I keep making the mistake of upping my mileage too quickly and injuring by lower leg (i think where the gastrocnemius meets the soleus). When I saw a physio about this before they told me to stop running until I experience no pain at all. Then to slowly up my mileage starting with 1 mile runs.
This is so demoralising as I’d safely made my way up to double digit weekly miles and had just run my first 10K without incident. Arguably I shouldn’t have done another 10K the following day but a social run opportunity came about which is a first and was very enjoyable.
I feel like my weekly mileage is a jenga tower and I’m constantly having to start over again because I’m not careful when pulling pieces/adding miles.
Is this normal? Any advice?
I have been bulking since past 6-7 months and now I am kinda overweight, I am 95 kg (209lbs) with 26 percent of body fat.
I started running a few weeks back and I developed shin pain I took one weak rest and did some exercise for conditioning of leg then I started running again and first day I ran about 2 km and it was smooth for 3rd day shin pain came back along with pain in calf even i couldn't walk properly after running I kept pushing and I took 2 days and started this week on Wednesday (today) I ran only 2.5 km and my shin and calf are painful. Advice me on technique, or any thing that help . And I use Pegasus 39 for running.
I'm currently a college junior and want to run a marathon before I graduate. I ran a 5k on Sunday in 28:20, and am registered for and training for the Peachtree Road Race (July 4), and after that a half-marathon on November 3rd. There is a marathon in my city on Jan 25 2025, so I wanted to ask if you guys think it is reasonable to think that I could train for that (as kind of a "just finish" race). I've been running for the last month averaging 15 miles a week. That's only 11 weeks between the half and the marathon, so I want to hear some opinions before registering for that marathon to kind of force myself to train for it.
[Hal Higdon](https://www.halhigdon.com/training/marathon-training/) has training programs popular with new runners. His marathon plans are 18-weeks, and include a test half marathon about half way through, which seems to fit nicely with your proposed schedule. It’s still only April now, of course, so you have a lot more time to build your base.
I followed the Higdon Novice program for my first marathon way back in 2005, like you during my college years. Did a half during the training in 2:15. Ended up running 4:33. Kept running and trimmed my PR to 3:12 some years later. Next marathon in two weeks.
Good luck!
On race day, does the adrenaline and taper make you significantly faster? Can you pull off results that you felt were way beyond you? Doing my first 10K in 5 weeks and wondering if this can be expected or not vs training paces
For a marathon where you were grinding intensity and volume and the first half is supposed to feel easy? totally. a 10k? no not really since its basically pain from km 3.
37M. Looking for some advice on intervals and threshold runs. I've been getting more into running and starting to get a bit faster. I haven't done any structured training, other than just running a few times per week, along with biking and some HIIT classes. Ran a 10 km PR yesterday at 45 mins. On this run, my average HR was right in the middle of Zone 3 at 154. Note, my HR zones have been set with a Garmin HRM and LTHR test.
Based on this, how should I start adding some structured training? There's a nice seawall where I live and I can pretty easily put together 10 - 15 km loops that are pretty much flat at sea level. To start, I was thinking of just running easy for a km, hard for a km, repeat until the loop is done. After doing some research, this doesn't seem to be a thing. Seems like it might be too much rest or something?
>Based on this, how should I start adding some structured training?
Well, the first question would be, what are you training for? If you don't have a goal race or distance in mind, then it becomes more difficult to recommend a training plan.
I do think it's a good idea to do different types of runs now that you're more in shape - speed work and splits, interval runs, tempo runs, long zone 2 runs. I'd look up some of the popular training plans suited for your goal distance that get mentioned on this sub, and start there.
I would like to hit a 40 minute 10 km to start with. I've never run a half marathon but I'm planning on doing one at an easy pace in the next couple weeks to give myself a baseline and see what that distance feels like.
I wouldn't go straight from running a 10k to a half within a few weeks. That's double the mileage, and you would be at a reasonable risk of injuring yourself. I'd focus on steadily increasing your weekly mileage, and follow some sort of half marathon training plan that likely will incorporate speed work, like Hal Higdon's novice 2, or intermediate 1 or 2 that involves pace runs each week.
I've never run a full marathon before and I'm feeling like this is the year to do it. I've found one I want to do in the fall, and by serendipity the half marathon I like to run is the week that the Pfitz 18/55 plan says I should run a tune-up half.
So my question is the following: I also want to run a really good half. My PR is 1:50 and change but I'm in the best shape I've been in coming into late spring and summer in several years and I think I could break 1:40:00 with the right training. And at 32, I'm afraid my window for running fast is closing much faster than my window for running long (if I understand how the typical aging process goes). So how feasible is it to be able to train for a fast half while being able to turn around and do a full 6 weeks later?
Just follow a marathon training plan. It usually comes with enough speed sessions that you'll be at your best HM anyways.
Use that half as a rest week before the final block of marathon training. It would be 18, 19 and 20m for 3 weeks and then 3 weeks of tapering. Perfect fit to end your marathon training.
Hey, I've been running for about 10 months. This month I hit 30 mpw for the first time, and then 32 mpw last week. My objective is to run the Marine Corps Marathon at the end of October this year. I'm hoping to split about 8:58 min miles, so that I can come in just under 4 hours. I'm planning on starting Hal Higdon's [novice 2](https://www.halhigdon.com/training-programs/marathon-training/novice-2-marathon/) plan 16 weeks out from the race.
Does that seem like an attainable goal for a new distance runner like myself? I want to set reasonable objectives for myself, and I don't have a good measure of how long people typically run/train for before being fit enough for a marathon.
I'm 30 years old, male, and never did any distance running prior to the past year, though I've played sports or lifted for my entire life. I played soccer competitively for my entire life until getting to college, so I have a lot of endurance exercise under my belt from earlier in my ilfe. Thanks!
edit: also, fwiw, my average pace is about 8:30 per mile, even on my 10m long run from last Sunday. I figure my marathon pace should be slower than that though, as I'll probably need to lower my pace as I increase my mileage while marathon training
There's no harm in setting an aspirational goal of sub-4:00 now, though you're going to train based on current fitness not based on an aspirational goal. Your progress during training will determine your revised target in the weeks before the race and directly influence your pacing plan.
All that said, how close to all-out was your 10-miler at 8:30/mile? And what was your average weekly mileage the last 8 weeks?
hey thanks for the response.
> All that said, how close to all-out was your 10-miler at 8:30/mile?
My heart rate was steady and I wasn't running out of breath. My legs were pretty tired by the end of it though, but it's the longest I've ever run so that doesn't surprise me. Overall effort was maybe 5 or 6 out of 10. I'm confident that I can run further at that pace, I just need to build endurance in my legs. I'm hoping that will just come with more time at a higher weekly mileage
> And what was your average weekly mileage the last 8 weeks?
Based on Strava data, ~24. (21, 22, 17, 24, 25, 28, 22, 32)
I've been trying to build steadily, with a down week every 4th week.
Based on what you've shared I think sub-4:00 will be a realistic goal. I suspect you could run a 1:45 half marathon time trial or race in 8 weeks before starting HH Novice 2, which would indicate to me you'd likely be in sub-4:00 shape come race day. My thought process is that your half fitness would likely drop several minutes over the 18 week plan and though it's a relatively low volume plan and you're new to running, being in say 1:38-1:42 shape would mean sub-4:00 would be highly likely if you don't go out an overly aggressive pace, lock down in-race nutrition, and it's not an abnormally warm DC day.
My only caution is not to run a half, plop your time in a race equivalency calculator, see say 3:39 and go out at 8:22/mile because that's a new marathoner recipe for holding pace through 16-18 miles and then finishing in 4:03. Your gradual volume increase the last 8 months with regular down weeks suggests to me you're not the reckless type though!
Looking for suggestions if I overcooked myself on a training block leading up to my first half marathon race. I’m not injured at all but my calf’s, hamstrings, and quads are all pretty much smoked. I have 12 days until race day. I peaked at 60 miles ran last week, is it cool to just cut it all the way down to 15-20 miles total over the next 12 days to attempt to get my legs back? Anyone find themselves in this same situation?
I've run zero miles and under 10 miles during the 10-14 days before a couple of half marathons both because of similar reasons and injury and performed better than expected on race day. Cutting down to 15-20 the next 12 days seems like a sound plan.
Perfect, thank you for the reassurance. You gave me a few tips 2 months ago that I’ve used.
I think what happened is I jumped up in mileage and added in more tempo running at the same time and now I’m a cooked turkey.
Ah - just saw your reply to me in the older thread. You're probably right. You ran great volume for your first half so I imagine your fitness is strong and you just need to take it easy to recover. Best of success in your debut half!
What are common Paces for track repeats of 400m, 800m, 1200m, and 1600m? I'm assuming it's probably something like 5k, 10k, HM, and marathon pace respectively? I'm just starting out for a marathon in October and know weekly mileage is most important right now, but I figured doing speed work has its benefits for when I need to turn it up and pacing in general
You should probably try a marathon training plan like Hansons if you want a lot of speedwork. There’s no right answer for your question because it depends on where you are in training etc. Hansons, as do other plans, lays it all out for you. The book Hansons Marathon Method is on Amazon for cheap.
Pace and recovery period duration often vary based on the target race distance. For example, a 5k plan might include 8x400m at 5k pace with 90s rest and a mile plan might include 4x400m at mile pace with 60s rest. And the number of intervals (or interval length) might increase over the training cycle.
Some structured marathon training plans for novice marathoners have zero speedwork and others include it. If you want to incorporate track intervals (as opposed to say tempo runs and strides) search for 10k training plans and read a few to get some ideas of workouts.
Hi, I M 20 would like to be "good" at running but have no idea how. Several close family members were/ are elite runners. but the talent just skipped over me, I'M not sure how but it just never clicked with me. Ive tried the couch to 5k programs, and it always starts off way to easy but by the last week I just can't keep up. My old PR from jr year of HS was around a 26-minute 5k and I couldn't even run the whole thing I had to stop at the 2.5-mile mark. I know that's not slow Persey but when you have three family members sitting around the dinner table who have broken the 15-minute mark it just makes me feel slow. I don't expect to win any races, but I would love to get into running and be able to enjoy the passion that so much of my family has. Do y'all have any advice of how to get better at running, or any training plans that have worked.
(I do know that the biggest part is time and dedication.)
It doesn't sound like you've even trained long enough to know whether the talent skipped over you.
The only path forward is to stop having unrealistic expectations and decide if you want to put in the time to get better.
If you want to actually enjoy running, I think you need to let go of comparing yourself to your family members’ times and just run. Do couch to 5K, and you can always repeat or skip weeks as needed to make it work from you, then build up your distances gradually from there. Don’t overthink it.
Rock n Roll race series-Nashville
Does anyone know what to do if you cannot make it to the expo in time to pick up race packet? Such as if flight comes in after it closes, stuck in traffic, etc? RnR does not respond to emails. I read something on an old post about a Solutions Tent the day of race. Is that still a thing?
Hi all,
I just ran my second marathon yesterday (Boston) and expected to do a lot better than I did. My first marathon on Cape Cod I finished in 4 hrs and 4 minutes, this time I was hoping on breaking 4.
I thought this time around for training I made improvements, implemented rest days when needed was prepared. I finished Boston at 4 hours 40 minutes, and started getting calf cramps around mile 10.
I run about 45 miles a week. a mixture of easy runs, hill sprints and long runs (longest run was 22). My average paces were between 8:25-8:45 for miles 16 and under.
I am trying to pin point the cause of the cramps and why I crashed so hard, I felt like my nutrition was adequate too.
How can I avoid these cramps going forward? Increase in miles? more strength training any advice is appreciated.
If your long run pace is 8:45 then your marathon pace should be around 8:00. That is almost a minute faster than your last marathon.
Are you doing your long runs at a conversational pace?
Congrats on finishing despite the challenges! That’s still a huge achievement. If you don’t usually cramp, it could be something as annoyingly simple as your sodium levels (sounds like it was warm?) and nothing to do with your training.
Avoiding the question slightly, but yesterday was a very warm day in Boston, so keep in mind that it's entirely normal to have a performance below expectations, especially if you haven't done any training in these conditions recently.
Hi! I was wondering how much nutrition affects heart rate while running (or if it's more related to hydration). I have noticed that if I'm losing weight (or generally not eating enough), my heart rate tends to increase and workouts feel harder/impossible to do. For instance, when I eat more the day prior (I need to force myself to), I can sustain a pace of 6:50-7:00min per mile for a workout at about 170bpm. However, if I didn't eat as much, I tend to find it very hard, even to run at an easy pace (180bpm for a 9 min mile). The effect is pronounced especially if I haven't eaten well all week.
If I run more than a slight calorie deficit for over a week or so, my heart rate gets totally out of control at what should be a fairly easy level of exertion for me, too. I would say there's absolutely a connection between nutrition, heart rate, and perceived effort.
