July 2015 Running Challenge

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Month to date:		252.38 km 
Goal:			200.00 km / 124 miles (126% completed)
Stretch Goal:		242.00 km / 150 miles (104% completed)
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Mon Jul 27 07.95 km Trail run 
Sun Jul 26 ----- Rest Day
Sat Jul 25 10.49 km Mountain trails
Fri Jul 24 ----- Rest Day, not by choice!
Thu Jul 23 33.93 km (27.89 km + 6.04) City seawall and streets, pining for the trails...
Wed Jul 22 ----- Rest Day
Tue Jul 21 10.51 km Back to surreal world lake trail
Mon Jul 20 13.35 km Exploring hills and vineyards
Sun Jul 19 06.09 km Shorter early morning date run, getting hot!
Sat Jul 18 08.26 km Check out river trail in wine country
Fri Jul 17 10.56 km Shake off the cobwebs city run
Thu Jul 16 09.73 km Mountain trail "run"
Wed Jul 15 21.89 km City + river path run
Tue Jul 14 ----- Beer, er, Rest Day
Mon Jul 13 ----- Rest Day
Sun Jul 12 21.29 km Lake trail x2 (61.37 km weekly total, 1,173 meters climbing)
Sat Jul 11 06.20 km City streets
Fri Jul 10 11.11 km Mountain trail run
Thu Jul 09 10.79 km Mountain trail run
Wed Jul 08 ----- Rest day
Tue Jul 07 11.98 km Mountain trail run
Mon Jul 06 ----- Rest day
Sun Jul 05 07.66 km Trail run (86.10 km weekly total, 2,209 meters climbing)
Sat Jul 04 18.90 km Mountain trail run
Fri Jul 03 09.84 km Stanley Park
Thu Jul 02 11.93 km Mountain trail run
Wed Jul 01 09.99 km River trail run

Stoshew71 wrote: »

lewissheldon125 wrote: »

hi all,

Sorry to hijack the post as strictly speaking i haven't set a goal for July so am not part of this but I really want to start running a bit more seriously and wondered if any of you experienced guys/gals have any tips on how to start out, what kind of distances, number of times a week and tips for success

At present I can manage 5k and do this twice a week on a treadmill which I realise is easier than running outside, would like to build up from that. Is it just as easy as doing more than twice a week? Or should I be trying to mix it up i.e try for 10k one day and then 5k another?

I don't feel burn muscle wise when running its more of a out of breath feeling that makes me slow down so I am guessing (and it is a guess as i am no expert) that I lack cardio fitness rather than muscle strength

Anyway any tips and advice from those more clued up than myself would be well received.

Cheers all

@lewissheldon125 First off, Welcome! You came to the right place. Stick around and join us. I will post the August link in this thread within the next couple of days.

Consistentency and slowly build miles is the best way to do it. The best way to do it is whatever is going to keep you doing it every week. The people in here are friendly and very helpful and we all encourage each other and keep each of us accountable to each other. Plus it's fun.

I would suggest trying 5K 3x a week and stay consistent with that for a while. Eventually you will want to make one of those runs your long run so after you are consistent with 5K 3x a week. You can try 10K on one those days.

However, I myself (and many others) find it a struggle to go more than 3 or 4 miles on a treadmill. Maybe a Saturday morning or whatever day works best for you get out in the park and run 4 or 5 miles outside at a nice slow easy pace. Since you are just starting, the key is to keep all the running at what we call a "conversational pace". That means you should be able to hold a conversation and speak in complete sentences while running without worrying about breathing too hard. If you have to stop in a sentence to catch your breath, then you are running too fast. If you are running a lone, you should be able to recite your ABC's or sing a song out loud the same way.

Good luck!!

Stan