Platypus' Beginners Guide to Running

[Buckster]

My 5 mile series is coming to an end now.

Running since August I've managed to set my PB's;

5km - 21m11s
5miles - 34m55s
10km - 47m - could easily drop this to sub 45 but not run it yet.
Half Marathon - 1hr 44mins


I have one 5 mile run left. I want to beat my 34.55 time.

What's the best way to drop this time down? I have a month!

Park-runs - ie races increase your 5km speed to bring up your average speed on 5 miles

interval training - do say 10k with 700m flat-out (for that distance), and 300m jog to rest, repeat etc

join a club

my running has improved no-end after joining a club

Tuesdays are always effort sessions; long efforts, long and short efforts, fartleks, or hill-sessions

Thursdays - 5 mile tempo run

the Park-runs if you have one local are great - to do a free race almost any Saturday you wish - its improved my PB for 5km down to 20'15. The 5ks have improved my average pace then on 5 mile runs etc

 

[Daze]

How old are the shoes and how many miles have they been run in?

I got them in September last year so about 7 months. If I was to hazard a guess as to how many miles I'd say roughly 300.

Have you tried loosening them slightly? Ideally, you want the sock to be a snug fit around your foot and the sock to be able to slide around inside the shoe. This stops blisters.

Now that you mention that they are quite tight. I'll loosen them up tonight before my run and see how that helps.

Cheers!

 

[Richie]

The cushioning on shoes eventually breaks down. Both age and mileage contribute to this. Some people can go 500 miles on a pair of shoes. I find my limit to be about 250-300 so it might be you need a new pair of shoes.

 

[Buckster]

age, mileage, construction of shoe, and also your weight all are factors

 

[MrMoonX]

Brighton marathon place will defer if get into London at ballot though

Chicago in October this next year is gonna be awesome!

 

[LOAM]

3rd park run this morning, loving been back outside again (not been on the treadmill now for nearly a month). Knee is so much better, pace is up, weekly distance s getting back up to pre ITB problem. We ran a second lap of the park run course after logging our time.

Weight has steadied to 92kg since December. All feels great again.

 

[ricky1981]

Pretty pleased with my run today, it was pouring with rain and about 9 degrees but managed by best 15km time so far of 1:07:30 (bang on 4:30/km) which bodes well for my next HM target of 1:35

Finished strong as well with the last 5km coming in under 22mins, going to sit down with a beer now!

Link to the run if anyone is interested:
http://runkeeper.com/user/richpoole/activity/169916233?&tripIdBase36=2t5w7d

 

[King85]

This coverage of the london marathon is disappointing now the elites have finished, more shots of the city than the runners

 

[Buckster]

agreed

I wanted to see the top runner in the club I'm a member of - but he was pipped by the interview with the Prince - he managed a cracking 2'21 something though ! faster average pace (by quite a distance) than my average 5k pace lol !!

 

[Psycho Sonny]

This coverage of the london marathon is disappointing now the elites have finished, more shots of the city than the runners

tbh is there any point of just showing random people running? people are only interested in the top 3, nobody even remembers anybody else.

in fact i watched it for all of 5-10 minutes and that was mainly because the ethiopian guy was near the end. found it boring watching a guy run tbh, would have probably enjoyed watching though if i had a treadmill in front of the tv and i was jogging along with them.

i do find watching sports boring though apart from boxing, ufc and football and the occasional 20/20 cricket match. even then i would rather be doing it myself than watching it.

 

[sports_brah]

Running for myself is very hit and miss.

Still I'm trying to perserve. Currently struggling to maintain 1.5-2 miles without having to stop near the end (though the end stretch of 3rd mile according to some fancy online stuff has a rise of 130+ft).

I guess i just have to keep running it til my legs lungs and body MTFU?

 

[Nitefly]

Going to try and run London next year - it's only going to get harder with age!

 

[King85]

tbh is there any point of just showing random people running? people are only interested in the top 3, nobody even remembers anybody else.

in fact i watched it for all of 5-10 minutes and that was mainly because the ethiopian guy was near the end. found it boring watching a guy run tbh, would have probably enjoyed watching though if i had a treadmill in front of the tv and i was jogging along with them.

i do find watching sports boring though apart from boxing, ufc and football and the occasional 20/20 cricket match. even then i would rather be doing it myself than watching it.

