Random Running Questions

conavitzky

hot buttered scones wrote: »

I'm currently training for Dublin, but I've felt a bit off for the last week or so - struggling to hit paces during workouts, and had to abandon an Lt pace run today. I'm not sick, and I don't think I'm overtrained. I was having similar trouble around June this year. In June and now my weight has come right down to the lowest its ever been. I put a few kgs back on in July will on holidays (lower mileage, lots of eating and drinking), and felt a bit stronger in general.
So my question is can you be too light? Is it this weight loss that's causing the issues I'm having? My other thought is that its not the weight that's the issue at all - that's its a symptom of another problem which is basically not refuelling properly after training. I eat a fairly normal amount of decent food, but maybe its not enough given the training I'm doing at present. I'm currently doing the P+D up to 55m btw.

Am I barking up the wrong tree here? Talking out me hoop?

I suffer from the same problems and it always boils down (pardon the pun) to not eating enough food. Anything over 10 miles now I down a nesquik and skimmed milk straight after and eat a small meal within an hour. Im religious about that.
If I know I have a particularly hard few days, eg tempo followed by Long Run I make an effort to load on the carbs in the days leading up to it. Extra brown rice with the dinner, extra slice of toast or bagel in the morning, bowl of porridge an hour before I go out for the run.
I know if I miss out on these rules I made for myself that performance suffers. I get through runs in or around the same pace but the effort levels are way higher and its a grind to get the run done.
I think you can be too light. I don't have a weighing scales and kind of self regulate. If performance in training or races drops its usually not eating enough that is the problem. I err on the side of eating more now than not enough (all good healthy foods in general!). I have a fast metabolism though. If I am injured for a long period my weight would rise a max of 4-5 pounds so I am lucky in that regard. Some people may not be able to eat more without weight gain and performance suffering.

conavitzky

conavitzky wrote: »

I suffer from the same problems and it always boils down (pardon the pun) to not eating enough food. Anything over 10 miles now I down a nesquik and skimmed milk straight after and eat a small meal within an hour. Im religious about that.
If I know I have a particularly hard few days, eg tempo followed by Long Run I make an effort to load on the carbs in the days leading up to it. Extra brown rice with the dinner, extra slice of toast or bagel in the morning, bowl of porridge an hour before I go out for the run.
I know if I miss out on these rules I made for myself that performance suffers. I get through runs in or around the same pace but the effort levels are way higher and its a grind to get the run done.
I think you can be too light. I don't have a weighing scales and kind of self regulate. If performance in training or races drops its usually not eating enough that is the problem. I err on the side of eating more now than not enough (all good healthy foods in general!). I have a fast metabolism though. If I am injured for a long period my weight would rise a max of 4-5 pounds so I am lucky in that regard. Some people may not be able to eat more without weight gain and performance suffering.

Hello again HBS, also meant to say make sure recovery days are slow, bordering on ridiculously slow!

28064212

Chartsengrafs wrote: »

I demanded evidence in the form of a screenshot from whatever app he was using - and it turns out he did indeed cover 5.15 km at 3.41min/km pace.

GPS is not accurate. I've seen 3k jogs turn into 5k sprints due to random glitches.

hot buttered scones

conavitzky wrote: »

Hello again HBS, also meant to say make sure recovery days are slow, bordering on ridiculously slow!

Ate all around me yesterday evening. Once I started I couldn't stop. Went out for a recovery run today and just felt way better. Added to that, although it's still fairly humid here it was drizzly/misty and I was able to stay a bit cooler even though I was still sweating buckets. HR was much lower than it has been lately too. Pure panic yesterday tbh - I'm like one of this fellas out of the snickers ads when I haven't eaten enough. At the end of the day, yesterday was only the 2nd workout I couldn't complete since I started this plan back in July, so I'm happy enough with that.

deisedude

Hey guys. Doing my first half marathon the start of October and just looking for some advice with race strategy. A little worried i'll go too fast and knacker myself out before the last mile or 2.

