Running Advice

genpopadopolous wrote: »

Good shoes!

And run slower than you think you need to. Slow and steady!

For me and my mind- I like running longer distances than I race at- my usual loop is 4.2 miles- that way the 5k distance isn't intimidating. Then it's a "surprise" when I am already almost done!

Oh!

And- I recommend some cross training- couple days resistance training and a really good stretching routine to help keep you healthy. Hips and hammies get SUPER tight on me.

The couch to 5K is a good program for most people, but your results may vary. Don't be afraid to adjust back or forward as your progress. Just don't add too much distance or speed in one go. A slow, steady progress will allow your body to adapt without injury.

Where and when possible, train outside. Running outside is very different from running on a treadmill. If you're training on a treadmill, put the elevation on 2.5 or higher. This will better estimate the effort of outside running.

Rest and recovery are very important.

Do some strength work to enhance your overall fitness and you'll be a better runner.

Allan Misner
NASM Certified Personal Trainer
Host of the 40+ Fitness Podcast

Enjoy it, don't focus on finishing the 5k, focus on the improvements you make on every run. Remember that every time you lace your trainers up and get out there, you are lapping the sofa surfers. Well done you.

Get fitted for shoes at a running store.
Go run.
Go slow.
Go run.
Walk. Run. Walk. Run.
Go run some more.
Enjoy!!!!

I agree totally with the 'run slow' advice. During C25K if you can run any slower, you are running too fast.

I sort of agree with the shoes advice. You should have comfortable running shoes, but you don't need to spend $150+ at a running store when you are first starting out.

I totally disagree with 2.5 elevation on the treadmill, or trying to avoid the TM. I use the TM when it is too hot or too cold, in my estimation, and I always run with zero incline. I find it serves the same purpose and results as running outside.

My best advice is to have fun. Run however makes you enjoy the experience. You are running for you, nobody else.

Take the time and get properly fitted for running shoes. The proper shoe makes a world of difference! Also track the mileage on your shoes, so you have a good idea of when to replace them. I also recommend not automatically buying the same shoe when you do replace them, Models change all the time and it can affect how they feel on your foot.

Build slowly, and most importantly enjoy!

I started C25K Jan 2017 at 51. I've done a lot of 5K's a couple of 10K and plan on a half this year.

All of the advice above is spot on, especially getting proper shoes for your gait.

One thing to add, I'm really enjoying Saturday morning Parkruns, so if there is one in your area, join up. It's a free, timed 5K that happens weekly. Not a regimented thing at all and is set up for walkers as well so don't feel like you will be holding people up if you can't run the full 5K and need to walk some of it.

I am a coach with the Women Run/Walk Memphis program, which trains beginners to run their first 5K using the Couch to 5K program.

The most important things we emphasize to our beginner ladies is to get a HIGH QUALITY pair of running shoes, fitted by experts used to fitting runners for shoes. This means seeking out the specific store (or stores) in your community that cater to the serious runners in your community. These stores (and we are NOT talking about places like Academy Sports, Dick's Sporting Goods, etc!) hire TRAINED INDIVIDUALS - usually experienced runners - who will spend quite a bit of time with you, finding out what your needs are, looking at you run/walk, maybe even putting you on a treadmill to see how you run. My local running store doesn't have a treadmill, but the sales people sometimes take you immediately outside the store to run a bit on the sidewalk. They will even examine old shoes of yours, if you bring them in, as the wear on an older pair of shoes tells them alot about what you need in a running shoe.

These specialized running stores carry many, many different types of shoes -- and as it turns out, no two people have the exact same needs in a running shoe. You and I might both have "neutral" feet, or "overprognating" feet or whatever -- but the best shoe for me is not likely to be the best shoe for you. These folks are trained to find the BEST shoe for YOUR PARTICULAR FEET, and they take all kinds of variables into consideration as they do this: 1, your walking/running gait, 2, your running experience (or lack thereof, as expert trained runners tend to have different needs from beginning runners), 3, the "type" of foot you have (neutral, overprognator, flat footed, etc), 4, the WIDTH of your feet, 5, whether you have any special considerations (for example, bunions, or a chronic capsulitis problem, or plantar fasciatis), 6, what kind of surface you plan on running (city streets, or wooded trails, etc), 7, the wear patterns on older shoes that you might bring in (I highly encourage you to bring in an old pair of shoes when you go get fitted for this reason)... and there are probably other things they take into consideration as well.

At any rate, they look at ALL these things, and then will bring out two or three model shoes that they - in their expert opinion - believe will be BEST FOR YOU. They do NOT bring out the shoe that is on sale this week, or the prettiest pink shoe in their inventory. They bring out the shoes that they honestly believe will fit YOUR FEET and YOUR NEEDS the best.

They will allow you ample time to try the shoes on, and even let you go outside to run a bit in them.

They will bring out more pairs of shoes if it is needed, but (at least in my local community) they are so good at what they do that they seldom need to bring out more than three pair before you find a pair that fit so good that they feel like they were built especially for YOUR feet.

