Need advice from runners!

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Replies

  • Dragonfly1996
    Dragonfly1996 Posts: 196 Member
    It may just be an off day - it happens.

    However I agree you are definately not eating enough on 1000-1500 cals for a long run - agree with the above comments. Are you eating enough carbs during the couple of days before a long run? If you don't fuel your body properly your body will struggle for energy. Make sure it's good quality food you are eating too.

    Taking on board gels / energy drinks after the first hour & onwards may help. I couldn't survive my HM or marathon training / races without those. Just try different ones out if you haven't before - dont leave it til race day as you shouldn't do anything new on race day!!

    Also agree with running slower, scaled back weeks & don't increase training by no more than 10% of your weekly mileage (you should be ok if following a plan).

    Good luck with your 10k & the half!! :flowerforyou:
  • rjmudlax13
    rjmudlax13 Posts: 909 Member
    I agree with the others that say you are not eating enough. 1000-1500 calories is WAY below what you should be eating while training for a half marathon. You need to eat at least 2500-3000 calories. Also, eat more carbs. Don't be afraid of carbs. They will be your main fuel source during runs. Your body is screaming at you to provide it with more energy. If you provide it the energy, it will start to cooperate.
  • tjmist
    tjmist Posts: 45 Member
    I'm so glad you posted this! I'm using the Hal Higdon plan for my first half on May 12, and I love it. Love the balance of long/short runs, strength and cross-training. For whatever reason, I had a terrible run two Saturdays ago - really winded, felt like my legs were made of cement, I was just miserable. And I can relate to the stress when you think about how much more training we have to go. This past weekend's run was SO much better. I'm chalking up that bad run to just a bad day. Hope we don't have too many more of those! Good luck to you!


    Hang in there! Thanks for replying and best of luck with your half on May 12!!!!
  • marathonmom72
    marathonmom72 Posts: 191 Member
    I'm definitely eating! I usually eat anywhere between 1,000-1,500 calories per day, I log everything as a guide but don't really stress if I go over or under etc.

    I'm working out 6 days a week with 1 rest day, (one day the training program has us double up with running and strength training, if you noticed the numbers add up to 7)

    Could it be not eating enough? That's usually not a problem for me haha but definitely something that's worth a shot! Thanks for all your help!

    I really don't think that 1,000 to 1,500 calories/days is enough. You might try this calorie calculator and see what you come up with for comparison.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/#personalizedmeal
    Also, when I was training for my first half marathon, there were days that is was really tough - especially toward the end when I was adding on those miles. Even today, some runs are just better than other runs - whatever the reason may be. Could be not enough sleep, could be an 'off' day, could be fatigued muscles from yesterdays lift, etc. On those especially hard days, I like to think of it as earning my next really good run. You know, that one where you feel strong all the way through, where it's almost effortless, and you finish feeling like you could have run more. Those harder runs are making you stronger - you'll get there! Good luck and have fun at your race! :)
  • tjmist
    tjmist Posts: 45 Member
    I've never eaten during a run.... anytime I've eaten immediately before a run its made me feel nauseous. I usually have a snack a few hours before my run, but I'm going to try and eat more during the day. My eating enough and running was never an issue before, but maybe increasing my mileage is wearing me down and requiring more food? I'm pretty good about staying hydrated and I do drink during my runs.

    I'm going to experiment this week with increasing my food intake and taking it easy from now through Saturday so that come race I can really give it my all!

    Only 6 more weeks to go until the HM!
  • tabbydog
    tabbydog Posts: 4,925 Member
    I also vote for eat more and slow down on your long runs. On a 7 mile run you likely burn in the neighborhood of 700 calories (plus or minus depending on your weight and fitness level), so eat those calories back. You're increasing mileage, and it is hard to eat few enough calories to lose weight when you are increasing mileage for longer races. As this is your first half you shouldn't have a time goal in mind, so run your long runs at a pace that feels easy that doesn't leave you conpletely exhausted afterwards. Good luck, and have FUN. :smile:
  • badgeratheart
    badgeratheart Posts: 91 Member
    I agree that you may need more fuel, both in general and while running. Consider a sports drink/gel/Gu for every 60 minutes you run, at a minimum. The other advice I have is to up your iron intake. My running partner was struggling mightily last year during her training and later discovered that she is anemic. May not be the case for you, but is certainly worth checking into...
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    I have a 10k race this Saturday which is really the first time I was planing on pushing to go my fastest to see what I can do.
    Go into that race rested and then give it max effort (the kind that makes you feel like you are going to die at the end)

    Once you get that race time go to the McMillan Pace Calculator and plug in the race time. That will give you recommended training paces and take out the guesswork.
  • PVarns
    PVarns Posts: 5 Member
    This happened to me once and I was pregnant and didn't know it yet.
  • tjmist
    tjmist Posts: 45 Member
    that is soooooo not funny
  • MassiveDelta
    MassiveDelta Posts: 3,311 Member
    that is soooooo not funny

    QFT
  • ksy1969
    ksy1969 Posts: 700 Member
    I am not kidding here, but my best runs have been when I eat pizza and have a couple beers the night before.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    I am not kidding here, but my best runs have been when I eat pizza and have a couple beers the night before.

