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Thanks for the advice Andi, I do feel like I could go out again the next day, no aches or tiredness, but haven't so far. I think I'll give it a go this week and see how it feels, the treadmill arrives on Tuesday too so I'll be able to fit in some more and can start the marathon plan soon, eek!
good work Watto! You'll have to come up with a new target for christmas now that you've pretty much done 5k
HI All,
So summary from weekend activities -
Personal Trainer session on Friday night and he pretty much killed me! interval training on the treadmill, squats, lunges, burpess etc etc
Rest day on saturday and Weigh In - only lost 1/2lbs which I was a bit dissapointed with but have had a few bigger losses lately so I knew a small one was coming! All on plan with food so should see a nicer result next week.
Sunday I went to the gym as the weather was horrible by me. Intended to do between 1 and 2 miles on the treadmill, however as the treadmill shows distance in KM, i spent the first half hour trying to figure out the conversion (maths is not my strong point!!), by the time i had gotton a grasp on the maths it was 3.7km, as i had done 0.5km as walking at the start to warm up, i calculated this to be 2 miles. I then took notice of how i felt and i felt pretty good, nice slow and steady pace (about 9.15min / km's) and thought I will try to get to 5km.
On the approack to 5k i upped the speed a little bit and then at 5k i realised if i pushed on to 5.5k that would equate to the full 5k running in addition to my warm up. Upped the speed some more and felt amazing when I hit the 5.5k mark, final speed was about 8.30min / km... wouldnt be able to maintain that for a long period though.
Was so happy to have ran it all. Scared that it was a bit of a fluke and I wont be able to replicate that on the roads as I am not so steady with my pace.
Overall time was about 45mins I think for the 5k. Feel ok today although legs and bum quite tired!
Andi - regarding Slimming World, i feel i eat more quality foods such as fruit, veg, lean meats etc but a lot less processed food and carby food than i did on WW or just eating normally.
I liked WW for teaching me portion control, but like the options that available with SW and like not having to weigh everything out.
The general idea is as long as your plate has 1/3rd superfree (fruit or veg) on it then the rest can be made up of free foods....meats, pasta etc. I love cooking and there are some great recipies, if your not a cook then i think SW could be a bit fo a struggle!
Well done Watto.
These barriers are great to break through. A lot is psychological, once you've done it once you know you can do it, and it becomes easier. Once you have done it a second time I think you've cracked it.
Marathons are the same you do one and then you are sort of just as nervous the second time... thinking maybe the first was a fluke... but once you've done 2 you "know" you can get there, and it's then about doing it 'better' be that more efficiently or if you want quicker, but just making the experience more fun
Your 5k is the same, you might be a bit nervous, but once you've done it again you'll be full of confidence
So plans for this week -
Sunday - Run 3.1 miles (Completed
)
Monday - Rest
Tuesday - Step Class
Wednesday - Run (Road Running - unsure on distance but think at least 2 miles)
Thursday - Rest
Friday - PT.
Saturday - Rest
Does that plan look ok? Not sure how much I should be running at the moment but def feel like I need a rest day today and no i will on saturday after PT.
My step teacher is back this week and therefore I am back at that class, although might try to do a bit of treadmill running before the class.
So my plan for running is the following - what do you guys think??
Week days - aim for 1 or 2 runs in the week on the roads. Between 2-3 miles, sticking around the 14-15min miles with my running buddies.
Sundays - Running on the treadmill and increasing the distance by 0.5 - 1km week on week. Almost the LSR mentality.
I thought by doing this I am keeping used to running on the road, but also increasing distance in a more controlled environment - ie steady pace, more cushioned landing than road for the old knees, safe as I can go to the gym on my own.
Am I being silly in trying to push the distance already (I felt great yesterday and to be honest could of probably carried on a bit more) or is it going to be ok as long as i do it slowly...ie 0.5 - 1km per week increase, non if i dont feel great?!
Is there any harm in building up the distance on a treadmill? In my mind it will build my stamina but just do so in a more controlled and safer environment. Then Jan / Feb time take the Sunday runs outdoors?
ps I hople LSR does mean long slow run like i thinkn it does...if not my post made no sense!!
Thanks booktrunk, definatly agree that a lot of it is pshycological! Do want to do it again on the road just to be sure!!
Nicola well done on your run
Watto - You are doing fantastic, being a newbie I can't offer an advice on the training plan really but just wanted to say you are keeping me motivated
thank you MS, I forgot to say well done aswell Nicola!!xx
Watto: If you can I would aim for 3 runs a week as opposed to 2/3 I've read on a few sites and they all seem to say if you end up running twice a week, as opposed to 3 times you struggle more as it's more maintaining, whereas the third run really seems to take you over the edge into improving. It will take a lot longer to build up the strength in the joining tissue etc... if you are only running twice a week.
