New to running HELP!

KNK1988

Decided to add a little running to my walk today... OMG how do you all do it? My lungs and throat feel like they are on fire or I smoke 3 packs a day I imagine this is how it would feel. (I don't smoke) I ran barely at all. Any help on breathing for beginners? Maybe I pushed myself too hard? Maybe I was just born to be a fast walker? Also it was a bit windy today, not sure if that made a difference.

Thanks everyone!

WalkTheTalk

I started running about a year ago. I remember I could barely go a block. Not around a block, but a block. It was horrible! I love running now. I run mostly 3-4 miles at a time, and one long run of 7 miles a week. I am no expert, but if you can learn to control your breathing, I think that is key. I breathe like I am almost in a relaxed state ... Deep breaths in and out. I doubt this is very helpful, but it is my two cents. It takes time, but you can do it. Keep it up!

omma_to_3

Check out a couch to 5K program and slow down! If I can learn to run then anyone can.

Ghlt4

I know exactly how you feel. 6 weeks ago, I started C25k. I could barely run the 60 seconds for week one. Now I'm on week 6, and I can't believe in such a short space if time I can run for 20 mins. Check out the app. You'll be amazed what you can do!!

blatzme

YES! I was the same way. Love LOVE to run!:bigsmile:

blatzme

Check out a couch to 5K program and slow down! If I can learn to run then anyone can.

WAY helpful!!!

CarsonRuns

Slow down. Your run will more resemble a shuffle at first. As you gain more fitness, your pace will improve. Just keep at it. C25K is a great way to get started.

debraran1

I will be you again soon....used to run and got out of shape, now I'm getting some weight off the knees before I go again.

I used to wheeze and thought I had "exercised -induced" asthma...my running partner used to use an inhaler....my doc was smart and said "No you are just out of shape, it will come". He was right, it took quite a few weeks, but one day a half mile came without stopping and one day with some peppy music, a mile. I was sooo happy. You will get there too but patience is needed...you can hurt yourself pushing too hard, although going just a little bit past when you want to stop is okay. Always run/walk in the beginning...I couldn't follow another program to the tee, I just took some advice and ran until I couldn't, walked and then ran again, always trying to do even a few steps more.

weightloss12345678

Just build up your endurance with additional light jogging with your fast pace walking, do it in intervals

dsjohndrow

You body will adapt to running, and in some cases pretty quickly. If you haven't heard of Couch to 5K, it's a run walk program that lots of MFP-ers are successful at. It took me a year to complete it.

A few other tips.

-Get running shoes fitted at a running store.
-Follow the C25K program and don't over do it!
-Warm up and stretch.
-Cool down and stretch.
-I think you should walk a 5K before you start the program.
-It's good to do some leg strength exercise like squats, lunges, planks and push ups.
-Have fun!

KANGOOJUMPS

YOU CAN DO IT!
I did smoke a pack a day,,,, now I am a runner. 7 days a week.
I LOVE IT!,,, sure, it was hell in the beginning, but it all takes time,
have the patience, it is worth it in the end,

sevsmom

#1 Slow Down.
#2 Adjust your expectations. I highly doubt anyone who has taken up distance running picked up and ran their desired distance the first day without fatigue and hard breathing! It takes time to build your capacity and endurance.
#3 aADD the expectation of challenge/difficulty/discomfort to your running expectations. Everyone seems to think that running is this euphoric event. And, while it has it's "highs" generally speaking the actually act of running can cause various discomforts even in the most seasoned athlete. It's in overcoming those challenges and discomforts that you have the "high" of accomplishment and the "high" of some pretty sweet endorphins!

Read up on running. Learn about pacing and strength. Realize you will improve a little bit at a time. You will be running 5k races before you know it!

Good Lukc!

PetulantOne

As others have said, slow down. At first you shouldn't be going much faster than you do walking. Speed will come later.

andreafischer1982

I tote understand what you mean
I started running in January and after 300 meters i thought i am ready to die - but i contiued and it gets better from every run to run in the beginning i made a mix of running and walking and run slowly and now just 5 months later i can run 8 kilometers without a walkingbreak - i am thinking about my first halfmarathon in February and feel so much better - when i had a though day at work running is my get my head free thing and i love it if anyone would have told my i will love running i would have laugh so hard but i really do now.

Keep the running up even it is sometimes hard in the beginning the profit is yours at the end but listen to your body stop if you are too exhausted so the risk of injury isn't too high

HAVE FUN AT YOUR RUNS

sunglasses_and_ocean_waves

Definitely what everyone else said. Slow wayyyyy down, get a c25k app and control your breathing. You can do this. It just takes conditioning.

red0202

I know what exactly you are going through !!

