Runners! When do you hit your stride?
tahoemads
Posts: 64 Member
I ran track in middle school, and cross-country in high school. I'm sure due to my age, short distances were completely doable and fun. (I competed in the 5K in high school.) But my running as an adult has changed. I train for longer distances, and no matter how well my speed work is, I've developed a particular mileage for my stride. Meaning, no matter what distance I feel like absolutely poop for the first 3-4 miles. It's not really until mile 4 or 5 when I feel completely in the groove, warmed up, and happy. It's rare for me to feel great on a 5K -- that's a good day! Perhaps it's a product of age, I have no idea.
Anyone else experience something similar? Do you feel awful the first few miles of your runs? When do you hit your stride?
Anyone else experience something similar? Do you feel awful the first few miles of your runs? When do you hit your stride?
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Replies
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It varies for me. Most of my runs feel good from pretty much the first step and others, like last night, are a bit of a struggle - my legs felt heavy for the first few kms.
What i have found, though, is strong correlation between crappy runs and fatigue. Typically when I run in the morning, when I'm pretty much fresh out of bed (need at least 1 cup of coffee to figure out how to tie my runners up) I feel great right from the start. When I run after work my crappiness index varies with how tired I feel.
Having said that, I almost always have a much better perspective on life after a run - even those that don't start of so great.0 -
It's weird, if I'm going out for only like 2 miles or a 5k I feel great through the whole run. For longer runs, I feel like crap until mile 4 and then hit my stride (I've been trying to improve on this, but nothing yet).0
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Depends on the temperatures. On warm(er) days, I feel warmed up and ready to go sometime during the second mile. On cold(er) days it can take up to 4 miles before I feel properly warmed up.0
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It varies but I usually feel like crap with crampy calves for miles 1-2 then hit my stride around mile 3.0
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At around 3 miles in... the first 1.5 miles is the hardest for me.. when i hit 3 miles, i can feel the endorphins kick in.. my breathing is steady and my legs keep to the beat of my music.. i make sure i have some awesome tunes in my ipod to pick me up and keep me going... a lot about running for me has to do with the music...
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I'm with you!! Of course a totally crappy, fatigued run is a different thing. When I run a 5k, I pretty much have to continuously tell myself to keep going. I feel like I want to stop!! Now on a 10 or 12 mile run, I feel great the first few miles, then like I can run forever 4-5 miles in. My guess, is simply that I'm still working on my first mile pace in a 5k. I know my "take it easy' pace on a long run in those first few miles. I'm still working on not going out too fast in my 5ks. My splits suck on those!! I did get my PR my last 5k race, but my fastest mile was my first and I had NOOOO energy the last mile. This is my best guess. It's annoying.0
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Depends on if I'm training or racing. Training, i might take 5 mins before I kick in. 5K, 30-45 seconds because I warm up so well before hand and start out balls to the wall, same thing with 10K's. 1/2 marathon and up, pretty much from the start because I'm just cruising, not worried too much about time because I'm not medaling in those distances.0
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Mine seems closely linked to heart rate0
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If I'm tired it takes about 1/2 mile to warm up and get in stride. If I'm fresh it only takes a couple of minutes.0
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The first 3 kms always seems akward to me. And usually my best kays are the last ones...I always joke I have to wait for my diesel engine to kick in. :laugh:0
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For me... it's usually around the start of mile 3!!! When I was only doing shorter distances, the first mile was very hard... now it's 2-3 miles that are hard.0
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I've always been completely miserable for at least the first 2-3 miles, and then I feel like I can run forever.0
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When I'm training for longer races, it really does take until about mile 3 before I feel comfortable and can zone out. It makes running 5ks really difficult. However, now that I am pretty much only running 5ks, it usually just takes me the first mile to get into a groove. Maybe it's a mental block thing?0
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It varies for me. Most of my runs feel good from pretty much the first step and others, like last night, are a bit of a struggle - my legs felt heavy for the first few kms.
