Platypus' Beginners Guide to Running

What's a respectable / not totally embarassing time for a 10k run? I'm not much under an hour at this point, although not trying to go fast just steady. Don't want to come last!
 
Guys whats a reasonable recovery period for a first run ? i did 2.5 miles on Tuesday, stretched before and after and for the last two days i have been suffering :D

Not joint pain or anything like that just aching calves, thighs etc, i was hoping to go out again this morning but will have to leave it now till the weekend.
 
TBH, under and hour for a beginner is very respectable. You'll probably find on the day that you are substantially quicker than your training runs since the crowd, chasing other runners and the sense of occasion carry you along.

Knees felt stiff this morning after some quick (for me) miles on the bike this week; will have to pootle on the cycling commutes if I'm to make it though a race this weekend.
 
[DOD]Asprilla;16412042 said:
TBH, under and hour for a beginner is very respectable. You'll probably find on the day that you are substantially quicker than your training runs since the crowd, chasing other runners and the sense of occasion carry you along.

Knees felt stiff this morning after some quick (for me) miles on the bike this week; will have to pootle on the cycling commutes if I'm to make it though a race this weekend.
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Thanks. I will try and find a race near me. My brother in law is running too and a beginner (with a couple more months than me) so potentially have someone to run with.

Just noticed your Localtion 'surrey by the river' - whereabouts? I'm in Thames Ditton so my 10 k circuit takes me from home, through bushy park, to kingston bridge and back down the river to home. Almost exactly 10k and nearly all of it is nice.
 
Skidder said:
Just noticed your Localtion 'surrey by the river' - whereabouts? I'm in Thames Ditton so my 10 k circuit takes me from home, through bushy park, to kingston bridge and back down the river to home. Almost exactly 10k and nearly all of it is nice.
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Walton-on-Thames. If I'm going from mine then I run along the A3050 to Hampton Court, and then back along the river. How far I want to run dictates wehn I turn away from the river and come home. Doing the loop from HC to Weybridge is 21K. Also I don't Always go to HC, I can go pretty much straight to the river adn then turn either east or west.

I've got a mate who lives in Molesey, so ofter we go from there up to HC, down the A309, onto Embercourt Road, past TD station, down past the cricket pitch to Portsmouth Road and then over the Silly isles towards Esher. I turn right at Cafe Rouge and go up past Esher station and follow Ember Road back up to Molesey. It's a nice 10k and you see a lot of people doing it on a week night.
 
[DOD]Asprilla;16412534 said:
Walton-on-Thames. If I'm going from mine then I run along the A3050 to Hampton Court, and then back along the river. How far I want to run dictates wehn I turn away from the river and come home. Doing the loop from HC to Weybridge is 21K. Also I don't Always go to HC, I can go pretty much straight to the river adn then turn either east or west.

I've got a mate who lives in Molesey, so ofter we go from there up to HC, down the A309, onto Embercourt Road, past TD station, down past the cricket pitch to Portsmouth Road and then over the Silly isles towards Esher. I turn right at Cafe Rouge and go up past Esher station and follow Ember Road back up to Molesey. It's a nice 10k and you see a lot of people doing it on a week night.
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We are pretty lucky around here for nice places to run.

I did something similar to the second run you described a few weeks ago and got a bit lost out behind sandown and ended up adding quite a bit to my run and doing about 14k instead of 10. I felt that one as that's the longest I've gone (at least in the last 15 years!).
 
_Andyh_ said:
Guys whats a reasonable recovery period for a first run ? i did 2.5 miles on Tuesday, stretched before and after and for the last two days i have been suffering :D
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At the beginning I was always in pain, I'm not sure if it ever goes away or if you just adapt to live with it.....

When you say that you stretched before running, were you stretching cold (before doing any warm up? If so then I'd avoid doing that as it can lead to injury. Best to do a sgort run, say half a mile, and then stretch, followed by stretching when you stop.

Also, specifically what stretches are you doing, how many time and how long are you holding them?

I get tight calves and have to stretch by standing facing a wall with my toes touching it. I then reposition one of my feet so the heel is on the ground and the toes aresome inches up the wall. I then lean towards the wall. A standard wall push stretch doesnt do it for me.

Skidder said:
We are pretty lucky around here for nice places to run.
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I love running along the river, especially in Spring and Autumn (the river and Hurst park in the mist at 7 on a sunday morning are fantastic). In the summer the path bakes though and it gets pretty dusty down there which isn't great. In winter I stick to the roads.
 
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My pre run stretch was cold so i will do a warm up first next time, i was copying most of the stretches from the couch to 5k program and basically held them until it wasnt comfortable anymore.

I hit the treadmill this morning and my legs felt fine so i will be going out either this weekend, or will run to work monday morning.
 
Turns out my 10k isn't this weekend, thought it was strange to have it on the same day as the LM. It's next weekend.

This bad because I was quite looking forward to it, but good because it means I get to charge home tonight on the bike instead of pootling!
 
So here's my story, which I require advice from.

Before even seeing this thread, I thought I would try running at the gym (Nov time. After about 3 sessions of running (20 min, 25 min, 30 min) I started feeling a pain in my foot. I ran for a couple mins more, and basically injured my foot and couldn't run for a couple of weeks or so. (yes, big :mad: at me).