I had this terrible time a month ago (15th June) when I started to jog instead of walking on the treadmill and my max was 30sec (@6kmph) and I was going out of breath and my shin started to hurt a lot.

All I did, I started walking faster (4 to 5 kmph on treadmill with incline) which gave me some breathing back and did for couple of weeks like this. Then slowly started to increase the speed from 5 to 6 witn no incline and my capacity rose from 30sec to 2 min. Its getting better and better. Yesterday, I did running for 20min continuous (2km) and this morning 30min (3km) on the treadmill just with more sweat and less of any other problems.

As everybody says, it will come with the time. Your body will achieve what your mind believes. Dont give up and keep doing what you are doing.

PS : Even I have questions that what is the ideal spead I should be jogging/running at and I know the answer to it that "depends on each individual capacity".

red0202

I meant...15h May

fitnewlife

I think you should try C25K as well. Most of my friends who run all started with it and they all are still running, have completed marathons or half marathons. Also make sure you get fitted for the proper shoes. When I started, I thought my Nike Free were good for running because they were so light. But I ended up getting shin splints which is very painful. After my legs got better I went to a running specific store and got the gait analysis done. They fitted me with Asics and I haven't had that problem since.

Good luck on your journey.

nfpswife

I really had to concentrate on my breathing too. It definitely was not anything that happened overnight, but I found that breathing in for 3 steps and breathing out for 3 steps, consistently, helped. I also could NOT listen to music for the longest time or it would throw my breathing off. I can now (using RockMyRun playlists only), but it takes time and lots of practice. If you keep it up, you will grow to love it!

KNK1988

Thanks Everyone! I did just download the C25K app. Haven used it yet but maybe that will help. Maybe I was trying to go way too fast? It's weird I totally had a dream last night that I was jogging at a very slow pace for a really long time... I secretly always wanted to be a runner, kind of like a bucket list kind of thing.

pushyourself14

You have to take really small steps. I've never done it, but a lot of people have great success with the Couch to 5K program. When I started running I couldn't run a minute without dying, and now I have really good endurance for it. Just try to make sure you run a little bit faster or further than the last time As long as you see *some* progress each time, you're headed in the right direction. Good luck!

ETA: Drink about a litre of water an hour or so before going for your run so you ensure you're properly hydrated and won't get thirsty during your run. I made the mistake of not doing so in the beginning, therefore needing to drink water while running. This caused me to have cramps and I had to stop my run sooner than I'd wanted to.

cwolfman13

do a C25K program...it'll start you off the way you're supposed to start off...nice and slow. It's really easy to overtrain with running and injure yourself. If you're not experienced, I definitely recommend an actual training program to get you there injury free. Also...good shoes...don't get chincey with the shoes.

CarsonRuns

ETA: Drink about a litre of water an hour or so before going for your run so you ensure you're properly hydrated and won't get thirsty during your run. I made the mistake of not doing so in the beginning, therefore needing to drink water while running. This caused me to have cramps and I had to stop my run sooner than I'd wanted to.

Proper hydration doesn't occur from a liter of water prior to a run. Proper hydration takes place by drinking enough fluids every day. You can't make up for a deficit prior to your run. Many people would also find a liter of water sloshing around in their stomach to be rather unpleasant.

Also, the link between dehydration and cramping appears to have been vastly overstated. Cramping has been shown to be caused by two things. Heredity and asking muscle tissues to perform beyond what they have been trained for.

lbpowers0506

Couch to 5K is an awesome thing and breathing IS key. Don't try to run a marathon on the first day... just do what you can and walk when you need to. Remember to set a pace you can live with and keep that pace as you go. You'll notice you can go faster and longer as time progresses!

Also... a good pair of running shoes always helps! If you can get fitted for a pair where you live, it is a good idea!

(I also like to use RunKeeper on my phone- I carry it with me on my runs in an arm band I got at Walmart- RunKeeper uses GPS to keep track of what you've done, how long it took you to do it and an estimate of how many calories you've burned! It's helpful in keeping up with what you've done over a long period of time!

Happy running!

P.S- Everyone is right... keeping hydrated throughout the day is really important too! (Plus you get to track your water on MFP!)

flumi_f

I started 6 weeks ago. Can go 5-6 km now at 7-8km/h, a slight hill is no problem. I also do interval training on the tread mill 2 x per week. I started with 10 min 6-6.5km/h on a tread mill. That helps you keep a slow steady pace. Most of us just start too fast. if you are a fit walker you should see good results soon. But as in another post, for now shuffle. Maybe use an hrm to keep yourself at a puls that will allow you to keep going.

SwimBikeRunMama

Thanks Everyone! I did just download the C25K app. Haven used it yet but maybe that will help. Maybe I was trying to go way too fast? It's weird I totally had a dream last night that I was jogging at a very slow pace for a really long time... I secretly always wanted to be a runner, kind of like a bucket list kind of thing.

