The Running Thread 🏃‍♀️

[nbx512]

A lot of the staff in running shops will try and sell you the most expensive pair, alongside insoles, socks etc.

I’ve worn Nike Pegasus (neutral shoe) for 10+ years, and have never had any problems. I only buy them in the sale, and have never paid more than £75

There’s no evidence to suggest that changing or rotating shoe models gives you any benefit / makes you less injury prone. So once you’ve got a model you like, you can just repurchase the same model whenever you need a new pair. No need to reinvent the wheel and spend a small fortune.

Also, unless you’re running sub-15 5k for men, and sub-18 5k for women, and racing multiple times a month, please don’t believe the Nike Next% / Vaporfly hype. A lot of magazines and blogs have been promoting them as part of their ‘get fit in 2021’ articles, and they have no idea what they’re talking about!

The one thing I would recommend though is having at least two pairs of shoes (they can be the same style) in your shoe rotation. You shouldn't use the same pair on consecutive days as it takes a whole for the foam to bounce back so by rotating between two you're reducing your risk of injury and extending the life of both pairs

 

[Mulholland Drive]

Yes definitely! I would love to do a marathon one day but honestly I just don’t think I can be bothered

Running a marathon competitively is a big buzz, but running one on your own is like a war of attrition, and is incredibly boring. Half marathons are far more interesting and are just about long enough to keep you motivated to the bitter end

 

[eye_rolling_always]

Always! It gives me a bit of chill time before the madness (and all the food!). I don’t have kids though! this year we are going to do a parkrun route with some friends and have Prosecco outside afterwards -it may be the highlight of my day!

could you go with them after present opening or something? Always love seeing parents running with their little kids on bikes cycling alongside - I imagine the reality is slightly more stressful though

Oh my oldest loves to come with me on a bike or scooter. We do that around 9am if I decided to have a late run. Most my runs start at 0530. I was giving him Christmas day off...but he actually might fancy it. I'll ask him in the morning

 

[orange club biscuit]

Hello, I’m new here. I was wondering if anyone has had a break from running when pregnant then gone back to it after baby is born? If so how did you find it? I really miss running but too many complications during my pregnancy made me stop.

Ooh also eager to hear about this too! I just found out that I am pregnant and my running has taken an abrupt nose dive as my heart rate is soo much higher than normal! I’m only 5 weeks and I feel exhausted. I don’t imagine it gets much easier though!

There are plenty of mums in my running club but I don’t really know any of them super well and also can’t really ask them yet for obvious reasons...

 

[theghosttown]

If anyone has tips to not look like a beetroot please do share I hate how red I go!

Me too. Unfortunately I think it is something we are cursed with. I can go out in the cold and still be beetroot, in the summer it’s even worse! I’m over weight to and it makes me soooo self conscious that people think I’m going to keel over haha. In the summer I carried a small bottle of face cooling spray on my bum bag! Helped a little in stopping my face feeling too hot!

 

[Tippingpoint23]

I'm glad there is an active running thread . I started running in 2018 with the Couch to 5k app and have maintained my running/fitness since then. I did start training for 10k in January this year and managed to do a 9k run, but then injured my calves somehow . I don't know what I did, but I have a lot of muscle pain now. I warm up, cool down and do stretches afterwards. I stopped running for a few months and maintained my stamina by doing low-impact cardio like cross-training and cycling.
Even though the low-impact cardio keeps me fit, it doesn't give me the same mood-boosting feeling as running does, so i've re-started the couch to 5k programme. I'm now about to start week 6, exciting! I do still have muscle pain in my calves, which I don't remember having before. I'm hoping it will go away as I get used to running more. In the new year, i'm going to get gait analysis and some proper running shoes. My feet are quite arched, so maybe that has something to do with it. I'm hoping to be back to running 5k again by the end of January!

I have a couple of questions because i'm nosy...

1) What kind of music do you listen to whilst running? I have just made a playlist of all the upbeat songs on my phone, but i'm always looking out for new music to listen to!

2) Where do you buy your running clothes from? I want some more long sleeve running tops for this cold winter. I used to buy them from Karrimor/Sports direct but they have such a tiny selection available now.

1) i listen to Taylor Swift I love running to her

2) my protein has some nice long sleeve tops!

Don’t be hard on yourself, you got out there and done more than you would have if you didn’t, so well done you


You can do it just believe and you will achieve

I did it!!! felt hard at times but I did it

 

[BashmentLady]

Since starting this thread I've basically abandoned running. It's making my chest hurt and I cannot get past week 3 of couch to 5k. Debating giving it another try but honestly...I feel like maybe I need to give up on running and find a new exercise. Anyone else ever experienced this feeling?

Now I don't want to advocate in any way for you doing damage to yourself, but I'm wondering is it that you're going too fast? Your chest shouldn't hurt from any sport as far as I know. Perhaps it's worth talking to a doctor?

 

[Bluetomato]

Is the pain on the outside of your knee, so like here:

I had to address weakness in my glutes with some strengthening exercises. I went to see a physio and this is what he advised me to do every other day using a resistance band (if you google the exercises you should find videos). He also said that just rest might get rid of the pain over time but the likelihood would be the issue would quickly return. I would defo recommend seeing a physio if you can.

Standing hip abduction - 2-3 sets of 8-10
Seated knee extension - 2-3 sets of 5-10
Resisted side stepping - 5 times to the left, 5 times to the right, repeat 5-10 times
Hip hitching - standing on step, 2-3 sets of 8 - 10

I also found out that my foot on the injured side was hyper-flexible (no arch or arch support) which was causing my knee to internally rotate too much and was putting too much strain on my IT band. I went to see a podiatrist and had some orthotics made to give my foot the support it doesn't have and they have really helped me.

