tips on running?

[Berserker]

I was going to post this in a new thread, but decided that this can be posted in this topic. I'm a beginner, just joined winter track in my sophomore year, and I'm currently doing spring track. I'm pretty mediocrce, but the problem about my running is that I've had these strange shin/knee injuries ever since December. The doctor says that they're shin splits, and that they'd go away in a few weeks with rest and ice. However, they've still been hurting me for around 5 months nonstop; I've seen a physical therapist and done an x-ray, and both say that I have no fractures, etc. My shins feel stiff from my upper ankle to my bottom knee, but they don't hurt when I'm running. Occasionally, every few hours or so, I feel this terrible sensation of a mixture of burning/stinging in my shins for a few seconds to a minute.

Here's my running background: I run a bland 5:40 for a mile and 2:50 for the 800m, and I usually practice 25-31 miles a week on road and track. I ice 1-2 times after practice (most of the time), and for around a month I'd been doing 30 minute stretches to increase my flexibility, which the therapist said was involved in my injury. However, I'd stopped a few days ago. I've been to multiple sites, and many offer the same advice. Is my injury mild or serious? Should I stop for a few weeks and concentrate on weight lifting/cardio, or can I continue running? I know this is somewhat unrelated to running tips, but if anyone has any advice/experience with this sort of thing, I'd appreciate the help.

 

[XCPetro5678]

I still think that an ENTIRE community for RUNNING ONLY would give better advice than just some gamers with running as a part time.

I don't run part time. I play pokemon part time, not even.

well, actually, I've noticed a dramatic increase in my shape over the past two weeks, which are the weeks that I've been the most sore through. My updated mile is like 5:20 and I tried my hand at the 5K, getting 16:15. fair for a first try. I don't really care about the form; I've reverted to doing what's comfortable. my question to all you vets is, how should I practice. ironically, I've been doing something like 4 miles a day of 400's and 200's and stuff. the sprinter practice. should I continue like this or change the workout? how should I change it?

16:15 is a great time for a 5k, very nice, especially as a Freshman. You've definitely got potential and I'd 100% say that running the Mile and a 5k is why you only ran 5:20.

I'm having trouble believing it was the 400's and 200's that helped you run such a fast time in something as long as the 5k. It's possible your body just works that way, but generally, it's much better to get miles in and have two days a week of workouts. Workouts being quick 600's to miles and everything in between, possibly even 400's, but for a 5k I'd of stuck with just 800's. Although, because you liked the 200's and 400's, you'll probably want to go for the faster, shorter distances.

Oh here (a suggestion to try and tweak to what works for you):

If you want to experiment, I'd suggest running 35-40 miles a week (if there's any problems stop immediately, and if it's fine after a few weeks bump it up, your call). Then, do two good, hard workouts a week. A race day is considered a workout. Try something my team calls "Book Ends". Start with a 400, then a 600, 800, maybe a mile, 800, 600, 400 all decently fast. I'd suggest running the first 400 in 75-80 seconds (if you can run a 16:15 5k that should be ok for you). Gauge how that 75-80 second 400 feels and apply that amount of work into the other distances. You want to be tired after the workout but not dying, it should not feel like a race, more control. It's a great workout and I do it fast being a Miler mostly. (Hammering the last 400 in 65 can be fun, I've done it in 58, but puked up my Oranges from earlier, so bad idea... citric acid)


I have some other suggestions for workouts if you like this one and find it helps. Keep us updated!

 

[Sixonesix]

lol you do distance? At my school that's where all the truly devoted people are, because they have to run outside in winter. Chicago winter.

 

[nevada11]

I'm a little younger than you(Eigth grade myself), but what I could tell you is to get coaching .

 

[NC]

well, actually, I've noticed a dramatic increase in my shape over the past two weeks, which are the weeks that I've been the most sore through. My updated mile is like 5:20 and I tried my hand at the 5K, getting 16:15. fair for a first try. I don't really care about the form; I've reverted to doing what's comfortable. my question to all you vets is, how should I practice. ironically, I've been doing something like 4 miles a day of 400's and 200's and stuff. the sprinter practice. should I continue like this or change the workout? how should I change it?