That's basically what you need to do in the beginning. Literally, about the same pace as your walking. My first miles were at about a 16 minute pace. Even C25K was too fast for me, so I would run a block, walk a block. Then I built up to run 2, walk 1. Then run 3, walk 1. Now I can run for hours! I'm marathon training right now, and I plan to get into ultra distance in another year or so (once I finish nursing school). Like you, I always dreamed of *someday* being a runner, even though I'd always hated, no, H A T E D running. The best thing you can do is get one foot in front of the other!

yamsteroo

Even in high school I was never a runner. I was Billy Whizz over the 100m but ask me to do 400m and I'd be walking along the back straight to put the fire out in my lungs!

30yrs later and ooohh .. lots of lbs heavier and I'm doing the C25K programme and loving it. To put it into perspective, at 44 already I can run a longer continuous distance than I could at 14yrs old and the only reason for it is this time, I've got my little lady on the NHS C25K podcast teaching me how to do it properly rather than my goat of a gym teacher bellowing at me to go faster lol

snailrunner

I remember very clearly how long it took me to become a runner...the first time I tried to run 4k non stop it was incredibly hard and I'd been working up to it for a couple of months by then! I did a 5k Race for Life, set off too fast and had to walk from 4k to 4.5k then ran to finish. This was about 10 years ago! I've had breaks from running since then, but have got back into it and it's never as hard as it was the first time. Now I'm running 3-4 times a week, usually at 9k/h unless I want to make more of an effort! I've got my 5k time down to 29:30 and could do it quicker without trying too hard. Next goals are 12k non-stop and sub 1 hour 10k.

I recently joined Audible...having some fab music or a really absorbing book to listen to make the miles pass much more quickly for me.

Ant_the_old_keith_lemon

I been a wannabe for around two years, whenever i start i go too fast, too quickly with poor form and bad shoes...

that`s until this attempt.

i reaserched correct runing form {yes there is a proper efficent way of running} and started out doing half a mile at around 6.5mph, i have decent cardio ability but have never had the ability to move my fat *kitten* by running.

i kept the speed the same and simply upped the distance by 0.1 of a mile a day/session i could feel the shin splints mildly coming on and also mild knee pains - but i put this down to actually using these bodily parts.

ok so now i have passed the 5 mile mark, no more shin slpints, no pains, have upped the speed to 8mph on an endurance run - i consider myself a strong runner.... in 8 WEEKS!

friday i completed the cooper test and come in with 2800 meters in 12 mins - which is at the bottom of the top group "excellent"... this was along side other "fit people" who do massive amounts of spinning... dont get me wrong any cardio is good for you but running is the one that forces change, rapid change to the body!....

tips
*good form
*good shoes
*go slow
*go short

always up your distance every workout so you feel you have smashed your last attempt - BUT be thankful of small victories!

running is easier when you are light, but to get light you have to run....

Alwayssohungry

I been a wannabe for around two years, whenever i start i go too fast, too quickly with poor form and bad shoes...

that`s until this attempt.

i reaserched correct runing form {yes there is a proper efficent way of running} and started out doing half a mile at around 6.5mph, i have decent cardio ability but have never had the ability to move my fat *kitten* by running.

i kept the speed the same and simply upped the distance by 0.1 of a mile a day/session i could feel the shin splints mildly coming on and also mild knee pains - but i put this down to actually using these bodily parts.

ok so now i have passed the 5 mile mark, no more shin slpints, no pains, have upped the speed to 8mph on an endurance run - i consider myself a strong runner.... in 8 WEEKS!

friday i completed the cooper test and come in with 2800 meters in 12 mins - which is at the bottom of the top group "excellent"... this was along side other "fit people" who do massive amounts of spinning... dont get me wrong any cardio is good for you but running is the one that forces change, rapid change to the body!....

tips
*good form
*good shoes
*go slow
*go short

always up your distance every workout so you feel you have smashed your last attempt - BUT be thankful of small victories!

running is easier when you are light, but to get light you have to run....

Any specific site for form research help the most - I'm finding conflicting information. What worked for you, I am starting by c25K Wednesday - can't wait.

Ant_the_old_keith_lemon

just watch a lot of youtube videos and picked out the items that sounded plausable...

i focused on:-

overstride
arm position 90 degrees at elbow
arm movement - not crossing your chest only for/aft.. (you may look like a dumb *kitten* moving your arms like a sprinter at 5mph but when you hit 8 you feel the benefit!!)
fists - never clenched - wasted energy
relaxed face

i think techique is critical, like i say i out performed one of the biggest cardio junkies in our gym on friday - his technique had what i consider waste amrs tucked into chest,moving side to side at the midrift and clenced fists!!