The New Workout Thread

[SoulMonster]

28 minutes ago, Gracii Guns said:

I've had a six week break from running. A friend got in touch to say that I was looking really good in a recent photo, which made me realise that even if the weighing scales don't budge, running was still helping me look slim. So I've signed up for a challenge, to do 15 runs of any distance in October. I'm hoping to return to running 10k by the end of the month. 

I actually ran home from the butcher yesterday, carrying 8lbs of meat in a backpack. It made me realise how heavy 8lbs is, and how much easier it would be to run without that weight. A really useful experiment. 

That is a revealing experiment, yes. I have given some thoughts to that myself, like when carrying backpacks on mountain hikes. The big difference though, is that the fat on our bodies are placed where they won't encumber us much or feel as heavy as things we carry on our backs, like distributed evenly around or on our buttocks and stomachs. So 10 kgs on your back feels very different to 10 kgs of adipose tissue on our bodies. 

And yes, exercise is rarely the solution to reducing weight, it needs to go hand in hand with diet adjustments. You need to run a lot to compensate for eating too much. But what tends to happen is that when people start exercising they become more mindful of what they eat or disrupt their daily routine in ways that means they eat less (not only can't you eat while running, most people also don't eat just before a run or for some time after). So starting to exercise usually signals a more comprehensive change to one's life style. Lastly, it builds muscle which for a whole lot of reasons are beneficial but also because it requires some upkeep which in itself burns more calories, hence preventing fat to develop.

[Dazey]

43 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

not only can't you eat while running

Wanna bet?  

[Ace Nova]

 

[Gracii Guns]

Smashed 12K on Wednesday. Looking to do 7K over the weekend. Hoping to find the time to get to 15K next week.

[SoulMonster]

23 minutes ago, Gracii Guns said:

Smashed 12K on Wednesday. Looking to do 7K over the weekend. Hoping to find the time to get to 15K next week.

With K you are referring to kilometers or...uhm, kfeet? I am seriously confused what K refers to.

Anyways, after my surgery earlier this year I have started getting back in shape and had just started running 10 km when I pulled a muscle, again. It kind of snapped when I was at 4 km. So now I am hobbling around waiting for it to pass.

[Gracii Guns]

19 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

With K you are referring to kilometers or...uhm, kfeet? I am seriously confused what K refers to.

Anyways, after my surgery earlier this year I have started getting back in shape and had just started running 10 km when I pulled a muscle, again. It kind of snapped when I was at 4 km. So now I am hobbling around waiting for it to pass.

Sorry, kilometres. 

Sorry about your injury Soulie. How bad is it? Is the wait likely to be weeks or months? 

[SoulMonster]

Just now, Gracii Guns said:

Sorry, kilometres. 

Sorry about your injury Soulie. How bad is it? Is the wait likely to be weeks or months? 

Thanks! I have wondered about that for a while. And you aren't really allowed to wonder about things these days with Google at your fingertips - so thanks for indulging an ignorant fool.

15K is looong! Have you tried it before? A good idea would be to find a level course without too many hills, it makes a huge difference.

It happens to me every time I try to increase my running, my right calf gets pulled. I just have to be patient and go slowly. I also weigh too much now, and that doesn't help. But no, it is only weeks. Just a few muscles fibres that have been torn. I will be good in a week or so, to start running carefully again. As soon as I am back in shape it won't happen again. 

[Gracii Guns]

I'm 3lbs down this week, and ran 15km last Wednesday, and have run 100km in October. Aiming for a half marathon and 200km in November. 

[Axls Rocket Queen]

On 10/28/2020 at 8:20 PM, Gracii Guns said:

I'm 3lbs down this week, and ran 15km last Wednesday, and have run 100km in October. Aiming for a half marathon and 200km in November. 

Great job!

I've stopped relying on the scale but I'm definitely a lot...squishier, since lockdown.  Going to start running again, dancing as much as I can while stuck at home and trying to clean up my diet as I think that's the biggest thing that's deteriorated this year.  We've got some resistance bands at home now so I can at least do some strength training.

[Destiny]

On 10/16/2020 at 10:28 AM, Gracii Guns said:

Smashed 12K on Wednesday. Looking to do 7K over the weekend. Hoping to find the time to get to 15K next week.