Even so, true runners stores will offer a return policy -- usually you can return the shoes in 30 days even if you ran in them -- and get your money back, or trade for another pair of new shoes.

That is a liberal return policy that few other types of shoe stores will offer. These running stores offer such great return policies because they are not trying to make a sale for a single day. They are trying to create a dedicated, returning customer who will come back time and time again, even if their prices are slightly higher than amazon.

You will find that these are also the stores that sponsor (usually free) training groups for runners, and provide support for the local running club races. They do this at their expense, because at the end of the day, these specialized stores for runners ARE part of the local running community.

Contact the local running club in your community, and they can tell you who these stores are. And they can give you other good advice, too, possibly including information on free training for beginning runners in your area.

(BTW, if you are in West Tennessee, you will find two such stores in the Memphis area -- Breakaway Running and Fleet Feet. In Jackson, Performance Running is every bit as good as the stores in Memphis.)

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Here's the thing: Your feet will make or break your running experience.

If you run in the wrong shoe for your feet, you run higher risk of pain when you run (not only pain in the feet, but things like shin splints, knee pain, hip pain, and even back pain can all be the result of running in an ill-fitting pair of shoes).

PLUS, if that were not bad enough, you run a much greater risk of PHYSICAL INJURY when you run. Mostly because you will be running in pain - a pain that would be preventable if you were just running in the best shoe for YOUR feet.


That is why I have spent so much time talking about shoes, and getting sized up for the right pair for YOUR feet.

Do NOT worry about what color the shoes are, or the style. Go to any race in your local town -- you will see all kinds of different color and style shoes, and the color of the shoes almost never matches the color of the clothing the experienced runners are wearing.

I do know of some runners who buy their shoes first, and then buy a running outfit to match their shoes. Since they realize how important shoe fit is, but still want their shoes to match their clothes.

But these are mostly new runners. Folks who have not been running more than a year or so.


Older, more experienced runners long ago abandoned the idea of matching their running clothes to the color of their running outfit. This is, in great part, because you will replace your running shoes long before you wear out your running clothes.

And it is in part, too, because - as you will soon grow to appreciate -- there are NO fashion police patroling the local foot races. People wear what they need to be comfortable and safe when they run. Let the fashion police patrol elsewhere.

Some other advice from a coach who works with beginner runners:

1, NEVER WEAR COTTON when you run! Not even your undergarments or socks. Cotton retains moisture, and you will sweat when you run. This can cause you to be cold in winter, hot in summer, and run a greater risk of chafing any time of the year. Wear moisture wicking clothes whenever possible, or at least something that is NOT cotton.

2, If you are blister prone, socks matter as much as shoes. I am blister prone, so I wear a special type of sock that is especially designed to minimize blister problems. They cost $30 a pair, but I do races as long as 100 miles, and since I am blister prone, such specialized socks are the difference between running in comfort and running with blisters burning my feet. 5K runners don't need $30 a pair socks with specialized blister proof technology built into them, but they do need a good, moisture wicking sock. Your running store can help you with this - they all carry high quality socks for runners.

3, IF YOU ARE FEMALE, GO TO A PLACE THAT FITS WOMEN FOR BRASSIERES, AND GET A HIGH QUALITY SPORTS BRA THAT IS SPECIALLY FITTED FOR YOUR BODY.

The running stores MIGHT be a good place to get a sports bra like this. I say MIGHT because I have found that (at least our local) running stores carry the latest and greatest from running companies like Under Armour or Nike, but they don't carry bras that are manufactured by bra makers outside of the sporting industry.

If you are overweight, or you are older, or you have had breast cancer -- you might do best if you go to the best local bra store in your community that fits ladies for all kinds of bras, and not just sports bras. If you don't know where this store is in your community, contact a hospital or outpatient facility that does breast mammograms. These folks are used to dealing with breast cancer patients, all of whom must be individually fitted for bras. Find out where they send their breast cancer patients to get fitted for a bra, and that will usually be the best place for you to go to get yourself fitted. Even if you have never had breast cancer.

In the Memphis community, a store called A Fitting Place is really good at individually fitting women for any kind of bra they might need, including but not limited to sports bras. Yes, they fit ladies who have had breast cancer. But they fit ladies who have never had the cancer, too. Runners like me, for example. They carry an assortment of sports bras in their inventories, and they carry a much wider range of sizes than you will find at a dedicated runner's store.

Regardless of where you go, ladies -- a well fitting, supportive sports bra is the second most important thing to wear when you run, right after your running shoes.

I cannot emphasize this enough. But if you wear an ill-fitting bra for a run or two, YOU will emphasize this even more than I do! OUCH!

if you get shin splints use a single ice cube from the tray and melt it to water on each shin after your run. It brings down inflammation quick.

girlinahat wrote: »

the whole pronating/overpronating thing is beginning to be seen to be more a marketing ploy than anything else.

I'd agree, it's become a bit of an article of faith, and to be honest I don't think it's necessary for C25K runners, at least in the first six weeks. If anything I'd say it's the wrong thing to do, as gait will improve fairly rapidly.

There's a bit of an industry around C25K, and if anything the insistence on gait analysis is a barrier to entry.