Random Running Questions

jamule

Seannew1 wrote: »

I took this week off running and said I wouldn't worry too much about eating the wrong things in Christmas season etc; however, I've probably over did it a bit. Looking forward to getting back on the running trail again. Anyone else in the same boat??!!

Finished off the year racing on the 17th, have had my head in a a box of ****e and glass in my hand since, got out for a few runs, felt like trying to push a barrel up a hill, legs feel worse than if i was running hard. Back to reality next week.

Spirogyra

Is it a bad idea to run 2 twice in one day ?. There's a Parkrun on a 9.30 and a 5 Mile Race at 2pm, would it be bad for my body to do both ?. Would the body be entering 'recovery' after Parkrun and should I avoid interrupting that ?.

kerrylad1

Spirogyra wrote: »

Is it a bad idea to run 2 twice in one day ?. There's a Parkrun on a 9.30 and a 5 Mile Race at 2pm, would it be bad for my body to do both ?. Would the body be entering 'recovery' after Parkrun and should I avoid interrupting that ?.

It depends on weather you plan to run um both flat out,or to just jog um at an easy pace.I hate running twice a day, but I have to at least 4 days aweek due to work,family constraints, etc.If you want,just do one all out,and the next race,2 minutes slower per mile,and you should be fine.

Seannew1

jamule wrote: »

Finished off the year racing on the 17th, have had my head in a a box of ****e and glass in my hand since, got out for a few runs, felt like trying to push a barrel up a hill, legs feel worse than if i was running hard. Back to reality next week.

I suppose all that running, we deserve it Well that's what I keep telling myself anyway! I won't be saying that on my first run back next week

Lombardo123

Hi All

Recreational runner at the moment - to compliment the work i do in the gym, however am looking to change the ratio this year and focus more on running and less on strength in the gym.

The challenge for me is finding a decent program rather than running blindly, which is all i have had to be doing given it was supplementary to the gym work, which was very structured.

I can run 5k in about 22.30, 10k in about 49 and the furthest ive run is about 12 miles. Looking to improve on all counts. Does that make my program for beginners or intermediate?

How SHOULD i structure my program between long runs, tempo runs and mobility work etc? Are there any decent sources i could look up to construct something. Thanks

Swashbuckler

Lombardo123 wrote:

How SHOULD i structure my program between long runs, tempo runs and mobility work etc? Are there any decent sources i could look up to construct something. Thanks

Best thing someone like yourself could do is buy the "Faster Road Racing 5k to Half Marathon by Latter and Pfitzinger" book. It's as good a start as any to get the basics right.

You'll get good advice on here but the book will give you all the background to the different types of runs and also provide you with structured plans for every distance from 5k to half marathon.

It's a good starting point.

clickerquicklic

Can't seem to find the answer to this question online , someone here might offer some insight please . I'm looking to do some tempo runs so using this calculator to find my range www.runfastcoach.com/calc2/index.php
If I put in my times I get various tempo ranges depending on how fast I have run each distance.

5km time 4.13-4.20 (18.44)
10km 4.18-4.25 (39:50)
Half marathon 4.20-4.27 (1.29)
Marathon 4.39-4.46 (3.19)

So there's a big range there. I understand that my times suck as I go up the distance so that's the problem but I'd like to do one tempo run a week I've read its a good weekly workout. Anyone running similar times care to share what pace they are using? I am not training for anything just keeping the running ticking over.
Thanks

Spirogyra

Do the same warm down stretches apply after cycling ?.

El Caballo

clickerquicklic wrote: »

Can't seem to find the answer to this question online , someone here might offer some insight please . I'm looking to do some tempo runs so using this calculator to find my range www.runfastcoach.com/calc2/index.php
If I put in my times I get various tempo ranges depending on how fast I have run each distance.

5km time 4.13-4.20 (18.44)
10km 4.18-4.25 (39:50)
Half marathon 4.20-4.27 (1.29)
Marathon 4.39-4.46 (3.19)

So there's a big range there. I understand that my times suck as I go up the distance so that's the problem but I'd like to do one tempo run a week I've read its a good weekly workout. Anyone running similar times care to share what pace they are using? I am not training for anything just keeping the running ticking over.
Thanks

An issue with Tempo runs is that the term is thrown around loosely to define different intensities. Some people call a Tempo run 20 minutes at 1 hour pace(lactate threshold), others a 40 minute run @ 2 hour pace(Aerobic threshold) . It can get confusing but I think by tempo, you mean lactate threshold which is roughly around the pace you run for an hour. Tinman calls it Threshold in that pace calculator and 2 hour pace is called Tempo just for refence.