That's great! Do you use a running app of the sort? I've been using the Runkeeper app by Asics for years now and I barely found out it has training programs to help with speed and turnover. Fartleks and progression runs etc. It's helped me stay focused and not get stale with my running. I'm working toward a new PR for my 5k this year and I'm behind!

 

 

[Gracii Guns]

3 hours ago, Destiny said:

That's great! Do you use a running app of the sort? I've been using the Runkeeper app by Asics for years now and I barely found out it has training programs to help with speed and turnover. Fartleks and progression runs etc. It's helped me stay focused and not get stale with my running. I'm working toward a new PR for my 5k this year and I'm behind!

 

 

I used the One You Couch to 5K app. I didn't get on with a 5K-10K app, so just run now, and measure my time with Strava. 

I'm more interested in running far, not fast. But I'm fairly slow, so perhaps using one of the apps you use is a good idea. Thank you for sharing your experience with them. 

[SoulMonster]

Strava seems to be the most popular around here. I use it.

[Dean]

I use Runkeeper also, but tend to only use it if I'm trying to add more miles to my route as opposed to beat any personal record in regards to time etc. That said, my day would usually start around 5 and I'd force myself out before work, as motivation to get out is usually incredibly low by the time I get home in the evenings, but ever since the clocks went back, I've found it really hard to get up on time. I've also drank a lot in the past month too which hasn't helped 

I'd like to surpass 10 miles when out a run before the new year. I managed 8 miles 2 weeks ago and still had a bit left in the tank, it was my longest run in 8 years which is obscene (runs normally are anywhere between 3-6 miles - wanted to get out of my comfort zone) but will see what happens. The fact I have posted it on a forum will hopefully make me get the finger out and get it done. 

[SoulMonster]

1 hour ago, Dean said:

The fact I have posted it on a forum will hopefully make me get the finger out and get it done. 

Yeah. We will not forget.

[Dean]

I stupidly did this last night. Now I'm walking everywhere like John Wayne - my friend ran a marathon last year, I messaged him that running 10 shouldn't have this effect on my legs and the thought of doing it another 1.5 times makes me ill . 3 miles of the route are up hill at different intervals, so I took it easy and managed to do it in just slightly over 2 hours. Not the greatest time in the world, but at least it's been done and I can work towards skimming a chunk of time off of it on the next one. 

[Gracii Guns]

Completed my first half marathon today. It took me three hours, but I did it. 

[SoulMonster]

3 minutes ago, Gracii Guns said:

Completed my first half marathon today. It took me three hours, but I did it. 

How did it feel after 15 km and how did it feel when you finished? Was it much up and down or pretty flat? Congratulations

[Gracii Guns]

32 minutes ago, SoulMonster said:

How did it feel after 15 km and how did it feel when you finished? Was it much up and down or pretty flat? Congratulations

It was fairly flat, I live in a flat city. A couple of bridges here and there, but that's it. 

After 15k it was a real slog. But I thought about it like this:

The final 1.3k I can walk in my warm down. 

That left me with only 5k to run. And I was slow, really slow. But I took it 1k at a time. All it is, is a case of running further. It was so, so boring. But I knew that effort would be nothing compared to the regret I'd feel if I stopped prematurely. 

Now I'm done, I feel relieved.

Physically, I had to go to the toilet as soon as I got home and compulsively... went.  My body was feeling it! 

My legs will feel it in the morning, but it's a really nice way to end this year. Thank you for asking

[SoulMonster]

7 hours ago, Gracii Guns said:

It was fairly flat, I live in a flat city. A couple of bridges here and there, but that's it. 

After 15k it was a real slog. But I thought about it like this:

The final 1.3k I can walk in my warm down. 

That left me with only 5k to run. And I was slow, really slow. But I took it 1k at a time. All it is, is a case of running further. It was so, so boring. But I knew that effort would be nothing compared to the regret I'd feel if I stopped prematurely. 

Now I'm done, I feel relieved.

Physically, I had to go to the toilet as soon as I got home and compulsively... went.  My body was feeling it! 

My legs will feel it in the morning, but it's a really nice way to end this year. Thank you for asking

Some thoughts:

Do you run with a watch to keep track of your pace? If not, I would highly recommend it. It is really helpful to know how you are doing on larger runs and if you have a goal, it can help you steer towards it. They don't cost a lot and you don't need a fancy one. I only use it to measure my pace (minutes per km), distance run, and average pace. 