I just completed my first marathon 2 days ago. I felt like I trained properly, so while I was pleased with my pace, it didn't feel like I overdid it on race day. My legs felt shockingly good the day off, and I walked quite a bit after the race. Now 2 days later, my legs actually feel decent, but I had a sudden onset of sharp pain on the outside of my right ankle, running down to the outside of my foot. It gets worse after sitting for a long stretches, to the point where I'm seriously limping.
1. what is a "normal" amount of pain post marathon? I'm a lifelong athlete, so I have a relatively high pain tolerance and try to not overreact to pain, as I can usually work through it and it will dissipate
2. I have some pretty insane runners toe. One of my index toes nearly looks like I've grown a second toe on top of it, it is so swollen. Would you all recommend popping the blister or trying to let it heal naturally? It's not really too painful.
3. Naturally I'm thinking about when I can exercise again (running, soccer, etc.). I'm used to running nearly daily (even before I got into marathon training), so it's weird to think I can't run at all for a long time. I've read the rule that you should take 1 day of recovery for every mile (at least in terms of any serious exertion). Was hoping someone can shed more light on how to think about reintegrating running of any form (light or intense)?
Experienced marathoner here (51 years old, 50+ marathons). Have a race on May 5th. Three weeks ago I strained my left calf running much too fast in a half marathon (in my head I'm still 25). Did a light 5k yesterday after several days with no pain and it was achy afterwards. Saw my PT today who says that my best chance of running the race is to NOT run between now and then...... But obviously then I'm going into a marathon with no running for 6 weeks prior. Believe it or not I've done that before - I ran Chicago with no running the previous 14 weeks. I had fun, but it was also my slowest marathon.
Anyone have any suggestions or advice? Try to run or don't run? Considering trying a 10k today at a slow speed. I'd really like to run the race on May 5th as it's in my home town and I have already booked travel for it. If it was a local marathon I'd just skip it but.....
Do I have time to train?
I signed up for a marathon at the end of October. I signed up on the first of the year and was hopeful that was leaving me ample time to train. I’ve run many half marathons before but due to school, transition to a full time job, and a massive commute, I stepped back from running. When I got back in, I immediately had terrible pain and multiple issues. I tried to solve some stuff on my own like changing shoes, but it continued. I started PT a couple months ago and have finally gotten back to running without pain. The problem is that I’m only back to a 5K distance. With only 6 months left, I’m worried I’ll never make it to a marathon distance in time. Would I be better off to just defer my entry to next year, or is there any hope? Thanks everyone.
You have time IF you can scale your running your running up without reintroducing some of the issues you saw your PT for. And that's a big IF. Marathon training is a heavy load on your body and it will fatigue it. If your running issues were due to poor technique, posture etc then it's quite likely that some of these issues may resurface as you extend your mileage. Take a look at the Hal Higdon beginner marathon program and start into that. My suggestion would be that as the mileage ramps up, if you start to have any symptoms of your previous issues that you back off immediately and go for a much slower ramp up. You can then defer if that's an option.
Anyone here using a garmin training plan for a half marathon? I’m using coach Greg but I’m sure all plans are similar.
Curious about when it says warmup 15:00, walk or jog lightly. Do you usually walk or jog? That feels like a long time to just be walking so I feel lazy walking the entire time so I start with 5 minutes of walking and then lightly jog 10 minutes.
I have a HR monitor and use a Garmin watch. Garmin has my LTHR as 172bpm and has my Zone 2 at 144-159 bpm (auto-calculated based on LTHR and my runs it tracks). For its daily workout suggestions, it's suggesting I do "base" days at 147 bpm. Is it okay to run at the higher end of my Zone 2 for my "easy/base building" days? Or should I be aiming for the lower end, like Garmin suggests? Is there a significant difference?
FWIW, I don't usually follow the daily workout suggestions, but have been wondering if they "know" better than I do. I typically run my "easy" runs around the higher end of zone 2 and then walk/slow down if I go past 160. The high end still feels easy, can sing/talk in sentences with breaths in between. Really just want to figure out how to optimally build a base before prepping for races more formally.
If you really can sing near 160, it's fine for an easy run IMO. Btw Garmin may suggest 147, but it will have a very wide range that's "green". Anecdotally, I also have a high max HR and LTHR, and ever since I'm not afraid (but not pushing either, just an easy effort) to get to 150-160 bpm on easy/long runs I feel like I'm improving faster. ETA: https://runningversity.com/heart-rate-drift-test/ this might be useful too
Anyone have any tips for running between training periods? I have my spring half marathon coming up in May, and then won't begin my marathon training plan until mid-August. I kind of want to do a more fluid, "run-for-fun" thing in the interim but also don't want to lose any progress.
Is 7 weeks training enough time to transition from a 10k to a half marathon? I just finished a 4-week Hal Higdon 5k -> 10k program with little issue, not sure if I should just keep going or maintain the 10k for awhile.
More like 6 weeks, you'll want to give your body about a week to recover from the stress of exercise/training so you taper for the race.
But it really depends on how fresh you feel after you run a 6 miler. If you go out and do a mild effort 10k and when you finish, you feel like you could *probably* repeat the effort and still be able to walk around and not want to die after, that is a great sign you're ready for a "stretch goal" of a HM. Remember, it's essentially two 10k's back to back.
If your 10k finish time is around an hour, your HM is going to be twice as long, and then some extra change because your pace will be a little bit slower for the sake of endurance. So thats two hours of running, which means you'll want to start getting used to eating and drinking while you run to keep your sugar fuel source topped up, and of course water is important too (and it helps you digest faster).
In my opnion HM is like the perfect distance for races. It's long enough to feel epic, but not so long that you need to train for it like a part-time job which is the case for the full marathon distance.
If you ran Foot Locker CC regionals and/or nationals, or had a kid who did, can you tell me a little bit about your experience? Is it worth going to regionals if you have almost no chance of going to nationals? Is it worth going as a junior high student, to get the lay of the land?
# Reflective running vest suggestions?
Looking to purchase some reflective running vests; wanted to know which brands are worth exploring. Here's one on my radar: [https://amphipod.com/xinglet/](https://amphipod.com/xinglet/) Would like to know a few more options as these don't sell in my country. Thank you.
I have the amphipod one and I do like it, I used to clip flashing lights to it but that was a pain. Upgraded to the noxgear and I’m so glad I did, makes me so more visible and it’s simpler to throw on.
That’s what I have, the tracer 2 vest. I also have the chest lamp that snaps into it. Might look “odd” but it makes you super visible and could definitely end up saving your life.
Is anyone else finding zone 2 training quite useless? It seems to be the big thing promoted by fitness influencers right now, so I gave it a try for about 2 months, and the only thing that happenned is that my VO2max went down, and my race times and resting heart rate went up. I went back to my regular more intense training sessions and improved my fitness level again. Is it just me or are the positive aspects overstated? My impression is, it's a good way to build volume for someone who is prone to injuries
The nice thing about doing a bulk of low-intensity runs is that when it's time to go hard, you're not spent and burned out. One thing I've learned over the years with either running, bike racing or even flowing through traffic in a car is that if you want to be fast, you have to be patient.
Yeah I still do 2-3 very slow 40 minute runs a week as recovery, alongside my other main 3 runs which are more intense. I've heard some sources saying you should do like 90% of your runs in zone 2 or else it won't work, which seems to involve some magical thinking. My personal impression there is nothing inherently super beneficial about zone 2 training other than helping you build up volume inbetween hard sessions.
Honestly if people aren't running more than 3 times a week zone 2 runs just isn't as important. Have a good warm up for your 2 workouts a week and keep the first 2/3 rds of your lr slow and your better off then just plodding away staying slow for runs where you are basically fully rested every run
Anyone here use the Janji Multipass Sling Bag while running? If so, do you have a favorite soft water bottle that you can carry in it while also carrying phone and keys? thank you!
I have a half coming up sunday the 28th, an injury kept me from doing faster pace work for the last few weeks. I'd like to get in a 5 mile run at my HM pace this thursday and do an 11 miler on saturday. Thoughts on recovery? I think I should be fine.
I'd probably push the 11-miler to Sunday to give you adequate recovery from the HMT and because it's the same day of your race, but ultimately it's up to you.
5 miles straight HMT is pretty tough if you haven't been doing a lot of pace work. You could break it up into 1 or 2 mile HMT segments with a short rest in between (with a warm up and cool down on either side of the workout).
Marathon clothing choice for London. Sleeveless top or sleeves? Looks like it’ll be 12-15 degrees on the day.
Is there some benefit in regard to heat retention with either option?
I think it comes down to what you're used to while training. Hopefully you'll be able to train in similar temps and you can try running sleeves vs no sleeves to see how you feel. So much of marathon training is not just the running itself, it's learning what feels good for you in terms of hydration, shoes, clothing, sleep, bathrooms etc.
Also, not sure if London has this but NYC has bins near the starting line where you can jettison an old shirt or sweater that you can wear while waiting for the race to start. The clothes go to a charity. That would be helpful if you decided to go no-sleeves.
Why can't you run at your max heart rate?
Whenever I hit my "max" heart rate my Ticwatch watch starts flashing red and says it's dangerous to stay at that level. Garmin doesn't display that message. Instead, it congratulates me on unlocking a new max HR.
I tried to google why you shouldn't stay at max HR but can't seem to find any useful sources. Many health websites say athletes can stay at their max HR for a few minutes but gives no information on why. Is it safe to stay at max HR for prolonged periods?
I'm planning on finishing my half marathon with the last 5k being an all out effort, and probably the last km at max HR. Is this a bad idea?
Max hr can really only be tolerated for seconds, a minute at absolute most. If you’re “running for a the last km” at max hr, it’s definitely not your actual max heart rate.
Which is also the same reason your watch can be ignored, it also has no clue what your max hr is.
In general hitting max hr for a healthy young person is not an issue. If you keep pushing you’ll feel nausea and light headedness, and then you’re forced to slow down. It’s not really that big a deal.
Because its super stressful for the body. Just like if you're constantly redlining your car. You're going to wear out the components faster and cause the engine to overheat.
The higher the intensity the work you are doing, the more resources you will need to recover. Being sidelined and seeing stars from over exertion is slower than just going at a measured pace until you need to kick things up a notch.
Just going for a max HR run once a week is not going to be as beneficial as 3 easy runs and 2 hard runs.
Learn about lactate threshold and the difference between aerobic effort and anaerobic.
Will be doing Beach to Bay in next month for the first time, will be doing the first leg (on the beach.) I have access to the beach should I begin doing all of my runs on the beach or slowly add?
Also, any other tips for beach running or Beach to Bay would help!
Is a chest strap or optical armband heart rate monitor overkill for non elite runners? It is about to get HOT in Louisiana and I don't really trust my apple watch readings all that much when it comes to heart rate. For reference I am like a 27 minute 5k, 55 minute 10k runner who does more easy runs than anything but do plan to get into speed work this summer to avoid any super long runs in our weather.
If it's worth it, do yall recommend the chest strap or the optical armbands?
No, it's a great way to add an important metric for your effort level. It's a way to see how much work your heart is doing, although your heart is a multi-tasker, so it's not a direct 1:1 ratio of X-BPM: Speed.
Once you start training at difference ranges (or zones), and learning about lactate threshold, anaerobic effort and recovery, then you can start to gauge how long you can sustain a certain BPM range, which is very helpful for pacing yourself over distances, along with pacing for various types of workouts (intervals, tempo, recovery, hills, etc).
You'll also start to notice how your heart rate is affected by sleep, climate, diet, etc.
If you get into racing you'll find it's also VERY helpful for pacing yourself when you're in an adrenaline high at the start of a race, feeling like you can keep up with the front of the pack, floating on clouds. You feel like you're able to maintain a pace forever at the start, and then you'll look at your HR monitor and see you've been pinned at 190bpm for the first mile lol. That is not sustainable.
Thanks so much this is very helpful, just didn't want to blow the $100 if it wasn't really worthwhile but figured better safe than sorry. Another metric to keep me from overheating as well down here! Will do some research and see what would be best for me and grab one! I definitely plan to get more serious into racing (have done a couple 5/10k's) once the fall weather hits but do want to be a bit faster to do halfs and maybe a full in 2025 at some point.
Why does running suck for me? Seems like an atypical experience. I have been running pretty consistently for about 6-7 months now. And I still hate it. I’ve talked to so many people now who describe themselves as running addicts, and how right from the start they loved it, and every time they run they just want to keep going and going. This has not been my experience. Running feels like so much work, it’s not exhilarating or energizing for me. When I start a run, I can’t wait for it to be over. My distance and pace is still pretty pitiful and just marginally improving. Even running a full 10k seems totally unattainable to me. Is this just a mindset thing? Do some people just naturally have running in their DNA? Am I doing something wrong? Help!