With regards food what's the best thing to do? Gels don't really agree with me so was thinking of bringing some jellies and a whole food bar

Sorry for all the noob questions!!!

TFBubendorfer

deisedude wrote: »

Hey guys. Doing my first half marathon the start of October and just looking for some advice with race strategy. A little worried i'll go too fast and knacker myself out before the last mile or 2.

With regards food what's the best thing to do? Gels don't really agree with me so was thinking of bringing some jellies and a whole food bar

Sorry for all the noob questions!!!

You should have a reasonably good idea from you training runs what pace you can sustain for the distance. Don't be a hero and go out too fast but, on the other hand, if you're feeling comfortable at mile 5 then pick up the pace.

As for nutrition, you don't need anything on a half marathon. Stick to water; if they provide a sports drink on the course you can take that but it's not necessary. Under no circumstances would I take anything solid like a whole food bar :eek:

Clearlier

deisedude wrote: »

Hey guys. Doing my first half marathon the start of October and just looking for some advice with race strategy. A little worried i'll go too fast and knacker myself out before the last mile or 2.

With regards food what's the best thing to do? Gels don't really agree with me so was thinking of bringing some jellies and a whole food bar

Sorry for all the noob questions!!!

Questions about food for a half come up fairly regularly on the forum and there is often a multitude of answers depending on the experience and experiences of the poster.

Whether you'll do better with something depends on a number of factors which you can affect by how well you've trained.

If you haven't gone beyond 5 miles in training and are expecting to take 2 and a half hours of hard work to finish then you'll probably need something.

If you're a well trained endurance athlete running in 75 mins you won't need anything.

If you're unsure it's probably worth carrying something in case you need it - you'll know when you do! However, you should probably look at easily digestible things such as jelly babies rather than a whole food bar and you should practice eating on a run beforehand to make sure that you can tolerate whatever it is you're planning to carry with you.

Macy0161

I have a cadence question that I don't think justifies a thread of its own... I seem to hit a higher cadence in races than in training. Looking at my Garmin, I'm just averaging around 160spm in general in training, but in races I subconsciously step it up to around 170spm. I have started reading up on cadence in general (and am now aware of the whole 180spm debate!), but should I be immediately looking to at least be training at 170spm as I can obviously hold it in a race scenario? And then continue reading up about stepping it up from there?

Krusty_Clown

Macy0161 wrote: »

I have a cadence question that I don't think justifies a thread of its own... I seem to hit a higher cadence in races than in training. Looking at my Garmin, I'm just averaging around 160spm in general in training, but in races I subconsciously step it up to around 170spm. I have started reading up on cadence in general (and am now aware of the whole 180spm debate!), but should I be immediately looking to at least be training at 170spm as I can obviously hold it in a race scenario? And then continue reading up about stepping it up from there?

Entirely my own opinion, but I don't believe that focusing on cadence is beneficial. I think cadence is a by-product of running economy and efficiency and if you do the appropriate training, your cadence will 'normalize' on a value that is appropriate for your performance level and physical attributes. Unfortunately I don't have my Garmin (with cadence sensor) long enough to look back to where I started running, but if I had, I'd be of the view that my cadence has probably increased in line with my running economy.

I did notice that my cadence is significantly higher when training (fast) on a treadmill, which could be as a result of the rearward force of the treadmill belt (or also the fact that I run on a gradient of 1%), but generally speaking, my cadence on easy days is significantly lower than race days, and the faster the race, the higher the cadence.

Marathon: 182
Half-Marathon - 182/182/186
10 Mile: 183/183/183
10k: 184/189(track-spikes)/186
5 mile: 184
5k: 189/191/190/192
3k: 193
Mile: 198/199

davedanon

You doing treadie training by choice, or out of necessity?

Krusty_Clown

davedanon wrote: »

You doing treadie training by choice, or out of necessity?