Either way, I would look at race results that last close to those durations to get the most accurate pace range. For Threshold, that would be between 10k and half marathon pace because a one hour race would fall between those. And for a tempo, the half marathon would be better as it shows your endurance closer to 2 hour pace.

Maybe think about alternating a Tempo with Threshold every other week as the general concenus is that you should have more than 10 days between threshold efforts. They will both complement each other too. Maybe look at the graduate plan and see how the threshold and tempo runs are structured and built up as the plan progresses. In fact, I think you would really benefit from following that plan and it will give you excellent structure with these kind of workouts. The tempo falls on a Saturday so you could implement these workouts into your parkrun too, I think it's an excellent fit for you right now.

clickerquicklic

Thanks El Caballo , great reply exactly what I was looking for makes sense. I'll have a look at that graduates plan now cheers.

Swashbuckler

clickerquicklic wrote:

So there's a big range there. I understand that my times suck as I go up the distance so that's the problem but I'd like to do one tempo run a week I've read its a good weekly workout. Anyone running similar times care to share what pace they are using? I am not training for anything just keeping the running ticking over. Thanks

El C explained it excellently. So just to add, my 10k pace is around 6min/mile. Tempo (LT) is close to 6.10/6.15.

Zipppy

First run today after major surgery 14 weeks ago...was soo lookibg forward but nearky kilked me..where's all my fitness gone? I had to make a few stops for a breather and stopped after 4k...Arrrggghh 😣

Zipppy

First run today after major surgery 14 weeks ago...was soo lookibg forward but nearky kilked me..where's all my fitness gone? I had to make a few stops for a breather and stopped after 4k...Arrrggghh 😣

Bananaleaf

Zipppy wrote: »

First run today after major surgery 14 weeks ago...was soo lookibg forward but nearky kilked me..where's all my fitness gone? I had to make a few stops for a breather and stopped after 4k...Arrrggghh ��

Welcome back to running. Don't be hard on yourself. 14weeks is a long time to be away from running, so you will have a hard time of it getting back. Though, as I'm sure you know (I always just assume everyone on here is more of an expert than me as I'm a novice) you will regain your fitness much quicker than it took to build it initially.

Again, welcome back

Spirogyra

Zipppy wrote: »

First run today after major surgery 14 weeks ago...was soo lookibg forward but nearky kilked me..where's all my fitness gone? I had to make a few stops for a breather and stopped after 4k...Arrrggghh ��

Welcome back, been there before myself Build up gradually, the body has memory though. So it will come back relatively fast, even if today was tough

Zipppy

Spirogyra wrote:

, the body has memory though. So it will come back relatively fast, even if today was tough

Bananaleaf wrote:

.. you will regain your fitness much quicker than it took to build it initially.

Thanks lads...god I hope the memory bit is true
I'll try again tomorrow

Hannibal_Smith

Has anyone ever heard of a strap for a kids bike, that you can attach one end to the handlebars on the bike and the other to your wrist so you can run along beside them? If so, what are they called?

I've googled straps for kids but most of the results are those ones for toddlers to stop them running off, which I might consider yet! I'm full sure I saw one of the other parents at the school using some sort of strap with her kid but she says she never heard of it. Our youngest isn't too great on the bike yet, so I thought this might decrease the stopping and starting on me runs if I could partly pull him along. Actually now that I've types that out, it does sound a bit cruel, which is possibly why I can't find such a thing :cool:

TFBubendorfer

Seems a bit dangerous, one tug at the strap and the kid will lose balance and fall over!

RentDayBlues

Hannibal_Smith wrote: »

Has anyone ever heard of a strap for a kids bike, that you can attach one end to the handlebars on the bike and the other to your wrist so you can run along beside them? If so, what are they called?