Unfortunately, I would be 99.9% sure you were timed incorrectly for that 5K. 16:15 would be under 5:20 per mile for all 3.1 in a 5K and it is much harder to keep that up for 3.1 miles than for just one. For example, in CC season, I ran the mile in 4:50, but barely broke 18 minutes for a 5K race. According to the Daniels formula VDot pace chart, a 16:15 5K race would be roughly equal to a 4:43 mile race, and even if you are tired, if you are that good, your mile time would most likely not go up by ~37 seconds even after a 5K.

 

[XCPetro5678]

Unfortunately, I would be 99.9% sure you were timed incorrectly for that 5K. 16:15 would be under 5:20 per mile for all 3.1 in a 5K and it is much harder to keep that up for 3.1 miles than for just one. For example, in CC season, I ran the mile in 4:50, but barely broke 18 minutes for a 5K race. According to the Daniels formula VDot pace chart, a 16:15 5K race would be roughly equal to a 4:43 mile race, and even if you are tired, if you are that good, your mile time would most likely not go up by ~37 seconds even after a 5K.

I kind of assumed something was wrong so I gave him a workout that will push his limits. If he bites it bad, then we know there were some timing errors. If not, he just didn't try all that hard in the mile. Granted, he probably won't try the workout but just an idea.

Keep us updated on your times!

 

[Stathakis]

bleh. track just ended (houston starts and ends early to avoid 100+ degree heat). I missed the week of conference (april 22nd) to go to geneva on a student government summit, which just ended. I'm pretty pissy at the possibility of being timed incorrectly; I'll look into that. I'm not entirely sure if I can continue running, as schoolwork is becoming very stressful lately.

xcpetro: that bookends thing, I do a variation of that with shorter distances (2 200's, 2 400's, 2 600's, 2 800's, and then back down). at this point, basically all I did for practice was like 4 miles a day of assorted sprint distances (usually no longer than 400's). the practice you suggested, while good, is prob'ly impossible for me to do, just because I no longer have access to a track until the fall. over the summer, I'll swim a lot, but it won't completely do me good. as it is, I'm in my peak shape for the freshman year. and I'm still doing rather mediocre compared to everyone else. the fastest 5k in my grade is like in the low-mid 15's. the fastest mile is like 4:20. and I'm sitting on my 5:20 mile and my almost surely mistimed 16:15 5k. next fall cross country starts, so I can work on the 5k, and my school is being completely revamped, with just about new everything, including coaches. our new athletics director played basketball for Duke sometime in his life, so he knows what competitive sports are like, and hopefully that will change my team workouts for the better. but from here on untill fall xc, my shape will dwindle as I become fatter and fatter until fall, when I'll get hit so hard by cross country that my head will spin. that's how it's always been for me, unfortunately, as I have nowhere else to practice. my dad has a treadmill, but the fastest it goes is 10 mph, which is a 90 second 400 and a 6 minute mile. ugh. but I guess it's better than nothing.

 

[Lee]

Bumping this shit up because I've got the biggest atheltics event of my life on Sunday and can't afford to be my stubborn asshole self here.

To cut a long story short, my club is sitting second in the league and a good performance will ensure promotion to the next division and an excellent performance could win us the championship. Unfortunatley, our best runner has fallen seriously ill and needs a liver transplant, whilst two of our other best guys are away on unavoidable business. So to fill in the gaps, I've been called in. The club were reluctant to ask because I've just came off a 4-month injury and I'm rusty as old nails but thats the desperation of the situation where in. I've had nine days to prepare.

Anyway, I'm officially listed as running the 5km and the 400 metres but may have to pick up other events due to the team being so depleted. I'm fairly confident with the running itself (done my first 400m in about a year today and got 57.4...got a couple days to refine it...I've got sub 16 minute 5kms in the past but that seems like a long time ago now :X) but I'm looking for advice on those seemingly little things that make the big differences; I just don't have any room for error.

i) Food? What should I be eating over the next four days? I know carbs are good but if anyone could share their culinary secrets with me, it would be much appreciated! Also, it's an all day event; I'll be about 50 miles away from home so will need to bring some form of pack-lunch. What sort of foods should I bring?

ii) Rest? In the week since I found out about the event I've been training constantly. How much rest should I give myself prior to the event? I want to get in as much training as possible but I also want to be fresh...Some people have said 1 day, others have said 3. What would you reccomend?