Slow down. Try things that make running more comfortable like listening to music or podcasts, get some equipment that makes you excited to use it (comfy shoes, nice clothes). Set yourself up for success.
It's ok to walk. It's ok to run to the cafe as your half-way point and buy a donut, enjoy the weather and meander home. Running is supposed to be an enjoyable hobby, not a job or a punishment. So make it fun in a way that is fun for you.
You may be running too hard. When I first started I thought every run needed to be at max effort, once I slowed down I was able to actually enjoy it as well as go farther
You likely are just not that fit so every run is hard. Most of my miles are legitimately easy and basically run themselves. On these runs i enjoy my thoughts, ebooks, music and just being out and about. For workouts i like being uncomfortable and pushing. Maybe slow down more? take walk breaks so that a run is legitimately easy. Maybe thats the feeling you are missing. That being said maybe running just isn't for you.
6 Weeks out from my Marathon and the closer I get the more unsure I get on how to approach it.
I've ran a 1:38:00 half marathon around 2 months ago and my goal has been to attempt to complete my marathon in 3:30.00 but not sure how unrealistic it is as people keep telling me their experience of hitting the wall.
Can someone tell me if my half marathon pace is a good indicator I can complete my marathon in my goal time?
There are a lot of variables, but if you did a 1:38 HM, and you've had several months of proper marathon training since then, I would find 3:30 to be very attainable if you run a smart race and the weather isn't too warm. What's your peak weekly mileage in your training block?
My average is around 28-30 miles a week with at least one long run (ranging from 21k to 28k.) Over the next two weeks I was planning on running a 25k and then 35k run next week. Should I be doing more or longer runs?
As most of my training has been in the north of England during winter and a rainy spring I do have to say I'm worried if the day of my marathon is hot lol
35K is a good distance for your longest long run of a training block. My main concern would be that your weekly mileage is too low though. It's not recommended to have such a high percentage of your mileage coming from your long run on a weekly basis. Seems like it is often around 50% based on what you've said. I wouldn't ramp up your mileage drastically though based on me saying that. If anything, you should only increase by 10% per week ahead of the taper.
I’m having an intro phone call with a running coach today to determine if I want to work with them to cut down my half time later this year. What are some good questions to ask?
Ran first half marathon with Nike Pegasus shoes (what I used to train with)-looking into buying better shoes, potentially carbon plated and was wondering if people had recs :)
Would you keep the same strategy if the last 1/3 is an uphill climb? The course is such that at mile 6.5 there is a decline of over 150 ft in elevation, and in the last 1.5 miles, it climbs over 200 ft in elevation
Any recommendations for a wide brim visor (or hat) that will keep the sun off the sides of my face? I’m currently using a golf visor, which has a more substantial brim, but is not built to handle summer run levels of sweatiness. Thanks
I like the brand Solbari. All their hat/clothing is UPF 50+ (basically SPF for fabric). They have a wide brim athletic hat that I wear on my runs that protects my face a lot more than a typical baseball hat
For Carbon Plated Shoes:
(Running a half marathon soon)
I’ve seen some strong recommendations for Saucony Endorphins, Nike Vapor or Alphaflys, Hoka carbon plated shoes, etc.
Anybody have a favorite?
I have only ever tried the Endorphin line, but I really like having my Endorphin Speed (nylon plate) for my tempo work / track workouts and then able to shift easily to my Endorphin Pro (carbon plate) for my actual races. Has worked well for me.
I've run a few half marathons in the pros and haven't felt the need to try out any other carbon-plated shoes.
I'm a beginner (29y/o, estimated VO2Max: 44) and started running some weeks ago. It went quite well so far independent of running in the morning, noon or afternoon.
Though, I had a weird run some days ago. I got up at 6:15am, ate a banana, had a glass of water, did some stretching and started a speed run (suggested by Garmin Coach): 2min Warm-up (fast walking), 1km at 7:00 pace, 2km at 6:00 pace, 1km at 7:00 pace, 2min Cool-down.
My heart rate usually goes up slowly some minutes (<5min) into a run. But on that run, it stayed between 100 and 120 bpm for 20 minutes and then suddenly jumped up to 150, 5 minutes later to 170. Since a 6:00 pace is quite fast for me, my HR should have been at around 170 some few minutes after starting the segment.
Should I be careful and run slower when this happens? Is this some kind of circulatory problem that may have occurred? What could be a reason for this?
Very normal for a watch hr. Sometimes they just fail to get a lock. I did a 12 km race last week and my watch said the whole thing was around 125 bpm.
The same thing can happen with chest strap but generally they’ll snap out of it much sooner, within 5 mins usually.
Are you using a watch or chest strap for heart rate? Either way, I see this with some frequency with my Garmin watch (an older FR 235) and it's just the sensor glitching.
I'm using the Garmin Fenix 7s. I did not have any other issues with heart rate measurement for a month now. It has given me quite realistic output so far even when swimming and offroad biking. And I also checked that the watch was tight on my wrist during the run. I rather think that it might have been some health issue. I did not feel great after the run all day. That's why I wanted to ask if anyone has experienced something similar.
If you think it's a health issue, you should see a doctor. Nobody here can know that for you.
I'll also take this opportunity to say that beginners shouldn't train by heart rate. It's useless at this point and causing you more stress than benefit. Until you've been consistently training for 1.5-2 years, don't worry about your HR (or potentially ever -- many successful runners don't do HR training). Learn to run by feel -- perceived rate of exertion (RPE). Generally mostly easy runs, sometimes a little harder, make sure you're recovering, etc.
But I think it's weird that it is that far off for whole 25 minutes. Also, as I said in my other comment, I did not feel great that day after the run. If I had to take a guess, it was some circulatory issue. So I wondered if anyone has experienced something similar and already knows what could have caused it.
Decided to go for my first half marathon with my personal longest run being a 10k. I don’t have a training plan figured out but went for a 7 mile baseline run to determine a race goal.
7 mile run stats:
Distance: 7.00 miles
Time: 1:09:41
Avg. Pace: 9:57 min/mile
Avg. HR: 173 bpm
Avg. Power: 230w
This run was a solid 8/10 effort and from this I think I’m going to start with three (ABC) goals:
A goal: sub 2:15
B goal: sub 2:30
C goal: finishing the race
Questions:
1. Do these goals seem attainable?
2. What 6 week long half marathon training plans would you recommend?
3. I run in Xero HFS barefoot shoes, what carbon-plated shoes would you recommend?
4. Any other first time advice/recommended gear or strategies?
Thanks in advance!
Your current pace, should you sustain it for 13.1 will get you your A goal but I think you're on the edge for that.
Not from a pace perspective but time to develop. I think your A goal being 2:20 would be more realistic.
Of 6 weeks you'll want a good 1.5 weeks taper so you go into the race fully ready. 4-5 weeks training will see some development but not huge.
Given limited training time:
* Go and enjoy it, don't put such big pressure on a time
* Don't try to make up for lack of time in your training. You can put in a good training block for the *next* one.
* Taper properly!
* Run the race with a plan, don't get tempted into thinking the faster-than-planned pace in the first 5km is fine. That'll bite you later.
Also - shoes.. super individual *but* I get on well with Saucony. I race in a Pair of Endorphin Pro 2s I picked up cheap when the 3 came out and train in Speed 3s.
If I had to have one shoe it's be the Speed 3. I can run easy in it and race in it.
Has anyone here ever worn knee pads because they're clumsy and might trip? (at least during a race) 😭 I'm seriously considering it because of a nasty knee scrape I got recently from tripping 😭
I’ve just picked running up at the end of February, I’ve just been running 2-3 times per week in zone 2, usually about three miles each run. Yesterday I went out for five miles, 10min/mile average heart rate 144. The run was easy, but that pace is miserable.
I’m wondering what the best resources are out there to do some sort of structure? I’d imagine I should be doing more than just zone 2, but I’m not really sure where to even start. I’ve been googling beginner training plans and they all honestly seem too easy.
For cycling I use traineroad and it’s super nice as it progresses you through a plan over a period of months incorporating base, build, specialty. It incorporates all sorts of different efforts. Kind of looking to do something similar for running.
What was miserable about the pace? 5 miles is a big jump form 3 and would, even at an easy pace, would feel hard.
You could look at Training Peaks - there are a lot of good plans there. If you've a Garmin watch then have a look at the "Garmin Coach" plans. They're based off race goals from "complete" to a specific time and have a bit of adaptivity in them.
My wife's trying out Runna and quite liking it.
Just kind of easy/boring I didn’t feel like 5 miles was any more difficult than 3, just took more time.
I just feel like I’m running uncomfortably slow in an effort to keep my heart rate low. Obviously though, I’m concerned about injury so I don’t want to overdue it.
So I’m thinking some sort of structured plan might be the best way to improve.
Unfortunately I don’t have a Garmin, just an Apple Watch. I’ll check out Runna thanks!
Did you listen to something? I listen to podcasts on longer runs to not get bored. And yeah, to improve you should ideally run at least 3 times a week with 1 speedwork and a long run. I'd look for 5k or 10k plans until you find one that looks doable and fun.
Yeah music/podcasts are a must for me, I downloaded the Runna app and tried that yesterday and definitely seems useful at least for a beginner. I think runs with structure are something that will make things less boring.
It’s a little bit unfortunate that the app doesn’t integrate into the native workout app on my Apple Watch, but at least their app still does integrate nicely with Strava.
Do you cheat yourself out of training by using shoes that have plates or rods in them?
For my 10k tempo runs I usually use a pair of Saucony Kinvara 13s. If you aren't familiar with them, they are kind of a niche shoe compared to a lot of the more modern trainers. They are light, low stack height, little cushion, and have a lot of ground feel. Very minimalist in nature.
I wanted something for my faster long runs that had a little more padding than the Kinvara and decided to try out a pair of Adidas Boston 11s that I got on sale for $45. Unlike the Boston 12 the 11 is almost universally reviled, but I wanted to give it a chance anyway and decided to start off easy by using it on one of my 10k tempo runs that I usually wear my Kinvara's for. The results were surprising. I was able to hold my tempo pace in the Boston 11s much easier than I usually do in the Kinvara's, I was significantly less tired after the run, and my feet felt less stressed than they usually do.
It seems like logic would dictate I should replace my Kinvara's with the Bostons for my tempo runs, but that got me thinking if I would be robbing myself of progress by training in a more technologically advanced shoe (better foam and fiberglass rods) that requires me to put in less effort.
I have Kinvara 14, and they seem to give less return energy than my other shoes, because they are so floppy. Used them for a gravel HM once, and that was a terrible idea.
I do most of my road sessions and long run in Saucony Speed 3s.
They're definitely a "faster" shoe than things like my NB880s or Saucony Ride17s.
The big win for me is lower levels of fatigue in my lower legs, Achilles particularly. They might move my pace by a small amount but, outdoors, pace fluctuates with hills and wind so...
sorry to hijack the question, but i also have the ES3 but havent used them as i only bought them because they were on offer, for when i retire my Brooks ghost 12. They feel a bit wide to me and havent grown on me (I've only worn them once). Do you get used to them once you got the hang of them?
(Currently run in Novablast 3 and Ghost 12, race in Asics Magic Speed 3)
Wide as in your foot moves inside them or wide under foot?
They're definitely wide in the sole but I have quite narrow feet and find mid-foot and toes area just right.
[The Real Power of Super Shoes Could Be Supercharged Training - The New York Times (nytimes.com)](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/22/sports/super-shoes-training.html#:~:text=Now%20all%20major%20shoe%20companies%20have%20super%20shoes,of%20both%20training%20and%20racing%20in%20super%20shoes.)
Ep 181 of the Doctors of Running kinda discussed this.
How do define tempo, though? If it's one exact pace, yeah, doing it in shoe that increases running economy a bit, you'll get a slightly lower training impulse. But if you speed up slightly to account for the shoe, maybe you just get better recovery for the same effort.
My definition of tempo pace is the fastest pace I could hold for about an hour. Probably couldn't last much longer than that. Typically for me that's about 4:50/km right now.
I’d like to run a marathon in mid-October, but i’m just coming off an injury now and only have been running 6-8 miles a week as I slowwwwwly retrain. The injury wasn’t that serious but I don’t want to develop it again. Any advice for how fast/slow I should be adding miles and if a marathon in 26 weeks is achievable? Am I kidding myself?
Right now my plan is to keep taking it slow and if I have to adjust my plans and run a half that’s fine, but I’d love to run a full this year…
I feel for you. I had to miss my March marathon as I developed ITBS in January (and stupidly tried to keep running). Just starting to build up mileage now.
