Haven't run in years, am I going about it the right way?

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dbush2765
dbush2765 Posts: 9
in Fitness and Exercise
So I just started running again last week. I used to be a distance runner in high school (Cross Country, and a mile runner in Track). Ran all through high school, and stopped running for a few years afterwards.

I ended up not going with the C25K program, as that seemed a little light for me, and I still knew how to run properly while avoiding injury. I jumped straight into doing 3.3 mile runs (there are two really good routes near me that are both 3.3 miles). I'm noticing I have to stop every once in a while though to walk a bit. This happens on one route more than the other, as one is extremely hilly. I'm having to stop due to my legs just becoming incredibly tired and heavy. I'm not wheezing for air, so my breathing is completely fine, and I never have to stop because I'm in pain, if that makes sense. I always make sure to, no matter how tired, keep a good running form. On top of that, my pace just seems extremely slow as well (averaging around 10:45 miles). It's been so long since I've been in this position, that I have no idea if I'm going about this the right way or not.

The overall goal is to get a good 5k time, then move on to 10k, mini, and eventually a marathon. My runs are all recorded on my profile below. Right now, I'm running six days a week, and even right now after two days of running, I'm feeling great and in no pain. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

http://runkeeper.com/user/dbush2765/profile
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Replies

  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
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    I was in much the same position two years ago after doing nothing for several years. I did pretty much the same thing as you although my beginning pace was a little slower. I just set out to run 3 miles and ran as far as I could and then run/walked the rest. It took about three weeks (and quitting smoking) before I could do the whole three miles running.

    After you get to three miles things will begin to improve quickly since you have some running background.

    I would caution you on the six days though. Your lower legs and feet will need to be reconditioned and may be prone to injury at first so don't be hesitant to back off the frequency if you need to. I didn't and ended up with a stress fracture.

    Also, I found that a rest day around every third day helped a lot with that leg heaviness. In my experience that will begin to pass once you have run around 50 to 60 miles and running will start feeling good again after you have done around 150 miles.
  • PrincessLaundry
    PrincessLaundry Posts: 2,758 Member
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    I hope ths is a legal way to share this??? Here is what I've been working on:

    149364_454127254641325_1571217212_n.png

    And I'm using the runkeeper.com 5K plan, it's a free ap, and I get to see all the little paths I take as I work out. Good luck and awesome job getting back into it! =)
  • dbush2765
    dbush2765 Posts: 9
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    I was in much the same position two years ago after doing nothing for several years. I did pretty much the same thing as you although my beginning pace was a little slower. I just set out to run 3 miles and ran as far as I could and then run/walked the rest. It took about three weeks (and quitting smoking) before I could do the whole three miles running.

    After you get to three miles things will begin to improve quickly since you have some running background.

    I would caution you on the six days though. Your lower legs and feet will need to be reconditioned and may be prone to injury at first so don't be hesitant to back off the frequency if you need to. I didn't and ended up with a stress fracture.

    Also, I found that a rest day around every third day helped a lot with that leg heaviness. In my experience that will begin to pass once you have run around 50 to 60 miles and running will start feeling good again after you have done around 150 miles.

    Awesome, thanks man!
    Glad to hear that I'm not an odd one out on this, that's what really had me worried. I'm actually probably going to be scaling back the days, like you had suggested. Tuesday and Thursday nights are already busy for me, so I might use those as rest days, rather than running Saturday through Thursday like I was initially planning on.
  • dbush2765
    dbush2765 Posts: 9
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    So I've dropped down to five days a week. I use Tuesday and Friday as my off days. If I can do five days a week and still feel good, I'll go ahead and start running on Tuesday again. Still having to stop on my 3.3 mile runs, but I'm noticing that it's a little less frequent now. My pace is still hovering around 10:45 for the miles.

    Once I can run the 3.3 without walking, what's next? I'm assuming I should work on dropping my time down before working on distance. The end goal is a marathon, but I want to have a decent time when I end up doing it too.
  • lizsmith1976
    lizsmith1976 Posts: 497 Member
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    You are just back in to running and trying to do 5-6 days a week? I'm a pretty experienced runner now and that would give me heavy legs too, plus prevent gains in speed and distance, so I'm not at all surprised by your issues.

