Category Archives: Running

Juneathon, LSR, Running

Why do long slow runs?

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Joe writes a great post on this. Key takeaways:

Running long provides a lot of great benefits:
# Strengthens the heart – larger stroke volume.
# Strengthens the leg muscles – endurance is developed.
# Mind Work – mental toughness and coping skills are developed.
# Develops fat burning capacity
# Increases number and size of mitochondria
# Increases capillary growth into muscle fibers.
# Increases aerobic efficiency.
# Increase in Maximum VO2.

I can’t wait to get my knee sorted and get back to these. I’d add:

  • The LSR helps you develop an enjoyment for running. The LSR is more leisurely, so you can watch the world go by.
  • If you do it on a Sunday, you sleep well and are better braced for the week ahead…
  • It shifts your frame of reference for distance running. I don’t think of a 10k as a particularly long run anymore, which is pretty amazing given that 3 months ago I’d never run more than 5…

Do you do/enjoy a weekend LSR? Why?

Oh: Juneathon day 28 – 5.5k cycles x2 (35mins), 100 sit-ups.

Injuries, Juneathon, Running

Pounding the tarmac once more

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After a week of doctor mandated non-running, two days of warm up work and back bike rides, and a large number of sit-ups, I was back out running this morning. A beautiful day, I took off at pace, feeling the warm rush of satisfaction at enjoying a form of physical exertion. The pace, needless to say, didn’t sustain itself the whole way through the run but my 5k circuit went OK, completed in about 31 minutes, a couple of minutes off my best time for the distance but by no means slow.

The knee feels OK – slightly tentative and I’m clearly going to need to take it a lot easier than I have been – but hopefully after a week or two of relatively gentle 5k routes I’ll be able to build up to a more substantial LSR. Juneathon stats all here.

Cycling, Injuries, Juneathon, Running

The gradual reintroduction of the knee

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No run this morning, despite earlier hopes. The pollen count is literally dismantling me. However; day 21 of Juneathon has seen 80 sit-ups and the reintroduction of the (this morning, very gentle) cycle to work (so I’ve done 5.5k and it’ll be 5.3 on the return journey tonight). The knee, whilst slightly tentative, is not too bad, which is pleasing on a number of counts:

  1. One more day off – and I’ll try a run on Weds
  2. Cycling again!
  3. The doctor was right – despite the strictures of the 7 minute NHS diagnosis mandate, he saw, assessed, diagnosed and prescribed the appropriate course of action to lead to recovery

It’s less pleasing because…

  1. The doctor was right – meaning I need to take his advice and reduce my mileage. He said it should take six months of build up before I was doing the kind of distance I was doing (it’d been three) – and I only have 3 months left until the half-marathon, so need to work out an appropriate level of training

I think I’m going to aim for a post Juneathon regimen that involves merely 4 runs a week – three at three or so miles and one longer piece which I’ll vary, between 6.5 and 13 miles over the course of the build-up – my “LSR.” I’m not sure if this is sensible or not, but I hope so… Any Senseis out there with a view? I probably do need to get a running coach…

Injuries, Juneathon, Running

The lingering gaze of a semi-wild goose

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I have a lot of time on my runs to think up subjects for these posts.

This morning saw me on my normal 5k canal route, having wrestled myself through a hayfeverish, semi-insomaniacal night’s sleep, at pitiful pace (34 mins for the circuit). I went GPS free, which was liberating in some small way, as at least Runkeeper wasn’t telling me that I was “behind my target pace”. I need to carry on with stretching even on “rest” days from running or this’ll keep happening – it was like a two day “runover” from Saturday’s 10 miler, knees click-clacking and quite stiff and sore well into the run (still low on actual pain, though).

Either that, or I need to seriously consider cutting back the mileage for the remainder of the month as the daily runs might ruin me otherwise… Thoughts? Halfway through Juneathon now…

For the curious, the geese in question live by the canal. They’re always lingering on the towpath and occasionally hiss viciously at me. Today they merely eyed me up, suspicious of my intent as I ran through a group of them lazing luxuriantly in the early morning sunshine.

Juneathon, Running

Juneathon day 13 and iced kneecaps

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Getting the willpower up to run today was HARD. Yesterday’s 10 miler was the longest run I’d done in about 3 weeks and, given the high mileage last week, I had pretty sore knees. Having iced them (HAH to commercially sold ice-gel-packs, hoorah to a bag of frozen peas) last night and again this morning, however, and topping it off with the anti-inflammatory ibuprofen (treating the swelling and therefore the pain, not just dulling the pain – I hope!), the worst of it was done and I forced myself out for another 30-minute 5k – which was a speedy way to start the week (my personal best for this route/distance is 29.06).

