Running

[macdog]

No warm up ever, Not for running, not for gym.

Never been injured I guess it just works for me

are you one of those super flexible people that never ever stretches??

i hate people like you if you are!!!

[Wubzy =)]

I used to run alot. Stretch for only a minute. used to go 3 x 6km and 1 x 12km in a week.

But then i went on holiday and stopped for a while. fell outta routine

THEN MY GF DUMPED ME YOU SCRAG SO NOW I HAVE TO GET FIT AGAIN

Now im back into it and started off doing 3 km runs 3 times a week. Now im doing 5x5kms a week taking 25 mins

In the 3 weeks I have lost 6kgs. You cant really see it in my body but my pants are too big now. it sucks. and i took a bird home last night. though she wasnt a looker it still counts =)

the end.

i hope we can all be great friends xxx cuddles n all that

[Birds]

lol @ girlfriend. Always a cycle of working hard to look good for girls, get girlfriend and slack off, break up and start again.

[WGNPWR]

still not allowed to run >_>

this is getting quite old now

[SoFreshSoClean]

A question for you guys: I'm still doing my 5 x 5km runs a week, but now I'm upping the pace. I've been feeling some pretty great increases in endurance.. which I guess is starting to push into the anaerobic side of things..

BUT I'm also starting to get quite sore calves, even on the verge of painful.They dont hurt at all just walking around or whatever but when I run its getting worse. Everyone says just run through it, but there must be something I can do to help it?

I should note, I do already have pretty good shoes, so I don't think it's that, and I also do a pretty decent warm up/down.

[Birds]

Run through it? Gah...That's like saying you have tennis elbow, work through it with some heavy tricep exercises

Definitely find the source of that one if it's that painful.

Do you stretch your calves before you run? Lean forward against something, keeping your feet completely flat on the floor, for about 30 seconds. After stretching, try some gentle calf raises to contract the muscle before running. After your run, do you stop straight away or do you finish it with a slow pace/walk? After my run I walk straight up a hill, almost powerwalking, which really stretches the calves well after a run. Builds muscle too.

5 runs of 5km is quite a lot of running if you're not training for an event. Could be considered over training if you're throwing HIIT sprints into the mix. Leg muscles recover fast, but consider that they are getting a stressful workout and only resting 2 days a week. 3 runs a week is quite sufficient to increase endurance and speed.

There may also be an issue with your running style...if you run landing on the ball of your foot / toes, you are placing all the pressure on your calves. You can alleviate this by using a slight roll of the foot when you step...land closer to the heel and roll into the ball of the foot. This action is also friendlier on the knees over time, and much better for joints when running downhill. Save the front of the foot for uphill sprints.

[emtea]

BUT I'm also starting to get quite sore calves, even on the verge of painful.They dont hurt at all just walking around or whatever but when I run its getting worse. Everyone says just run through it, but there must be something I can do to help it?

Birds pretty much covered it all, but just to clarify are you getting sore calves from the first steps? Or after a few mins/kms? I sometimes get muscle tightness in my calves at around say 4kms of a 5k run, but I just put that down to my age and general lack of fitness/conditioning. That muscle tightness is something you can "run through" without too much ill effect.

My first thoughts when you said 5 x 5km runs a week was over training, especially if you are doing that every week. Most trainers will recommend that you train in a cycle, where you "build' to a point and then ease off again (like Birds mentioned about training for an event) or do 1 "light" week of training for 2 "normal" weeks.

[Birds]

Cycles for the win. I've taken a week off running before, then on the first run back, expected a slower time. Instead, I shaved time off my previous run. Best feeling ever. Muscle building happens during rest...it makes sense to give your legs regular time off.

Good points about tightness after long distance Matt...that is certainly normal for an unconditioned state and can be safely run through as long as the pain doesn't get unbearable.

[SoFreshSoClean]

Yeah the soreness is about 5-10 mins into the run, wears off slightly when I've warmed up but still noticeable.

Birds you may be onto something with the foot striking thing. I was always told to strike with the front of your foot because heel striking is damaging in the long term (massive shock), but maybe a mid-foot stike is the way to go. I'll try it out and report back next week.

Cheers for the advice guys, maybe I am training a little too much. Perhaps I'll try dialling it back for a week and focus more on the weights training, then go vice versa a week later.

Gotta say though, even though it was hurting a bit, I'm feeling fit as a fiddle at the moment, love it!

[Nee-san]

Pretty normal thing to happen when your getting back into running.

What type of runners do you have and what condition are they in ?

This is VERY important, I only ever buy 1 shoe for my running and it's worth it trust me.

get your step analysed to see if you have any major problems in your step, You sound like you have done considerable running before anyway so that is probably not the the issue.

Find a brick ledge or something around the house, put the balls of your feet on the elevated ledge and lever your heels towards the ground whilst leaning forward slightly, you should feel a nice stretch in the back of your calves, do these whenever you can think to do it, I found it help release tension that builds up and causes the pain your talking about.

if your having issues with your shins ie both front and back of your lower leg are binding up, push your big toe into the ground and lean your leg forward so the face of your foot is pointing toward the ground at a 45 degree angle and push slightly and you should feel the stretch in your foot and shin area.

these are just things I have used to alleviate tightness in the legs, not an expert or a doctor so use this advice at your own risk !