    My profile pic is from a tri, I'm also a cyclist and swimmer so it is easy to vary my workout routines and not run every day. My first marathon was this past January and 2nd will be in 3.5 weeks as part of an Ironman.

    You probably know from your previous experience about speed drills and intervals to work on getting time down, just be careful with speed drills until you have built a base of running. And most programs suggest that you do not increase the distance in one week by more than 10% of what you did the previous week.

    Mostly I am saying that slow & steady progress = injury avoidance = GOOD.

    In September I will switch my focus more back to running and I will follow the 18 week intermediate plan from the website below to qualify for Boston. It has some good plans with some really good explanations of different types of running drills that will help with speed. There is a 22 week beginner plan that is probably right for you. Find a marathon that is about 6 months from now and get started :)

    http://running.about.com/od/marathonprograms/Marathon_Training_Programs.htm

    Good luck!
  • timeasterday
    timeasterday Posts: 1,368 Member
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    Once you have a good 3-ish mile base established, move on to a structured training plan. There are lots out there. They usually incorporate intervals, hill runs, tempo runs, and easy runs in the same week. These variations make you a stronger runner and should hopefully make you faster as you also build endurance.
  • lizsmith1976
    lizsmith1976 Posts: 497 Member
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    Forgot to add - google Jeff Galloway magic mile. This is a test that will give you some basic idea about your current speed at different distances. I don't follow Jeff Galloway, because I'm not a run/walk person. For me, momentum is everything and once I start walking, I'm screwed, but knowing what your suggested pace should be for a speed drill or a tempo run or an easy run in order to train you for a specific marathon goal time is very important.

    For example, my marathon goal time is 3:40, so an easy pace for me would be a 9 minute mile, and a race pace run would be an 8:23 minute mile, and a tempo run (shorter distance) would be a 7:25 minute mile. Varying up the types of runs you do and running drills will help improve time & distance.

    Feel free to add me, I have lots of running friends.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
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    Once I can run the 3.3 without walking, what's next? I'm assuming I should work on dropping my time down before working on distance. The end goal is a marathon, but I want to have a decent time when I end up doing it too.
    Your best payoff is in increasing aerobic capacity which can only be done by running lots of aerobic miles over time. My recommendation is to run 4 to 6 days a week and build your weekly mileage to between 40 and 50 miles. Once you get there hold it for a while until either you stop showing improvement or it starts to feel too easy. Also, one run a week should be between 2 and 2.5 hours. DIstance isn't so important. Time spent running is where the magic happens here.

    If you want to do some sort of speedwork use one of the shorter days each week for a tempo run.

    This is pretty good reading: Athletic Training by Arthur Lydiard, available free at http://www.lydiardfoundation.org/pdfs/al_training_eng.pdf
  • CarsonRuns
    CarsonRuns Posts: 3,039 Member
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    Once I can run the 3.3 without walking, what's next? I'm assuming I should work on dropping my time down before working on distance. The end goal is a marathon, but I want to have a decent time when I end up doing it too.
    Your best payoff is in increasing aerobic capacity which can only be done by running lots of aerobic miles over time. My recommendation is to run 4 to 6 days a week and build your weekly mileage to between 40 and 50 miles. Once you get there hold it for a while until either you stop showing improvement or it starts to feel too easy. Also, one run a week should be between 2 and 2.5 hours. DIstance isn't so important. Time spent running is where the magic happens here.

    If you want to do some sort of speedwork use one of the shorter days each week for a tempo run.

