At What Mile Do You Bonk?

brocantrs

I believe "bonking" as referred to in cycling is hypoglycemia. Hit me once during a long bike ride and is prevented by eating high carb snacks, etc. I drank a bottle of Gatorade on each ride and it never happened again!

suzycreamcheese

the other day i did 11miles, and for the last two miles i felt really lightheaded and with a feeling that i was really running on empty. It wasnt pleasant.
I managed to make it home luckily before collapsing in a bit of a state. I wonder if taking something like jellybeans or something might be an idea today

RunningAddict

the other day i did 11miles, and for the last two miles i felt really lightheaded and with a feeling that i was really running on empty. It wasnt pleasant.
I managed to make it home luckily before collapsing in a bit of a state. I wonder if taking something like jellybeans or something might be an idea today

Yeh, I think so. Esp. if you are away from home. They wouldn't be filling enough to bog you down but give you the carbo boost you need. Excellent idea.

Ley2ndtry

sorry but this thread has me in total stitches ha ha ha ha!

needless to say i'm from uk :laugh: and feeling like a kid again now :laugh:

anyway back to the actual question for me its about mile 1 LOL i'm a new runner!

Arkay

I'm glad it's making people laugh. After all - laughing is a really good exercise both physically and mentally. I wonder how many calories it burns?

Let's all burn some more.

"Did you hear about the man who lived in a tyre? He had a puncture, so now he lives in a flat!":laugh:

jessradtke

sorry but this thread has me in total stitches ha ha ha ha!

needless to say i'm from uk :laugh: and feeling like a kid again now :laugh:

anyway back to the actual question for me its about mile 1 LOL i'm a new runner!

I'm not from the UK, but it still had me snickering. My morning runs are just not going to be the same now. LOL

As for the original question, I don't know. I don't think I've "bonked" while running yet. At least not in about 20 years. (Now I'm snickering again!) I just started running again via C25K and haven't yet hit a wall.

Ley2ndtry

I
"Did you hear about the man who lived in a tyre? He had a puncture, so now he lives in a flat!":laugh:

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: love this joke!

swaymyway

I have never run great distances (4.5 miles is my best) so don't know if or when I would 'hit the wall', but I know when I start out running there's always a point where I want to stop/walk for a while and that's about the 10 - 12 minute mark, if I push through that then I feel like I can go for another 30 minutes or so with ease!

LeanerBeef

I'm still just a walker not a runner yet so I'm guessing I would probably bonk out at the 1st mile mark but I am guessiing I would stop to have sex at any point it was offered :happy:

suzycreamcheese

lol

rybo

Culture, lanuage, history, you learn all sorts of things here on MFP.

To the originial question as it pertains to running. I've never really 'bonked' on a training run. If I know I am going for a long one, I have gels with me. Although there was one long run, where I went 15 miles on only 1 gel. It was not very pleasant.

There are some days where the energy just isnt there and I usually know it within the 1st 3 miles so I just won't push it too much that day.

achampionsheart

well, ive just started running and i can do 3 min. running intervals with walking 2 min. in between....i reach about 2 minutes and feel my legs burn and want to stop....but i just push through it...i want to progress, not digress......so i just push

arc918

to my UK friends; wear a fanny pack to prevent bonking...

as for a US bonk, my understanding is a true bonk usually happens after burning 2,000 calories (hence runners hitting the wall at mile 20 of their marathons). I believe it is a function of the body running out of glycogen stores.

oldtyke

As another UK gal I certainly wouldn't bonk during a run I prefer more comfort!

hroush

I'm from the US and have also only heard the slang term for bonk as well, not the running one.

I haven't run till failure in a long time. The point where I think about quitting depends on what I did previously, but I still finish what I set out to do.

maserati185

lol For you guys in the UK, I'm so happy people aren't bonking 3 miles and such into their runs here. In light of the other meaning, I'd say it depends highly on how much water I've had and other factors like if I've been training on the regular or not. With the right preparation, I am guessing I could go 8-10 miles right now before feeling drained of life.

Amy_B

It's usually about halfway through my run, no matter what the distance is. It's completely mental!

Amy_B

the other day i did 11miles, and for the last two miles i felt really lightheaded and with a feeling that i was really running on empty. It wasnt pleasant.
I managed to make it home luckily before collapsing in a bit of a state. I wonder if taking something like jellybeans or something might be an idea today

I've only run (and trained for) one half. I started taking Swedish Fish with me when my long runs started at about 8 miles. I also put some Gatorade (half that with water) in my water belt as well. I could tell a difference during my runs when I would take these.

suzycreamcheese

i took a few jelly beans with me yesterday and it definitely made a small difference on the last leg of the journey. Not a great deal, but enough that i noticed. Ive ordered a few energy gels to try as well, see if that helps. Im not keen on drinking anything other than water on my runs for some reason

RunningAddict

i took a few jelly beans with me yesterday and it definitely made a small difference on the last leg of the journey. Not a great deal, but enough that i noticed. Ive ordered a few energy gels to try as well, see if that helps. Im not keen on drinking anything other than water on my runs for some reason

I know what you mean. The other day 6 miles into a run I chugged a vitamin water. I really don't know if it was the vitamins in the water or what but it made me very nauseous. I do need to try these energy gels I just wasn't sure if I was covering enough distance to need one but maybe so. Thanks.

Saruman_w

I'm not very good at running. I usually stick to Elliptical training. For some reason after running or jogging for a good bit my left calf and ankle region whole foot basically starts to go numb. I have to rest a few 'fore I can get feeling in it again. I dunno why... It's been a good long while since my diet that I've ran perhaps I should go at it again to see if it still does it.

