Is it possible to just suck at running longer distances?

[fuzzybabybunny]

I've always sucked at running long distances. 1 mile is the most I can do continuously. I'm 23, and I remember back in high school for PE class we had to run a mile at the end of the semester in XXX amount of time. The faster you ran it, the better your grade. I earnestly ran the mile every single class for the entire semester, and in the end I ran it in 7:19 or something like that. MAYBE it was barely under 7 minutes like 6:50. But there were people who didn't seem like they had trained as hard, and they just up and ran 6:30 or something out of the blue. I've never been able to run more than a mile or so, and it boggles my mind when I hear about people running 3-5 miles a DAY just as regular exercise or something.

Are there some people who just can't run long distances no matter how hard they try?

 

[MegaVovaN]

No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Couch-to-5k plan will get you running 3 miles nonstop in 9 weeks of training.
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml




>>>>>>>>I earnestly ran the mile every single class for the entire semester,
There's your problem. You ran one mile whole semester. Why do you expect to run fast or far? Training is about INCREASING load. Increasing distance, time, intensity.


MADNESS: Doing same thing over and over (running 1 mile at same intensity) and expecting a different result (run 3-5 miles or run one mile very fast).


edit: and 3-5 miles is not a long distance. Long distance is 20+ miles.

 

[LongTimePCUser]

Yes. Of course it is true. Some people have a lot of "fast twitch" muscles and can run fast for short distances but can't run fast for long distances.

 

[Net]

yes. its like anything else. some people will have a natural ability for it and other won't. if you don't have a natural ability for it then you'll have to work a little harder at it.

my friend has a lot more stamina then I do in things like running, doing push ups, etc... but i've always been able to lift more weight then him. my strength and muscle size grow faster then him but he can kick my butt in endurance any day.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Couch-to-5k plan will get you running 3 miles nonstop in 9 weeks of training.
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml




>>>>>>>>I earnestly ran the mile every single class for the entire semester,
There's your problem. You ran one mile whole semester. Why do you expect to run fast or far? Training is about INCREASING load. Increasing distance, time, intensity.


MADNESS: Doing same thing over and over (running 1 mile at same intensity) and expecting a different result (run 3-5 miles or run one mile very fast).


edit: and 3-5 miles is not a long distance. Long distance is 20+ miles.

heh, i did increase intensity. i got faster. i started doing 15 minute miles... then got to 10, 9, 8, 7, and hit a roof in speed. I'm not like those guys that somehow do 6 minute miles right off the bat. at the end of each mile run i was exhausted. i also have shorter legs... those who could run faster and longer were always a head taller than me or more. same with when i go hiking with people.

 

[dealmaster00]

It's definitely possible. Being short is no excuse; I'm a lot shorter than most guys but I used to run 10 miles a few times a week before switching to a strength training program.

 

[MegaVovaN]

About you hitting roof at 7 min/mile, it is diminishing returns.

Now start running more to run longer distance. Who knows, maybe when you can run 5 miles, you will break through the 7 min/mile "roof" when running 1 mile.

 

[SlitheryDee]

People ARE different when it comes to performance, but if you're a person with legs and no actual health problems then you should be able to train yourself to run for more than one mile at a stretch, period.

There are several approaches you could take though. This is what I did:

I got up to 2 miles of continuous running by starting out with a goal of 2 miles distance, but allowing myself any necessary rest stops along the way. As the running got easier the rest stops got shorter and eventually disappeared. Bingo, 2 miles of running accomplished. I set myself a limit on how long I would run each day before stopping to do the weight lifting portion of my daily regimen, and so in order to fit a 3rd mile in I had to first run the 2 miles much faster. When I was able to run 2 miles in 20 minutes I added a 3rd mile which I initially ran with any needed rest stops. Just before I got my elliptical I was running 3 miles continuously every day. Not bad for someone who really has no interest in running in and of itself. I believe I'm getting far better results with 30 minutes a day on my elliptical now that I ever was running, though.

 

[BeauJangles]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Couch-to-5k plan will get you running 3 miles nonstop in 9 weeks of training.
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml




>>>>>>>>I earnestly ran the mile every single class for the entire semester,
There's your problem. You ran one mile whole semester. Why do you expect to run fast or far? Training is about INCREASING load. Increasing distance, time, intensity.