So I had been saving for some running shoes and got myself down to Runner's Need where I had a gait analysis. It was determined that I don't particularly need the 'blocks' to support the inside of my foot, although they do provide a little extra support, the guys noticed there.

Since they're so expensive I wanted the best fit I could get. I went through about 5 pairs of running shoes, kept trying the running machine etc. I determined that ones without blocks were most comfortable. I tried ones with the least amount of support and the hump inside the shoe caused irritation on my right foot after about 10 mins of running. So off I go from the shop, raring to go with my new running shoes. :)

I went running the day after. These shoes felt awesome, but the problem I initially found - I'm pretty loud when I run compared to others who were pretty quiet. Felt a bit uneasy about this. Is there something i'm missing? :confused:

Also, a bigger problem. After 25 minutes of running, I felt a sharp pain run through the back of my inside ankle on my left foot, around the back of the ankle and into the bottom of my foot (where the support block would have been). The same kinda result was experienced 2 days after when I tried running again.

Now I'm a bit peeved off about myself. A small support block irritates my right foot. No support block gives me pains in my left foot. And I run loud. Has anybody got any tips? I need to return the shoes tomorrow so not sure what I should do :( I don't want to give up running even before I've properly started.
 
Pav89 said:
So here's my story, which I require advice from.

Before even seeing this thread, I thought I would try running at the gym (Nov time. After about 3 sessions of running (20 min, 25 min, 30 min) I started feeling a pain in my foot. I ran for a couple mins more, and basically injured my foot and couldn't run for a couple of weeks or so. (yes, big :mad: at me).

So I had been saving for some running shoes and got myself down to Runner's Need where I had a gait analysis. It was determined that I don't particularly need the 'blocks' to support the inside of my foot, although they do provide a little extra support, the guys noticed there.

Since they're so expensive I wanted the best fit I could get. I went through about 5 pairs of running shoes, kept trying the running machine etc. I determined that ones without blocks were most comfortable. I tried ones with the least amount of support and the hump inside the shoe caused irritation on my right foot after about 10 mins of running. So off I go from the shop, raring to go with my new running shoes. :)

I went running the day after. These shoes felt awesome, but the problem I initially found - I'm pretty loud when I run compared to others who were pretty quiet. Felt a bit uneasy about this. Is there something i'm missing? :confused:

Also, a bigger problem. After 25 minutes of running, I felt a sharp pain run through the back of my inside ankle on my left foot, around the back of the ankle and into the bottom of my foot (where the support block would have been). The same kinda result was experienced 2 days after when I tried running again.

Now I'm a bit peeved off about myself. A small support block irritates my right foot. No support block gives me pains in my left foot. And I run loud. Has anybody got any tips? I need to return the shoes tomorrow so not sure what I should do :( I don't want to give up running even before I've properly started.
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The problem?

You've just started your using muscles that havnt been used to the same extent before.

Just keep at it.

What do you mean your loud? Stop talking! :p
 
Begbie said:
The problem?

You've just started your using muscles that havnt been used to the same extent before.

Just keep at it.

What do you mean your loud? Stop talking! :p
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LOL, well I went back today and got some running shoes with mild support. Can I just say - Runners Need = full of win. So helpful and definitely recommend them to anybody! :) I'm looking forward to running in them tomorrow. I sounded quiet running with these pair which was surprising! :D
 
Calf stretch - the best one I've found is to stand on a step (I usually do it on the kerb or the bottom step of my stairs) with your toes on and your heels off. Lower your heels until you feel the stretch. Do 1 leg at a time if you have trouble balancing.

London Marathon was incredible but man do I ache today!!! :)
 
Lostkat said:
Calf stretch - the best one I've found is to stand on a step (I usually do it on the kerb or the bottom step of my stairs) with your toes on and your heels off. Lower your heels until you feel the stretch. Do 1 leg at a time if you have trouble balancing.

London Marathon was incredible but man do I ache today!!! :)
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Congrats for finishing! What was your time?


Ok, so problem again - new pair of running shoes with mild support. It was rubbing on the inside of my right foot, left one was absolutley fine. Now have a blister from a 30 min run :mad: Do I just have to accept that I was never built for running? Heh :(
 
Pav89 said:
Congrats for finishing! What was your time?


Ok, so problem again - new pair of running shoes with mild support. It was rubbing on the inside of my right foot, left one was absolutley fine. Now have a blister from a 30 min run :mad: Do I just have to accept that I was never built for running? Heh :(
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Try some dual skin socks, I got some the other day and my blisters seem to be okish now/ not getting worse.
 
The Craig said:
Try some dual skin socks, I got some the other day and my blisters seem to be okish now/ not getting worse.
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This. I use Wright Socks and find them to be excellent.

Finally got out and did 10k at the weekend; 51 mins. Not bad considering how long it is since I last ran that far.

Congrats on the VLM Lostkat (and FB); what are your times?
 
Can anyone recommend a 10k race sometime over the next couple of months around London or Surrey? (or a site with info on dates, signing up etc.) Ta
 
Lostkat said:
Calf stretch - the best one I've found is to stand on a step (I usually do it on the kerb or the bottom step of my stairs) with your toes on and your heels off. Lower your heels until you feel the stretch. Do 1 leg at a time if you have trouble balancing.

London Marathon was incredible but man do I ache today!!! :)
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Oi, get over to the VLM thread and let us know how you got on :p
 
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