So if you are doing Sunday as your LSR, then Maybe Tuesday / Thurs, or if you are busy on Tuesday then Wed / Fri for your other two runs, if that fits in with your schedule, the days doesn't really matter, but I think you will get a lot more benefit from thinking i'm running 3 days a week plus whatever else you want to do
Ok, that makes sence, do you think a quick run before my step class on a tuesday would be ok or would it need to be a different day?
I'm concerned about not having enough rest days, if my PT session didnt kill me so much, i could do the LSR on a Saturday, and then short runs Monday and Wednesday with Step on a Tuesday!
I wonder if it is worth ditching step class for a few weeks until my fitness is up and can manadge excersise with no rest days?!
Having at least one rest day a week is a very good thing to do.
If you can do it on spin day without it killing you then maybe
can you jog to your gym and back? or jog one way.
I guess it's what your prorities are, it might be worth dropping a class a week for a while until you are more comfortable with your running, but that's something only you can know you might still be getting more from a hard class then from a gentle jog, only you really know how you feel.
It might be that you find doing your LSR in a week day evening works better for you traditionally people do these things at the weekend. But, if it fits in with your lifestyle better you could do it in the week, especially if it's on a treadmill.
Thats a good point...calorie wise i burn a good 800calories when i do step class and i really enjoy it so dont really want to get rid of that out of my shedule, however, i do have about a half hour/40mins wait for the class so might try to plot a little route by the gym or just use the treadmill....although i am wary of getting too used to treadmill running and then finding it harder on the road.
If I do a mile or so before class then i should feel ok on the next day (wednesday) in time for a longer run and this one definatly on the roads!
Do people find much difference between Treadmill running and road running or have i built it up too much in my head?!
There is a difference, but frankly it's not huge. There are a couple of things like.
You should put the treadmill n a small incline to make it more emulate being outside... at least that's what most people say.
The biggest disadvantage i can see is that it's very repetetive. you are always coming down in the same way whereas outside most footfalls are different the road or grass or whatever slopes away differenty. So if you only use a treadmill you can get strains just because you are doing exactly the same thing.
You will be still doing a run a week outside, so it's not as if it's going to be a completely alien environment when you do at a later stage when you are building up the miles move back to running more outside.
Some of it is snobbery, people saying a treadmill isn't as good. No it probably isn't in an ideal world, but not many of us live in that ideal world. For 2 months last year I joined a gym as i was really busy with work, and ended up doing twice a week for 2 months on the treadmill. I did my first half marathon on it
except it cut out every hour so had to reset it and go again... hehe that was about 2 and a half hours of pure boredom 
but hey I did it.
One of your week night runs should be a little harder/faster so maybe make that your treadmill one, as it's easier to set the treadmill so you know you are going faster. As your LSR run is your easy run.. one of your other runs shoud be a harder run, otherwise you will just learn to run at the one speed.
ok thats all great advice thank you...i would be lost without this site!
So my standard plan for the next few weeks is -
Sunday - LSR (Normally on treadmill but may do road sometimes)
Tuesday - Short but faster run pre step class
Wednesday / Thursday - Normal Run (2-3miles on the roads, steady pace).
Sorry about all the questions, i will make this the last one!! For the the tuesday faster run, should this be interval training (say changing between 6.5 / 9.5km per hour) or just set the treadmill at say 7.5km an hour and do a steady faster run and try to increase the speed slightly every week??!
As my PT makes me do interval training, i'm thinking perhaps the Tuesday run should be faster than my normal pace but not interval training?!
I'm going to get banned of here for posting too much today!!
Sounds reasonable to me
try it for a week and see how it goes?
Done a rough training schedule based on one faster session per week (Tuesday), normal run (thursday) and then a longer slower run on a Sunday.
Times and distances are just as a guide and will predominantly listen to how i feel to determin pace and distance.
Tried to put in as a table and didnt work - might do a picture of it!
Not sure if that is clear at all?!
Just popping my head in to say hi - I'm new to running and even newer to forums so not really sure what the etiquette is re. joining threads. This seemed like a friendly one though! I've been reading about everyone's progress and finally plucked up the courage to join. I might stop by from time to time with my own progress if that's ok? It will probably be very slow though!
Welcome Fraggle! how is your running going?
My treadmill arrived today, but once I'd assembled it is was 7pm and I was tired and hungry. I gave it a go anyway but wasn't really in the mood and gave up after less than a mile
. Hoping next time I can do better!
Thanks Nicola! When I say running, I mean jogging at best! I have really only been doing it for about ten days (I've done four runs) but even already I can see how addictive it's going to get. I'm using a treadmill at the moment until I build up enough stamina (ok, courage!) to run outside. My first goal is to be able to run 5 km by Christmas. At the moment I can run 1.5 km without stopping (please don't laugh!
) and I'm going to up it by 0.5 km a week from now on. I'm not even thinking about speed yet though!
I'd really like to do a 10 km in the spring, so I was thinking that if I can do 5 km by Christmas, then after that I'll start running outside and build some longer runs in. At the moment I'm just trying to be patient and remember the importance of rest days! Oh, and some info: I'm female, early thirties, and have never run in my life before (although I have done a lot of other exercise in the past, not for a good while though!)
