The February 2016 Running Challenge

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Replies

  • rune1990
    rune1990 Posts: 543 Member
    I'm going to aim for 50 miles this month. I'm not sure how many miles my 10k trainer will add up to and with running every other day I'll be starting on the second and ending on the twenty-eighth. So that's about 3.5 miles every second day, totally doable!

    No matter how it works out, I'm excited!


    exercise.png

  • vandinem
    vandinem Posts: 550 Member 
    Date      Miles      MTD
------    -----    -----
Feb 01      0.0      0.0

    exercise.png

    In for another 100, short month be damned! @Stoshew71, or anyone else, if you have any tips for a 50+ runner training to improve time per mile, I'm all ears! Realized today that I've run over 650 miles and dropped 20 pounds as part of this Amazing Group since I first jumped in. Hoping for many more! Good luck everybody ...
  • ddmom0811
    ddmom0811 Posts: 1,878 Member
    Thank you @Stoshew71!!
    And thanks to everyone for all the awesome posts and sharing your runs in the group. I learn and laugh so much.


    I will keep my same goal as Jan (75). Only hit 71.5 last month, but since I was sick, it was fine. With less days in February and tapering for HM the first week, not sure I will hit it, but will try.


    exercise.png


    2/7 Daytona Beach HM
  • runner_girl83
    runner_girl83 Posts: 553 Member
    OK.. Here goes! I'm going to be counting walking distance as of now.. My shins have flares up nicely so the extra walking will help strengthen and stretch my calves. So originally I was looking at 100km but with walking I'm aiming for 180km!

    This month i am doing a virtual 10k and 100km for Run For Mental Health! :smile:

    Let's go!
  • oceanvixen79
    oceanvixen79 Posts: 38 Member
    I'm in! New to MFP and Garmin Connect. My goal will be 25 miles because I had stopped running for a while and am currently recovering from a sprained ankle.
  • MobyCarp
    MobyCarp Posts: 2,927 Member
    vandinem wrote: »
    In for another 100, short month be damned! @Stoshew71, or anyone else, if you have any tips for a 50+ runner training to improve time per mile, I'm all ears! Realized today that I've run over 650 miles and dropped 20 pounds as part of this Amazing Group since I first jumped in. Hoping for many more! Good luck everybody ...

    Dropping 20 pounds should help your speed even without doing anything else specifically aimed at getting faster.

    I can't claim to be an expert, but I did start running at age 55, and I'm faster at 60 than I was at 55, 56, or 57. Things I think I know that help speed, in no particular order:

    - Intervals. I worked up to the 5K distance starting with walk/run intervals. I ran myself into injury a few times, and always came back to running through walk/run intervals. At the end of the interval work, I was faster than before injury. And that wasn't even intervals designed to be speed work; when I found a scientific coach last year, I started doing designed speed work intervals. That made me faster, too.

    - Recovery. Get enough sleep, take enough time off running for your body to recover from running fast, and you run faster the next time you try to run fast.

    - Run slower to run faster. You don't try to run as fast as you can every run. You build a base of easy miles, and work on speed for a small portion of your week. Just building a stronger base improves cardiovascular function, which typically translates to running faster.

    - Other older runners, including retired coaches with a lot of respect in the local running community, tell me that older guys only need one day of speed work per week. The implied subtext is, the benefit of a second day of speed work is less than the risk of injury that second day adds. This is one of the things that makes me a bit queasy about following my current plan with 2 days of speed work per week; but this is only for 16 weeks. After Boston, I can re-evaluate and maybe go back down to one speed work day per week.

    - Good form and running efficiency. I worked on good form from a motivation of avoiding and recovering from injury. It also improves running efficiency, which means I can run faster with the same effort.

    - If you have a specific distance in mind, train for that distance. Speed work targeting a 5K race looks different form speed work targeting a half marathon, and both of them look different from speed work targeting a mile race.

    - Realistic expectations. No matter how fast you run, there will always be somebody faster.

    There is a body of scientific research for why most of this stuff works, but @Stoshew71 is better than I am at finding it and posting the stuff that's relevant to individual questions.
  • bluelove2004
    bluelove2004 Posts: 11 Member
    edited February 2016
    I'll pledge 40 miles for the month of February!!


    exercise.png
  • utekeathley
    utekeathley Posts: 7 Member
    Hey I am new to this exercise.png hope this works
  • Stoshew71
    Stoshew71 Posts: 6,553 Member

    vandinem wrote: »
    In for another 100, short month be damned! @Stoshew71, or anyone else, if you have any tips for a 50+ runner training to improve time per mile, I'm all ears! Realized today that I've run over 650 miles and dropped 20 pounds as part of this Amazing Group since I first jumped in. Hoping for many more! Good luck everybody ...
    MobyCarp wrote: »
    Dropping 20 pounds should help your speed even without doing anything else specifically aimed at getting faster.

    I can't claim to be an expert, but I did start running at age 55, and I'm faster at 60 than I was at 55, 56, or 57. Things I think I know that help speed, in no particular order:

    - Intervals. I worked up to the 5K distance starting with walk/run intervals. I ran myself into injury a few times, and always came back to running through walk/run intervals. At the end of the interval work, I was faster than before injury. And that wasn't even intervals designed to be speed work; when I found a scientific coach last year, I started doing designed speed work intervals. That made me faster, too.

