Almost two months of running...no change

Mteach1
Mteach1 Posts: 22
in Motivation and Support
I have been training for a half marathon for almost 8 weeks and I have not seen any change in my weight, fit of my clothes, or speed.I was not working out much for a few months but since signing up for the half I now am following my training plan every day for the past 2 months.I am tracking all my food and am always right around my goal for the day. I am not eating junk or drinking anything, but water. I rarely go out to eat and don't drink alcohol. I gave up cereal, cookies, chips, fast food, pop, juice, potatoes, and rolls among other things. But I didn't eat much of those things before so it wasn't that much of a change.. I am 5'7", 165lbs and am eating around 1600-1800 calories a day. I feel so frustrated, I run outside in the snow and really don't know what to do. Even without losing weight,I thought I would at least get a little faster (more fit) or the runs would get a little easier...nope! I have strictly followed my training plan for the past 8 weeks, other than two days when I had the flu. My training plan is Hal Haiden novice. What should I do? My goal is about 10 minute miles.

Replies

  • AZRunnerGirlinErie
    AZRunnerGirlinErie Posts: 98 Member
    What I have found that works for me is to do interval training. It was amazing how much faster I got when I added this to my regular training.

    One of my favorite workouts with a friend or by myself is "U Call Its" - you never have the same run twice.

    Here is an example "U Call It" workout (you both do what the other person calls out):
    Start with a 5 minute warm up
    You call out - 30 second sprint
    Recovery - 2 minute jogging recovery
    Friend calls out - 1 minute fast jog on incline 5
    Recovery - 3 minute recovery
    You - 1 minute Slow jog - incline 10
    Recovery - 2 minutes
    Friend - Race Pace Jog for 2 minutes
    etc.

    It is amazing how fast the workout goes too. If you don't have a treadmill and run outside you can use landmarks. For instance - sprint to the next stop sign.

    Even when I don't have a friend to run with I do these different interval workout. There are also a lot of interval running workouts online too.

    I hope that helps!!!!

    P.S. I forgot to mention - look for a local running club in your area. They usually have group runs and do different training too.
  • kellygirl5538
    kellygirl5538 Posts: 597 Member
    not always about the scale..I am the same weight as my lowest weight but I looked 10 pounds thinner when i was in better shape!
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    We are similar in size and I'm a runner too. I ran a half in August and was eating net 1700... so 1700 calories/day plus ALL my exercise calories. As I'm sure you know, those runs burn from about 3-400 for 30 minutes or up to 1500 calories for a 2 hour run. Eat them. Your body needs them.

    Here's my argument for eating back exercise calories:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/mrsbigmack/view/finding-the-sweet-spot-452184
  • Type_A
    Type_A Posts: 2
    I'm interested to see what kind of replies you receive to this. I have lost 57 pounds in the last 9 mos. or so using MFP by eating right and exercising regularly. I would run from time to time, did a few 5ks, etc., but not on a regular basis -- mainly elliptical, bike, etc.. I'm also doing the Hal Higdon Novice program for a half (although I modified it because I have 16 weeks until the race). Coincidentally, I have also signed up for a weight loss challenge whereby I have the opportunity to win $1000. SO...I am hoping I can do both...I will be annoyed if by running and theoretically building lean mass, I don't lose much weight. Grr!
  • Bobby__Clerici
    Bobby__Clerici Posts: 741 Member
    What's your BMR, TDEE and exercise burn?
    I don't know for sure, but sometimes progress is stifled when we don't eat enough.
    Some folks refer to this as "starvation mode"..lol
    That's a crude take on the simple concept that our bodies react to extreme and continuous calorie deficits by down regulating metabolism.
    That's worth consideration.
    :flowerforyou:
  • kimmysueneal
    kimmysueneal Posts: 83 Member
    Maybe incorporate strength training 3 times a week? Any little change you can make to your routine may help. Just sounds like you're plateauing a bit.
  • katnord
    katnord Posts: 44 Member
    Keep it up! I didn't loose any weight when training for my first half marathon (last October) but now I am training for my second, and seeing much more results!
  • toaster6
    toaster6 Posts: 703 Member
    In regards to body shape, I had to add different work-outs to running to see a difference. Running alone didn't do much for my overall shape (I lost some weight and my legs became more defined but that's about it). I added in weight lifting, pilates (I think pilates did the most to change my body), and swimming when the weather allows for it before I started noticing a difference in my overall body shape-- though the change came very quickly once I started doing different work-outs. For speed, you might try pushing yourself to go faster? I don't know if it works differently since you're training for a marathon and I just run just to run. For me, I run on a treadmill and I just set the treadmill speed a bit higher and force myself to keep up the pace until I can't, then I lower it. I do that everyday and eventually I can run at the faster speed for the entirety of my workout. I'll keep that pace for a week or so and then up it by a little again-- basically I just repeat the process whenever I want to up my speed. Again, I don't know if it's different for you since your marathon training but that's worked for me. Hope this helped.
  • Mteach1
    Mteach1 Posts: 22
    Thanks for all the advice! I am planning to start more strength training tonight to help with my speed and I will try some speed workouts tomorrow!
  • sunsnstatheart
    sunsnstatheart Posts: 2,544 Member
    We are similar in size and I'm a runner too. I ran a half in August and was eating net 1700... so 1700 calories/day plus ALL my exercise calories. As I'm sure you know, those runs burn from about 3-400 for 30 minutes or up to 1500 calories for a 2 hour run. Eat them. Your body needs them.

    Here's my argument for eating back exercise calories:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/mrsbigmack/view/finding-the-sweet-spot-452184

    ^^This. If you're not eating back your exercise calories then you aren't going to have the fuel to get through it. I see a huge difference in performance when I don't eat.
  • amypomm
    amypomm Posts: 140 Member
    Weight training helped me lose when I plateau.

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