    This is pretty good reading: Athletic Training by Arthur Lydiard, available free at http://www.lydiardfoundation.org/pdfs/al_training_eng.pdf

    And strides. Don't forget the strides, once a week. Start with 4x40 meters and work up to 10x100 meters. :smile:
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
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    And strides. Don't forget the strides, once a week. Start with 4x40 meters and work up to 10x100 meters. :smile:
    Yes, these are important. I neglected them for a while and felt like I was running in molasses for a couple of weeks when I reintroduced speed.
  • Kittenopolis
    Kittenopolis Posts: 26 Member
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    So I've dropped down to five days a week. I use Tuesday and Friday as my off days. If I can do five days a week and still feel good, I'll go ahead and start running on Tuesday again. Still having to stop on my 3.3 mile runs, but I'm noticing that it's a little less frequent now. My pace is still hovering around 10:45 for the miles.

    Once I can run the 3.3 without walking, what's next? I'm assuming I should work on dropping my time down before working on distance. The end goal is a marathon, but I want to have a decent time when I end up doing it too.

    I would focus mostly on getting through the runs without the break. Lowering your pace (while frustrating) could be your saving grace there. Once you can consistenly run that full distance, you can work on increasing your time. Also, it's great that you're running hills. Hills build strenth which will subsequently increase your time on flatter surfaces.

    Try doing some yoga for lower body or some good stretching techniques to help lengthen your muscles & hopefully relieve some of the muscle fatigue/heaviness you've been feeling. Keep in mind to never do static stretching without warming your muscles up first. A little jogging in place or light jumping jacks, dynamic stretching, etc, something to get the blood flowing so your muscles are ready to stretch with less risk of injury (I'm sure you already know this, just covering the bases here, not trying to insult).

    I recommend the above bc my friend played softball in high school & had a terrible time with her hamstrings & when she went to the doc she learned her muscles were actually shorter than they should be usually, so it was EXTRA important for her to stretch carefully, fully, & often.

    Hope all this is helpful! & good luck! It sounds like you're already on an excellent path. :)
  • Tomhoffman84
    Tomhoffman84 Posts: 99
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    I just started getting into distance running this year...I only run three days a week using the following:

    Saturday: Long Runs (currently 13.5 miles, 9:04 pace)
    Tuesday: 1/2 Long runs (yesterday did 7.25, 8:17 pace)
    Thursday: Speed Work Day (typically around 3, 7:50's pace)

    I can't imagine running any more than 3 days a week right now and being effective. Occassionally I throw in a one or two mile jog after a workout or before, but those are just to loosen the legs, not an actual run.

    Not saying my plan is the best, but I think having different targets for each time you go out running will make you more well rounded. One time you can focus on slowing down but going longer, one time working on "race pace," and another for speed, another for hill training, etc.
  • ms_leanne
    ms_leanne Posts: 523
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    I started running again about 6 or so weeks ago. Was walking for 5 minutes or more initially but have cut it down. I also slowed my pace so I could run more. I am now concentrating on faster times over 5K now I run the whole thing.
  • dbush2765
    dbush2765 Posts: 9
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    So I've been doing a LOT better since I had first posted this. I've been able to run 3.3 miles without stopping, with an average mile pace around 9:30. Over the weekend, was able to run 5 miles at around a 9:50 pace without stopping as well.

    I've been looking into some training programs. My overall goal is to finish a marathon, and maybe eventually qualify for the Boston. I'm not sure if I should jump straight into marathon training, or work on getting a good time on the half before jumping into a full.

    I've been looking at the following two training programs:
    http://runkeeper.com/fitness-class/running-half-marathon/7
    http://runkeeper.com/fitness-class/running-marathon/9