Thanks, and wish me luck.

 

[Jimbo]

for i), like you said carbs are good, the night before stuff like Pasta, bagels, potatoes, etc, would be good. The day of half a bagel and/or a banana would be good because they'd fill you up but not weigh you down. Definitely no coffee or carbonated drinks. For lunch something like an English Muffin with Peanut Butter would be fine.

Definitely eat something that'll agree with you... Also, try to eat ~an hour before the event, you don't want to eat right before the event (though you probably already know this).

No idea for ii... Hope I helped a little though, good luck in your events.

 

[Da Letter El]

While I'm not sure this is the best place to get advice on athletics, I would say that jimbo hits the nail on the head with eating. Just don't eat anything really filling and stay healthy. Oh, and nothing gassy. I had a bean burrito 20 minutes before a basketball game and threw up at halftime. Not fun. Morals: Don't eat right before, don't eat gassy stuff, and eat healthy.
For Rest, I would say have one day's rest and on the morning before the run have a light jog in the morning. It'll get your blood flowing without getting you tired. Other than that, there isn't a whole lot I can say, just good luck!

 

[Kingdrom]

Bumping this shit up because I've got the biggest atheltics event of my life on Sunday and can't afford to be my stubborn asshole self here.

To cut a long story short, my club is sitting second in the league and a good performance will ensure promotion to the next division and an excellent performance could win us the championship. Unfortunatley, our best runner has fallen seriously ill and needs a liver transplant, whilst two of our other best guys are away on unavoidable business. So to fill in the gaps, I've been called in. The club were reluctant to ask because I've just came off a 4-month injury and I'm rusty as old nails but thats the desperation of the situation where in. I've had nine days to prepare.

Anyway, I'm officially listed as running the 5km and the 400 metres but may have to pick up other events due to the team being so depleted. I'm fairly confident with the running itself (done my first 400m in about a year today and got 57.4...got a couple days to refine it...I've got sub 16 minute 5kms in the past but that seems like a long time ago now :X) but I'm looking for advice on those seemingly little things that make the big differences; I just don't have any room for error.

i) Food? What should I be eating over the next four days? I know carbs are good but if anyone could share their culinary secrets with me, it would be much appreciated! Also, it's an all day event; I'll be about 50 miles away from home so will need to bring some form of pack-lunch. What sort of foods should I bring?

ii) Rest? In the week since I found out about the event I've been training constantly. How much rest should I give myself prior to the event? I want to get in as much training as possible but I also want to be fresh...Some people have said 1 day, others have said 3. What would you reccomend?

Thanks, and wish me luck.

Thats not a bad 400m time, especially coming off a surgically repaired knee, iirc. I won't pretend to be a cook, but potassium is great for an initial burst of energy. Foods like Bananas and Oranges (or the same variety of juice) are good sources of that. Make sure that you stay away from salty or overly acidic foods as they can either dehydrate you or aggravate stomach juices (heartburn+running sucks). Bring something healthy that you know you'll like. Whether it's a peanut butter sandwich or turkey on a wheat roll, a nice routine eat will help you from getting too anxious.

A bowl of oatmeal with some brown sugar usually works for me in the morning, but a whole-wheat bagel or hard-boiled egg and toast, or even shredded wheat cereal are good choices. Insoluble fibers are what keeps you full, so they will ensure that you don't get hungry prematurely.

A light workout in the gym for your arms would be good, as a good runner uses his arms to propel themselves foward. I'd say a light workout with a pair of 15 kg dumbbells would be best, or maybe 70% of what you normally do. And be sure to get a protein supplement/smoothie afterwards to help the recovery afterwards.

The human body requires a little less than two full days of recovery to reach full physical capacity again. Make sure to do a full workout two days before, then a usual warmup and cooldown on the next day.

Stretching. Dynamic stretching is your best bet, especially in the morning of the day of. Pulling a leg muscle right when you need that extra burst of speed sucks, that's what happened to me when I ran track a few years ago. I personally would have something spicy to clear my nasal passages before the event, because I hate blowing "snot rockets" in the middle of a race.