MADNESS: Doing same thing over and over (running 1 mile at same intensity) and expecting a different result (run 3-5 miles or run one mile very fast).


edit: and 3-5 miles is not a long distance. Long distance is 20+ miles.

heh, i did increase intensity. i got faster. i started doing 15 minute miles... then got to 10, 9, 8, 7, and hit a roof in speed. I'm not like those guys that somehow do 6 minute miles right off the bat. at the end of each mile run i was exhausted. i also have shorter legs... those who could run faster and longer were always a head taller than me or more. same with when i go hiking with people.

First of all, you have to realize that everyone starts somewhere. Some people can just get up and run 3 miles in 21 minutes, most people cannot. If you can't, you just need to work at it. That doesn't just mean running three miles, that means working to improve you cardio, getting your muscles stronger, running longer distances, running shorter distances faster.

Your body adapts rapidly to the workouts you put it through and, if you don't change things up, you don't see benefits.

 

[Safeway]

Just because you got from a 15 minute mile to a 7 minute mile does not mean you will ever get to a 4 minute mile. As someone mentioned above, diminishing returns. Same with weight lifting.

 

[StageLeft]

U can be predisposed for short or far but basically your problem is you just need more miles in your legs, run more.

 

[Jahee]

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Oh so according to that logic.. Everyone has it in them to be elite track athletes at both 10000m and 100m with the correct training? Wow.

Do some research before you post things like that..

 

[BeauJangles]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Oh so according to that logic.. Everyone has it in them to be elite track athletes at both 10000m and 100m with the correct training? Wow.

Do some research before you post things like that..

Excluding people with disabilities, knee problems, leg problems, etc, I think that most anybody can train themselves to run a marathon or a sub-seven minute mile. Of course not everyone can become Usain Bolt, but that's not what we're talking about here.

 

[GenHoth]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Oh so according to that logic.. Everyone has it in them to be elite track athletes at both 10000m and 100m with the correct training? Wow.

Do some research before you post things like that..

Way to read that completely wrong. Wow.

The guy wants to run more than ONE mile without stopping nice job comparing that to being an elite athlete.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN
No, it's not possible. If you got 2 legs, you can run as fast and as long as you want. You have NOT been training well enough, hence why you can't run more than one mile. Stop looking for excuse and go train.

Oh so according to that logic.. Everyone has it in them to be elite track athletes at both 10000m and 100m with the correct training? Wow.

Do some research before you post things like that..

Both of you are making over-the-top statements? If you have legs, you can improve for a very long time, if you put the effort into it. However, as in everything, there is a physiological point at which one will plateau.

Also, don't be a twat in jumping to ridiculous analogies. What MegaVovan said has merit in the statement that the OP has not continually trained to his plateau, therefore his times will decrease still.

OP: It is possible to suck, but it is very possible to continually improve. Don't give up - you can always get your body in better shape. Fuzzy, you micromanage too much. You need to relax and just do your thing.

 

[BeauJangles]

Originally posted by: SociallyChallenged

OP: It is possible to suck, but it is very possible to continually improve. Don't give up - you can always get your body in better shape. Fuzzy, you micromanage too much. You need to relax and just do your thing.

Great advice. Getting into better shape can take time. For a LOT of people, you don't just wake up tomorrow and run a half-marathon. The gains you make are small. That might mean shaving five seconds off a five mile run, squatting a 1/2 lb more than you did before, or completing one more rep of an exercise. In itself, the gain is not small (sometimes barely noticeable), but when you take a step back and look at your body of work, you see a march of progress. That's why many people keep logs and journals. Without them, working out can become discouraging.

 

[Bateluer]

Since when is 1 mile considered distance? Same with a 5K. Those aren't distance runs. The mile is a very short run that barely gives you time to get warmed up. Runs don't become fun until you get to the 5 mile point.

In my experience running, people who say they can't run more than 1 mile to 3 miles continuously simply have a mental roadblock that needs to be dealt with. When I signed up for my first run longer than 5K, I never though I could run 7miles without stopping. I trained hard, ate well, got good shoes, but above all, I forced myself to continue running. After that, that distance roadblock was shattered and its never been a problem since.

