Help... runners?

elliecolorado

I have been doing run/walk intervals. The past few weeks I have been alternating walking 1/4 mile and running 1/4 mile for a total of 3 miles a day. I took a day off a few days ago (the first day I had taken off in weeks) and since then I I can barely run 60 seconds with out having to stop. I feel like I am starting over from scratch, today I maybe ran 1/2 mile out of the 6 miles I did. Any advice or suggestions on why suddenly running is so hard?

Kaiwyn

your body is probably saying it needs a break from running! I only run 3 times a week, and have never had that problem....... but I know a lot of people that "hit a brick wall" and just cannot run anymore, but it's usually because they have been doing it everyday and their body wants a break. Just a thought

EricInArlington

it happens, you look young enough I bet you can do 10mins walking and 5min intervals, have you every tried that? I started on 1/1/11 with 2mins of running and I now run 30mins

Suedre

Did the temp change drastically? Two days ago I couldn't run my regular 3 mile route that I run twice a week, every week. The heat really slowed me down and made me work twice as hard for every step. I wouldnt stress it, sometimes you just have bad runs. Makes the good ones feel even beter!!

gimedatnow

it happens, you look young enough I bet you can do 10mins walking and 5min intervals, have you every tried that? I started on 1/1/11 with 2mins of running and I now run 30mins

I agree! Time intervals are the way to go. I started out with a 10 min walk, 30 second fast run (almost sprinting), 5 min light jog until I finished my 3 mi loop.

Also, sometimes your body just needs a rest. Are you sleeping well too?

MB_Positif

Could definitely be a heat thing if it is getting warmer where you are. I had a ROUGH time running this morning...one, it was hotter than I have been used to and I ran immediately after waking up which I don't usually do. I only made it through 2 miles and felt beat!

mamato4kids

Also, check out www.jeffgalloway.com he has a great run/walk interval method. It has helped me through 3 marathons, and 11 half marathons. Even took an hour off my marathon time too!

Mamapengu

I agree with the above- try doing it by times instead of distance. Even 3minutes running and 1or 2 minutes walk, then 4/1, 5/1 etc. And, don't worry about a bad day or 2, they happen. Sometimes the route seems easy and a piece of cake and others it's soooo hard. I also tend to have a really bad run the first day or 2 of my TOM. You will really appreciate the enjoyable runs in your future for the bad runs that happen.

tigerbluefly

For me, water intake and food makes a huge difference. If I haven't had enough water, I struggle to run the shortest distance.
Sleep too can effect it. There are so many things. Check your food journal the day before and day of the run that felt good. Then look at the one when the energy wasn't there. It takes some time, but you'll learn what works for you as you go.
When you have a really good run and feel strong, write down everything you can remember from that day and the night before, starting with supper, how many hours of sleep you got, and everything you ate and drank that day. You'll see what works for your really quickly.

Our learning to run program here encourages the 10/1 running method, even for marathoners once they get there. I've never run that way but I know it's a good place to start. Run 10 minutes, walk 1 minute. See if you can do that. If not, walk 2 or 3 but try to run the full 10.
Keep working on it. You'll get there!

Hotlanta123

Agree with others about using time for the intervals, not mileage. Also, I am a hardcore runner and I still have days where it just doesn't click and I am way slower than other days. Think about - how many times have you been watching ANY sport and you hear the commenter say - it's just not his day. Happens all the time. Could be weather, you could have a very slight bug, perhaps you are a little dehydrated or ate a lot the day before, maybe your body is just fatigued, etc. Just keep pushing through it. Walk when you need to and realize that ANYTHING you do is moving you toward your ultimate goal to lose weight and be healthier.

elliecolorado

It could be the weather, that is really the only thing that has changed. It had been either raining or snowing for the past few weeks almost every time I went out, and the last few days have been in the 60's/70's and sunny. Besides that, my diet, sleep habits, water intake haven't changed.

I had started out walking 2 min and running 60 seconds in intervals and worked up to running 1/4 mile (about 4 minutes) and walking 1/4 mile (about 5 minutes) in intervals. I had been doing great with that up until the last few days.

MeenaSimmons

I also started with interval training ealier this year, but I went by time. When I first got back to running, I had the same issue: one day off felt like a month. But I discovered (for myself) that meant my body was getting ready for improvement. Within a week or two of that day off and doing worse than I had before my day off, I was able to improve my speed, amp up my distance, or I would suddenly lose a lot of inches or pounds all at once. So my unscientific theory has come to be when I have those bad days, that my muscles were building and repairing on their day off, making them some much tired on their first day back on. (Does this make ANY sense to anybody?) lol

Andrea1138

Don't forget, that first mile to mile and a half is always rough, till you get good and warmed up. If you can hang in there through the first couple miles, then you'll be feeling a lot better. You'll be warmed up, you'll find that comfy pace, and your breathing will fall into a rhythm. It's okay to take it nice and slow.