I enjoy watching it so yes, there is point in watching it to me. Where as you don't like watching it so there's no point to you.

It improved towards the end though, last hour was good.

 

[King85]

Running for myself is very hit and miss.

Still I'm trying to perserve. Currently struggling to maintain 1.5-2 miles without having to stop near the end (though the end stretch of 3rd mile according to some fancy online stuff has a rise of 130+ft).

I guess i just have to keep running it til my legs lungs and body MTFU?

Run slower past the distance you're at now then you'll come back to that distance and find it much easier.

 

[Goodie]

just finally got back from the London Marathon, didn't run as quick as I would have liked, was aiming for a 4:00 but came away with 4:30. I'm not too bothered though as I never realised the first 10 miles would be as compact as it was and also pretty damn hot which I'm never great in and all of my training has taken place in the cold through the winter.

It was my first marathon (the way I feel now also the last) but it was a great day out, crowd really was something else. And now, time for bed

 

[Kristoph]

how i normally improve is by increasing the pace on the treadmill by 0.1 km/h every session.

i don't know how you would incorporate that into an outside running environment unless you had gps watch and set it to beep if you went above or below a certain speed.

Need to do some math. I'm hoping to run 4.20 km's or quicker. So 13.85km/h? Something like that.

Park-runs - ie races increase your 5km speed to bring up your average speed on 5 miles

interval training - do say 10k with 700m flat-out (for that distance), and 300m jog to rest, repeat etc

join a club

my running has improved no-end after joining a club

Tuesdays are always effort sessions; long efforts, long and short efforts, fartleks, or hill-sessions

Thursdays - 5 mile tempo run

the Park-runs if you have one local are great - to do a free race almost any Saturday you wish - its improved my PB for 5km down to 20'15. The 5ks have improved my average pace then on 5 mile runs etc

Just about to start a 5km series for the summer. But I gave the interval training a go. Medium pace 1km, 700m fast pace, 300m slow, 700m fast, 300m slow. Repeat for 5km.

I ended up running my 'medium' pace 1km at about 4m20/km. Need to try and get my medium pace at something like 5m30/km, fast 4m20/km, slow 7m/km.

Really should join a club soon.

 

[manic111]

Any thoughts on improving my average speed over 10 miles? Even without thinking about it I tend to hit almost exactly 7:30 per mile.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Any thoughts on improving my average speed over 10 miles? Even without thinking about it I tend to hit almost exactly 7:30 per mile.

sprint work, hill sprints and possibly running with some additional weight (backpack), etc.

then try again after a month or two and see what your time is.

 

[IRLeetly]

Haven't been for a run since Thursday, feels like ages ago, damn chest cold. Suppose I'll bite the bullet and see a GP today. Really need some rest feel battered.

 

[Jonny69]

Running for myself is very hit and miss.

Still I'm trying to perserve. Currently struggling to maintain 1.5-2 miles without having to stop near the end (though the end stretch of 3rd mile according to some fancy online stuff has a rise of 130+ft).

I guess i just have to keep running it til my legs lungs and body MTFU?

Slow down a bit and also work on your breathing. Many runners breathe in and out every other time their left foot hits the ground (i.e. 2 steps to breathe in, two steps breathing out). It helps you keep your tempo and control your breath.

It was my first marathon (the way I feel now also the last) but it was a great day out, crowd really was something else. And now, time for bed

Well done dude! Time doesn't matter - you're a marathoner!

Any thoughts on improving my average speed over 10 miles? Even without thinking about it I tend to hit almost exactly 7:30 per mile.

Have you tried negative splits? Starting slow, you gradually build your speed up. The idea is you're conserving energy at the start ready for when you need it later. Try running the first 5 miles at a controlled slower pace and build it right up near the end. Also - check your nutrition, because 10 miles is around that point where you've emptied your glycogen reserves. Maybe try taking a gel or a handful of jelly babies 20-25 minutes into the run to ensure you've got plenty of sugar for the last hour?