That's about all I can think of, I don't know how well my tennis techniques carry over to running events but much of the preperation should be similar. Also you should take whatever we say here with a grain of salt because we are definitely not experts on the matters.

Good luck!

 

[Expert Evan]

Good luck in your event Lee as about a week's time gives you limited time to prepare indeed.

Food: For carbos I recommend potatoes and anything that has promoted your success in the past as our bodies react differently.

Rest: Don't get overworked about the event and try to relax and stay calm and focused and things shall fall into place.

 

[KOL40]

I got a question about running shoes. I'm in training to be a firefighter, and i run everyday and lift weights three days a week. When i lift i split like this:

(back/bis)
(chest/tris)
(legs)

I'm not your average guy in the gym (guys who do a million crunches followed by three sets of bench and a million curls seven days a week). Every workout i do AS MANY compund movements as possible. Deadlifts, squats, cleans, push press. My question is about footwear when running. I do 3 miles a day on the road around my house. I always sprint the uphills, jog the flats, and just kinda ''coast'' downhill (like a lengthened stride). Running has ALWAYS given me excessively tight calves. Now, this is compounded by lifting weights, obviously. As i am typeing my hams are so tight i can't even straighten my legs all the way. Could this be affected by footwear? I run in the classic new balances (i think 574). I have been recommended to buy some Nike free's, as they stimulate the natural footfall of barefeet. I have read that these shoes can DRASTICALLY reduce tightness in calves up to the point of eliminating. Do any of you guys run in these? What are opinions here? Cause i don't want to drop $80 on shoes that won't help. I mean, they do look pretty good, but still...

 

[DM]

Tightness really has little to do with footwear, the only thing that changes is how drastically you hit the ground and the comfort of your feet. Tightness in your muscles means you aren't stretching them adequately beforehand. Especially with legs, you need to be careful. Go for reps instead of maxing out, and always start each different exercise with a warmup set.

 

[FiveKRunner]

i) Food? What should I be eating over the next four days? I know carbs are good but if anyone could share their culinary secrets with me, it would be much appreciated! Also, it's an all day event; I'll be about 50 miles away from home so will need to bring some form of pack-lunch. What sort of foods should I bring?

ii) Rest? In the week since I found out about the event I've been training constantly. How much rest should I give myself prior to the event? I want to get in as much training as possible but I also want to be fresh...Some people have said 1 day, others have said 3. What would you reccomend?

Carbs are truly overrated in any race under 20 miles. Your body has 2000 calories worth of glycogen stored at all times which is what's used for your aerobic workouts. When you carbo-load you're doing so knowing that it's going to be stored as fats for later in such an event when your glycogen is depleted and energy is going to be derived from fat.

So for your lunch, stick to something that is not only healthy but similar to what you normally eat. There is no point in trying something new only to find out mid race that it won't sit well in your stomach. Just avoiding greasy foods that are heavy in fat or things like candy that are simple carbs which don't do much for your body should be enough.

While they were suggested by others, I would highly discourage both oatmeal and orange juice on the day of the race. Any other time, they would be great. My experience with oatmeal (which is a great complex carb by the way) is that it sits in your stomach for an unbearably long time. You'll still feel it when you go running up to 4 hours after eating it. Orange juice on the other hand would be the last thing I would want to feel burning my throat as I puke up (which could be likely if you push yourself too hard just coming back). If it's a morning race, try to eat light, having maybe a banana and some dry cereal with a bit of water or sports drink for breakfast. Maybe within 30-45 minutes of the race some honey would be good, it's just like energy gel. If it's in the afternoon try to eat the same general thing but make sure that you get your big meal of the day out of the way around 5 hours before the race.


As for rest, sleep is the #1 thing that people neglect in their training (I'm really guilty of this one). Make sure that you get a full 8-9 hours of sleep per night, ESPECIALLY the 2 nights before the race. I'm serious about this one, those two nights will play a big factor in how fresh you feel for the race. Workout wise, don't overtrain. If the race is within the next 2 weeks, you're not likely to gain much. After distance workouts, make sure you do 4-8 100m sprints at about 85% effort to keep your legs used to the speed.