Its true that some people have the fast twitch muscles that allow for fast sprints, and poor distance, but its because they need to develop their other muscles. Training, mental and physical, will deal with this.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: Bateluer
Since when is 1 mile considered distance? Same with a 5K. Those aren't distance runs. The mile is a very short run that barely gives you time to get warmed up. Runs don't become fun until you get to the 5 mile point.

In my experience running, people who say they can't run more than 1 mile to 3 miles continuously simply have a mental roadblock that needs to be dealt with. When I signed up for my first run longer than 5K, I never though I could run 7miles without stopping. I trained hard, ate well, got good shoes, but above all, I forced myself to continue running. After that, that distance roadblock was shattered and its never been a problem since.

Its true that some people have the fast twitch muscles that allow for fast sprints, and poor distance, but its because they need to develop their other muscles. Training, mental and physical, will deal with this.

Lol, my opinion is that runs aren't fun if they're above 800m. I guess to each his own I did cross country in high school to pass the time, train for soccer, etc. I'm a poor distance athlete, but I always improved so I didn't get down on myself.

Oh man, though, sprints are wicked. Adrenaline rush, patience, having a strategy - well, for the 400m anyways. The other races are just running as fast as you can

 

[SWScorch]

Ok, here's the thing. Sprinting and distance running utilize two different systems and muscle groups. Sprinting (400m and under) is almost entirely anaerobic and uses fast-twitch muscles. Your success in this department is largely decided by genetics. For example, I am severely lacking in fast-twitch muscle fibers. I could train for years and never break 12 seconds for a 100m. Distance running, however, is completely aerobic, meaning it uses oxygen to fuel your muscles as opposed to making them use "emergency" energy that is only useful for short sprints. What this means is that everybody has the capacity to improve immensely when it comes to distance running. All it takes is lots of hard work and time.

Your aerobic capacity is not encumbered by the percentage of ST/FT muscle fibers or anything like that. With enough training, you can increase the amount of oxygen circulated to your muscles 1000 times over. Everybody still does have a limit, but the limit for aerobic work is much higher than for sprinting. What this means is that you could start out running a mile in 15 minutes, but if you were dedicated enough and wanted it enough to run 70+ miles a week, you will improve. As you seem to have found out though, after a while, you start to plateau. Kicking up the quantity and quality of your workouts would keep your improvement curve alive a while longer, but eventually you would reach your limit.

So, with that said, anybody can improve a good amount when it comes to distance running because your aerobic capacity is affected by amount of work and the quality of that work, but yes, some people are still not going to be "elite" or anywhere near that, no matter how hard they train. I am actually a pretty good example of this. I was "decent" in high school, meaning I could run a 5K in under 20 minutes. I have since been logging 80+ miles a week, and last week I ran 16:42. If I ran 100mpw I might be able to break 16. But elite is 14 minutes. There is no way I could ever get to that level, no matter how hard I trained. So while I have improved to a level that might be considered "pretty good," I am still far from being "really good" or "great."

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: SWScorch
Ok, here's the thing. Sprinting and distance running utilize two different systems and muscle groups. Sprinting (400m and under) is almost entirely anaerobic and uses fast-twitch muscles. Your success in this department is largely decided by genetics. For example, I am severely lacking in fast-twitch muscle fibers. I could train for years and never break 12 seconds for a 100m. Distance running, however, is completely aerobic, meaning it uses oxygen to fuel your muscles as opposed to making them use "emergency" energy that is only useful for short sprints. What this means is that everybody has the capacity to improve immensely when it comes to distance running. All it takes is lots of hard work and time.

Your aerobic capacity is not encumbered by the percentage of ST/FT muscle fibers or anything like that. With enough training, you can increase the amount of oxygen circulated to your muscles 1000 times over. Everybody still does have a limit, but the limit for aerobic work is much higher than for sprinting. What this means is that you could start out running a mile in 15 minutes, but if you were dedicated enough and wanted it enough to run 70+ miles a week, you will improve. As you seem to have found out though, after a while, you start to plateau. Kicking up the quantity and quality of your workouts would keep your improvement curve alive a while longer, but eventually you would reach your limit.