Convenience, work, injury prevention, volume, weather. Deserves a longer training log post, as I'm one of the greatest hypocrites ever (having espoused in the past that there is zero justification for treadmill usage in Ireland), so I'll jot some thoughts on it at some point (and justifiably stand trial for my complete about-face). I use it less than once a week, specifically for sessions where alternating between specific paces is required (like those in the sub-3 thread). If I had access to a tartan track, I wouldn't use a treadmill.

deisedude

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

You should have a reasonably good idea from you training runs what pace you can sustain for the distance. Don't be a hero and go out too fast but, on the other hand, if you're feeling comfortable at mile 5 then pick up the pace.

As for nutrition, you don't need anything on a half marathon. Stick to water; if they provide a sports drink on the course you can take that but it's not necessary. Under no circumstances would I take anything solid like a whole food bar :eek:

Clearlier wrote: »

Questions about food for a half come up fairly regularly on the forum and there is often a multitude of answers depending on the experience and experiences of the poster.

Whether you'll do better with something depends on a number of factors which you can affect by how well you've trained.

If you haven't gone beyond 5 miles in training and are expecting to take 2 and a half hours of hard work to finish then you'll probably need something.

If you're a well trained endurance athlete running in 75 mins you won't need anything.

If you're unsure it's probably worth carrying something in case you need it - you'll know when you do! However, you should probably look at easily digestible things such as jelly babies rather than a whole food bar and you should practice eating on a run beforehand to make sure that you can tolerate whatever it is you're planning to carry with you.

Cheers for the advice guys. Will leave the bar at home and try a few jellies on this weekends long run.

ariana`

Hi.

Training for a half marathon in 3 weeks time and i'm unsure what distance for the last 2-3 LSRs before the race.

I'm tempted to do a 10k race this weekend but i wonder if a proper LSR would be of more benefit?

This is the 10 weekend runs leading up to the Half look like

1. 6.25 miles
2. 8k (5 mile) race
3. 8 miles
4. 4.5 miles
5. 9 miles
6. 10 miles
7. Possible 10k race ??
8. ??
9. ??
10. Half

dublin runner

ariana` wrote:

Training for a half marathon in 3 weeks time and i'm unsure what distance for the last 2-3 LSRs before the race.

If endurance is the key issue then stick to getting the long run in. Have you ran 13 miles before? If not then getting the miles is the legs takes precedence over speed.

ariana`

dublin runner wrote: »

If endurance is the key issue then stick to getting the long run in. Have you ran 13 miles before? If not then getting the miles is the legs takes precedence over speed.

No i haven't run 13 miles before. The most i've ran is last weekend's 10 miler :eek:

dublin runner

ariana` wrote:

No i haven't run 13 miles before. The most i've ran is last weekend's 10 miler

Well then you are right on course. If the 10km is important to you then doing it 3 weeks out shouldn't impact the half, as long as you recovery accordingly from it. I personally wouldn't, choosing to focus on getting the long easy miles in.

Keep the main thing, the main thing!

ariana`

dublin runner wrote: »

Well then you are right on course. If the 10km is important to you then doing it 3 weeks out shouldn't impact the half, as long as you recovery accordingly from it. I personally wouldn't, choosing to focus on getting the long easy miles in.

Keep the main thing, the main thing!

Thanks Dublin runner. What distance would you suggest for the last LSR, so 1 week before race day? Thx

donnacha

Any recommendations for shops in Dublin that are selling running singlets / vests? I've tried a few UK online shops but the fit varies so much and I've wasted so much on return postage that this time out I'd prefer to buy in a B&M if possible. Have checked heatons/sports world, lifestyle sports and tkmaxx in carrickmines with no luck. Thanks.

dublin runner

ariana` wrote:

Thanks Dublin runner. What distance would you suggest for the last LSR, so 1 week before race day? Thx

It depends on your background really. I would aim to hit 11/12 miles 2 weeks out. That would be peak long run distance. After that perhaps 8 miles 1 week out. Just don't hit your longest run 7 days out!

