already paced myself at 3 steps breath in 3 steps breath out. 

    Maureen-  since running I have averaged about 1 lb a week but many more inches than before I started running and lost many more lbs. 

Holy crap I made it!  W5D3 is done!  A few weeks ago if you had told me that I would be running 20 minutes straight after I thought I was dying after 1 1/2 minutes or even 3 minutes I would have said you were crazy.  I actually had to alter my route a bit because I turned around a little too early and still had about 5 minutes left at my usual stopping point.  Note to self, when changing up my usual route make sure there isn't an uphill grade during those last two minutes.

I have to give a shout out to Maripossa24 for the link about breathing and Maureen0131 because I went to runnersworld.com to try and find that article and ran across an article about breathing there too.  I didn't have a stitch in my side like I usually do, which I have since found out is probably from not breathing deep enough, and didn't feel like I was as short of breath even though this is my longest run to date.  The only downside is that my stomach was actually getting a little sore from all that deep belly breathing.

Now I think I need to start working on strengthening my legs a little bit on my off days so I'll have to see if I can find that article on runnersworld.com and check out that one on coolrunning.com.

Tada...I found a place where I can get my phone on wifi and upload my Nike+ data.  It's in the secure prison compound but I found one.

I am a little disappointed that my pace has gone down some, I was around 10:40/mi during the earlier weeks and now I was a hair over 11:00, of course my running time has gone from a minute at a time to 20 minutes so I guess I shouldn't complain...endurance first and then I can try and work on getting my time down.

I'm so excited to have my stride/gait analyzed this weekend.  I couldn't quite finish my w3d2 beause my shins and lower legs hurt so bad.  I started trying different ways of running and actually found that if I lean slightly back and do a low "high-step"  my shins didn't hurt so bad.  I would imagine it makes my feet hit the treadmill differently and my muscles are working differently but it felt so weird becuase I wasn't used to it.  (I can just imagine how I looked doing it too, Hah!)  Hopefully the alaysis will help out.

Maureen0131, everyone I have talked to sings praises about having this kind of analysis done so if you haven't done that, it might be another thing to do to help your knees.  I think they recommend shoes and that kind of thing when you do this as well.  I would imagine they could tell you if your shoes are causing problems.

Keep it up everyone, great job!

Wow! thanks for the advice and encouragement everyone.  This is affecting both my knees in same place. I can hardly walk right now. It seems ibuprofen is the only thing that calms the pain down. My run this am was horrible. I could barely pick up my feet. I am thinking its my stride so I will have an analysis done.  I will also go get checked out at The Cleveland Clinic Sports Medicine Dept - they have a group of MD's, PT's, and sports gurus that specialize just in knees! Its nice to have this right in my back yard. I live in a suburb of Cleveland.  For now though, I can't move forward with the training program until this pain is gone. I will probably do some stationary biking at the gym and get started on strengthening exercises.  I will be a bit behind many but right along with many on this forum too! This has been wonderful and I'm NOT GIVING UP!  Its breaking my heart that I'm having so much pain and trouble.

My goal is the same. I WILL run the Detroit 5K on Thanksgiving Day! That is my resolve! Thanks again for all your support.  You guys are great!

Raynarunner wrote:

 

Question for anyone out there.  Does anyone run on the balls of their feet?  I understand this is the new fad out thre and they are finding it is easier on people's joints by doing this.  I think it may have started with the use of those shoes with toes since they don't have much padding on the bottom to obsorb impact.   I've tried it but since I'm not used to it it would certainly take some getting used to.

 

Anyone tried this or run this way?

What you may be referring to is a forefoot strike (as compared to heel strike or midfoot strike).  It's nothing new, just in a distinct minority.  And it's gotten more attention with the trend of minimalist/barefoot running.   Also, it does not mean running on the balls of your feet. You land first on the ball but then the rest of the sole of your foot lands, the heel very lightly.  This allows the entire foot to absorb the stresses and pronate as your foot rolls forward to "toe-off".

Take a look at some of the videos on this web page to see what a forefoot strike looks like.

http://www.barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu/4BiomechanicsofFootStrike.html

Len

Wow, AlmightyD, I'm jealous!  I wish my run had felt like yours.  I just can't use the words running and comfortable in the same sentence yet.

I just completed W6D3.  This was the hardest run yet for me.  Part of the problem was a stomach ache that hit me halfway through the run. I managed to finish the 2.25 miles though.  I hope my next run is a bit easier!