    There was a program for a sub-4 marathon, but that program seemed a little too much for me, with where I'm currently at. I'm just completely stuck on which route I should go with this. Anyone have any advice on this? Here's my runkeeper profile, it should show all my recent runs!
    http://runkeeper.com/user/dbush2765
  • rassha01
    rassha01 Posts: 534 Member
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    I was in pretty much the same place as you and worked my way up to being able to run 10 miles with an 8:30 pace. I know I cannot get into a marathon so I am starting this weekend with my first race, a 12k. I am hoping to complete it in under 1 hour. My opinion would be to start with a shorter race and make a time goal for it. After you make your goal in a 5 or 10k maybe move to a half and than full. Might be an easier route than hitting a marathon straight off and totally burning yourself out.
  • dbush2765
    dbush2765 Posts: 9
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    I'm assuming the average mile times get better as you get more total miles done?
    I trained specifically for the 5k back in high school, so it was a lot of speed workouts, and obviously that dropped my mile times quite a bit on the longer runs. I want to drop my times, but at the same time want to keep building up my weekly mileage as well, since my overall goal is to run those longer races.
  • sammyneb
    sammyneb Posts: 257
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    I don't really have advice, but more of an opinion :) I have ran 3 half marathons and am currently training for my 4th (in about a month) I have done all of these in 13 months time. I came from a never ran before back ground, as in almost didn't pass P.E. in high school because I barely got the mile done in the time frame needed... I am just now considering training for a full this fall..and the training seems very daunting. I have been running consistantly for a year with long runs pretty much every Saturday..but the thought of running 20 + miles on a Saturday morning, still frightens me.
    My first two halves I ran in 2:21, literally the same time..I PR'd by 30 seconds on my second half! My third I cut the time to 2:02 and I'm gunning for 2:00 on my fourth...My thought is I don't even want to train for a full until there is chance of me getting done in under 4:30....My point to all of this...I would run a half or two before running a full...unless you are in some hurry...but to get the "long" race experience...but that is just me...
  • sammyneb
    sammyneb Posts: 257
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    I'm assuming the average mile times get better as you get more total miles done?
    I trained specifically for the 5k back in high school, so it was a lot of speed workouts, and obviously that dropped my mile times quite a bit on the longer runs. I want to drop my times, but at the same time want to keep building up my weekly mileage as well, since my overall goal is to run those longer races.

    your avg mile times will get better with two things...first more miles, your SLOW long runs. But also speed training. I improved my half time by changing two things, first I stopped trying to PR on all my long runs..I slowed them down. Second..I started Hill and Interval training. I improved my half time by 19 minutes in 5 months. And I felt WAY better after this last one also.
  • dbush2765
    dbush2765 Posts: 9
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    Sounds like the best bet is going to be to focus on a half for now, and ramp up to a full later on.

    This was a training program for a half I had found earlier today:
    http://runkeeper.com/fitness-class/running-half-marathon/7

    I notice it has a lot of speed-type workouts mixed in there though. Is this a good schedule to stick with, or is it better for me to just focus on getting a lot of miles under my belt for right now?
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
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    So I've been doing a LOT better since I had first posted this. I've been able to run 3.3 miles without stopping, with an average mile pace around 9:30. Over the weekend, was able to run 5 miles at around a 9:50 pace without stopping as well.

    I've been looking into some training programs. My overall goal is to finish a marathon, and maybe eventually qualify for the Boston. I'm not sure if I should jump straight into marathon training, or work on getting a good time on the half before jumping into a full.

    I've been looking at the following two training programs:
    http://runkeeper.com/fitness-class/running-half-marathon/7
    http://runkeeper.com/fitness-class/running-marathon/9

    There was a program for a sub-4 marathon, but that program seemed a little too much for me, with where I'm currently at. I'm just completely stuck on which route I should go with this. Anyone have any advice on this? Here's my runkeeper profile, it should show all my recent runs!
    http://runkeeper.com/user/dbush2765

    I'd say your best bet is to just work on building mileage for now. Once you get up to where you can run 20-30 miles a week, then start looking into training programs. You're not really going to be able to improve your speed until you can handle the mileage required for a serious training program.

    I would suggest running a half before you try a full. You can race 5Ks and 10Ks while you prepare for the half-marathon. I find the half marathon program you link here rather odd. Most programs require more mileage than this one -- resting every other day is really unusual, and the every-other day program means that you can't time your long runs to be on the weekend. Hal Higdon's plans might work better for you:

    http://www.halhigdon.com/training/51132/Half-Marathon-Intermediate-Training-Program

    Don't forget to warm up / cool down before and after speed work!

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