Platypus' Beginners Guide to Running
- Thread starter platypus
- Start date
Oooh, for something a bit different, i've been chatting to a running coach/guide in the lake district about a full day out in the hills working on technique for ascents/descents and also some scrambling.
One thing that really lets me down is descending. On my last fell race, even as a fat 100kg, i was gaining on people on the inclines and overtaking them, only for those same people to come flying past me as i was gingerly picking my way down the more technical descents for fear of collapsing into a heap. Then i'd catch them on the flats/next incline and rinse and repeat.
The main focus will be to get some scrambling practice in ahead of the run in Spain, but the other skill elements should be good too and the cost of a half day wasn't really much more than the full day.
One thing that really lets me down is descending. On my last fell race, even as a fat 100kg, i was gaining on people on the inclines and overtaking them, only for those same people to come flying past me as i was gingerly picking my way down the more technical descents for fear of collapsing into a heap. Then i'd catch them on the flats/next incline and rinse and repeat.
The main focus will be to get some scrambling practice in ahead of the run in Spain, but the other skill elements should be good too and the cost of a half day wasn't really much more than the full day.
@D.P. I know you tend to not surface in here often, but hope things are good with you and you managed to do that brutal 300km event you mentioned.
I read an interesting comment somewhere recently that suggested that instead of carrying a hydration bladder for long runs, to just carry multiple soft flasks in your rucksack instead. The theory being that it's easier to monitor fluid intake and also is a huge benefit when it comes to re-filling at aid stations as removing/filling/bleeding a 1L bladder can be quite awkward at the best of times and the hassle of hose alignment when taking the bag off, whereas this way you can just hand the volunteers around 5 soft flasks at a time, keep 2 up front and then the rest inside the main compartment.
What's your approach for your long runs when it comes to carrying fluid?
I read an interesting comment somewhere recently that suggested that instead of carrying a hydration bladder for long runs, to just carry multiple soft flasks in your rucksack instead. The theory being that it's easier to monitor fluid intake and also is a huge benefit when it comes to re-filling at aid stations as removing/filling/bleeding a 1L bladder can be quite awkward at the best of times and the hassle of hose alignment when taking the bag off, whereas this way you can just hand the volunteers around 5 soft flasks at a time, keep 2 up front and then the rest inside the main compartment.
What's your approach for your long runs when it comes to carrying fluid?
I know you didn't ask me, but I think that has to depend on the type of bladder (at least in the case of refilling)
I have a decathlon one and the opening is just a slide thing, so you could do it whilst keeping everything still in the bag (Pipe etc) The camelback i have for the bike would be a total pain, as it is a huge screw top type thing.
The decathlon only holds 1 litre and the camelback holds 3 so it would nt really be practical for running i guess.
I have a decathlon one and the opening is just a slide thing, so you could do it whilst keeping everything still in the bag (Pipe etc) The camelback i have for the bike would be a total pain, as it is a huge screw top type thing.
The decathlon only holds 1 litre and the camelback holds 3 so it would nt really be practical for running i guess.
Yeah, mine is Decathlon too. Have you ever tried putting it in with the rucksack being full of stuff though like jackets/food etc? It makes it massively harder than when it's empty and that seems to be the issue. The initial fill isn't bad, but gets much harder when you add stuff to the other compartments. I guess in theory you could just try and squeeze the bladder out enough to re-fill, but then that might be awkward depending on the source of water at any aid station.
doing good, getting ready for next adventures!
I never use a bladder for races. 2 soft flasks, held in pockets of front of running pack. Yes, much quicker to refill, easier to monitor fluid intake, balances weight on pack. With 2 bottles you can have a choice of plain water, and electrolytes.
I see most runners in races also use bottles.
I think the big hydration bags can be useful in very hot conditions a long way between aid stations
Nice one. I think i'm coming around to that way of thinking. I've recently been trialling 2 flasks for my longer runs and it's much easier to judge intake. With my bladder i'd regularly get back from a 2hour run with 60% of my fluid leftover which is considerably less than i should be taking.
I've also seen some flasks which suggest they can be used for gels, the idea of emptying a pile of energy gels into a soft flask for consumption would be superb to avoid all the sticky fingers you usually end up with!
Water checkpoints look to be fairly regular with the biggest gap being 15km between 8km and 23km so i imagine only needing to carry 2 flasks would be more than enough.
The website isn't half difficult to get my head around though. It seems to alternate between 73km and 75km depending on the paragraph, i've downloaded GPX maps which have ranged from 43miles to 47 miles. Given my average pace is going to be ~15min/miles at best, that's around an hour of unknown to consider! Also despite having a 16hr cut off, the start is at 6am and the finish line closes at 10pm which is only 14hours!
The other question as i know you've done events in many countries. Is the pre-race meeting every in both local language and English? Nothing seems to suggest it is, but it looks like there are 30+ different nationalities so you'd expect some consideration to non Spanish speakers.
I've also seen some flasks which suggest they can be used for gels, the idea of emptying a pile of energy gels into a soft flask for consumption would be superb to avoid all the sticky fingers you usually end up with!
Water checkpoints look to be fairly regular with the biggest gap being 15km between 8km and 23km so i imagine only needing to carry 2 flasks would be more than enough.
The website isn't half difficult to get my head around though. It seems to alternate between 73km and 75km depending on the paragraph, i've downloaded GPX maps which have ranged from 43miles to 47 miles. Given my average pace is going to be ~15min/miles at best, that's around an hour of unknown to consider! Also despite having a 16hr cut off, the start is at 6am and the finish line closes at 10pm which is only 14hours!