For actual time off rest, I'd suggest taking just one or two days before the race easy. Again, remember to do some of those sprints which will keep your legs fresh and ready to go.

Good luck in your race and feel free to let me know if you need any other advice.

I have been recommended to buy some Nike free's, as they stimulate the natural footfall of barefeet. I have read that these shoes can DRASTICALLY reduce tightness in calves up to the point of eliminating. Do any of you guys run in these? What are opinions here? Cause i don't want to drop $80 on shoes that won't help. I mean, they do look pretty good, but still...

I doubt that it's caused by your shoes. It's likely to be caused by the way you run. Try to loosen up a bit and be strong in your footfalls. Like DM said, stretching is likely to make a huge difference.

I looked up your shoes though and they really don't look like running shoes. I wouldn't recommend getting Nike Free's either unless you've been fitted for them. I don't know that much about them but if you ask me, running barefoot isn't something that needs to be simulated, especially if it may come at the cost of having no support for your foot like real barefoot running.

As expensive are in their prices, it's nice to get fitted by a running/athletic shop for some running shoes. They'll help you find out what fits best with your feet and you'll know what to buy later at a cheaper price.

 

[Lee]

Thanks for the tips guys. My bus leaves in just over an hour and I am shitting myself with fear but also pissing myself with excitement...running is such a mentally draining sport. I'm feeling quite good (unfortunately didn't get to sleep till 5am and was up by 8.20 :X) and have a decent lunch packed thanks to all your advice.

I'll let you know how I do, and hopefully get some pics (unless I do terrible in which case I'll probably just never mention it again!).

 

[Metallic]

Stathakis, I'm in almost the same postion as you were. I run a 2:29 800 and a 5:30 mile, and I'm going into high school this year. There really isn't much you can do about it except for train on your own. Also, try to have the most efficient running form possible, so you don't waste energy.


Also, good luck, Lee.

 

[Lee]

Cheers MF.

All finished now...been a long day but I loved every minute once I got my head around it. I was being overly superstitious early in the day and everything just seemed to be going wrong. I had very little sleep, my old knee injury seemed to be twitching and it really showed that I had only had nine days to prepare; I hit the scales before my race and my BMI came in at 24.2 (note that a BMI of 25 would mean that I'm clinically overweight :X)...I just hadn't had enough time to cut my weight down to a more acceptable level for distance running. The timetable also revealed that the 400m was at 3am, whilst the 5000m was at 3.30, so I was really rushed off my feet to recover and prepare.

Still, I was very happy with my performance. I racked up 55 secs in the 400m and 16.40 in the 5000m in my first real running event since early February. I'm getting my confidence back and looking forward to building on it. Thanks for all your help guys, I really appreciated it.

PS. I'll post some pictures in the Photo Album thread soon.

 

[Expert Evan]

Congratulations on your races Lee.

As for myself, I'm struggling just to get back into competitive running shape as age and lack of training has taken its toll on me. Now that I'm out in California for a week, I hope to get in more miles in my runs but at the same time my weight needs to come down. If I could at least get back to consistently under a 7 minutes per mile pace I would be satisfied.

 

[highstakespkmn]

All I can suggest is that when you're practicing, listen to some music, you'll find (well at least I do) that you push yourself more without even noticing it, getting in a better workout. It may sound like a dumb suggestion or not work for everyone, but getting that extra push in a workout is what really builds your endurance, and thats what works for me.

 

[Lee]

Listening to music whilst running is great for motivation and with a little innovation it can be used for Fartlek training or as a very rough method of timing yourself if you lack better equipment.

However, most major competitions forbid the use of headphones so I'd advise against becoming too dependant on them.

Good luck in your quest EE, hopefully it'll be you who's sharing his race stories next time around.

 

[highstakespkmn]

when you're in a race though the competition should be enough to drive you to push as hard as possible if you've been training that long for it. I did cross country/5k's in high school, and never really found that I became dependant on headphones at all, guess it can be different for different ppl, but for me it only helped I think.

 

[Expert Evan]

So far the change of scenery and being in Poway, California seems to motivate me as I got in a 1+ hour run that went around the corporate area of Scripps Poway Parkway and back. My legs felt very sluggish as I'll need to stretch or strengthen them more.