You indicated that you ran slower at the end. This is entirely normal and especially when you run a longer distance than normal for the first time. What you should aim for, though, is "inverse split". This means that the second half is run faster than the first half. In a competition run, the last kms will also be a sprint, which further strengthens the inverse split. To do this you really need a watch, or to really, really be familiar with your own body while running to know what speed you are at. So if you did the half marathon in 3 hours (resulting in an average pace of 8:30 min/km), an ideal plan could have been to run the first half in 8:40 min/km and then the second half in 8:20. More likely, the next time you were to run a half marathon, you would attempt to shave off some time, say 2 hours 45 minutes (translating to 7:49 min/km), giving you an ideal pace of 8:00 for the first half and then 7:40 for the second. Having a watch helps you execute on this plan.

The reason I asked about how you felt after 15 km is that by now you have likely exhausted your readily available sources of carbohydrates, unless you ate/drank something while running. For shorter runs (< 10 km), you don't need to fuel up, only water will do, but when running longer you will be running on fumes and that causes all kinds of unpleasantness. During competitions they usually hand out bananas and sugary drinks. It really helps although it is hard to eat while running. But yeah, next time bring with you something or have something sugary on your water bottle.

How about footwear? You run a lot so you are probably already very mindful of this, but make sure to replace your shoes often enough, especially if you run a lot on tarmac. Active runners may buy new shoes every half year or so. Keep a couple which you alternate between. It helps to prevent injuries. Buy proper shoes, from proper shops. Sometimes they can study your foot and recommend special shoes for your running style/foot. A popular brand is Hoba (I personally don't like them because the roll too much on my heel). You just need to figure out what works for you. But don't wear them down before you replace them, that can cause injuries. Replace often. And running is such a cheap hobby (compared to many other sports and training at a gym - spend some of the money you save on protecting yourself against injuries).

That's all I can think of right now.

And yeah, well done!! It is very different to run a half marathon compares to a 10 km. Things happen to your body. I get aches in my neck and shoulders, and some times my nipples bleed 

[Gracii Guns]

7 hours ago, SoulMonster said:

Some thoughts:

Do you run with a watch to keep track of your pace? If not, I would highly recommend it. It is really helpful to know how you are doing on larger runs and if you have a goal, it can help you steer towards it. They don't cost a lot and you don't need a fancy one. I only use it to measure my pace (minutes per km), distance run, and average pace. 

You indicated that you ran slower at the end. This is entirely normal and especially when you run a longer distance than normal for the first time. What you should aim for, though, is "inverse split". This means that the second half is run faster than the first half. In a competition run, the last kms will also be a sprint, which further strengthens the inverse split. To do this you really need a watch, or to really, really be familiar with your own body while running to know what speed you are at. So if you did the half marathon in 3 hours (resulting in an average pace of 8:30 min/km), an ideal plan could have been to run the first half in 8:40 min/km and then the second half in 8:20. More likely, the next time you were to run a half marathon, you would attempt to shave off some time, say 2 hours 45 minutes (translating to 7:49 min/km), giving you an ideal pace of 8:00 for the first half and then 7:40 for the second. Having a watch helps you execute on this plan.

The reason I asked about how you felt after 15 km is that by now you have likely exhausted your readily available sources of carbohydrates, unless you ate/drank something while running. For shorter runs (< 10 km), you don't need to fuel up, only water will do, but when running longer you will be running on fumes and that causes all kinds of unpleasantness. During competitions they usually hand out bananas and sugary drinks. It really helps although it is hard to eat while running. But yeah, next time bring with you something or have something sugary on your water bottle.

How about footwear? You run a lot so you are probably already very mindful of this, but make sure to replace your shoes often enough, especially if you run a lot on tarmac. Active runners may buy new shoes every half year or so. Keep a couple which you alternate between. It helps to prevent injuries. Buy proper shoes, from proper shops. Sometimes they can study your foot and recommend special shoes for your running style/foot. A popular brand is Hoba (I personally don't like them because the roll too much on my heel). You just need to figure out what works for you. But don't wear them down before you replace them, that can cause injuries. Replace often. And running is such a cheap hobby (compared to many other sports and training at a gym - spend some of the money you save on protecting yourself against injuries).

That's all I can think of right now.

And yeah, well done!! It is very different to run a half marathon compares to a 10 km. Things happen to your body. I get aches in my neck and shoulders, and some times my nipples bleed 

Cheers Soulie. Yes, I run around with my phone in my hand. I do have a Garmin watch, but gave up on it as I didn't find it's tracking as accurate as I'd like. 