So, with that said, anybody can improve a good amount when it comes to distance running because your aerobic capacity is affected by amount of work and the quality of that work, but yes, some people are still not going to be "elite" or anywhere near that, no matter how hard they train. I am actually a pretty good example of this. I was "decent" in high school, meaning I could run a 5K in under 20 minutes. I have since been logging 80+ miles a week, and last week I ran 16:42. If I ran 100mpw I might be able to break 16. But elite is 14 minutes. There is no way I could ever get to that level, no matter how hard I trained. So while I have improved to a level that might be considered "pretty good," I am still far from being "really good" or "great."

Yep, this is pretty much what you should think about, fuzzy.

However, to Scorch, 16:42 is freaking good. I wouldn't be too hard on myself.

 

[skace]

If you are constantly hitting a wall at 1 mile that you can't break through, it is entirely possible that there is something wrong with your health. It could also be possible that you aren't pushing yourself hard enough. Perhaps it's your breathing. Who knows.

 

[LS8]

Running once or twice a week isn't going to cut it. If you really want to be a distance runner you need to run at least 4 days a week if not more. I run every day (3 miles).

When I started running I couldn't make it two blocks at a jogging pace. Slowly over time I began to run further and faster. Now my 3 miles seem like a stroll around the block. I am sure I could double the distance and not work much harder.

The biggest thing I can tell you to do is get the right shoes and socks. If you have problems with blisters then you might need to tape your ankles and above your toes. If you try to run in some huge, high-top basketball shoes for any decent distance you are going to tire out fast. Lighter shoes are the way to go.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

For you guys who run, do you actually LIKE it? I can bike for miles and get my ass kicked - but at the end I still enjoy it and I enjoy what I've accomplished. I get my ass handed to me while hiking, but I love it just the same. As for running, it kills me, I get bored during the process of running, and at the end of it I don't feel like I had that much fun. Has anyone here actually developed a love for running when they hated it before?

And my breathing issue is definitely a factor. At the one mile mark I'm starting to feel severely short of breath, like lung capacity just isn't there anymore. I've tried running an extra lap afterwards but that just leads me to the point where I feel like I'm on the verge of passing out from an inability to get enough air. And this is from a guy who loves to snorkel and can hold his breath for 1:30 to 2 minutes regularly.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
For you guys who run, do you actually LIKE it? I can bike for miles and get my ass kicked - but at the end I still enjoy it and I enjoy what I've accomplished. I get my ass handed to me while hiking, but I love it just the same. As for running, it kills me, I get bored during the process of running, and at the end of it I don't feel like I had that much fun. Has anyone here actually developed a love for running when they hated it before?

And my breathing issue is definitely a factor. At the one mile mark I'm starting to feel severely short of breath, like lung capacity just isn't there anymore. I've tried running an extra lap afterwards but that just leads me to the point where I feel like I'm on the verge of passing out from an inability to get enough air. And this is from a guy who loves to snorkel and can hold his breath for 1:30 to 2 minutes regularly.

First of all - do what cardio you like. I don't like running long distances very much at all. I only do it every once in a while (usually to just get the blood flowing a bit when I'm just finishing being sick). So if you don't like running, find something you do like and go for it.

Also, it may also be other factors other than your lung capacity. Your body's VO2, ability to deal with lactate, etc, all contribute to how you feel and how you breathe. That doesn't exactly transfer over from being able to hold your breath. It's your aerobic capacity, not just your lung capacity. Just keep doing something you like, fuzzy. Also, are you doing any weightwork? Also if you get bored with distance, why don't you try some sprints?

 

[Riverhound777]

Didn't read the whole post, but it could be party mental. Are you running on a track? If so you get close to that mile mark and you give up knowing you will be tired. My suggestion would be to run somewhere else and not keep track of how far you've gone till after (meaning run along a street and then drive it later to measure how far you went). Also try thinking of something else besides running while your doing it. I use to have a similar problem with swimming. I couldn't swim more than 10 laps in a row without dying. Lately though I just stopped counting and started thinking about something else while swimming (just daydreaming). Before I knew it I was swimming 30 laps non-stop.