[macdog]

Yeah the soreness is about 5-10 mins into the run, wears off slightly when I've warmed up but still noticeable.

Birds you may be onto something with the foot striking thing. I was always told to strike with the front of your foot because heel striking is damaging in the long term (massive shock), but maybe a mid-foot stike is the way to go. I'll try it out and report back next week.

Cheers for the advice guys, maybe I am training a little too much. Perhaps I'll try dialling it back for a week and focus more on the weights training, then go vice versa a week later.

Gotta say though, even though it was hurting a bit, I'm feeling fit as a fiddle at the moment, love it!

Do you run on the road or grass?

If your a road runner try running on the grass.. it has less impact on your body and you might be suprised how you pull up.

[MaTBoY]

do u run in good shoes? I used to get sore knees/ calves when i ran in shit shoes, got a set of asics and haven't looked back.

Like Macdog says... if you're running on a path and there's grass, run on the grass where possible. helps a bit, also makes the run slightly harder, so you should get bang for your buck and more work done for the same amount of time.

[Birds]

Birds you may be onto something with the foot striking thing. I was always told to strike with the front of your foot because heel striking is damaging in the long term (massive shock), but maybe a mid-foot stike is the way to go. I'll try it out and report back next week.

Yeah landing flat on the heel is more damaging in the long term, but what I'm talking about isn't a completely flat landing if done properly. When I say to try landing further back on your foot, I mean that you should start further back towards the heel and roll towards the front as you finish the step, rather than land flat on any particular part of the foot. The foot landing needs a slight roll / sweeping motion to absorb the impact, otherwise the knees will cop the full brunt of the shock regardless of where you land. Done properly, your running will be almost silent. The science behind it isn't so different to what a Parkour freerunner uses to land after a jump. I only really do this for flat ground and running downhill...uphill is nearly impossible to perform a roll and you will naturally use the front of your foot there.

The problem with this is that, everyone has their own natural running style and it is very difficult to consciously change something so innate. Run enough and you will find your own way anyway. The key to avoiding chronic pain later on in life is to not overtrain and never force a run on a joint injury/pain. Many, many athletes experience knee pain later on in life, it's almost unavoidable if you're training at that level.

I still suspect that your calf pain has more to do with overtraining or not stretching before running, though.

[macdog]

do u run in good shoes? I used to get sore knees/ calves when i ran in shit shoes, got a set of asics and haven't looked back.

Like Macdog says... if you're running on a path and there's grass, run on the grass where possible. helps a bit, also makes the run slightly harder, so you should get bang for your buck and more work done for the same amount of time.

couldn't agree more mate,

it utilizes your whole foot as the ground is constantly changing. try running on sand as well... that is good for calf burning..

or if you really want to fck yourself up, do some mexicans. running up sand dunes... oh yeah.

[MaTBoY]

i've been a lazy kent. i shall go for a couple laps this afternoon! It's hard to fit a run in when it gets dark at 5. (excuse number 1)

[macdog]

i've been a lazy kent. i shall go for a couple laps this afternoon! It's hard to fit a run in when it gets dark at 5. (excuse number 1)

HAHAHAHAHA!!!

how many more excuses do you have Matt?

in all seriousness though, running is fcking hard. people who do marathons are legends.

[Birds]

I find that once I've gotten back into a good regular stint of running, multiple times per week, it's easy to find motivation. It's that initial getting back into it after a couple of weeks/months/years that really sucks.

No sunshine is a poor excuse lol. I exclusively run during the night time - run is less daunting when you can't see far up ahead how far you've got to go

[Nee-san]

This thread is actually quite good, all good advice really,

Birds is right, they say generally if you do something one month it starts to become a habit and you find that consistent motivation. Terry would probably know alot more about this than me though.

The first run back isn't the bad one, its the one you do the day after that really hurts.

I also am an exclusively night runner, banged out a 10km started at 11:34 pm last night

reiterate what everyone has said, running shoes ultra important, they say you should change shoes after ever 650KM.

you can probably stretch this to 1000km.

I have 3 or so sets of Keyanos (the only runner I will use) that have more then 4000KM on them each.

If you can't find grass or dirt to run on( tough in the city sometimes) run on bitumen, it is many times more compliant then concrete, it will also use it slightly more energy for the same distance etc.

Oh yeah and whoever asked about the stretching way back Yeah Lol, I don't really stretch ever only if I ever feel tightness or injury coming on, otherwise if i stretch I feel more vulnerable to injury.

[djr81]

I find that once I've gotten back into a good regular stint of running, multiple times per week, it's easy to find motivation. It's that initial getting back into it after a couple of weeks/months/years that really sucks.

No sunshine is a poor excuse lol. I exclusively run during the night time - run is less daunting when you can't see far up ahead how far you've got to go

It is easier to maintain motivation if you dont bust your arse everytime out. It is not like you have to do maximum effort interval training or run a pb over 10kms everytime you walk out the front door.

Find a level that you can enjoy it. Chances are you don share much with Haile Gebrselassie.

[Birds]

That's true, but I do enjoy competing with myself even if it's not on a world stage. I might not share anything in common with Haile (that 56kg bastard runs 5km in the time it takes me to do just over 3km lol), but I don't share much in common with 99% of the population who don't run either