November 2015 Running Challenge

9voice9 wrote: »

Does anyone have experience with either the Saucony, or with the idea of a slightly less-expensive pair of kicks?

I think that running can be a lot like cycling. In cycling you find average punters spending inordinate amounts of money for cutting edge features which have marginal benefits to their performance, if any. It is a big fat fail in terms of a cost / benefit analysis.

When I got assessed for my first pair of shoes I had a budget of £150 (which I didn't tell the assistant.) She assessed my gait by making me run outside in a pair of neutral shoes and watching how I ran - not just my feet and ankles but my body as a complete unit. She then made me try out a number of shoes but there was no mention of the cost and I didn't mention my budget. I choose the ones that fit best and felt the most comfortable. They turned out to be Saucony Jazz 17s which were about £85 full price ( so much less than my higher end budget. I subsequently purchased another pair from Wiggle for £60 on sale.)

It's not really about the cost but rather finding a pair which suits you and that may well be a cheaper or much cheaper pair. I don't think you can really know without trying a number of pairs and if necessary returning them if they are not suitable.

I also think that in terms of injury prevention that focusing on running form and suitable progression is a much better investment than expensive shoes unless a person has significant bio-mechanical issues.

My weekly mileage is somewhat lower than yours in the 15-20 miles per week range but the Jazzs have seen me right for about 9 months worth per time.

@9voice9 I like my Saucony. I've got the Rides and the Xodus gortex. Even if they are similar, I would still try them on. Little differences can make a very big difference in our runs. especially long runs

I managed my 50 mile target last month so I'm going to give 60 miles a go this month.

@ddmom0811 Hope you ok after the crash

I'm on my way....

7lenny7 wrote: »

I bought my first pair (Brooks Glycerin 12) at a local running store, after a gait analysis and trying on a dozen different pair, for $150. The 13's must have come out soon after because I saw the 12's discounted a month later and bought a pair for $100 direct from Brooks. They're becoming harder to find but I just ordered a pair a couple days ago for $75.

I like the idea of alternating shoes and found my close second choice, the ASICS Gel Nimbus 17 for $100 on a Nordstrom sail (normally $150), and then found pair of Gel Cumulus 16 for $50.

BTW, if you order direct from Brooks you can try them at no risk. They have free shipping and free returns and they even encourage you to try them out and if, within 90 days, you don't like them, you can send them back for a full refund. That is a fantastic way to try them out! You'll pay full price for current models but any old models they still have in inventory are usually discounted.

That's pretty good, I may order from Brooks. I had a pair before that I really liked, but can't remember which model. A friend who worked at a shoe store recommended them for running at the track back when I used to do intervals.

11/2: 4 miles

So far: 4 out of 100 miles

I beat my 100 mile target in October by 13 miles, so I think I should be good for 125 miles this month.

Although I have not run this month yet! Ran a HM in New Orleans on Saturday, recovered on Sunday, traveled home yesterday and got home so late last night I did not run this morning. Hope I join all you busy beavers tomorrow though!

11/3--5.28 miles

lporter229 wrote: »

@5BeautifulDays The novice plans are designed specifically to get you to the distance without regards to increasing your speed. They do this by helping you to build an aerobic base, hence the repetition of just running easy miles, and by giving you one long run per week to get you up to that distance run. Keep in mind that some gains in speed will be noticed just due to the increase in your aerobic base. If you already have at least one HM under your belt or have been running 20-25 MPW consistently, you may want to consider an intermediate plan that has some basic speed work such as tempo runs or intervals once or twice per week. If you are unsure about doing speed work, a good way to ease yourself into it is to add some good hills into your regular runs. Not sure if this answers your question, but I think you are trying to decide on what type of training plan is right for you, correct?

Yes, I'm trying to figure out if there is a "better" plan for where I'm at. I've done two 5k and two 10k races, but this will be my first half marathon. I'm 44 and was never athletic before, so I don't have a "base" I'm building from. I've been running since January/February when I started something rather like C25K. I've been running 20-25 miles per week since mid-late summer, but since then I've mostly been working on increasing my speed little by little, rather than distance. Now I need to work on both! I think what makes me question the whole "do what I'm already doing, just add a mile to my long run" approach is that it makes my long run such a giant portion of my weekly miles, and the consensus around here seems to be that that is a bad idea. On the other hand, it would mean that I don't have to modify my schedule all that much, so it's good from that perspective.

Anyway, I appreciate your perspective. I think I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing and just inch up the long run, unless and until I find something else that stands out as a better way to do this.

5BeautifulDays wrote: »

Yes, I'm trying to figure out if there is a "better" plan for where I'm at. I've done two 5k and two 10k races, but this will be my first half marathon. I'm 44 and was never athletic before, so I don't have a "base" I'm building from. I've been running since January/February when I started something rather like C25K. I've been running 20-25 miles per week since mid-late summer, but since then I've mostly been working on increasing my speed little by little, rather than distance. Now I need to work on both! I think what makes me question the whole "do what I'm already doing, just add a mile to my long run" approach is that it makes my long run such a giant portion of my weekly miles, and the consensus around here seems to be that that is a bad idea. On the other hand, it would mean that I don't have to modify my schedule all that much, so it's good from that perspective.

Anyway, I appreciate your perspective. I think I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing and just inch up the long run, unless and until I find something else that stands out as a better way to do this.

I am stuck in a similar place. I am introducing a forth running day, as hard as it is I'll see how I go at first.. Depends if the kids have anything on during the week etc but I'm going to try!

I'm going to give this a go..

Week 1- Run your usual distances this week.
Week 2- Run 10-20% more than week 1.
Week 3- Repeat week 2.
Week 4- (Down week) Run 15-20% less than week 1.

In the next week, for week 1- Run 10% more than the previous week 1. This is how you increase slowly.

It's slow.. But I'm just using this is a base as I really like running 5-10k at the moment and don't want to push too hard too fast above the 10k mark. I'm only increasing 10% weekly to see how I go for now. I got this idea from an article in runner's world here:

http://www.runnersworld.com/race-training/the-most-effective-way-to-use-down-weeks

I added an extra week in my little plan so it's 4 weeks rather than 3 though.

Treadmill run today since I didn't wake up early enough to go this morning. Good run overall - at one point I went to scratch my leg and thought, "holy *kitten*, my legs are getting solid!" so that was nice, haha.

11/01: 6.19
11/03: 4.7

11/1 - 2 miles
11/3 - 3 miles

5/45 completed

I'm still suffering from vacation-itis haha. But getting back into running regularly again and back to normal eating habits. My husband made the trader joe's gluten-free pumpkin pancakes after our run. They are so delicious!

@skippygirlsmom @karef and @ddmom0811 thanks. i cannot agree with you more: they are beautiful and adorable kids boy is almost 8 (on Friday) and girl is 4!

I ran along the lake path today. What a beautiful sunny, 73 degrees day. If it were not for the worry of global warming haunting me today, I would have had such a great fun. But, really, 73 degrees on November 3rd? When was the last time that happened? Probably never! Here are a couple of pictures—by the time i thought of taking some, i had already passed the most scenic spots. Maybe next time.





11/1 4.71 miles
11/2 no run—elliptical for an hour though!
11/3 5.27 miles — lake path. here are a couple of pictures!

The runs have felt like torture the last few days, but I did it!

11/1: 2.5
11/3: 3.1