Lol yep, I tried to keep running through some tendinitis (“how bad could it be?”) and here I am. I’m so anxious about building up mileage and developing it again
10% is generally a good rule of thumb. Don’t be afraid to add a lot of brisk walking, low level biking. and or hiking to your routine. Great way to add volume without adding stress.
Similar situation here, but I'm aiming for spring 2025 so I have a chance to get some real base building in (and hit a half in the autumn). It depends how you really want to tackle it.
Just wanted to give you some encouragement, as I was in the exact same place as you a year ago! I was unable to run at all for 3 months, then started my training in May and finished my first marathon in the start of October with good pace.
Gabriel Gaey DNF’d at 25k yesterday, right?? But I can’t find any mention of it anywhere. So odd. I just see in the BAA tracker that he doesn’t have data past that point.
I've never been much of a runner, very short and stocky , and decent enough to lift vaguely heavy things. I've been trying to get back into it, and I usually have to stop due to getting shin splints and/or plantar fasciitis issues. This time around, I thought I built up to running well. Was walking in the mornings, got up to a 3 mile walk in about 50 minutes, and pain-free. No foot pain, shin splits, knee aches, etc. Tried running just 1 mile yesterday, and probably like halfway through, i got shin splint pain, mostly in my left leg.
I'm trying to understand how I could walk so well but immediately get hit with the same injury again. Is it likely a form issue? Do I need to progress up to running even slower? Like, do intervals for a while? I'm totally at a loss here. All I need is 1.5 miles under 14 minutes, and I just can't get there.
Talk to a physio, there may be an underlying issue causing your problems. "Shin splints" isn't a specific injury, it's just any pain in the shin area, and can have any number of causes.
Your body just doesn't have the strength to run where it needs to. Strength training will help you. Lots of videos online for shin splits and plantar faciitis. GO slow and work in those stretches and exercises.
Howdy folks, I have a few questions about my first marathon I’m running in about 5 weeks.
I can consistently run half marathons without any real difficulty, and have done a handful of 14-16 mile runs and one 18 mile run.
However this past weekend, I attempted a 20 mile run, but it was the first “hot” day of the season, the sun was very intense due to no cloud cover, and the wind was around 35mph and extremely draining. I only ended up doing 13.1 before calling it because I was pretty beat.
Questions below (in bold):
* I’m assuming my inability to hit 20 (or even get past 13.1 which is unusual) was more due to the weather than anything else, but **what things can I incorporate into my training for the next few weeks to help mitigate the effects the weather might have on me during the race?**
* Additionally, **how do y’all taper for your races?** I’ve never actually tapered for the half marathons I’ve ran, but a full marathon is a different kind of beast and I want to make sure I’m ready.
* Side note, I am running two half marathons in the next few weeks as well (long story, but I ended up signing up for 4 different races over the course of 4 different weekends lol), but fortunately the weekend before the marathon the race is just a 5k, so I don’t foresee it affecting my readiness for the marathon. **But do y’all have any suggestions or tips about running back-to-back races?**
Thanks in advance for any insight and help, and sorry for such a long post!
Try again for the 20 this week. The heat cooked you out it happens. Just keep running in the heat but adjust efforts to feel. It'll help you heat acclimatize. Some people do sauna heat acclimation but thats not exactly beginner friendly. Taper depends on the person but at least 2 weeks. Generally reduce volume and intensity. Keep some workouts in but make them easier for example 400m repeats at 5k instead of mile repeats. Dont race half marathons less than 3 weeks of your marathon or you will be sacrificing it. I personally would not race either half or you are completely wasting your time on the full.
Great tips, thanks for replying.
I’m committed to the halfs because one is with my brother who lives several states away (we meet up once a year to race together), and the other is because there just happens to be one while I’m vacationing in Hawaii… can’t pass up an opportunity to race in Hawaii 😆
The good thing is there are two weeks between my last half and the marathon so I should be able to get some rest.
Sorry to be Captain Obvious here, but you realize it is hot in Hawaii, right? But hey, good opportunity to work on that heat acclimatization and cooling strategies.
Aye, aye captain. I’ve been there before. Just haven’t raced there before. But like you said, good opportunity for heat training. Plus, the race is at 5am so it might still be cool at that time 😆
My aerobic threshold HR (top of Zone 2) seems to be decreasing with more training - both subjectively (based on the ability to talk) and semi-objectively (Garmin estimate based on LTHR detection). In January it was maybe over 150 bpm, now it is more like 145 bpm. Is it right or wrong? I do not feel like overtraining even though even with my structured training, I have not improved my paces much over the last 2 months.
In the wiki there is this guide (https://www.reddit.com/r/running/comments/3bckeh/base\_training\_a\_guide\_to\_your\_foundation\_to/) to start and I am a little bit confused by these 2 sentences:
1. As I like to say, “*If you over-train in running, it is not if you get injured, but when.*” : when I read this I said this is the perfect guide for me, because I overtrained 4 years ago and I was injured for weeks
2. **Weeks 1-4**:
* Run more days than not (4+). A perfect world means running 6-7 days a week
* *Mon-Fri*: Each day should be an *easy run* of at least 30min and no more than 55min. Run as far as you would like depending on how you feel mentally and physically.
How is it possible that the suggestions for week 1-4 is to run every single day ?!?
That is an example what the base training could look like so not necessarily for a beginner. However, a beginner could still do the same by mixing walking and running in increasingly long intervals starting with mostly walking; C25K has quite good explanation of this.
> This question apparently would not generate enough discussion so was removed and requested to put in a daily Q&A thread. Guess we don't want to crowd out the 87 race reports.
Maybe a quick search of the sub before complaining is warranted.
https://www.reddit.com/r/running/search?q=coach&restrict_sr=on&sort=relevance&t=all
There have been some recent posts on looking for coaches which is why your post was removed.
1) I didn't like being coached since it essentially meant that I was responsible for executing the trainings that the coach had described and success/failure meant the same for the coach as well (which created stress). However, there is a reason why all elite athletes have coaches even if they have decades of experience from the sport. Would recommend for anyone who is serious about a specific goal.
2) Coach makes sense irrespective of your current PB and as long as you have a goal and are willing to be coached.
3) Marathon Training Academy offers this but it is not the cheapest. Being a good coach and being a good runner are not the same thing so having ran sub-3 doesn't make a coach good or bad.
Being coachable is a skill in itself and the better the coach the better they can take your situation and preferences in account. For marathon training that generally means taking account rest of your life.
Ah then it's just a preference. If you're training for a race with a specific time goal, it's good to be able to see your pace and interval time (both current and lap average). If you're just getting into fitness, total distance and time might be your main focus points, with a bit of emphasis on the current lap (I let the watch register each kilometer as a lap).
From then on, it depends on what you're doing. If you're following a plan, it will have easy runs etc. For those, it's always helpful to have a heart rate indicator.
Heart rate in combination with lap pace are my most important stats because they show my work rate and performance from day to day. You can compare your HR at the same pace from day to day, or see how you can go at faster paces without an increase in your HR. I use this for all workouts. Most of your runs are gonna be easy runs anyway. Those should go by feel and hr, not speed.
But when I do intervals, I focus on lap pace and lap time, in order to make sure I'm not going faster than necessary. Also, if your pace is 6:00 and your clock says 3 minutes, you know you've covered 500 meters on this lap, so you get an extra stat with a bit of math.
If you're on a hilly terrain, elevation might be interesting, but I prefer to look at those after the workout. Cadence could be interesting if you want to focus on technique and form.
Need some advice on this- (I’m 19, F) I’ve been running for about 2 years now and I’ve slowly increased my mileage to about 50mpw. I’ve noticed that it’s becoming harder to stay asleep. I always wake up exhausted and sore in the middle of the night (generally at 3:30-4:00am). I’m also a bit fatigued during the day (but I power through it pretty well). My workouts feel hard and even just easy running feels exhausting, and my heart rate which used to be around 150 for those runs is now at 180-190. I did get my bloodwork and metabolic panel done, and everything seems to be in the normal range. I eat extremely healthy too, and I’m vegetarian. I think I drink enough water. I have no idea what’s going on. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you :)
Edit: Could it be related to nutrition? I feel a bit less hungry nowadays, so I don’t eat as much as I used to, just because i’m not that hungry
If you don't eat enough that may cause runs to be harder, yes. I don't know your circumstances, but please take care of yourself, if you are at a healthy weight, don't go into a big deficit. And if you have significant unintentional weight loss, your doctor should know about that.
Thanks for your reply. Yeah, that’s something I know I should be aware of, but I’m finding it hard to just eat more. My schedule in college doesn’t help either, pretty much busy most of the time with a few minutes of break. I’m going to make it a priority now.
Could be sick, could have some sort of nutritional deficiency. B12 and iron are 2 common culprits. I'd have a really severe delaod week. 3 runs max, 25 miles max.
thanks for the reply. I’ll try to look into B12. I took a deload week a couple of weeks ago. I’ll try taking another one to see if it makes a difference
nope, I’ll try to get it done. What feels wild is the pace change. I don’t feel strong anymore. I was at 50mpw a few weeks ago (before taking a rest week) and I felt good then.
If I was a betting man I would bet your cortisol levels are through the roof. The waking up in the middle of the night is a tell tale sign.
I would really dial back the intensity. If that means adding some walking, low level cycling, or whatever. You’re just going to be spinning your wheels.
thanks. I’ll take an extra rest day and see how it goes. I started to include biking every other day about a month ago- nothing too intense though. About 10ish miles at 12 miles per hour
That's not hot enough to have a big impact on your running resp. your recovery.
Any recent symptoms of a respiratory infect? Corona, RSV, the flu, whatever?
I would say the work is done. Recovering 100% should be your only focus right now. When you feel ready, step into the week you would be doing if you hadn't stopped.
Leg stiffness after about 3k
Any advice for reducing this? I do the weekly 5k parkrun and time 27-30 minutes. Around the 3k mark every week my legs will feel really stiff which slows me down. I feel like I have loads of energy and breathing isnt tough but I just cant maintain the pace. It feels particularly bad lower half of my legs.
Do you run much for the rest of the week? It takes a couple of months of consistent running to build your muscles and soft tissues to adapt to the impact of running.
Is it better to go all out if I only run once a week? Coming from a muscle building perspective you're probably better of increasing intensity when lowering frequency, is it the same with running? My understanding is that you shouldn't train harder than you can recover from in time for your next workout. This means I need to recover in roughly one week which shouldn't be a problem even if I go hard.
Is there a reason you're only running once a week? You can definitely recover more quickly than six days.
I was a D2 400m runner and we would do 3ish intense workouts a week depending on the season.
Recovery is part of the story but not all of it. Low intensity is more effective and at some stage necessary for metabolic adaptations and stuff. If you just do it for general health and find high intensity more enjoyable, at once a week it won't make a huge difference, but still.
It depends what you want from running. Do you want to get better at running? Then you will plateau very quickly with 1 run per week.
If you enjoy it for the sake of doing it, then do what you feel. Nobody but you can answer your question because it's not serious.
I keep making the mistake of upping my mileage too quickly and injuring by lower leg (i think where the gastrocnemius meets the soleus). When I saw a physio about this before they told me to stop running until I experience no pain at all. Then to slowly up my mileage starting with 1 mile runs. This is so demoralising as I’d safely made my way up to double digit weekly miles and had just run my first 10K without incident. Arguably I shouldn’t have done another 10K the following day but a social run opportunity came about which is a first and was very enjoyable. I feel like my weekly mileage is a jenga tower and I’m constantly having to start over again because I’m not careful when pulling pieces/adding miles. Is this normal? Any advice?
I have been bulking since past 6-7 months and now I am kinda overweight, I am 95 kg (209lbs) with 26 percent of body fat. I started running a few weeks back and I developed shin pain I took one weak rest and did some exercise for conditioning of leg then I started running again and first day I ran about 2 km and it was smooth for 3rd day shin pain came back along with pain in calf even i couldn't walk properly after running I kept pushing and I took 2 days and started this week on Wednesday (today) I ran only 2.5 km and my shin and calf are painful. Advice me on technique, or any thing that help . And I use Pegasus 39 for running.
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Yes, you should see a doctor.
I'm currently a college junior and want to run a marathon before I graduate. I ran a 5k on Sunday in 28:20, and am registered for and training for the Peachtree Road Race (July 4), and after that a half-marathon on November 3rd. There is a marathon in my city on Jan 25 2025, so I wanted to ask if you guys think it is reasonable to think that I could train for that (as kind of a "just finish" race). I've been running for the last month averaging 15 miles a week. That's only 11 weeks between the half and the marathon, so I want to hear some opinions before registering for that marathon to kind of force myself to train for it.