I've googled straps for kids but most of the results are those ones for toddlers to stop them running off, which I might consider yet! I'm full sure I saw one of the other parents at the school using some sort of strap with her kid but she says she never heard of it. Our youngest isn't too great on the bike yet, so I thought this might decrease the stopping and starting on me runs if I could partly pull him along. Actually now that I've types that out, it does sound a bit cruel, which is possibly why I can't find such a thing :cool:

I bring my 5 year old along on runs sometimes, on her scooter as the bike takes forever! I push the scooter along as she gets tired, handle up full height and see holds on. Works really well and she’s always proud to tell her dad that she did x km, when in essence it’s just me doing extra work but it’s a lovely thing to do

Hannibal_Smith

Yeah...i can see it sounds dangerous, but I'm full sure ive seen it done. But the other parent who I thought I saw doing it, swears it wasn't her, so I'll have to keep an eye out in Jan. It would have to be long enough for him to still steer but for me to pull gently when he's tired. He still has stabilizers btw

The scooter would be grand if it was just the two of us, but there's the eldest fella too, who flies off. I thought the strap might be slow but steady enough to keep a nice enough distance that would stop the eldest complaining we're too slow and the youngest that he's tired :pac:

I have a trx type strap that has strong Velcro on it. I might take them out for a sneaky trial round the block and see how/if it works.

Zipppy

Ososlo wrote:

- What is the best time of the day to drink your beetjuice? - Why do cyclists take precedence over runners in the phoenix park and have a lane of their own? I see as many runners as cyclists there if not more? - Does wearing high heels 7 days a week (when you're not running ) have a bad impact on your running style? - Why do some people log out of boards while they’re reading so their green light is not on? We all know they're reading as they answer stuff straight away but they log out immediately they post and thank stuff. - Along with being naturally faster, do men have another distinct advantage in running over women in that they have no boobs? - Does anyone else feel that the majority of people posting in this forum are middle-class? Is running more of a middle-class activity? - Is this a stupid idea for a thread

Zipppy wrote:

First run today after major surgery 14 weeks ago...was soo lookibg forward but nearky kilked me..where's all my fitness gone? I had to make a few stops for a breather and stopped after 4k...Arrrggghh 😣

So my return to running last Saturday was cut short by a hurt hamstring and a cold..
Back at it today.. did 4k..still needed 4 breathers for min or so..however I'll stick at it..ill go back out in the morning..hopefully this 'body will remember ' is true

skyblue46

El Caballo wrote: »

An issue with Tempo runs is that the term is thrown around loosely to define different intensities. Some people call a Tempo run 20 minutes at 1 hour pace(lactate threshold), others a 40 minute run @ 2 hour pace(Aerobic threshold) . It can get confusing but I think by tempo, you mean lactate threshold which is roughly around the pace you run for an hour. Tinman calls it Threshold in that pace calculator and 2 hour pace is called Tempo just for refence.

Either way, I would look at race results that last close to those durations to get the most accurate pace range. For Threshold, that would be between 10k and half marathon pace because a one hour race would fall between those. And for a tempo, the half marathon would be better as it shows your endurance closer to 2 hour pace.

Maybe think about alternating a Tempo with Threshold every other week as the general concenus is that you should have more than 10 days between threshold efforts. They will both complement each other too. Maybe look at the graduate plan and see how the threshold and tempo runs are structured and built up as the plan progresses. In fact, I think you would really benefit from following that plan and it will give you excellent structure with these kind of workouts. The tempo falls on a Saturday so you could implement these workouts into your parkrun too, I think it's an excellent fit for you right now.

Missed this post and it has me further befuddled. I based my training paces on a 20:38 Jingle Bells which already makes it a bit of an outlier. The graduates plan is to take me to the Bohermeen half. I get a totally different set of training paces when I enter my race series half (1:40:45). So different are they that the tempo pace I have been using would be CV and threshold would be AP based on my half time. Does that mean I am overdoing it and should slow the training a bit?

Kellygirl

Hannibal_Smith wrote: »

Has anyone ever heard of a strap for a kids bike, that you can attach one end to the handlebars on the bike and the other to your wrist so you can run along beside them? If so, what are they called?

I've googled straps for kids but most of the results are those ones for toddlers to stop them running off, which I might consider yet! I'm full sure I saw one of the other parents at the school using some sort of strap with her kid but she says she never heard of it. Our youngest isn't too great on the bike yet, so I thought this might decrease the stopping and starting on me runs if I could partly pull him along. Actually now that I've types that out, it does sound a bit cruel, which is possibly why I can't find such a thing :cool:

I have one that I got online for my son’s micro scooter. I got it from that website when buying his scooter. It’s brilliant when he gets tired and just wants to stand on the scooter. Never tried it with a bike. It’s a version of this. https://www.micro-scooters.ie/micro-pull-carry-blue.html

El Caballo

skyblue46 wrote: »

Missed this post and it has me further befuddled. I based my training paces on a 20:38 Jingle Bells which already makes it a bit of an outlier. The graduates plan is to take me to the Bohermeen half. I get a totally different set of training paces when I enter my race series half (1:40:45). So different are they that the tempo pace I have been using would be CV and threshold would be AP based on my half time. Does that mean I am overdoing it and should slow the training a bit?