The other question as i know you've done events in many countries. Is the pre-race meeting every in both local language and English? Nothing seems to suggest it is, but it looks like there are 30+ different nationalities so you'd expect some consideration to non Spanish speakers.
I was thinking that you might have been able to get away with keeping it in the bag and just opening the slide. However, the one I have has 2 little pockets on the front for soft thingies and I can definitely see that it would be more advantageous to use those for all the reasons being mentioned.
Yeah, it feels weird having to think about food over 14 hours! So far i've just been trying to stuff my face before and during the run with various things like pasta/sausage rolls to mimic what's available at aid stations!
On a completely different note, has anyone used Lock Laces? I find that i never undo/retie my laces and as such i find they loosen over time so i can just slip them on and off because i'm lazy, and then with my new trainers i find the laces work themselves loose even with a double know. I've ordered a set to see if i prefer them and they feel like they'd be great!
On a completely different note, has anyone used Lock Laces? I find that i never undo/retie my laces and as such i find they loosen over time so i can just slip them on and off because i'm lazy, and then with my new trainers i find the laces work themselves loose even with a double know. I've ordered a set to see if i prefer them and they feel like they'd be great!
I keep having instances where gels are splitting in the box and covering everything else in sticky goo. Then it seems no matter how carefully you eat them on a run i end up with really sticky hands.
So i've bought some Luchos Dillitos as a replacement for energy gels. They're effectively made from Guava pulp and then wrapped in a leaf. Which is ideal as you can throw the leaf away rather than have sticky gel packets in your pockets (although i believe you're meant to check whether the tree is indigenous to where you're running if you are to throw it away)
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/lucho-dill...RrC2lpr-7bCm9fuWmRBoCZW8QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
The only downside is i've bought absolutely loads as you had to spend quite a lot to then get 40% off and they're damn expensive at full price. As such i have about 80 blocks now and the best before date is June! Which suggests they're actually oldish stock as they're meant to have a year from manufacture according to the website. Maybe why they were on offer. Luckily they also claim they'll never go off given they're effectively the same as jam, just might go a bit hard.
So i've bought some Luchos Dillitos as a replacement for energy gels. They're effectively made from Guava pulp and then wrapped in a leaf. Which is ideal as you can throw the leaf away rather than have sticky gel packets in your pockets (although i believe you're meant to check whether the tree is indigenous to where you're running if you are to throw it away)
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/lucho-dill...RrC2lpr-7bCm9fuWmRBoCZW8QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
The only downside is i've bought absolutely loads as you had to spend quite a lot to then get 40% off and they're damn expensive at full price. As such i have about 80 blocks now and the best before date is June! Which suggests they're actually oldish stock as they're meant to have a year from manufacture according to the website. Maybe why they were on offer. Luckily they also claim they'll never go off given they're effectively the same as jam, just might go a bit hard.
Last edited:
Ah sorry, it was 30% off from looking at the order. I recall it popping up on Facebook or from a Strava challenge or something like that.
Sounds like if you subscribe to their newsletter though you get the code
https://luchodillitos.com/subscribe-today/
In which case i have no idea why i've ordered so much! Think the free delivery was over £50 but looks like it's £20 now
I also got a free sports towel in the box and it's actually pretty good for gym use.
Sounds like if you subscribe to their newsletter though you get the code
https://luchodillitos.com/subscribe-today/
In which case i have no idea why i've ordered so much! Think the free delivery was over £50 but looks like it's £20 now
I also got a free sports towel in the box and it's actually pretty good for gym use.
1st parkrun of the year in a while for me today, so far only managed 24 parkruns (including today) in around 7/8 years as I use to work most weekend and prioritise other things when off. Now have 6/8 weekends off so looking to see if I can get my total to 50 this year!! A big ask possibly but think it's certainly possible if I'm consistent and don't get injured.
Speaking of injury, my previous 5K pb of 18.45 was set before I injured my achilles and spent 18 months not running. Now it's back to the drawing board as it were but was happy with today's time of 22.48. It's a benchmark set and it'll be good to see how close I can get to my previous times come the end of the year.
Speaking of injury, my previous 5K pb of 18.45 was set before I injured my achilles and spent 18 months not running. Now it's back to the drawing board as it were but was happy with today's time of 22.48. It's a benchmark set and it'll be good to see how close I can get to my previous times come the end of the year.
Been on a Saturday for as long as I’ve known it ~ 6 years.
They may as well have cocaine in!
They’re effectively a block of sugar, think Turkish Delight kind of texture. I had my first one and was suddenly running up hills without even thinking about things!
The overly sweet taste probably isn’t for everyone but the Coffee sample one I had was probably the pick of the bunch. Annoying given I didn’t buy any of those!
Must have imagined it then!
They sound like something I'd like to try especially the coffee variety, although I don't have a huge sweet tooth, gels just don't appeal to me! I don't currently take any food or drink with me on runs (most of mine are less than an hour at the moment) so is this something I should change or look at changing for the future or only if I start to increase my run times?
Generally only if you're going to be out for more than an hour/hour and a half.
Interesting! I have quite a few gels left that I'm not getting through in a hurry at the moment, but maybe I'll try these when they start to run low.
Interesting! I have quite a few gels left that I'm not getting through in a hurry at the moment, but maybe I'll try these when they start to run low.