I hope this helps a bit but let me know if you have any questions!

Thankyou so much for posting this. I’m going to see
a private physio I think and hopefully they can help too

 

[hahaha62]

Exciting! Have you checked whether the race you're doing puts out training plans? Otherwise having a google for marathon training plans will work. If you have a garmin they've got some pretty good plans via garmin connect (on your computer).

Assuming that you marathon bock is 16 weeks (so starting in February) that gives you about 6 weeks to a) increase your mileage but also do some speed specific work. If that sounds like the right kind of timeline I'm happy to suggest some speed stuff for you.

@SpiceWeasel I haven't forgotten about you sorry, life is just CRAZY atm but I'll get it done soon!

Yes the race has a couple of training plans on their website and I do have garmin. I’ll have a look at both properly thank you. Oh that would be amazing, thank you! I really feel like I’ve plateaued with my speed. Although in fairness I am guilty of just doing the same run over and over again

 

[whatktdid]

Completely agree about the first section being the hardest & that warming up better has helped, I've been liking this one. I also find that if I'm going to get a stitch, I either get it after 5 minutes or not at all. Been happening less lately, though! I've been trying to breath properly, always struggled with that in my usual sport of rowing, too, to the point where my coach would say "I don't even know how you're still going because you don't seem to be breathing"

 

[Reflected view]

No I haven’t been able to, only started running start of January! I bought new shoes which were great to start with and much better than what I was started off in, just the last week or so! I did have a week and a half off due to weather

It’s maybe a mixture of things, but when things go back to normal I would go and get fitted, good luck and hope you get it sorted

I have this one, 10 years on and it still works well.
F3 Folding Treadmill (lifefitness.co.uk)

Oh thank you I’ll go and have a wee look

 

[Reflected view]

I ended up running 25km last week I am annoyed with myself for not starting back up sooner. It was the weather which was putting me off mainly, I forgot it's fine once you get going. Been loving the fresh air and it's done wonders for my skin too it looks so much brighter!

I downloaded Strava again which I haven't used in years (was met with a post of my ex boyfriend's recent bike ride, lovely ) and signed up to the December 100km challenge hope I can do it.

Gyms back open from Wednesday - not sure what to do about this. I find running on the treadmill mind numbing but it is good for working on speed. My membership has expired too so I'll have to drop £250 on it as well, don't really need that just before Christmas! Tempted to just stick to running outdoors

Well done you have done amazing that’s how I felt about going back to the gym after the first lockdown, I made the choice not to activate my membership and continue with my running, and so far it’s the best decision Iv made. You just feel more alive being outside running, So keep going

 

[monaghanmissus]

Thank you so much @nbx512 I've learned loads!

 

[Shep]

Today I ran for 50 minutes in 10 mins intervals. Got my 5k PB - 34 mins so not fast at all but I couldn’t run 2 minutes without struggling back in November. And total of 9.5k in 65 mins with walking and running. I have to say I’ve always been sceptical of couch to apps but having almost completed couch to 10K I do now trust the process!

I did wonder if it was any good when I downloaded it. Today was the big jump from interval running to 20 minutes solid running. it Gradually builds up to 30 minutes which I never dreamed I could manage

 

[whatktdid]

Defo run-walk is the way to go I think. You will get it back!

I'm planning to do a run on my lunch break from work today. I'm working from home so that does make life easier and my top hack is getting dressed in my running gear first thing so I don't have to get changed. The hardest bit for me is always the making myself go but once I'm doing it I enjoy it so this helps to remove a hurdle. It's mostly psychological, the procrastination Anyone else like this?

Yep! I'm about to do the same, mentally not too keen for a run purely because it's lunchtime & I'm hungry, but if I ate first I would get the mother of all stitches. So I'm gonna go run now and eat when I get back, as much as my stomach protests

 

[frustrated]

Interesting! Just read this @SpiceWeasel , could be it?

It's not uncommon to gain a few pounds when you start ramping up your runs, like when you're training for your first marathon. Your muscles respond to the elevated effort level by storing more glycogen, which binds with water in your muscle cells to keep you fueled and can tick the scale up by two or three pounds

 

[jjhv]

Just completed my first ever sub 30 min 5k (29:40)

Was thinking when I finished “oh I can’t wait to post this on the tattle running thread” ahaha

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!

This thread is so motivating!

 

[Blair-Waldorf]

The ice is really pissing me off tbh once I don’t run for more than 2 days I struggle on the first run back

 

[Giggling Squid]

Yes! Flap your arms around regularly when you’re running… I find that helps me so much!

also, I swear by my microwave wheat bag, 2 mins in the microwave when I get back from a run helps loosen my shoulders

 

[Tippingpoint23]

y


Yeeeo! Well done! It's SO good when you start doing those longer blocks and realise that you can! You won't even notice those additional minutes you know

I found a virtual one and was considering it

I've been doing the Zen Labs C210K and today went for what I think was my best run. To be clear, I'm an over weight person that drinks and smokes too much [love an oul vice], but this run was just that rare type where it didn't feel like an effort! It was 17m x 3 and 5 minutes walking either side. The app is shite and stopped working mid way so I was running and try to do the maths [sports AND maths - ma least favourites combined], but today I got to over 9K and just felt DELIGHTED!

Also, I absolutely did not want to go out. But it's the reminding yourself - you always feel better when you go, and that feels better than the guilt when you don't.

I have the 10K runner app - it has a yellow logo. I had to pay for a lifetime membership but it was only about £8 I thought. It’s good and doesn’t cut out!

I’m looking forward to getting even further and really enjoying slowly but steadily increasing and improving.