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Running Nerds Unite

did 13k, still super slow but was the same time that 12.5 took me last week.

i feel somehow like the jump from 8-10k was much, much easier than this jump from 10-12/3. though when i did my first 10k i literally had to crawl up the stairs to get to bed! but while i'm actually doing it it somehow feels harder to get my pace up or really push myself past anything but a super slow jog
 
i know i guess it just makes me a bit anxious about how i'm gonna up my distances, i don't wanna overdo it and wonder if my legs refusing to move faster is my body trying to tell me something.
 
Well if it’s your legs and not your lungs then I’d say you’re good. Building up that neuromuscular endurance in the legs is much harder than building cardiovascular endurance, at least IME. The only way to adapt your legs to it is really just subjecting them to running as much as safely possible, even if that means a slow pace.
 
excellent!! thank you, that is very encouraging. my lungs seem fine until i try and speed up.

i don't mind running slowly just don't wanna risk doing any damage- i've had knee and hip problems in the past and imagine i'm at an age now where i wouldn't heal so well.

how is your training going?

any tips for how i should go about upping my mileage? aiming to get up to 20k, should i be increasing my distances of every run or am i ok sticking to 5ks before work and upping distance on the weekend? am doing HIIT training to develop strength too.
 
Yeah exactly, i never do fast long runs now and of course the “long” is always relative to what I’m training for. When I did the marathon I regularly did slow 50ks just to improve my marathon time.

I would do 5ks, 6k, 8ks during the week then a long run at weekend (or however it is you can schedule it). Just keep building it. I wouldn’t do crazy long runs during the week but preparing yourself for weekend one by upping one During the week works. Like always the first run after the long one is a 5k recovery run, then up it to a 6/8 and then a 10/13 when you’re getting up to the higher mileage, then your long weekend run after a rest day. Does that make sense?
 
yes i think that makes sense, thank you! so first run after the long weekend run will always be 5k, but i can build up the other weekday runs slowly as i build up my longer distance. seems logical.
 
Yeah building up the legs just takes time.

Personally I like to build week to week. So one week constant and then the next week up a bit. Then the next week after that build a bit followed by one week of easier workouts. Build for a few weeks then one week to recover, essentially.

but if building a little bit each day is more motivation for you, that’s great too :)
 
did 15k today. did 13 the past two weekends but it still seemed like a big step up so think i'll stick here for a few weeks then go in 1k increments.

what is most confusing is that the last 2k took me 20 minutes, despite being the only time i was actively trying to run faster the whole time and my watch saying my pace was reasonable. i'm pretty sure that's slower than my walking pace, so i think i discovered a hole in the spacetime continuum.

in true manchester style it snowed/rained for the whole time i was out then blue skies appeared in my last k. hands were so cold i could barely use my keys when i was done.

tested my new leggings and am pleased with them. was gearing up to buying some sweaty betty ones which is what my sister uses but they are so dear, but there were good reviews of this brand called sundried that are cheaper and made of recycled plastic and so far they seem pretty good.
 
chinup said:
what is most confusing is that the last 2k took me 20 minutes, despite being the only time i was actively trying to run faster the whole time and my watch saying my pace was reasonable. i'm pretty sure that's slower than my walking pace, so i think i discovered a hole in the spacetime continuum.
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lol perceived effort often does not equal “actual” effort

I have what may be considered a bad habit of running the last .5k or so of all my runs at max effort. Gotta have the race finish!!
 
thegreenhand said:
lol perceived effort often does not equal “actual” effort
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whilst this is almost certainly the simplest and therefore correct explanation, i am still going with hole in spacetime continuum/abudction by aliens who then wiped my memory. every time i looked at my watch it claimed i was doing a pace of about 6 mins per k so 8 minutes just disappeared!! or, i didn't look at my watch while i was dying and barely able to drag my legs in front of each other? i prefer aliens as an explanation!!

thegreenhand said:
I have what may be considered a bad habit of running the last .5k or so of all my runs at max effort. Gotta have the race finish!!
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i do that too on shorter runs. throwback from cross country racing in primary school.
 
dope how much activity this thread has been getting.

had the best run today. my leg didn’t go numb, which has been a problem as of late. recently got out of three months of residential, where i had to run a little 1/6th mile path, so running in a straight line is still exciting. i paced it just right. was 59 degrees out. started raining a bit part way through. like running through a temperature controlled mister.
 
18:49 5k personal record! Race was for a good cause too, children’s cancer therapy development institute. Got 3rd place out of 161, not many serious runners there though.
 
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well done!!! that is an amazing time! i still can't get my 5k below 30 minutes, will feel amazing when i finally do it. don't get why i haven't got faster given i've massively upped my mileage and not smoked cigs for well over a year. need to not compare myself to people who haven't got my addiction history and hence comparable damage to lungs and heart though.

did my second 15k on sunday, was not fun cos i was a bit hungover but i did it slightly faster than the first one and didn't feel quite as shit after but still needed a nap.
 
chinup said:
well done!!! that is an amazing time! i still can't get my 5k below 30 minutes, will feel amazing when i finally do it. don't get why i haven't got faster given i've massively upped my mileage and not smoked cigs for well over a year. need to not compare myself to people who haven't got my addiction history and hence comparable damage to lungs and heart though.

did my second 15k on sunday, was not fun cos i was a bit hungover but i did it slightly faster than the first one and didn't feel quite as shit after but still needed a nap.
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Thanks!!
Yeah, I wouldn’t be too hard on yourself. At least you are out there doing it, which is more thatn can be said for most people. I’m sure if you keep at it and stay away from the cigs and worse stuff you will get it down there. And regardless of times, cardio is so great for overall health.
 
just did my 3rd 15k. 7 minutes faster than my first but still insanely slow. interestingly my 5k times were almost identical- 2nd 5k was 2s faster than my first and 3rd was 10s slower than that. on my first 15k each 5k was about a minute slower than the one before.

i think for me this distance is where mental factors start to play as much of a role as physical factors. i got over 15 mins off my 10k time with almost no effort, but getting 7 mins off 15k has felt like a battle. around 8k my legs start to feel like they are actually working and by 13k it feels like they want to give up and its really hard to force myself to keep going at a reasonable pace. i find myself looking at my watch like every 100m just counting down til the end. what does feel different is that i actually had something to give at the end- my last k was the second fastest of the lot, with my 1st being the fastest.

how do you know if you are approaching your lactic threshold? i started to feel a bit nauseous. i don't eat before i run, try to drink loads of water before, and limit my water consumption while i'm out- which is hard!!
 
chinup said:
how do you know if you are approaching your lactic threshold? i started to feel a bit nauseous. i don't eat before i run, try to drink loads of water before, and limit my water consumption while i'm out- which is hard!!
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For me it’s when my legs start to lose power compared to my lungs/heart. They’ll start straining a lot but my cardio will be fine. Generally that means I’m pushing my limit as the muscles have to work overtime

Just did 5 miles, 8:30 pace. That seems to be my sweet spot for aerobic runs. That week in the hospital threw me off. Plus this past week while getting back to my routine I’ve been really inconsistent. Here’s to getting back on the horse...

At least I have time before the 50k lol
 
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