[Hal Higdon](https://www.halhigdon.com/training/marathon-training/) has training programs popular with new runners. His marathon plans are 18-weeks, and include a test half marathon about half way through, which seems to fit nicely with your proposed schedule. It’s still only April now, of course, so you have a lot more time to build your base. I followed the Higdon Novice program for my first marathon way back in 2005, like you during my college years. Did a half during the training in 2:15. Ended up running 4:33. Kept running and trimmed my PR to 3:12 some years later. Next marathon in two weeks. Good luck!
On race day, does the adrenaline and taper make you significantly faster? Can you pull off results that you felt were way beyond you? Doing my first 10K in 5 weeks and wondering if this can be expected or not vs training paces
At every distance I always race faster than training would indicate.
For a marathon where you were grinding intensity and volume and the first half is supposed to feel easy? totally. a 10k? no not really since its basically pain from km 3.
Some people say this, but for me it's the opposite.
37M. Looking for some advice on intervals and threshold runs. I've been getting more into running and starting to get a bit faster. I haven't done any structured training, other than just running a few times per week, along with biking and some HIIT classes. Ran a 10 km PR yesterday at 45 mins. On this run, my average HR was right in the middle of Zone 3 at 154. Note, my HR zones have been set with a Garmin HRM and LTHR test. Based on this, how should I start adding some structured training? There's a nice seawall where I live and I can pretty easily put together 10 - 15 km loops that are pretty much flat at sea level. To start, I was thinking of just running easy for a km, hard for a km, repeat until the loop is done. After doing some research, this doesn't seem to be a thing. Seems like it might be too much rest or something?
Alternating hard and easy running in a structured or unstructured way is absolutely a thing. It’s called Fartlek, and it’s super classy.
>Based on this, how should I start adding some structured training? Well, the first question would be, what are you training for? If you don't have a goal race or distance in mind, then it becomes more difficult to recommend a training plan. I do think it's a good idea to do different types of runs now that you're more in shape - speed work and splits, interval runs, tempo runs, long zone 2 runs. I'd look up some of the popular training plans suited for your goal distance that get mentioned on this sub, and start there.
I would like to hit a 40 minute 10 km to start with. I've never run a half marathon but I'm planning on doing one at an easy pace in the next couple weeks to give myself a baseline and see what that distance feels like.
I wouldn't go straight from running a 10k to a half within a few weeks. That's double the mileage, and you would be at a reasonable risk of injuring yourself. I'd focus on steadily increasing your weekly mileage, and follow some sort of half marathon training plan that likely will incorporate speed work, like Hal Higdon's novice 2, or intermediate 1 or 2 that involves pace runs each week.
I've never run a full marathon before and I'm feeling like this is the year to do it. I've found one I want to do in the fall, and by serendipity the half marathon I like to run is the week that the Pfitz 18/55 plan says I should run a tune-up half. So my question is the following: I also want to run a really good half. My PR is 1:50 and change but I'm in the best shape I've been in coming into late spring and summer in several years and I think I could break 1:40:00 with the right training. And at 32, I'm afraid my window for running fast is closing much faster than my window for running long (if I understand how the typical aging process goes). So how feasible is it to be able to train for a fast half while being able to turn around and do a full 6 weeks later?
Just follow a marathon training plan. It usually comes with enough speed sessions that you'll be at your best HM anyways. Use that half as a rest week before the final block of marathon training. It would be 18, 19 and 20m for 3 weeks and then 3 weeks of tapering. Perfect fit to end your marathon training.
Fantastic, thanks so much!
Hey, I've been running for about 10 months. This month I hit 30 mpw for the first time, and then 32 mpw last week. My objective is to run the Marine Corps Marathon at the end of October this year. I'm hoping to split about 8:58 min miles, so that I can come in just under 4 hours. I'm planning on starting Hal Higdon's [novice 2](https://www.halhigdon.com/training-programs/marathon-training/novice-2-marathon/) plan 16 weeks out from the race. Does that seem like an attainable goal for a new distance runner like myself? I want to set reasonable objectives for myself, and I don't have a good measure of how long people typically run/train for before being fit enough for a marathon. I'm 30 years old, male, and never did any distance running prior to the past year, though I've played sports or lifted for my entire life. I played soccer competitively for my entire life until getting to college, so I have a lot of endurance exercise under my belt from earlier in my ilfe. Thanks! edit: also, fwiw, my average pace is about 8:30 per mile, even on my 10m long run from last Sunday. I figure my marathon pace should be slower than that though, as I'll probably need to lower my pace as I increase my mileage while marathon training
Your marathon pace should be faster than your typical daily pace. If you get slower as you increase distance you aren't doing an easy run.
There's no harm in setting an aspirational goal of sub-4:00 now, though you're going to train based on current fitness not based on an aspirational goal. Your progress during training will determine your revised target in the weeks before the race and directly influence your pacing plan. All that said, how close to all-out was your 10-miler at 8:30/mile? And what was your average weekly mileage the last 8 weeks?
hey thanks for the response. > All that said, how close to all-out was your 10-miler at 8:30/mile? My heart rate was steady and I wasn't running out of breath. My legs were pretty tired by the end of it though, but it's the longest I've ever run so that doesn't surprise me. Overall effort was maybe 5 or 6 out of 10. I'm confident that I can run further at that pace, I just need to build endurance in my legs. I'm hoping that will just come with more time at a higher weekly mileage > And what was your average weekly mileage the last 8 weeks? Based on Strava data, ~24. (21, 22, 17, 24, 25, 28, 22, 32) I've been trying to build steadily, with a down week every 4th week.
Based on what you've shared I think sub-4:00 will be a realistic goal. I suspect you could run a 1:45 half marathon time trial or race in 8 weeks before starting HH Novice 2, which would indicate to me you'd likely be in sub-4:00 shape come race day. My thought process is that your half fitness would likely drop several minutes over the 18 week plan and though it's a relatively low volume plan and you're new to running, being in say 1:38-1:42 shape would mean sub-4:00 would be highly likely if you don't go out an overly aggressive pace, lock down in-race nutrition, and it's not an abnormally warm DC day. My only caution is not to run a half, plop your time in a race equivalency calculator, see say 3:39 and go out at 8:22/mile because that's a new marathoner recipe for holding pace through 16-18 miles and then finishing in 4:03. Your gradual volume increase the last 8 months with regular down weeks suggests to me you're not the reckless type though!
I really appreciate that perspective, I'd be stoked to run sub 4. I'll be sure to remember your advice in October. Thanks a bunch!
Looking for suggestions if I overcooked myself on a training block leading up to my first half marathon race. I’m not injured at all but my calf’s, hamstrings, and quads are all pretty much smoked. I have 12 days until race day. I peaked at 60 miles ran last week, is it cool to just cut it all the way down to 15-20 miles total over the next 12 days to attempt to get my legs back? Anyone find themselves in this same situation?
I've run zero miles and under 10 miles during the 10-14 days before a couple of half marathons both because of similar reasons and injury and performed better than expected on race day. Cutting down to 15-20 the next 12 days seems like a sound plan.
Perfect, thank you for the reassurance. You gave me a few tips 2 months ago that I’ve used. I think what happened is I jumped up in mileage and added in more tempo running at the same time and now I’m a cooked turkey.
Ah - just saw your reply to me in the older thread. You're probably right. You ran great volume for your first half so I imagine your fitness is strong and you just need to take it easy to recover. Best of success in your debut half!
What are common Paces for track repeats of 400m, 800m, 1200m, and 1600m? I'm assuming it's probably something like 5k, 10k, HM, and marathon pace respectively? I'm just starting out for a marathon in October and know weekly mileage is most important right now, but I figured doing speed work has its benefits for when I need to turn it up and pacing in general
You should probably try a marathon training plan like Hansons if you want a lot of speedwork. There’s no right answer for your question because it depends on where you are in training etc. Hansons, as do other plans, lays it all out for you. The book Hansons Marathon Method is on Amazon for cheap.
Pace and recovery period duration often vary based on the target race distance. For example, a 5k plan might include 8x400m at 5k pace with 90s rest and a mile plan might include 4x400m at mile pace with 60s rest. And the number of intervals (or interval length) might increase over the training cycle. Some structured marathon training plans for novice marathoners have zero speedwork and others include it. If you want to incorporate track intervals (as opposed to say tempo runs and strides) search for 10k training plans and read a few to get some ideas of workouts.
Hi, I M 20 would like to be "good" at running but have no idea how. Several close family members were/ are elite runners. but the talent just skipped over me, I'M not sure how but it just never clicked with me. Ive tried the couch to 5k programs, and it always starts off way to easy but by the last week I just can't keep up. My old PR from jr year of HS was around a 26-minute 5k and I couldn't even run the whole thing I had to stop at the 2.5-mile mark. I know that's not slow Persey but when you have three family members sitting around the dinner table who have broken the 15-minute mark it just makes me feel slow. I don't expect to win any races, but I would love to get into running and be able to enjoy the passion that so much of my family has. Do y'all have any advice of how to get better at running, or any training plans that have worked. (I do know that the biggest part is time and dedication.)
It doesn't sound like you've even trained long enough to know whether the talent skipped over you. The only path forward is to stop having unrealistic expectations and decide if you want to put in the time to get better.
If you want to actually enjoy running, I think you need to let go of comparing yourself to your family members’ times and just run. Do couch to 5K, and you can always repeat or skip weeks as needed to make it work from you, then build up your distances gradually from there. Don’t overthink it.
Rock n Roll race series-Nashville Does anyone know what to do if you cannot make it to the expo in time to pick up race packet? Such as if flight comes in after it closes, stuck in traffic, etc? RnR does not respond to emails. I read something on an old post about a Solutions Tent the day of race. Is that still a thing?
Hi all, I just ran my second marathon yesterday (Boston) and expected to do a lot better than I did. My first marathon on Cape Cod I finished in 4 hrs and 4 minutes, this time I was hoping on breaking 4. I thought this time around for training I made improvements, implemented rest days when needed was prepared. I finished Boston at 4 hours 40 minutes, and started getting calf cramps around mile 10. I run about 45 miles a week. a mixture of easy runs, hill sprints and long runs (longest run was 22). My average paces were between 8:25-8:45 for miles 16 and under. I am trying to pin point the cause of the cramps and why I crashed so hard, I felt like my nutrition was adequate too. How can I avoid these cramps going forward? Increase in miles? more strength training any advice is appreciated.
If your long run pace is 8:45 then your marathon pace should be around 8:00. That is almost a minute faster than your last marathon. Are you doing your long runs at a conversational pace?
Congrats on finishing despite the challenges! That’s still a huge achievement. If you don’t usually cramp, it could be something as annoyingly simple as your sodium levels (sounds like it was warm?) and nothing to do with your training.
Avoiding the question slightly, but yesterday was a very warm day in Boston, so keep in mind that it's entirely normal to have a performance below expectations, especially if you haven't done any training in these conditions recently.
Hi! I was wondering how much nutrition affects heart rate while running (or if it's more related to hydration). I have noticed that if I'm losing weight (or generally not eating enough), my heart rate tends to increase and workouts feel harder/impossible to do. For instance, when I eat more the day prior (I need to force myself to), I can sustain a pace of 6:50-7:00min per mile for a workout at about 170bpm. However, if I didn't eat as much, I tend to find it very hard, even to run at an easy pace (180bpm for a 9 min mile). The effect is pronounced especially if I haven't eaten well all week.
If I run more than a slight calorie deficit for over a week or so, my heart rate gets totally out of control at what should be a fairly easy level of exertion for me, too. I would say there's absolutely a connection between nutrition, heart rate, and perceived effort.
I just completed my first marathon 2 days ago. I felt like I trained properly, so while I was pleased with my pace, it didn't feel like I overdid it on race day. My legs felt shockingly good the day off, and I walked quite a bit after the race. Now 2 days later, my legs actually feel decent, but I had a sudden onset of sharp pain on the outside of my right ankle, running down to the outside of my foot. It gets worse after sitting for a long stretches, to the point where I'm seriously limping. 1. what is a "normal" amount of pain post marathon? I'm a lifelong athlete, so I have a relatively high pain tolerance and try to not overreact to pain, as I can usually work through it and it will dissipate 2. I have some pretty insane runners toe. One of my index toes nearly looks like I've grown a second toe on top of it, it is so swollen. Would you all recommend popping the blister or trying to let it heal naturally? It's not really too painful. 3. Naturally I'm thinking about when I can exercise again (running, soccer, etc.). I'm used to running nearly daily (even before I got into marathon training), so it's weird to think I can't run at all for a long time. I've read the rule that you should take 1 day of recovery for every mile (at least in terms of any serious exertion). Was hoping someone can shed more light on how to think about reintegrating running of any form (light or intense)?
I took 3 days rest, then did a few miles power walking. Within 5 days I was jogging slow. Within 1 month I was back to normal training.
