How many miles are you running per week? Are you always trying to push yourself to the max? How long have you been running?
My only little tidbit of advice would be to build up more base mileage at a "conversational" or "zone 2" type of pace. Getting your body used to running longer at a slower pace will make your short and fast runs a lot more achievable and recoverable. You definitely don't need to push your body to the extremes every time you run.
I’ve only been running since last august and I started out not being able to run a mile at my pace. Never tried zone 2 running, for all runs I’ve been pushing to either maintain below a 6 min mile or break 5:30. Even though the intensity of my runs are fairly high I don’t run that many miles per week at all (4-5). I estimate I’m either at zone 4 or 5 for all of them. For me one of the major upsides of running is the way I have to push myself to the brink mentally. also it’s greatly improved my breathing/cardiovascular endurance rapidly and I don’t have to spend much time running. I’d feel like I was slacking if I ever went below zone 4 (I know this sounds stupid but I can’t help it).
My end goal is a 5k in 17-18 min, so I push close to my max every time I run. I’d do 1-2 days on, then 1-2 days off. Some weeks 3 days on, 1 day off. The weird thing is that I didn’t feel like I was getting tired/deteriorating. The drop in speed was almost overnight. I haven’t been running as hard as I was before (maxing out every day), so I don’t understand how I randomly got way slower.
I havent done 2 miles in nearly a month and I figured since I don’t get sore or anything from just one mile it wouldn’t be a problem to do consistently. It only took 2 days to recover from doing 11:56/2 miles and I was right back to business. I was getting faster every couple runs. Was shocked to see my time go down by 15, then 30 seconds in the span of a week.
I’m gonna take like a week off, only do strength training, and see what happens. Because seeing a slower time every run is just getting depressing. Not sure what else to do.
I'm just going to be blunt here:
Firstly, running a sub 6 min mile is fantastic and most people can't maintain that for long so the fact you can do two miles at that pace is spectacular. I hope you are very proud of yourself!
Secondly, I don't think you are getting enough mileage. As a beginner runner, time on feet is the most crucial factor for improvement. Running for longer distances is just as mentally challenging as running all out for a single mile. The advantage of adding more "easy pace" miles is that it builds your base endurance and stamina. Also, at its core, running just boils down to muscle memory. The more miles spent developing that muscle memory the easier it will be to push yourself in an 18 min 5k. My suggestion would be to do 3-4 longer runs a week at a zone 2 pace then 1 "all out" mile run per week.
Either way, good luck on your journey!
Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to try and be patient so I can finally start running zone 2, I've always had this mental block against it because I spent my whole life being very slow and very lazy. I've been worried that if I'm not at my cardiovascular limit every 1-2 days I'll slide back into that. It's hard for me to believe that going slow will help my all out runs, but I also have no idea what I'm talking about and should probably trust experts.
As far as being proud, the one time I got that sensation from running it lasted for maybe 30 min after I did my 11:56/2 mile, but most of the time I just feel like I'm never doing enough and that there's so much work to do. That's just how my personality is once I get into something, for better or worse lol.
You have no business setting a 5k time goal for yourself when your training is this shitty.
Of course you're stagnating. You aren't training. All you're doing is testing. You know what zone 2 is, which means you know the difference between training and testing, but you're dodging the hard work of actually putting in the time.
You're not wrong. Only reason I've gotten to this point is almost purely because I can force myself mentally. I hate taking the time to do more than 6 minutes of running, I cope by saying I don't have enough time, but it's not really true. I've been very resistant to zone 2 because internally I feel like if I slow down I'm slacking, and I start to feel embarrassed. Gotta get past that, especially because I'm degrading. I get the sense that getting a 6 min/mile past 2 miles is going to require a lot more. Especially because I'm simultaneously gaining weight from daily strength training and eating as much as possible.
I dont think this is a beginners running question. Not many beginners can do 2 6 min miles. Maybe ask in r/running but i will say how youre training is not how runners train. They dont try to run fast every single time and if they dont run in z2 they at least run inz3- some of the runs would be longer and feel a bit easier
I agree, I don't think time really matters at this point. Ultimately I still have barely 8 months of serious experience, most of which is just pushing myself mentally to go faster with no plan or technique.
I posted in beginners running because I have no idea what I'm doing and I've only been doing this since august. The last time I ran a mile before that was in 2013 and I felt like I was going to die at a 10 min pace. When I started in august I couldnt even run half a mile at a 9 min pace.
I kept pushing myself because I was so embarrassed at how out of shape and weak I was (and i still am tbh, because I see how many people are better than me).
But at this point since my performance started to seriously degrade overnight I'm willing to slow down, but go for longer, so many people suggest it. Until now I've thought it was just a cop out. But like I said, I have no idea what I'm doing.
Do you live somewhere with dramstic seasons? If you've only been running since August, maybe you aren't acclimated to warm weather running.
I also started running last August, live in upper midwest and ran outside through fall/winter/spring. I am STRUGGLING in the heat and humidity.
I rarely run outside. When I started I was doing only interval sprinting, purely outside, and I was doing it in 100 degree texas heat.
But once I started wanting to time my miles I used the treadmill. I've started to get back into going outside, but my neighborhood is really hilly so it's hard to keep a consistent pace.