Majbdrake

I like the idea of a few small pieces of candy to give a bit of a sugar rush to help get the last of a kick in for the end of a run. I've tried the energy gels and never really got a good feel in the stomach when I used them. Same with gatorade (straight or cut 50/50 with water) during a run. My stomach really does not like to have anything heavy in it when I am running. I think that is primarily due to habit and training since I try to run in the mornings or the afternoons either before breakfast or at least an hour or longer after eating.

Bruce

Cella30

I'm still just a walker not a runner yet so I'm guessing I would probably bonk out at the 1st mile mark but I am guessiing I would stop to have sex at any point it was offered :happy:

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Azdak

Just had to read this post as in the UK 'bonk' has a totally different meaning!!!

I'm still laughing about this a day later. One of the things I enjoy about having MFP members from Australia and the UK is reading the different phrases, terms and slang used. It's amazing to read the variety of expressions in what is a common language.

Azdak

I like the idea of a few small pieces of candy to give a bit of a sugar rush to help get the last of a kick in for the end of a run. I've tried the energy gels and never really got a good feel in the stomach when I used them. Same with gatorade (straight or cut 50/50 with water) during a run. My stomach really does not like to have anything heavy in it when I am running. I think that is primarily due to habit and training since I try to run in the mornings or the afternoons either before breakfast or at least an hour or longer after eating.

Bruce

I have a funny story concerning this practice. I ran my first (and as it turns out, only) marathon in 1980. In those days, it was considered a bad thing to ingest anything too sugary because it would delay emptying from the stomach and could cause GI distress.

There was a guy in our running group who was the most unseemly looking runner ever. He was older (early 40s--seemed really old to those of us in our mid to late 20s), a blue-collar worker, about 5'6" tall and built like a fireplug--probably close to 190 lbs even at a low level of body fat. He wasn't as fast as we were, and he always looked like he was about to die, but he gutted it out every run.

We ran the Bank One Marathon in Columbus in 1980. There was a group of us running together. We decided to go out very slow (for us) and jogged along the first 10 miles. At the halfway point, I was still feeling like Superman, and Danny (the short guy) was complaining we were going too fast for him, so I increased my speed. Felt fabulous for a while, but I was undertrained and crashed about 24 miles. As I am staggering to the finish, Danny comes chugging past, still looking like he was going to die. After I finished he came up to me and actually thanked me for the early pace, as it helped him run a PR.

I was rueing my disastrous last 2 miles and he pulled out a little plastic bag of gumdrops. "This is what I always use," he said. "I start sucking on these at about 18-20 miles and I get a burst of energy at the end."

I just shook my head and walked away, wondering why, after dozens of conversations we had about running and getting ready for the marathon he had never seen fit to MENTION that to me ;-)

chrisuy

the other day i did 11miles, and for the last two miles i felt really lightheaded and with a feeling that i was really running on empty. It wasnt pleasant.
I managed to make it home luckily before collapsing in a bit of a state. I wonder if taking something like jellybeans or something might be an idea today

That sounds like bonking to me. There is definitely a difference between the point where something is hard and where you want to give up vs. true bonking where "the lights go out".

I've have the former happen to me regularly, but the feeling tends to go away after a while. I've only bonked a very few times. Usually after I've worked out for hours and haven't had nearly enough to eat during my workouts. In that state, it's hard to concentrate and focus on anything. You might start getting dizzy or "seeing stars", etc. It takes a while to come out of it.

RunningAddict

I'm not very good at running. I usually stick to Elliptical training. For some reason after running or jogging for a good bit my left calf and ankle region whole foot basically starts to go numb. I have to rest a few 'fore I can get feeling in it again. I dunno why... It's been a good long while since my diet that I've ran perhaps I should go at it again to see if it still does it.

It could possibly have something to do with your shoes. Just a thought..

RunningAddict

I like the idea of a few small pieces of candy to give a bit of a sugar rush to help get the last of a kick in for the end of a run. I've tried the energy gels and never really got a good feel in the stomach when I used them. Same with gatorade (straight or cut 50/50 with water) during a run. My stomach really does not like to have anything heavy in it when I am running. I think that is primarily due to habit and training since I try to run in the mornings or the afternoons either before breakfast or at least an hour or longer after eating.

Bruce

I have a funny story concerning this practice. I ran my first (and as it turns out, only) marathon in 1980. In those days, it was considered a bad thing to ingest anything too sugary because it would delay emptying from the stomach and could cause GI distress.

There was a guy in our running group who was the most unseemly looking runner ever. He was older (early 40s--seemed really old to those of us in our mid to late 20s), a blue-collar worker, about 5'6" tall and built like a fireplug--probably close to 190 lbs even at a low level of body fat. He wasn't as fast as we were, and he always looked like he was about to die, but he gutted it out every run.

We ran the Bank One Marathon in Columbus in 1980. There was a group of us running together. We decided to go out very slow (for us) and jogged along the first 10 miles. At the halfway point, I was still feeling like Superman, and Danny (the short guy) was complaining we were going too fast for him, so I increased my speed. Felt fabulous for a while, but I was undertrained and crashed about 24 miles. As I am staggering to the finish, Danny comes chugging past, still looking like he was going to die. After I finished he came up to me and actually thanked me for the early pace, as it helped him run a PR.

I was rueing my disastrous last 2 miles and he pulled out a little plastic bag of gumdrops. "This is what I always use," he said. "I start sucking on these at about 18-20 miles and I get a burst of energy at the end."

I just shook my head and walked away, wondering why, after dozens of conversations we had about running and getting ready for the marathon he had never seen fit to MENTION that to me ;-)

Good Story!