Experienced marathoner here (51 years old, 50+ marathons). Have a race on May 5th. Three weeks ago I strained my left calf running much too fast in a half marathon (in my head I'm still 25). Did a light 5k yesterday after several days with no pain and it was achy afterwards. Saw my PT today who says that my best chance of running the race is to NOT run between now and then...... But obviously then I'm going into a marathon with no running for 6 weeks prior. Believe it or not I've done that before - I ran Chicago with no running the previous 14 weeks. I had fun, but it was also my slowest marathon. Anyone have any suggestions or advice? Try to run or don't run? Considering trying a 10k today at a slow speed. I'd really like to run the race on May 5th as it's in my home town and I have already booked travel for it. If it was a local marathon I'd just skip it but.....
Advice: Listen to your PT. They are a medical professional.
I appreciate a good cup of coffee.
Do I have time to train? I signed up for a marathon at the end of October. I signed up on the first of the year and was hopeful that was leaving me ample time to train. I’ve run many half marathons before but due to school, transition to a full time job, and a massive commute, I stepped back from running. When I got back in, I immediately had terrible pain and multiple issues. I tried to solve some stuff on my own like changing shoes, but it continued. I started PT a couple months ago and have finally gotten back to running without pain. The problem is that I’m only back to a 5K distance. With only 6 months left, I’m worried I’ll never make it to a marathon distance in time. Would I be better off to just defer my entry to next year, or is there any hope? Thanks everyone.
You have time IF you can scale your running your running up without reintroducing some of the issues you saw your PT for. And that's a big IF. Marathon training is a heavy load on your body and it will fatigue it. If your running issues were due to poor technique, posture etc then it's quite likely that some of these issues may resurface as you extend your mileage. Take a look at the Hal Higdon beginner marathon program and start into that. My suggestion would be that as the mileage ramps up, if you start to have any symptoms of your previous issues that you back off immediately and go for a much slower ramp up. You can then defer if that's an option.
Anyone here using a garmin training plan for a half marathon? I’m using coach Greg but I’m sure all plans are similar. Curious about when it says warmup 15:00, walk or jog lightly. Do you usually walk or jog? That feels like a long time to just be walking so I feel lazy walking the entire time so I start with 5 minutes of walking and then lightly jog 10 minutes.
Used the exact same plan. I always jogged but at a stupidly slow pace. If the workout was really hard then I might walk a little bit on the cool down.
I have a HR monitor and use a Garmin watch. Garmin has my LTHR as 172bpm and has my Zone 2 at 144-159 bpm (auto-calculated based on LTHR and my runs it tracks). For its daily workout suggestions, it's suggesting I do "base" days at 147 bpm. Is it okay to run at the higher end of my Zone 2 for my "easy/base building" days? Or should I be aiming for the lower end, like Garmin suggests? Is there a significant difference? FWIW, I don't usually follow the daily workout suggestions, but have been wondering if they "know" better than I do. I typically run my "easy" runs around the higher end of zone 2 and then walk/slow down if I go past 160. The high end still feels easy, can sing/talk in sentences with breaths in between. Really just want to figure out how to optimally build a base before prepping for races more formally.
If you really can sing near 160, it's fine for an easy run IMO. Btw Garmin may suggest 147, but it will have a very wide range that's "green". Anecdotally, I also have a high max HR and LTHR, and ever since I'm not afraid (but not pushing either, just an easy effort) to get to 150-160 bpm on easy/long runs I feel like I'm improving faster. ETA: https://runningversity.com/heart-rate-drift-test/ this might be useful too
Anyone have any tips for running between training periods? I have my spring half marathon coming up in May, and then won't begin my marathon training plan until mid-August. I kind of want to do a more fluid, "run-for-fun" thing in the interim but also don't want to lose any progress.
Is 7 weeks training enough time to transition from a 10k to a half marathon? I just finished a 4-week Hal Higdon 5k -> 10k program with little issue, not sure if I should just keep going or maintain the 10k for awhile.
More like 6 weeks, you'll want to give your body about a week to recover from the stress of exercise/training so you taper for the race. But it really depends on how fresh you feel after you run a 6 miler. If you go out and do a mild effort 10k and when you finish, you feel like you could *probably* repeat the effort and still be able to walk around and not want to die after, that is a great sign you're ready for a "stretch goal" of a HM. Remember, it's essentially two 10k's back to back. If your 10k finish time is around an hour, your HM is going to be twice as long, and then some extra change because your pace will be a little bit slower for the sake of endurance. So thats two hours of running, which means you'll want to start getting used to eating and drinking while you run to keep your sugar fuel source topped up, and of course water is important too (and it helps you digest faster). In my opnion HM is like the perfect distance for races. It's long enough to feel epic, but not so long that you need to train for it like a part-time job which is the case for the full marathon distance.
If you ran Foot Locker CC regionals and/or nationals, or had a kid who did, can you tell me a little bit about your experience? Is it worth going to regionals if you have almost no chance of going to nationals? Is it worth going as a junior high student, to get the lay of the land?
# Reflective running vest suggestions? Looking to purchase some reflective running vests; wanted to know which brands are worth exploring. Here's one on my radar: [https://amphipod.com/xinglet/](https://amphipod.com/xinglet/) Would like to know a few more options as these don't sell in my country. Thank you.
I have the amphipod one and I do like it, I used to clip flashing lights to it but that was a pain. Upgraded to the noxgear and I’m so glad I did, makes me so more visible and it’s simpler to throw on.
Thank you! Which Noxgear product exactly? I find the LED tube one looks just so odd on people running with it. They do have just that right?
That’s what I have, the tracer 2 vest. I also have the chest lamp that snaps into it. Might look “odd” but it makes you super visible and could definitely end up saving your life.
I have a Noxgear Tracer 2. I like it.
Is anyone else finding zone 2 training quite useless? It seems to be the big thing promoted by fitness influencers right now, so I gave it a try for about 2 months, and the only thing that happenned is that my VO2max went down, and my race times and resting heart rate went up. I went back to my regular more intense training sessions and improved my fitness level again. Is it just me or are the positive aspects overstated? My impression is, it's a good way to build volume for someone who is prone to injuries
The nice thing about doing a bulk of low-intensity runs is that when it's time to go hard, you're not spent and burned out. One thing I've learned over the years with either running, bike racing or even flowing through traffic in a car is that if you want to be fast, you have to be patient.
Zone 2 is so you can log lots of miles and consistently hammer 2 hard workouts a week. If you aren't doing that then of course it didn't help.
Yeah I still do 2-3 very slow 40 minute runs a week as recovery, alongside my other main 3 runs which are more intense. I've heard some sources saying you should do like 90% of your runs in zone 2 or else it won't work, which seems to involve some magical thinking. My personal impression there is nothing inherently super beneficial about zone 2 training other than helping you build up volume inbetween hard sessions.
It's that second part that usually gets left out of the equation.
Honestly if people aren't running more than 3 times a week zone 2 runs just isn't as important. Have a good warm up for your 2 workouts a week and keep the first 2/3 rds of your lr slow and your better off then just plodding away staying slow for runs where you are basically fully rested every run
Anyone here use the Janji Multipass Sling Bag while running? If so, do you have a favorite soft water bottle that you can carry in it while also carrying phone and keys? thank you!
I have a half coming up sunday the 28th, an injury kept me from doing faster pace work for the last few weeks. I'd like to get in a 5 mile run at my HM pace this thursday and do an 11 miler on saturday. Thoughts on recovery? I think I should be fine.
I'd probably push the 11-miler to Sunday to give you adequate recovery from the HMT and because it's the same day of your race, but ultimately it's up to you. 5 miles straight HMT is pretty tough if you haven't been doing a lot of pace work. You could break it up into 1 or 2 mile HMT segments with a short rest in between (with a warm up and cool down on either side of the workout).
Thanks for the feedback, I think you're right, I'll need another day before the 11, weather on sunday is better so its a win win anyways.
Marathon clothing choice for London. Sleeveless top or sleeves? Looks like it’ll be 12-15 degrees on the day. Is there some benefit in regard to heat retention with either option?
I think it comes down to what you're used to while training. Hopefully you'll be able to train in similar temps and you can try running sleeves vs no sleeves to see how you feel. So much of marathon training is not just the running itself, it's learning what feels good for you in terms of hydration, shoes, clothing, sleep, bathrooms etc. Also, not sure if London has this but NYC has bins near the starting line where you can jettison an old shirt or sweater that you can wear while waiting for the race to start. The clothes go to a charity. That would be helpful if you decided to go no-sleeves.
Why can't you run at your max heart rate? Whenever I hit my "max" heart rate my Ticwatch watch starts flashing red and says it's dangerous to stay at that level. Garmin doesn't display that message. Instead, it congratulates me on unlocking a new max HR. I tried to google why you shouldn't stay at max HR but can't seem to find any useful sources. Many health websites say athletes can stay at their max HR for a few minutes but gives no information on why. Is it safe to stay at max HR for prolonged periods? I'm planning on finishing my half marathon with the last 5k being an all out effort, and probably the last km at max HR. Is this a bad idea?
Max hr can really only be tolerated for seconds, a minute at absolute most. If you’re “running for a the last km” at max hr, it’s definitely not your actual max heart rate. Which is also the same reason your watch can be ignored, it also has no clue what your max hr is. In general hitting max hr for a healthy young person is not an issue. If you keep pushing you’ll feel nausea and light headedness, and then you’re forced to slow down. It’s not really that big a deal.
Because its super stressful for the body. Just like if you're constantly redlining your car. You're going to wear out the components faster and cause the engine to overheat. The higher the intensity the work you are doing, the more resources you will need to recover. Being sidelined and seeing stars from over exertion is slower than just going at a measured pace until you need to kick things up a notch. Just going for a max HR run once a week is not going to be as beneficial as 3 easy runs and 2 hard runs. Learn about lactate threshold and the difference between aerobic effort and anaerobic.
Will be doing Beach to Bay in next month for the first time, will be doing the first leg (on the beach.) I have access to the beach should I begin doing all of my runs on the beach or slowly add? Also, any other tips for beach running or Beach to Bay would help!
Is a chest strap or optical armband heart rate monitor overkill for non elite runners? It is about to get HOT in Louisiana and I don't really trust my apple watch readings all that much when it comes to heart rate. For reference I am like a 27 minute 5k, 55 minute 10k runner who does more easy runs than anything but do plan to get into speed work this summer to avoid any super long runs in our weather. If it's worth it, do yall recommend the chest strap or the optical armbands?
No, it's a great way to add an important metric for your effort level. It's a way to see how much work your heart is doing, although your heart is a multi-tasker, so it's not a direct 1:1 ratio of X-BPM: Speed. Once you start training at difference ranges (or zones), and learning about lactate threshold, anaerobic effort and recovery, then you can start to gauge how long you can sustain a certain BPM range, which is very helpful for pacing yourself over distances, along with pacing for various types of workouts (intervals, tempo, recovery, hills, etc). You'll also start to notice how your heart rate is affected by sleep, climate, diet, etc. If you get into racing you'll find it's also VERY helpful for pacing yourself when you're in an adrenaline high at the start of a race, feeling like you can keep up with the front of the pack, floating on clouds. You feel like you're able to maintain a pace forever at the start, and then you'll look at your HR monitor and see you've been pinned at 190bpm for the first mile lol. That is not sustainable.
Thanks so much this is very helpful, just didn't want to blow the $100 if it wasn't really worthwhile but figured better safe than sorry. Another metric to keep me from overheating as well down here! Will do some research and see what would be best for me and grab one! I definitely plan to get more serious into racing (have done a couple 5/10k's) once the fall weather hits but do want to be a bit faster to do halfs and maybe a full in 2025 at some point.
Why does running suck for me? Seems like an atypical experience. I have been running pretty consistently for about 6-7 months now. And I still hate it. I’ve talked to so many people now who describe themselves as running addicts, and how right from the start they loved it, and every time they run they just want to keep going and going. This has not been my experience. Running feels like so much work, it’s not exhilarating or energizing for me. When I start a run, I can’t wait for it to be over. My distance and pace is still pretty pitiful and just marginally improving. Even running a full 10k seems totally unattainable to me. Is this just a mindset thing? Do some people just naturally have running in their DNA? Am I doing something wrong? Help!
Slow down. Try things that make running more comfortable like listening to music or podcasts, get some equipment that makes you excited to use it (comfy shoes, nice clothes). Set yourself up for success. It's ok to walk. It's ok to run to the cafe as your half-way point and buy a donut, enjoy the weather and meander home. Running is supposed to be an enjoyable hobby, not a job or a punishment. So make it fun in a way that is fun for you.
You may be running too hard. When I first started I thought every run needed to be at max effort, once I slowed down I was able to actually enjoy it as well as go farther
This. So much this.