Good luck with your treadmill Nicola!
Hi All!
Welcome Fraggle, anyone is welcome here as far as I am concerned.
Good on you for starting jogging, i too am in the early stages and know what you mean in terms of it getting addictive! 1.5km without stopping is really good...that is nearly 1 mile!!
Pretty cr4py gym session yesterday, wanted to get there in plenty of time to have about half hour run before step class but got held up at work, so cut my warm up time down to about 5 mins and started running....knees hurt, back hurt and just couldnt get into a steady rythym. Did about 1k and stopped and just walked for a bit. Then went in to step class and still didnt feel right and all the twisting and turning was hurting my knees.
Have decided that I am going to lay off step class for a couple of weeks, just until my fitness improves a bit more and I am in a position to do my midweek runs without needing a rest day between and therefore dont have to try to cram in a run before step class.
Going to run on Thursday outside I think and ensure i complete a decent enough warm up so my knees dont hurt and i can get into a decent rythym.
I have ordered some new running leggings as I have three pairs currently but only one with a drawstring waiste (the ones without the drawstring just fall down when running)! Hopefully coming on thursday .... who doesnt love new clothes, even if they are gym ones!!
Welcome Fraggle, well done for getting started are you following a plan? I am doing the couch to 5k at the moment and should be running about 5k by end of November, you will find everyone on here is very encouraging
Watto, shame about your not feeling good, hope your next run goes better, maybe that couple of weeks off step will help, we all have good runs and bad so just hang on in there. Glad your getting to buy some new clothes I think I have more running gear now than normal stuff now
Nicola - Good luck with the next treadmill session
Hi Watto and MS, thanks for the welcome! I'm not following any official plan, just a made up one based on what I thought would be achievable. I thought that by starting slow and easy, I should be able to aim for 5k by Christmas by increasing a little bit each week. I've not really thought too much about pacing, I'm just doing whatever feels comfortable on the treadmill. I think maybe in a few weeks if I'm doing three runs a week at one distance then I might try to do the third one a little faster before dropping back to my "normal" pace for the distance increase the following week. I'll need to see though, I don't want to be coming out with all these grand plans and then not sticking to anything!
I have to say, reading about everyone else's progress has really made me believe that it is actually possible to improve even when it doesn't feel like it! I do have a million and one questions but I don't want to bombard everyone with them all at once!
Thanks everyone for being so friendly
and good luck with all of your own goals!
Fraggle: Just go out and run, don't worry about speed initially, when you can comfortably do 3 to 4 miles without worry about stopping then maybe look at putting a bit more variety into your running and looking at speed or other work, but just get in the habit of running first
There are so many bits of your legs that need to build up, the muscles build up quickly but the other bits in the joints can take longer to buld up and get used to you running.
so don't get to creative to soon just give your legs and body a chance to get used to the new you, and then take it from there, this also means you build a solid base fitness level, and your legs should then be up to the challenges you want to throw at them. It's just a case of starting not to silly so the legs adjust and can take whatever you then want to throw at them.
Thanks booktrunk, that advice makes me feel a lot better about taking it easy! I think I will probably stick with a slower pace till after xmas at least, when I'm more used to running regularly. I have no desire to be winning races anytime soon! At the moment I'm stopping when I still feel reasonably comfortable even though I probably could push it further. I'd rather have that energised feel at the end of a run than the about-to-throw-up one!
I've been reading a bit about your journey - it's blooming amazing! Very inspirational.
*blush* made me smile
The thing I've learnt is that you need to be slightly selfish at times, and you just need to keep on plodding. We all have bad days when things go wrong, you just have to put them out of your mind and just concentrate and put your best effort in for each run, or each days diet.
Agreed booktrunk.
Talk about plodding (or chugging as my husband calls it). Today was a slow one but at least I got out and stretched the sore muscles from Monday's circuits. Should make it a little easier to get out tomorrow for a good one....forever hoping,,,
Morning all!
Well I did my fifth run this morning and my first 2k! I was only supposed to be doing 1.5k, but I found that I still had a bit left in the tank so did the extra half km. I can now officially run over a mile! I have found that with each run, the point at which I need to look at the display on the treadmill is longer each time. The first time I was willing the numbers to hurry up and get to 0.5 km, then two runs ago I was surprised when the first time I looked down I was at 0.66 km, then today it was 1.2 km! I am going to keep it at this distance for the next week though seeing as I wasn't supposed to do 2 km today and I don't want to overdo it or risk injuring myself.
I have a couple of questions though - I'm unsure about how long the warm up/down should be, or what it should consist of. I've been doing about 8-10 mins of brisk walking before I start my run, and walking after then some stretches at the end. I'm just worried it's not enough though. So far no pain anywhere and I want to keep it that way!
Also, I gather that to better mimic running outside I should be setting the treadmill at a 1% incline - I've not done this so far but should I be doing this from the start? I am planning to start running outside after Christmas.
Hope everyone has a good run (or a good rest!) today