BeepBeep67

donnacha wrote: »

Any recommendations for shops in Dublin that are selling running singlets / vests? I've tried a few UK online shops but the fit varies so much and I've wasted so much on return postage that this time out I'd prefer to buy in a B&M if possible. Have checked heatons/sports world, lifestyle sports and tkmaxx in carrickmines with no luck. Thanks.

Run Hub
Amphibian King
Sports Room (Wicklow town)

dublin runner

BeepBeep67 wrote:

Run Hub Amphibian King Sports Room (Wicklow town)

Also Pennys! Never purchased myself but they look half decent.

Wild Garlic

Anyone know what the Irish M45 record for the old Javelin is?��

Spirogyra

What's the best way to run up a hill? In cross country I mean? Tippy toes or feet flat as normal? And running across rather than straight? And can anyone recommend any exercises for the 'bum'? If its feeling a bit strained?thanks,S

davedanon

Spirogyra wrote: »

What's the best way to run up a hill? In cross country I mean? Tippy toes or feet flat as normal? And running across rather than straight? And can anyone recommend any exercises for the 'bum'? If its feeling a bit strained?thanks,S

Up on the balls of your feet. It's the natural running style going uphill anyway.


I won't bother describing them, takes too long, and too easy to pick them up wrong. Just google 'glute stretches' or similar. There's two where you're on your back. In one you hold the knee and ankle of one leg and try and pull it up sort of towards your shoulder. Other leg flat on the ground. the other's a bit more complicated, and can be hard to do at first. There there's one where you sit, sometimes just against a wall, with one foot resting on the other knee (like a sort of half-lotus position), and by bending from the waist you stretch the glute. they're the basics.

Spirogyra

davedanon wrote: »

Up on the balls of your feet. It's the natural running style going uphill anyway.


I won't bother describing them, takes too long, and too easy to pick them up wrong. Just google 'glute stretches' or similar. There's two where you're on your back. In one you hold the knee and ankle of one leg and try and pull it up sort of towards your shoulder. Other leg flat on the ground. the other's a bit more complicated, and can be hard to do at first. There there's one where you sit, sometimes just against a wall, with one foot resting on the other knee (like a sort of half-lotus position), and by bending from the waist you stretch the glute. they're the basics.

Thanks,would one normally put one's arms out,like wings,to improve balance when going downhill or is there any need?

davedanon

Spirogyra wrote: »

Thanks,would one normally put one's arms out,like wings,to improve balance when going downhill or is there any need?

Assuming you're talking about an actual hill, and not just a downward gradient on cement/tarmac, yes, if you feel the need. It's a recommended technique for mountain running, in fact, as far as I know, where you need to get down what looks like a suicidal slope in as little time as possible. But the experts on here will give you a better steer (pun intended).

el kabong

Wild Garlic wrote: »

Anyone know what the Irish M45 record for the old Javelin is?��

irishmasterathletics.com has a link to a PDF with all Irish masters records - don't think I can post links here yet, but it's pretty straightforward to find on the site.

It lists the M45 Javelin record as 57.38m (Pat Moore, Leevale, 1993)

el kabong

el kabong wrote: »

irishmasterathletics.com has a link to a PDF with all Irish masters records - don't think I can post links here yet, but it's pretty straightforward to find on the site.

It lists the M45 Javelin record as 57.38m (Pat Moore, Leevale, 1993)

Just re-read your original question and spotted the 'old javelin' aspect, which I presume means pre-1986, in which case I've no idea.

Miles from Tomorrow

Hope this is the right place for this question. Our club are looking at improving our facilities. One of the ideas is to put a artificial pitch inside the track to get income from hiring it out/ sharing with soccer club. Have any other clubs gone down this road and how did it work out.. Other question is could you do javelin, hammer on an artificial pitch? There would be no space to do it elsewhere. Thanks in advance

Sunny Dayz

Bit of an awkward q but any tips for keeping runners fresh? I've noticed that my runners are starting to smell a bit. During the summer I used to leave them outside as much as I could, weather permitting. But now I can't really do that anymore and I've noticed they're starting to smell a bit. Apart from Febreeze any suggestions on how to stop my runners from getting stinky?