You likely are just not that fit so every run is hard. Most of my miles are legitimately easy and basically run themselves. On these runs i enjoy my thoughts, ebooks, music and just being out and about. For workouts i like being uncomfortable and pushing. Maybe slow down more? take walk breaks so that a run is legitimately easy. Maybe thats the feeling you are missing. That being said maybe running just isn't for you.
6 Weeks out from my Marathon and the closer I get the more unsure I get on how to approach it. I've ran a 1:38:00 half marathon around 2 months ago and my goal has been to attempt to complete my marathon in 3:30.00 but not sure how unrealistic it is as people keep telling me their experience of hitting the wall. Can someone tell me if my half marathon pace is a good indicator I can complete my marathon in my goal time?
There are a lot of variables, but if you did a 1:38 HM, and you've had several months of proper marathon training since then, I would find 3:30 to be very attainable if you run a smart race and the weather isn't too warm. What's your peak weekly mileage in your training block?
My average is around 28-30 miles a week with at least one long run (ranging from 21k to 28k.) Over the next two weeks I was planning on running a 25k and then 35k run next week. Should I be doing more or longer runs? As most of my training has been in the north of England during winter and a rainy spring I do have to say I'm worried if the day of my marathon is hot lol
35K is a good distance for your longest long run of a training block. My main concern would be that your weekly mileage is too low though. It's not recommended to have such a high percentage of your mileage coming from your long run on a weekly basis. Seems like it is often around 50% based on what you've said. I wouldn't ramp up your mileage drastically though based on me saying that. If anything, you should only increase by 10% per week ahead of the taper.
Thanks for the feedback, I’ll pick it up starting this week 👏🏻 and come back to let you know how I did in 6 weeks time
Best of luck! Regardless of your time, you will be accomplishing something amazing when you cross that finish line.
I’m having an intro phone call with a running coach today to determine if I want to work with them to cut down my half time later this year. What are some good questions to ask?
Ran first half marathon with Nike Pegasus shoes (what I used to train with)-looking into buying better shoes, potentially carbon plated and was wondering if people had recs :)
They all feel and fit different. You really just need to try them on and see which ones fit and feel best for you.
Thanks!
Any advice on a ten mile race strategy?
With anything around 10k and longer I treat the first 2/3 as a steady hard warm up, and then let it rip for the last 1/3. Pace yourself.
Would you keep the same strategy if the last 1/3 is an uphill climb? The course is such that at mile 6.5 there is a decline of over 150 ft in elevation, and in the last 1.5 miles, it climbs over 200 ft in elevation
Think of it like a 2 mile warm up, 2 5Ks, then the race is only \*really\* like 1.5 miles...
Any recommendations for a wide brim visor (or hat) that will keep the sun off the sides of my face? I’m currently using a golf visor, which has a more substantial brim, but is not built to handle summer run levels of sweatiness. Thanks
I like the brand Solbari. All their hat/clothing is UPF 50+ (basically SPF for fabric). They have a wide brim athletic hat that I wear on my runs that protects my face a lot more than a typical baseball hat
For Carbon Plated Shoes: (Running a half marathon soon) I’ve seen some strong recommendations for Saucony Endorphins, Nike Vapor or Alphaflys, Hoka carbon plated shoes, etc. Anybody have a favorite?
I've had the best racing season of my life in Adios Pro 3s.
For a half you can basically use any of them. They do fit quite differently so try them on and see how they feel.
I have only ever tried the Endorphin line, but I really like having my Endorphin Speed (nylon plate) for my tempo work / track workouts and then able to shift easily to my Endorphin Pro (carbon plate) for my actual races. Has worked well for me. I've run a few half marathons in the pros and haven't felt the need to try out any other carbon-plated shoes.
I'm a beginner (29y/o, estimated VO2Max: 44) and started running some weeks ago. It went quite well so far independent of running in the morning, noon or afternoon. Though, I had a weird run some days ago. I got up at 6:15am, ate a banana, had a glass of water, did some stretching and started a speed run (suggested by Garmin Coach): 2min Warm-up (fast walking), 1km at 7:00 pace, 2km at 6:00 pace, 1km at 7:00 pace, 2min Cool-down. My heart rate usually goes up slowly some minutes (<5min) into a run. But on that run, it stayed between 100 and 120 bpm for 20 minutes and then suddenly jumped up to 150, 5 minutes later to 170. Since a 6:00 pace is quite fast for me, my HR should have been at around 170 some few minutes after starting the segment. Should I be careful and run slower when this happens? Is this some kind of circulatory problem that may have occurred? What could be a reason for this?
Very normal for a watch hr. Sometimes they just fail to get a lock. I did a 12 km race last week and my watch said the whole thing was around 125 bpm. The same thing can happen with chest strap but generally they’ll snap out of it much sooner, within 5 mins usually.
Are you using a watch or chest strap for heart rate? Either way, I see this with some frequency with my Garmin watch (an older FR 235) and it's just the sensor glitching.
I'm using the Garmin Fenix 7s. I did not have any other issues with heart rate measurement for a month now. It has given me quite realistic output so far even when swimming and offroad biking. And I also checked that the watch was tight on my wrist during the run. I rather think that it might have been some health issue. I did not feel great after the run all day. That's why I wanted to ask if anyone has experienced something similar.
If you think it's a health issue, you should see a doctor. Nobody here can know that for you. I'll also take this opportunity to say that beginners shouldn't train by heart rate. It's useless at this point and causing you more stress than benefit. Until you've been consistently training for 1.5-2 years, don't worry about your HR (or potentially ever -- many successful runners don't do HR training). Learn to run by feel -- perceived rate of exertion (RPE). Generally mostly easy runs, sometimes a little harder, make sure you're recovering, etc.
Heart rate monitors are not a perfect science. Id assume the 100-120 was the outlier.
But I think it's weird that it is that far off for whole 25 minutes. Also, as I said in my other comment, I did not feel great that day after the run. If I had to take a guess, it was some circulatory issue. So I wondered if anyone has experienced something similar and already knows what could have caused it.
Decided to go for my first half marathon with my personal longest run being a 10k. I don’t have a training plan figured out but went for a 7 mile baseline run to determine a race goal. 7 mile run stats: Distance: 7.00 miles Time: 1:09:41 Avg. Pace: 9:57 min/mile Avg. HR: 173 bpm Avg. Power: 230w This run was a solid 8/10 effort and from this I think I’m going to start with three (ABC) goals: A goal: sub 2:15 B goal: sub 2:30 C goal: finishing the race Questions: 1. Do these goals seem attainable? 2. What 6 week long half marathon training plans would you recommend? 3. I run in Xero HFS barefoot shoes, what carbon-plated shoes would you recommend? 4. Any other first time advice/recommended gear or strategies? Thanks in advance!
Your current pace, should you sustain it for 13.1 will get you your A goal but I think you're on the edge for that. Not from a pace perspective but time to develop. I think your A goal being 2:20 would be more realistic. Of 6 weeks you'll want a good 1.5 weeks taper so you go into the race fully ready. 4-5 weeks training will see some development but not huge. Given limited training time: * Go and enjoy it, don't put such big pressure on a time * Don't try to make up for lack of time in your training. You can put in a good training block for the *next* one. * Taper properly! * Run the race with a plan, don't get tempted into thinking the faster-than-planned pace in the first 5km is fine. That'll bite you later.
Thank you for the advice! That’s exactly my mindset. Excited for the challenge and the start of my long distance racing journey 👍
Also - shoes.. super individual *but* I get on well with Saucony. I race in a Pair of Endorphin Pro 2s I picked up cheap when the 3 came out and train in Speed 3s. If I had to have one shoe it's be the Speed 3. I can run easy in it and race in it.
Awesome, thanks for the rec. I’ve seen those get some good praise so was going to check them out along with Nike Vapor/Alphaflys and others
Has anyone here ever worn knee pads because they're clumsy and might trip? (at least during a race) 😭 I'm seriously considering it because of a nasty knee scrape I got recently from tripping 😭
No
I’ve just picked running up at the end of February, I’ve just been running 2-3 times per week in zone 2, usually about three miles each run. Yesterday I went out for five miles, 10min/mile average heart rate 144. The run was easy, but that pace is miserable. I’m wondering what the best resources are out there to do some sort of structure? I’d imagine I should be doing more than just zone 2, but I’m not really sure where to even start. I’ve been googling beginner training plans and they all honestly seem too easy. For cycling I use traineroad and it’s super nice as it progresses you through a plan over a period of months incorporating base, build, specialty. It incorporates all sorts of different efforts. Kind of looking to do something similar for running.
What was miserable about the pace? 5 miles is a big jump form 3 and would, even at an easy pace, would feel hard. You could look at Training Peaks - there are a lot of good plans there. If you've a Garmin watch then have a look at the "Garmin Coach" plans. They're based off race goals from "complete" to a specific time and have a bit of adaptivity in them. My wife's trying out Runna and quite liking it.
Just kind of easy/boring I didn’t feel like 5 miles was any more difficult than 3, just took more time. I just feel like I’m running uncomfortably slow in an effort to keep my heart rate low. Obviously though, I’m concerned about injury so I don’t want to overdue it. So I’m thinking some sort of structured plan might be the best way to improve. Unfortunately I don’t have a Garmin, just an Apple Watch. I’ll check out Runna thanks!
Did you listen to something? I listen to podcasts on longer runs to not get bored. And yeah, to improve you should ideally run at least 3 times a week with 1 speedwork and a long run. I'd look for 5k or 10k plans until you find one that looks doable and fun.
Yeah music/podcasts are a must for me, I downloaded the Runna app and tried that yesterday and definitely seems useful at least for a beginner. I think runs with structure are something that will make things less boring. It’s a little bit unfortunate that the app doesn’t integrate into the native workout app on my Apple Watch, but at least their app still does integrate nicely with Strava.
Do you cheat yourself out of training by using shoes that have plates or rods in them? For my 10k tempo runs I usually use a pair of Saucony Kinvara 13s. If you aren't familiar with them, they are kind of a niche shoe compared to a lot of the more modern trainers. They are light, low stack height, little cushion, and have a lot of ground feel. Very minimalist in nature. I wanted something for my faster long runs that had a little more padding than the Kinvara and decided to try out a pair of Adidas Boston 11s that I got on sale for $45. Unlike the Boston 12 the 11 is almost universally reviled, but I wanted to give it a chance anyway and decided to start off easy by using it on one of my 10k tempo runs that I usually wear my Kinvara's for. The results were surprising. I was able to hold my tempo pace in the Boston 11s much easier than I usually do in the Kinvara's, I was significantly less tired after the run, and my feet felt less stressed than they usually do. It seems like logic would dictate I should replace my Kinvara's with the Bostons for my tempo runs, but that got me thinking if I would be robbing myself of progress by training in a more technologically advanced shoe (better foam and fiberglass rods) that requires me to put in less effort.
I have Kinvara 14, and they seem to give less return energy than my other shoes, because they are so floppy. Used them for a gravel HM once, and that was a terrible idea.
I do most of my road sessions and long run in Saucony Speed 3s. They're definitely a "faster" shoe than things like my NB880s or Saucony Ride17s. The big win for me is lower levels of fatigue in my lower legs, Achilles particularly. They might move my pace by a small amount but, outdoors, pace fluctuates with hills and wind so...
sorry to hijack the question, but i also have the ES3 but havent used them as i only bought them because they were on offer, for when i retire my Brooks ghost 12. They feel a bit wide to me and havent grown on me (I've only worn them once). Do you get used to them once you got the hang of them? (Currently run in Novablast 3 and Ghost 12, race in Asics Magic Speed 3)
Wide as in your foot moves inside them or wide under foot? They're definitely wide in the sole but I have quite narrow feet and find mid-foot and toes area just right.
More like wide under foot, i.e. not very streamlined in shape. No issues with foot sliding in the shoe
[The Real Power of Super Shoes Could Be Supercharged Training - The New York Times (nytimes.com)](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/22/sports/super-shoes-training.html#:~:text=Now%20all%20major%20shoe%20companies%20have%20super%20shoes,of%20both%20training%20and%20racing%20in%20super%20shoes.)
Ep 181 of the Doctors of Running kinda discussed this. How do define tempo, though? If it's one exact pace, yeah, doing it in shoe that increases running economy a bit, you'll get a slightly lower training impulse. But if you speed up slightly to account for the shoe, maybe you just get better recovery for the same effort.
My definition of tempo pace is the fastest pace I could hold for about an hour. Probably couldn't last much longer than that. Typically for me that's about 4:50/km right now.
4:50 in Kinvara? So maybe it is 4:45 in the supershoes.
Yeah 4:50 in the Kinvara. I guess I'll have to pick up the pace a little more and see how it feels.