    ^ This. I seriously miss beer runs with the guys.
  • _SABOTEUR_
    _SABOTEUR_ Posts: 6,833 Member
    Apart from potential food issues (ie getting enough to fuel yourself) I would say that the cross-training is unnecessary. Do you feel you gain benefits from it or are you just doing it because it is part of the program?
  • stadter
    stadter Posts: 13 Member
    I'll echo the folks that have said every once in a while you have off days. I will also say that as your runs get longer, you should test out different ways to get some fuel into your body. I am not someone who usually eats before a workout or anything and I had to figure out the timing of when I could eat prior that wouldn't make me nauceous while running (which meant getting up earlier...uggg), in addition to figuring out what I could stomach during the longer runs to keep up my pace. Some people are ok with Gu during runs, some can't do it. I liked the 'blocks'. The texture is ok and you can gradually eat them as needed.

    When I was training, I also developed some different food intolerences that sort of flew in the face of the general rules too. Like veggie carbs made me feel the best. I still cannot eat pasta anymore. That really had an affect on how I felt overall and my ability to push through feeling tired.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    I'm definitely eating! I usually eat anywhere between 1,000-1,500 calories per day, I log everything as a guide but don't really stress if I go over or under etc.

    I'm working out 6 days a week with 1 rest day, (one day the training program has us double up with running and strength training, if you noticed the numbers add up to 7)

    Could it be not eating enough? That's usually not a problem for me haha but definitely something that's worth a shot! Thanks for all your help!

    Whoa. It sounds like you aren't eating nearly enough for your activity level.

    And also, as was said earlier, we all have bad running days sometimes. While there's probably a good explanation (or explanations), sometimes, we just don't know. It just happens.
  • tjmist
    tjmist Posts: 45 Member
    Thanks for the advice everyone! I seriously increased my food intake, and despite feeling really gross and gaining some weight i have to say my first race wasn't so bad! I did get sick, and still am, which may have also played a role in my tough runs during the past week.

    I got my official time and I met my goal of being under 10:00 per mile (i was 9:46 per mile), but my race time was 1:00:29 (my second goal was to finish under an hour) damn my phone for misleading me, I initially thought I was under! Just goes to show you, the nike running app may be off a bit.

    Anyways, for my first official race, running sick, it was still a good prep for the half marathon! I'm running the same route in June after the half marathon with some friends so I figure by then I'll definitely be faster and can work on improving my time! For now, I would just like to get rid of this cold and get back to training!
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    Based upon that race time what happened before is that you started running all your easy runs at close to tempo pace. That is a guaranteed way to build up a bunch of fatigue that eventually catches up to you.

    Your easy run pace should be between 10:36 to 11:25. Running harder than that for easy runs will not build the aerobic fitness you need in the long term.

    Your tempo run pace should be 9:33 to 9:52. Only run that pace once a week for 20 to 40 minutes.

    Run the correct paces for your current fitness level and your fitness will improve. Run too fast all the time and you will crash and burn.

    Paces calculated from: http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    Run too fast all the time and you will crash and burn.

    I'm just learning this lesson. In the last 2 weeks before my half, I'm running as slow as I can (which is still too fast) and I can already notice a difference. After my half (this weekend), I plan on working on this much more. My pace has slowed as I've become more and more fatigued.

    For me, what I've learned is that I need to plan my runs by time, rather than distance. I've been training by distance (ie, today, I'll run 6 miles) and that encourages me to go faster than I should to get done quicker. After this week, I'll switch to saying 'today I'll run for an hour' and however far I go, is how far I go. And I bet I'll find myself going farther and farther as time goes on :-)
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    After this week, I'll switch to saying 'today I'll run for an hour' and however far I go, is how far I go. And I bet I'll find myself going farther and farther as time goes on :-)
    That's the way I do it. If you know you're going to be out there for XX minutes no matter how fast you run it encourages you to keep the pace at the right intensity.

    Also, there is a reason easy runs are called "Easy". You should finish feeling like you could go out and do it again right away at the same pace if you had to.

    Running them at the right intensity specifically targets aerobic physiological adaptations. Running them too hard does not make these adaptations happen faster. It can actually undermine them.

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