Cramp? Blister? Tight Calf?.. All of the Above

RHunce

So I recently got bitten by the running bug. I was using it as a distraction from the Leaving Cert as I stopped playing all contact sports in the build up to my exams.

My stats are:

Age: 18
Height: 5' 11.5"
Weight 64kg

I was only running short distances, 5 to 10k for the last couple of weeks at sprint pace. I was getting quite bored of it as well as quite tired so I looked for something more.

I ran just under a half marathon the other day clocked by map my run. I did it in 1hr 35mins and just thought this running thing is for me. Two days later (today) I did a ten miler quite comfortably, although I was aiming for 1hr 10 mins I did it in 1hr 15mins. Perhaps going for 7 minute miles was a bit too much of a push. But i was able to sprint quite fast for the last half mile so I did have something in the tank.

So I have my eye on Dublin this October, the full marathon that is and then Connemarathon which will be a tough one next April.

I'm going to push for a 3:15 marathon in Dublin but I'm going to let Connemara take care of itself.

I have been told of some concerns of going from nothing to a marathon within a matter of weeks but it is something I have my mind set on while I am young. I'm going to start a training plan (P&D has been suggested) and follow that through.

The only prior training I was doing before this was GAA but I like to think I am quite fit. Maybe it is the naivety of youth.

I'm also back in the gym doing a lot of core work and building back up the muscle I had a year ago.

Any tips and information you have to offer me would be greatly appreciated. Besides don't do it :pac: it's going to be done.

Thanks in advance.

RacoonQueen

The only advice I'll offer you is not to do it. I was young and stupid once and thought that running a marathon off 5 months training would be a really good idea. It wasn't.

Forget about Dublin and go for Connemara if you must, definitely forget about a 3:15 anyway. Your first marathon should be enjoyed for the experience without any time goals. You may have found running 13 miles easy but double that is a whole different story.

Sorry to be blunt. Understand your mindset as thats where I came from. I had massive motivation and inspiration behind my stupidity and wouldn't change the way I did things for anything, I wouldn't recommend my way either though.

Edit: Good luck and sorry for not being encouraging. A complete do as I say not as I do post.

RHunce

I appreciate your thoughts and was completely expecting that tbh but this is a goal that I want to complete and if I'm going to be sentimental about it it's been something on my to do list since I heard what a marathon was when I was twelve :pac:

I'll keep you all update on the highs and lows...and the extreme lows.

Thanks again for your comments.

ecoli

You need to slow down your runs. This might sound like a strange thing but training harder is not always training smart. You will actually see more benefit from slowing down your runs a bit

Easy Run
The purpose of easy runs is to build your aerobic base. Aerobic running means running within your capacity to use oxygen. Aerobic exercise is nearly 20 times more efficient than Anaerobic and as such a person is able to sustain Aerobic exercise for a substantially longer time than Anaerobic without completely depleting the body of fuels needed (glycogen etc). Every person has a certain limit as to the speed at which they can sustain aerobic exercise. After this "Anaerobic Threshold" a persons body starts to work sub-optimally in order to create the energy required.

Picture this like a car. If a car needs to speed up at a certain point you may need to drop down gears. While this will increase the acceleration in the short term ultimately it will cause the engine to blow.

The good news is that this aerobic limit is one of the most easily trained aspects of training there is in running.

How does running too fast harm my training?

The most obvious point here is injury risk. As we increase our pace, we also increase our risk of injury. If we do not have the proper "base" to sustain high intensity efforts are body will simply break down. This can manifest itself most commonly in stress related injuries or illness.

If we manage to avoid these there are still disadvantages. By running too fast you are not effectively developing the aerobic capacity. To train at speeds above the "Aerobic Threshold" is anaerobic exercising with the net results the development of lactic acid (bi products of which cause fatigue though not the lactic itself) that causes a lowering of the blood pH with the ultimate results of neuromuscular breakdown in the working muscles. This means that the volume of exercising will be limited according to the oxygen debts being incurred.

This compromises recovery also which if sustained for durations actually impedes development of your aerobic base.




This probably sounds quite techinichal but simply put slow your runs down. Its not necessary to go all out on training runs. That are what races are for. You will still see benefits (prob more than now) if you keep your easy runs easy. You should be running at a pace that you would be able to hold a conversation with someone without being out of breath.

To put it into context my Half Marathon pace would be 5.50 ish yet in my easy runs I would rarely drop below 7 min per mile

If you need more convincing here is a link for some anecdotal evidence

TFBubendorfer

RQ might be right but to be honest I'd give it a try. If you can run a half marathon without too much bother, 5 months will be sufficient to get you ready for a marathon.

But you will have to find a proper, structured training program and follow it. Running 10 miles here, 13 miles there will not prepare you, and will most definitely not get you to 3:15.

Ecoli is right, as well. You're running too fast on your training runs. As my coach used to tell me about a dozen times, run more miles and run them slower.

RHunce

Thanks lads, all your advice will be taken on board, I'll be starting an 18 week training plan at the end of June to get me through to Dublin, I'll see how that goes for me.

Had a great swim today in the local pool. Really loosened out my muscles. I wasn't sore like I expected to be this morning though, which was a welcome change from the other day. Worked on my entire upper body as well in the gym. Should I be lifting while training for a marathon too?

RHunce

Today I ran a slow four miles at roughly 9mins/mile.

I'm going to go for a swim in the morning and lift some weights too before I hit the books.

RHunce

Ok so it's obviously been awhile since I have posted here so forgive me. Been slightly bogged down with the ole Leaving Cert!

I was sleeping the other night and woke up with a severe cramp in my calf for no apparent reason, it stayed with me for two days so I couldn't run.

Got out for a five miler this morning before I made my way to school for Irish Paper 2 :pac:

Quite comfortable pace and lovely fresh morning. I love running bright and early in the morning, the problem is getting up though

Bit of light GAA training later on, we shall see how that goes.

RHunce

1 exam left to go thankfully and when thats over I'll be starting my marathon training programme!

8 miles under my belt today, it was a tough one, a lot of steep hills and the last three miles were into the wind. Regardless I came in at 1:03:40, just under my 8 minute mile target.

I'm really looking forward to starting my training and I shall post here daily when it begins and hopefully some of you can guide me along the way. Cheers!

Btw stupid question but should I be doing any major stretches before I run?

ecoli

RHunce wrote: »

Btw stupid question but should I be doing any major stretches before I run?

Some recent good posts regarding this

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056274182&page=2

Personally i treat my strecthing as seperate to my running. The benefits can be found in the overall flexibility and injury prevention. Having said that my stretching is during the day and i rarely stretch before training runs

When stretching few things to keep in mind.

Stretch specific

Main areas which i tend to focus on stretching are calves, glutes, hamstrings and IT band. These are the areas which cause many problems for runners due to muscle tightness

Hydration

If your are anyway dehydrated muscles cells become turgid and tigh which increases the "tightness" in the muscles. make sure to keep hydration up throughout the day. If you develop a thirst you are already dehydrated. Best indicator of the is the pee colour test (clear is hydrated yellow/brown is dehydrated/very dehydrated)

Concerned2

Best of luck with the marathon training RHunce, compared to the levaing cert the marathon should be a piece of cake

RHunce

Thanks lads appreciate it

Ecoli - thanks for that, I tend to keep fairly hydrated throughout the day especially recently while doing exams, anything from 2 to 3 litres. Had no idea about the urine colour so thats great thanks!