In your specific case, I think the 5k is a bit more accurate SB. You've progressed a huge amount in the time since the half marathon, I think you had a 47 minute...ish PB going into the half so to a 20 minute 5k is a huge leap forward in fitness so I think it's more accurate for now. If you had a more up to date 10k and half, I would say to use that for threshold and Tempo. The 5k should give you very accurate ranges for CV and AP as well right now as they are very close in intensity to 5k pace. I think what you are doing right now is perfect.

skyblue46

El Caballo wrote: »

In your specific case, I think the 5k is a bit more accurate SB. You've progressed a huge amount in the time since the half marathon, I think you had a 47 minute...ish PB going into the half so to a 20 minute 5k is a huge leap forward in fitness so I think it's more accurate for now. If you had a more up to date 10k and half, I would say to use that for threshold and Tempo. The 5k should give you very accurate ranges for CV and AP as well right now as they are very close in intensity to 5k pace. I think what you are doing right now is perfect.

Great! I'm happy enough to work on with them. The sessions have been testing without really hurting badly. I'm doing Raheny in 3 weeks but that will be an attempt at an even paced 36 minutes, something I've never managed before...never mind the 36 minutes I've never yet done a race that wasn't based on ridiculous negative splits!

scotindublin

So not really a big one for gym work or S&C but we have a decent enough small gym in work.

With a pretty limited lunch break time wise looking for a few tips on how to best make use of 20 minutes or so twice a week. Should this be spent on Core Work or stretching etc; we also have a vibration plate that I should probably make use of.

Kellygirl

scotindublin wrote: »

So not really a big one for gym work or S&C but we have a decent enough small gym in work.

With a pretty limited lunch break time wise looking for a few tips on how to best make use of 20 minutes or so twice a week. Should this be spent on Core Work or stretching etc; we also have a vibration plate that I should probably make use of.

I would do one workout weekly of stability and mobility work - things like planks, static lunges, side lunges, squats, bridge, bird dog, thoracic twists, ankle raises (can’t quite remember the name of these). You could do a few run throughs of that program in the 20 mins - 2-3 maybe.

I haven’t been very good at keeping up the strength workouts I was given last year so can’t remember them off hand.

The Davestator

Looking for some advice please.

Heading into my 8th marathon plan and will probably need to approach it a bit differently in terms of mileage due to babies!

I will struggle to get some 6/7 milers in midweek so was hoping to do 5 miles at lunch midweek and add the missing miles onto a rest day (sunday) or other days.

Is it the total weekly mileage that matters of the length of the individual runs during the week?

Murph_D

Total weekly mileage matters, but so does a balance of workout types making up that mileage. It all depends on what your targets are, of course. Ideally, you'll get in some sort of speed session and some sort of tempo into those midweek runs, although when you throw warmup and cooldown miles into the mix, a 5 mile lunchtime run doesn't leave much room for the session!

Also beware of overloading the weekend - isn't there a run of thumb that the sat/sun mileage shouldn't account for more than one third to one half the total weekly mileage (may have dreamed that, but it seems to make some sort of sense).

For me, a midweek MLR, with a good bit of it done at tempo or marathon pace, is one of the mainstays of a good marathon plan. But you know this already if you're a veteran of 8 marathons already!

The Davestator

Murph_D wrote: »

Total weekly mileage matters, but so does a balance of workout types making up that mileage. It all depends on what your targets are, of course. Ideally, you'll get in some sort of speed session and some sort of tempo into those midweek runs, although when you throw warmup and cooldown miles into the mix, a 5 mile lunchtime run doesn't leave much room for the session!

Also beware of overloading the weekend - isn't there a run of thumb that the sat/sun mileage shouldn't account for more than one third to one half the total weekly mileage (may have dreamed that, but it seems to make some sort of sense).

For me, a midweek MLR, with a good bit of it done at tempo or marathon pace, is one of the mainstays of a good marathon plan. But you know this already if you're a veteran of 8 marathons already!

Cheers for that. Need to make a better plan as my normal morning running routine won't work this time around.