I still don’t know whether I’m doing myself real damage – it feels like the knees are strengthening and I’m still between zero and one on any meaningful pain threshold…

That said, I am really enjoying Juneathon, but beginning to get pretty tired. Hoping that I sleep a bit better next week and the pre-work runs don’t hurt quite so much…

Juneathon, LSR, Running, Training

Long Slow Run: Juneathon day 12

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Well, it wasn’t that long (10 miles), but long for someone training for a half-marathon I guess, and it wasn’t that slow by my standards – must have crossed the 10 mile mark around 1h44, which for me is pretty good – although still a way to go before I make my sub-2-hour-marathon-goal (would need to be hitting 1h30ish for the 10 milers – yikes!). Still, the first long run since my return from India (for me long = more than 10k) and it feels good to have it under the belt. Was patient with the stretching so hopefully won’t be too stiff and be able to manage a mid-length run tomorow too.

It does mean that my second week of Juneathon has seen me do another weekathon – and then some – topping out at 32.9 miles run this week (plus 20.2 miles cycled). Will be hard to sustain this pace, but am well on track to top out my 85 miles run in May…

Run log here, for the curious. Didn’t quite manage negative splits, but my best miles were 8 and 9, so am on the right sort of track, maybe, in terms of pacing myself. Just need to go faster the whole way through…

Injuries, Juneathon, Running

Building stretching time into my running routine

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I’ve started thinking differently in terms of timing my runs – basically estimating run time+10% for stretching. So where I allocate 30-ish minutes for a 5k, I now allow about 33-35 (allotting for variances in my pace etc) to give me a minimum of three minutes to get through my stretching routine. I give myself about 5-6 minutes on a 10k, and probably not long enough on the longer runs…

…but its already made a huge difference. The tightness in my shins is not a problem at all any more (although I’m still a bit worried about sore knees) and stiffness post-run is rarely a problem.  I’m feeling much more flexible in general… and, even amidst all the other Juneathon madness, I’ve run two pre-work 10ks this week (the second this morning as my Juneathon day 11 activity, another 60 minute 10k! w00t!) and am barely hobbling about at all.

I’m raring to go for longer runs tomorrow and/or Sunday, so will see if the “10%” rule applies – although I’m not sure I’ll have the patience to stretch for 12 minutes after a 2 hour run!

How do you plan your stretching?

Juneathon, Running, Training

Running standard routes and motivation

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I’m not one of those runners who finds it easy to motivate themselves on a daily basis. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t find running a trudge or bore – I’ve gotten into it, enjoy the music, the passing scenery, the quiet time and contemplation, and the obssessive compulsive determination to get fit and improve on my earlier times… but getting out the door at 6am when I’d frankly rather be in bed with my lovely wife… well, it takes some willpower.

Once I’m out the door, though, my lack of an overdeveloped sense of adventure and relatively restricted set of choices for running routes sees me (usually) run the exact same round-trip (depending on distance). A few of the #juneathon posts I’ve been reading have people stopping for photos etc., which is really fun to see and read, but doesn’t suit my style of running.

I don’t find it monotonous, though, despite the repetition, and it helps my willpower, for a few reasons:

  1. You can more easily chart improvement on a set route
  2. You don’t have the distraction of routefinding, dealing with unexpected traffic, etc.
  3. I don’t lose willpower and turn for home when I think I’m “around” halfway for my target distance (although GPS and Runkeeper has diminished this as an issue somewhat)

Social running would achieve much the same ends, but I’m yet to join a club or find a running buddy. That may change in the future.

Today: my standard 5k route was completed in 29.06, a new personal best* – and a second in two days! The knees are holding up too, although a little sore. I should probably check in with someone about those… maybe James’ Recover Fast dude… (oh, and to round off day 9 of Juneathon there’ll be a cycle in and out of work too).

*(I should clarify for those who have been following my running updates from the pre-GPS era – don’t trust those times. They were estimates based on MapMyRun and analogue watch readings. These are based on Runkeeper GPS, so hopefully a bit more accurate…)

Juneathon, Running

Weekathon – not as failed as I thought

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It turns out (thank you, Runkeeper) that if you track a week from Sunday-Saturday, I ran 26.3 miles last week. Oustanding – my first weekathon.

Today’s run was better than yesterday’s, but was all the same just a relatively gentle 5ker – still pretty hot for the UK at the moment and I’m acclimatizing (and recovering from whatever had me ill yesterday).

6 days into Juneathon… 24 to go. Keep sending good thoughts my way…