    - Recovery. Get enough sleep, take enough time off running for your body to recover from running fast, and you run faster the next time you try to run fast.

    - Run slower to run faster. You don't try to run as fast as you can every run. You build a base of easy miles, and work on speed for a small portion of your week. Just building a stronger base improves cardiovascular function, which typically translates to running faster.

    - Other older runners, including retired coaches with a lot of respect in the local running community, tell me that older guys only need one day of speed work per week. The implied subtext is, the benefit of a second day of speed work is less than the risk of injury that second day adds. This is one of the things that makes me a bit queasy about following my current plan with 2 days of speed work per week; but this is only for 16 weeks. After Boston, I can re-evaluate and maybe go back down to one speed work day per week.

    - Good form and running efficiency. I worked on good form from a motivation of avoiding and recovering from injury. It also improves running efficiency, which means I can run faster with the same effort.

    - If you have a specific distance in mind, train for that distance. Speed work targeting a 5K race looks different form speed work targeting a half marathon, and both of them look different from speed work targeting a mile race.

    - Realistic expectations. No matter how fast you run, there will always be somebody faster.

    There is a body of scientific research for why most of this stuff works, but @Stoshew71 is better than I am at finding it and posting the stuff that's relevant to individual questions.

    Lots of easy miles. When you run lots of easy miles (conversational pace) you are stressing your body just the right amount to improve the things inside your body that will deliver oxygen from your lungs to your muscles, and improves the muscles to use that oxygen with fuel (sugar and fats) to produce a lot of energy to move your muscles.

    here's a couple of my blogs on this:

    http://therunningstan.blogspot.com/2016/01/why-is-oxygen-so-important.html
    http://therunningstan.blogspot.com/2016/01/reverse-taper-base-building.html



  • Stoshew71
    Stoshew71 Posts: 6,553 Member

    Speaking of my blogs, I just posted a new one. I been studying about biomechanics and finally put something together about it:

    http://therunningstan.blogspot.com/2016/01/running-biomechanics-primer.html
  • vandinem
    vandinem Posts: 550 Member
    @MobyCarp, @Stoshew71 ... many thanks for the answers to my questions. I will keep you posted!
  • Oberon21
    Oberon21 Posts: 13,235 Member
    edited February 2016
    Hi all,

    I am new to the group. I signed up for the run the year 2016 challenge and am already behind. I am also planning on doing my first ultra 50 miler this fall. I am going to try and stay accountable through this thread. So here goes. February goal is 150 miles.

    Thanks, looking forward to running with you all..
  • Becky_44
    Becky_44 Posts: 227 Member
    Love this! The very reason I don't give up is cause it keeps me sane! :smile:
    runner_girl83 wrote: »
    This month i am doing a virtual 10k and 100km for Run For Mental Health! :smile:

  • pansamanchada
    pansamanchada Posts: 158 Member
    I'm in. I'll go super conservative and pledge to run/walk .5 a day = 15 miles rounding up.
    I know its a weekend run to some here. But setting the bar low. Hopefully I can shatter it and get a better idea of what I can really do for march.
  • KWKirkbride
    KWKirkbride Posts: 119 Member
    With the shorter month I'm going to look to improve my performance rather than up my goal. I'll go for 70 again.

  • HonuNui
    HonuNui Posts: 1,464 Member
    Again, thanks to @Stoshew71 for your commitment to keeping this challenge group going. I have planned 1/2 marathons in March, June and November, and my overall yearly goal of 1000 miles (um....never yet met.....). So, stretch of 80 this month (actually made that last month, but this one IS shorter......)
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
    Goal: 45 km. Same goal as last month which I didn't achieve due to left hip tendon pain.

    My physiotherapist said it's caused by my left leg being one centimetre longer, and my right foot being flatter, so this causes a lot of pulling on the left side. (I also occasionally get knee pain caused by the same thing and both feet being flat.)

    I've got floppy feet and I'm lopsided... I'm flopsided!

    I'm getting orthotics. I've had the plaster casts done, and will be getting the orthotics on Friday. Can't wait to test them out on a run!

    My physio also gave me different exercises to do to strengthen the tendon, ease the associated back pain, and get the muscles on either side of the knee working at the same time.

    I love getting professional information!

    And that's my cue to read the Amazing Stan's new blog post! Cheers, and good luck for February, lovely people!
  • 07KatieP13
    07KatieP13 Posts: 220 Member
    My first run of the month, 4.3 miles! Might not be a lot but it's my furthest ever run so I'm well happy :)
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
    kateparry84 wrote: »
    My first run of the month, 4.3 miles! Might not be a lot but it's my furthest ever run so I'm well happy :)

    Well done, @kateparry84 !
  • louubelle16
    louubelle16 Posts: 579 Member
    I'm in for 50miles again. I just missed out last month so hopefully I'll manage it this time. My training plan says I should do 61 miles but, with an assignment deadline looming, I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of mid-week runs have to be missed to get my essay done. I'm literally counting the days until I'm done with my degree...

    Good luck for the month everyone, and thanks for the motivation in January! I've been a long-time lurker on these monthly threads and finally went for it properly this month and I'm glad I did :smile:

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