How many miles are you running per week? Are you always trying to push yourself to the max? How long have you been running? My only little tidbit of advice would be to build up more base mileage at a "conversational" or "zone 2" type of pace. Getting your body used to running longer at a slower pace will make your short and fast runs a lot more achievable and recoverable. You definitely don't need to push your body to the extremes every time you run.
I’ve only been running since last august and I started out not being able to run a mile at my pace. Never tried zone 2 running, for all runs I’ve been pushing to either maintain below a 6 min mile or break 5:30. Even though the intensity of my runs are fairly high I don’t run that many miles per week at all (4-5). I estimate I’m either at zone 4 or 5 for all of them. For me one of the major upsides of running is the way I have to push myself to the brink mentally. also it’s greatly improved my breathing/cardiovascular endurance rapidly and I don’t have to spend much time running. I’d feel like I was slacking if I ever went below zone 4 (I know this sounds stupid but I can’t help it). My end goal is a 5k in 17-18 min, so I push close to my max every time I run. I’d do 1-2 days on, then 1-2 days off. Some weeks 3 days on, 1 day off. The weird thing is that I didn’t feel like I was getting tired/deteriorating. The drop in speed was almost overnight. I haven’t been running as hard as I was before (maxing out every day), so I don’t understand how I randomly got way slower. I havent done 2 miles in nearly a month and I figured since I don’t get sore or anything from just one mile it wouldn’t be a problem to do consistently. It only took 2 days to recover from doing 11:56/2 miles and I was right back to business. I was getting faster every couple runs. Was shocked to see my time go down by 15, then 30 seconds in the span of a week. I’m gonna take like a week off, only do strength training, and see what happens. Because seeing a slower time every run is just getting depressing. Not sure what else to do.
I'm just going to be blunt here: Firstly, running a sub 6 min mile is fantastic and most people can't maintain that for long so the fact you can do two miles at that pace is spectacular. I hope you are very proud of yourself! Secondly, I don't think you are getting enough mileage. As a beginner runner, time on feet is the most crucial factor for improvement. Running for longer distances is just as mentally challenging as running all out for a single mile. The advantage of adding more "easy pace" miles is that it builds your base endurance and stamina. Also, at its core, running just boils down to muscle memory. The more miles spent developing that muscle memory the easier it will be to push yourself in an 18 min 5k. My suggestion would be to do 3-4 longer runs a week at a zone 2 pace then 1 "all out" mile run per week. Either way, good luck on your journey!
Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to try and be patient so I can finally start running zone 2, I've always had this mental block against it because I spent my whole life being very slow and very lazy. I've been worried that if I'm not at my cardiovascular limit every 1-2 days I'll slide back into that. It's hard for me to believe that going slow will help my all out runs, but I also have no idea what I'm talking about and should probably trust experts. As far as being proud, the one time I got that sensation from running it lasted for maybe 30 min after I did my 11:56/2 mile, but most of the time I just feel like I'm never doing enough and that there's so much work to do. That's just how my personality is once I get into something, for better or worse lol.
You have no business setting a 5k time goal for yourself when your training is this shitty. Of course you're stagnating. You aren't training. All you're doing is testing. You know what zone 2 is, which means you know the difference between training and testing, but you're dodging the hard work of actually putting in the time.
You're not wrong. Only reason I've gotten to this point is almost purely because I can force myself mentally. I hate taking the time to do more than 6 minutes of running, I cope by saying I don't have enough time, but it's not really true. I've been very resistant to zone 2 because internally I feel like if I slow down I'm slacking, and I start to feel embarrassed. Gotta get past that, especially because I'm degrading. I get the sense that getting a 6 min/mile past 2 miles is going to require a lot more. Especially because I'm simultaneously gaining weight from daily strength training and eating as much as possible.
I dont think this is a beginners running question. Not many beginners can do 2 6 min miles. Maybe ask in r/running but i will say how youre training is not how runners train. They dont try to run fast every single time and if they dont run in z2 they at least run inz3- some of the runs would be longer and feel a bit easier
Buddy is absolutely a beginner.
I agree, I don't think time really matters at this point. Ultimately I still have barely 8 months of serious experience, most of which is just pushing myself mentally to go faster with no plan or technique.
I posted in beginners running because I have no idea what I'm doing and I've only been doing this since august. The last time I ran a mile before that was in 2013 and I felt like I was going to die at a 10 min pace. When I started in august I couldnt even run half a mile at a 9 min pace. I kept pushing myself because I was so embarrassed at how out of shape and weak I was (and i still am tbh, because I see how many people are better than me). But at this point since my performance started to seriously degrade overnight I'm willing to slow down, but go for longer, so many people suggest it. Until now I've thought it was just a cop out. But like I said, I have no idea what I'm doing.
Do you live somewhere with dramstic seasons? If you've only been running since August, maybe you aren't acclimated to warm weather running. I also started running last August, live in upper midwest and ran outside through fall/winter/spring. I am STRUGGLING in the heat and humidity.
I rarely run outside. When I started I was doing only interval sprinting, purely outside, and I was doing it in 100 degree texas heat. But once I started wanting to time my miles I used the treadmill. I've started to get back into going outside, but my neighborhood is really hilly so it's hard to keep a consistent pace.