As for shoes, I run with an Adidas pair. I think in the new year I'll get kitted out with a more specialist pair. When I started running, I was just using a really cheap pair of generic trainers. While I managed to reach 5K in them, getting a proper pair of running trainers made such a difference. Thanks for your advice regarding nutrition and hydration. I think I'll get a little hydration pack for further longer runs. 

I'm not sure if I'll have much time to commit to running further than half marathons, so I'm thinking of just running around 10km three times a week next year, and looking at another aspect of my health to improve instead.  

[SoulMonster]

23 minutes ago, Gracii Guns said:

Cheers Soulie. Yes, I run around with my phone in my hand. I do have a Garmin watch, but gave up on it as I didn't find it's tracking as accurate as I'd like. 

As for shoes, I run with an Adidas pair. I think in the new year I'll get kitted out with a more specialist pair. When I started running, I was just using a really cheap pair of generic trainers. While I managed to reach 5K in them, getting a proper pair of running trainers made such a difference. Thanks for your advice regarding nutrition and hydration. I think I'll get a little hydration pack for further longer runs. 

I'm not sure if I'll have much time to commit to running further than half marathons, so I'm thinking of just running around 10km three times a week next year, and looking at another aspect of my health to improve instead.  

When running in the forest I keep my phone in a backpack, in case I get in trouble and need to call for help. It actually happened about two months ago when I strained my calf and couldn't run any more (barely able to limp homewards). It was very cold and I didn't have extra clothes so I called my wife who came and picked me up. But I also have the watch just to pay attention to my pace.

I started doing a half marathon every month in addition to running about 14 km every day (7 km to work and back). It was too hard for my body and now I am running 10 km every second day. I also do 2-3 competition runs per year (10 km), so the running I do every week is perfect preparation for that distance. I used to run half marathon competitions, but then you need to run quite a bit more for preparation and it is hard to find the time for that, in addition to the extra strain on my knees. On alternate days I either do some inhouse workout or row. 

I have had all kinds of injuries. Plantar fascitiis on both sides, which is annoying but you just have to muscle through. I tend to strain my right leg muscle whenever I try to get back into the swing of things after having had some injury. Both knees are bad and I had knee surgery earlier this year, occasionally I need to take a break for the pain to subside. Still, if my knees can keep up I intend to do this for years and years to come. Together with paying attention to what I eat it helps me keep my weight. I also really enjoy the running (always have), especially in the forests where I live. When not overdone it is good for my heart and lungs. And I get to set an example for my kids - that an active life, and exercise, is entirely normal. 

[Destiny]

18 hours ago, SoulMonster said:

Things happen to your body. I get aches in my neck and shoulders, and some times my nipples bleed 

Oh no! Chaffing!! I've heard some stories back in the day from people in a runner group I was attending. Getting into the shower after a long race and screaming bloody murder when the water hits the chaffed areas

11 hours ago, Gracii Guns said:

As for shoes, I run with an Adidas pair. I think in the new year I'll get kitted out with a more specialist pair. When I started running, I was just using a really cheap pair of generic trainers. While I managed to reach 5K in them, getting a proper pair of running trainers made such a difference. Thanks for your advice regarding nutrition and hydration. I think I'll get a little hydration pack for further longer runs. 

I'm not sure if I'll have much time to commit to running further than half marathons, so I'm thinking of just running around 10km three times a week next year, and looking at another aspect of my health to improve instead.  

There's a magazine called The Runner that has loads of info if you're into it. Plus they do regular running shoe reviews which are pretty informative. I use to buy Brooks brand running shoes from my local running shop and they are pretty pricey. But after awhile I figured I don't really need them since the longest I run is 3 miles at a time

There's a website for the magazine also.

[Silverburst80]

Followed this guy for awhile, this is fun if you wanna switch up your cardio.....and believe me you'll be blowing and getting a sweat on after 10 rounds 3 mins each

 

[Dean]

Do any of you do wild swimming? I was once described as the swimming equivalent of Paul McStay but I think just overkill of swimming a couple miles every day for years took it's toll on me in my youth and I just dropped it. I'm thinking of looking for spots near me that it would be safe to do so, just while the swimming pools are shut.

[Gibson87]

I started taking my fitness more seriously a few months ago and now I'm in the best shape of my life! I haven't been this light in at least 2 years.