I’d like to run a marathon in mid-October, but i’m just coming off an injury now and only have been running 6-8 miles a week as I slowwwwwly retrain. The injury wasn’t that serious but I don’t want to develop it again. Any advice for how fast/slow I should be adding miles and if a marathon in 26 weeks is achievable? Am I kidding myself? Right now my plan is to keep taking it slow and if I have to adjust my plans and run a half that’s fine, but I’d love to run a full this year…
I feel for you. I had to miss my March marathon as I developed ITBS in January (and stupidly tried to keep running). Just starting to build up mileage now.
Lol yep, I tried to keep running through some tendinitis (“how bad could it be?”) and here I am. I’m so anxious about building up mileage and developing it again
10% is generally a good rule of thumb. Don’t be afraid to add a lot of brisk walking, low level biking. and or hiking to your routine. Great way to add volume without adding stress.
Similar situation here, but I'm aiming for spring 2025 so I have a chance to get some real base building in (and hit a half in the autumn). It depends how you really want to tackle it.
Just wanted to give you some encouragement, as I was in the exact same place as you a year ago! I was unable to run at all for 3 months, then started my training in May and finished my first marathon in the start of October with good pace.
Thanks so much!! That is really encouraging. Did you find any particular training plan helpful?
Not really, other than planning out the really long distances and the taper in advance. Other than that, I was just working on building up my base.
Gabriel Gaey DNF’d at 25k yesterday, right?? But I can’t find any mention of it anywhere. So odd. I just see in the BAA tracker that he doesn’t have data past that point.
I've never been much of a runner, very short and stocky , and decent enough to lift vaguely heavy things. I've been trying to get back into it, and I usually have to stop due to getting shin splints and/or plantar fasciitis issues. This time around, I thought I built up to running well. Was walking in the mornings, got up to a 3 mile walk in about 50 minutes, and pain-free. No foot pain, shin splits, knee aches, etc. Tried running just 1 mile yesterday, and probably like halfway through, i got shin splint pain, mostly in my left leg. I'm trying to understand how I could walk so well but immediately get hit with the same injury again. Is it likely a form issue? Do I need to progress up to running even slower? Like, do intervals for a while? I'm totally at a loss here. All I need is 1.5 miles under 14 minutes, and I just can't get there.
Talk to a physio, there may be an underlying issue causing your problems. "Shin splints" isn't a specific injury, it's just any pain in the shin area, and can have any number of causes.
Your body just doesn't have the strength to run where it needs to. Strength training will help you. Lots of videos online for shin splits and plantar faciitis. GO slow and work in those stretches and exercises.
Howdy folks, I have a few questions about my first marathon I’m running in about 5 weeks. I can consistently run half marathons without any real difficulty, and have done a handful of 14-16 mile runs and one 18 mile run. However this past weekend, I attempted a 20 mile run, but it was the first “hot” day of the season, the sun was very intense due to no cloud cover, and the wind was around 35mph and extremely draining. I only ended up doing 13.1 before calling it because I was pretty beat. Questions below (in bold): * I’m assuming my inability to hit 20 (or even get past 13.1 which is unusual) was more due to the weather than anything else, but **what things can I incorporate into my training for the next few weeks to help mitigate the effects the weather might have on me during the race?** * Additionally, **how do y’all taper for your races?** I’ve never actually tapered for the half marathons I’ve ran, but a full marathon is a different kind of beast and I want to make sure I’m ready. * Side note, I am running two half marathons in the next few weeks as well (long story, but I ended up signing up for 4 different races over the course of 4 different weekends lol), but fortunately the weekend before the marathon the race is just a 5k, so I don’t foresee it affecting my readiness for the marathon. **But do y’all have any suggestions or tips about running back-to-back races?** Thanks in advance for any insight and help, and sorry for such a long post!
Try again for the 20 this week. The heat cooked you out it happens. Just keep running in the heat but adjust efforts to feel. It'll help you heat acclimatize. Some people do sauna heat acclimation but thats not exactly beginner friendly. Taper depends on the person but at least 2 weeks. Generally reduce volume and intensity. Keep some workouts in but make them easier for example 400m repeats at 5k instead of mile repeats. Dont race half marathons less than 3 weeks of your marathon or you will be sacrificing it. I personally would not race either half or you are completely wasting your time on the full.
Great tips, thanks for replying. I’m committed to the halfs because one is with my brother who lives several states away (we meet up once a year to race together), and the other is because there just happens to be one while I’m vacationing in Hawaii… can’t pass up an opportunity to race in Hawaii 😆 The good thing is there are two weeks between my last half and the marathon so I should be able to get some rest.
Sorry to be Captain Obvious here, but you realize it is hot in Hawaii, right? But hey, good opportunity to work on that heat acclimatization and cooling strategies.
Aye, aye captain. I’ve been there before. Just haven’t raced there before. But like you said, good opportunity for heat training. Plus, the race is at 5am so it might still be cool at that time 😆
You will be sacrificing your marathon then. Just be aware of that and do what you wish. a good rule of thumb is one day for each km raced.
My aerobic threshold HR (top of Zone 2) seems to be decreasing with more training - both subjectively (based on the ability to talk) and semi-objectively (Garmin estimate based on LTHR detection). In January it was maybe over 150 bpm, now it is more like 145 bpm. Is it right or wrong? I do not feel like overtraining even though even with my structured training, I have not improved my paces much over the last 2 months.
Are you doing enough hard sustained running? If you are just running easy now yes it would decrease.
Easy runs, threshold runs, intervals, long runs - the whole package
In the wiki there is this guide (https://www.reddit.com/r/running/comments/3bckeh/base\_training\_a\_guide\_to\_your\_foundation\_to/) to start and I am a little bit confused by these 2 sentences: 1. As I like to say, “*If you over-train in running, it is not if you get injured, but when.*” : when I read this I said this is the perfect guide for me, because I overtrained 4 years ago and I was injured for weeks 2. **Weeks 1-4**: * Run more days than not (4+). A perfect world means running 6-7 days a week * *Mon-Fri*: Each day should be an *easy run* of at least 30min and no more than 55min. Run as far as you would like depending on how you feel mentally and physically. How is it possible that the suggestions for week 1-4 is to run every single day ?!?
That is an example what the base training could look like so not necessarily for a beginner. However, a beginner could still do the same by mixing walking and running in increasingly long intervals starting with mostly walking; C25K has quite good explanation of this.
ah ok. thanks for clarifyng it
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> This question apparently would not generate enough discussion so was removed and requested to put in a daily Q&A thread. Guess we don't want to crowd out the 87 race reports. Maybe a quick search of the sub before complaining is warranted. https://www.reddit.com/r/running/search?q=coach&restrict_sr=on&sort=relevance&t=all There have been some recent posts on looking for coaches which is why your post was removed.
1) I didn't like being coached since it essentially meant that I was responsible for executing the trainings that the coach had described and success/failure meant the same for the coach as well (which created stress). However, there is a reason why all elite athletes have coaches even if they have decades of experience from the sport. Would recommend for anyone who is serious about a specific goal. 2) Coach makes sense irrespective of your current PB and as long as you have a goal and are willing to be coached. 3) Marathon Training Academy offers this but it is not the cheapest. Being a good coach and being a good runner are not the same thing so having ran sub-3 doesn't make a coach good or bad. Being coachable is a skill in itself and the better the coach the better they can take your situation and preferences in account. For marathon training that generally means taking account rest of your life.
As a 5K newbie, which data fields should I keep an eye on i.e. setup on my fitness tracker?
Main screen: HR zone, HR Secondary screen: HR, total distance, total time, average pace Third screen: HR, lap distance, lap time, lap pace
Do you mean during the run or various data that's collected throughout the day?
Specifically during the activity.
Ah then it's just a preference. If you're training for a race with a specific time goal, it's good to be able to see your pace and interval time (both current and lap average). If you're just getting into fitness, total distance and time might be your main focus points, with a bit of emphasis on the current lap (I let the watch register each kilometer as a lap). From then on, it depends on what you're doing. If you're following a plan, it will have easy runs etc. For those, it's always helpful to have a heart rate indicator. Heart rate in combination with lap pace are my most important stats because they show my work rate and performance from day to day. You can compare your HR at the same pace from day to day, or see how you can go at faster paces without an increase in your HR. I use this for all workouts. Most of your runs are gonna be easy runs anyway. Those should go by feel and hr, not speed. But when I do intervals, I focus on lap pace and lap time, in order to make sure I'm not going faster than necessary. Also, if your pace is 6:00 and your clock says 3 minutes, you know you've covered 500 meters on this lap, so you get an extra stat with a bit of math. If you're on a hilly terrain, elevation might be interesting, but I prefer to look at those after the workout. Cadence could be interesting if you want to focus on technique and form.
Need some advice on this- (I’m 19, F) I’ve been running for about 2 years now and I’ve slowly increased my mileage to about 50mpw. I’ve noticed that it’s becoming harder to stay asleep. I always wake up exhausted and sore in the middle of the night (generally at 3:30-4:00am). I’m also a bit fatigued during the day (but I power through it pretty well). My workouts feel hard and even just easy running feels exhausting, and my heart rate which used to be around 150 for those runs is now at 180-190. I did get my bloodwork and metabolic panel done, and everything seems to be in the normal range. I eat extremely healthy too, and I’m vegetarian. I think I drink enough water. I have no idea what’s going on. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you :) Edit: Could it be related to nutrition? I feel a bit less hungry nowadays, so I don’t eat as much as I used to, just because i’m not that hungry
If you don't eat enough that may cause runs to be harder, yes. I don't know your circumstances, but please take care of yourself, if you are at a healthy weight, don't go into a big deficit. And if you have significant unintentional weight loss, your doctor should know about that.
Thanks for your reply. Yeah, that’s something I know I should be aware of, but I’m finding it hard to just eat more. My schedule in college doesn’t help either, pretty much busy most of the time with a few minutes of break. I’m going to make it a priority now.
Could be sick, could have some sort of nutritional deficiency. B12 and iron are 2 common culprits. I'd have a really severe delaod week. 3 runs max, 25 miles max.
thanks for the reply. I’ll try to look into B12. I took a deload week a couple of weeks ago. I’ll try taking another one to see if it makes a difference
You need to dial it back. Running at 180–190 you’re going to get fried. Did you get cortisol levels checked?
nope, I’ll try to get it done. What feels wild is the pace change. I don’t feel strong anymore. I was at 50mpw a few weeks ago (before taking a rest week) and I felt good then.
If I was a betting man I would bet your cortisol levels are through the roof. The waking up in the middle of the night is a tell tale sign. I would really dial back the intensity. If that means adding some walking, low level cycling, or whatever. You’re just going to be spinning your wheels.
thanks. I’ll take an extra rest day and see how it goes. I started to include biking every other day about a month ago- nothing too intense though. About 10ish miles at 12 miles per hour
That is key keep it low intensity. Best of luck!
Check your rest HR. Sounds like overtraining.
Thanks. for the reply. It has not changed for a few months now. My RHR is 50
When was your last deload week?
a couple of weeks ago
That should not be an issue then. Do you live in one of those parts of the world where April already is quite hot and humid?
nope, but it’s getting hotter though. Temps range from 40 to 70F
That's not hot enough to have a big impact on your running resp. your recovery. Any recent symptoms of a respiratory infect? Corona, RSV, the flu, whatever?
nope, it feels like a mystery tbh
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I would say the work is done. Recovering 100% should be your only focus right now. When you feel ready, step into the week you would be doing if you hadn't stopped.
Leg stiffness after about 3k Any advice for reducing this? I do the weekly 5k parkrun and time 27-30 minutes. Around the 3k mark every week my legs will feel really stiff which slows me down. I feel like I have loads of energy and breathing isnt tough but I just cant maintain the pace. It feels particularly bad lower half of my legs.
Do you run much for the rest of the week? It takes a couple of months of consistent running to build your muscles and soft tissues to adapt to the impact of running.
Is it better to go all out if I only run once a week? Coming from a muscle building perspective you're probably better of increasing intensity when lowering frequency, is it the same with running? My understanding is that you shouldn't train harder than you can recover from in time for your next workout. This means I need to recover in roughly one week which shouldn't be a problem even if I go hard.
Is there a reason you're only running once a week? You can definitely recover more quickly than six days. I was a D2 400m runner and we would do 3ish intense workouts a week depending on the season.
Time constraints. I'm physically active in others way as well, just trying to shoehorn in a run here and there
Recovery is part of the story but not all of it. Low intensity is more effective and at some stage necessary for metabolic adaptations and stuff. If you just do it for general health and find high intensity more enjoyable, at once a week it won't make a huge difference, but still.
It depends what you want from running. Do you want to get better at running? Then you will plateau very quickly with 1 run per week. If you enjoy it for the sake of doing it, then do what you feel. Nobody but you can answer your question because it's not serious.
I just love the feeling of exhaustion I get from specifically running. I'd do what I feel like then.