Having said that, I almost always have a much better perspective on life after a run - even those that don't start of so great.
Every run is a totally unique experience!0 -
I usually don't feel good until about mile 2. The first mile totally sucks and in my head I'm saying "What the h#ll are you doing out here at 5 AM, in the dark, exerting energy??" But I know that once I get to that second mile, things will be all good.0
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I always thought I was weird for feeling like this! The first 1.5 is horrible and I hate it. Once I get to 4 I'm usually pressed for time and need to stop. However that's when I feel like I could go for hours! It's when I feel great and ready to "start"0
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Miles. 3-5 are my best. I feel like crap til almost the one mile mark. That's getting better though.0
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about mile 3 or 4. If it's a short run I feel crappy and tired the whole time but on a longer run I seem to hit it sooner, mile 2 or 3. I'm sure it's all mental.0
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It varies but I usually feel like crap with crampy calves for miles 1-2 then hit my stride around mile 3.
Me too!0 -
I need a couple of miles before I feel like I'm in the groove.0
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On a long run it takes about 3 or more miles. This could be partly my mindset as I could be fearing what is still to come. Or it could be that I set my pace much slower which feels slow therefore struggly.
On a short run I can set off quite quickly and feel warmed up and into my stride straight away.
This morning I did 24 miles. I ran 3 miles to meet my friend, then we had a 20 minute car journey, then we ran another 21. The fear of what I had to do made the first 3 miles a little stressy, then I started to enjoy it. Sooo glad its all over now though (as are my now gros feet :ohwell:0 -
Lately it's been around miles 3-4. Mile 2 is not shabby, mile 1 is still just horrible right now, but I'm working on it.0
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depends on how far i plan on running and of course other factors like energy level, weather..etc.
however, it usually takes me till mile 2 to get in the groove.
if i tell myself i'm going for a short run 3-5 miles then end up running more i'm hitting my groove sooner.
if i say i'm doing 6-11 miles it takes a me till at least 3 miles to hit my groove.
all i know is that the first 1/4 mile is the hardest and i just keep telling myself to go
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On a long run it takes about 3 or more miles. This could be partly my mindset as I could be fearing what is still to come. Or it could be that I set my pace much slower which feels slow therefore struggly.
On a short run I can set off quite quickly and feel warmed up and into my stride straight away.
This morning I did 24 miles. I ran 3 miles to meet my friend, then we had a 20 minute car journey, then we ran another 21. The fear of what I had to do made the first 3 miles a little stressy, then I started to enjoy it. Sooo glad its all over now though (as are my now gros feet :ohwell:
24 miles! impressive. I'm looking forward to the day I can run 24 miles 0 -
The first mile I wish I was dead, mile 2 and 3 are usually not horrible and if I make it past there I feel like I could run all day. This is why running is so addicting!0
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1.5 to 2.75 miles for me0
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For me, it;'s about 10 minutes into my run. I think that's when my muscles are completely warmed up and my heart rate stabilizes at the higher rate.0
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Miles 6-8 always feel pretty good. Guess that's my sweet spot. i think my optimal race distance is 10K, but i usually do half marathons. If the temperature is above 75 degrees, every mile is tough.0
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For me, most days, doesn't matter if it's a long run or short run, I generally feel warmed up and in my groove after the first mile, mile and a half. Now if I'm feeling a little off - too little sleep or an extra glass of wine the night before - then it might take me til 2.5-3 miles to hit my stride. I'm sure it varies a lot by individual, though! 0
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For me it depends on a number of factors, including whether or not I have my i-pod charged, if I'm running alone or with someone (my brother is my running buddy), the weather, and the time of day!
But usually, I find the first one or two miles always the hardest! At around mile 3 I kind of fall into a trance, and on days when I make it to mile 6 I'm usually feeling really happy and am smiling ear to ear. X Runners feel free to add me, I'm only really getting into it recently and have only done one race so far, but its the best hobby I've ever picked up. I love it.0
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