running tips / advice needed

[meltdown75]

I've been running for 20 minutes on my treadmill 3 times a week. I'm not experiencing the shin & knee pains that I had a few years ago when I was doing outdoor running, so that is good.

I do this and then do 5 sets of 20 physio ball crunches and some other misc. weight lifting using small dumbells (curls, some exercises on the physio ball, etc). this in addition to ice hockey once a week for 90 minutes comprises my physical activity.

I just want to make sure I am doing the running thing right. by that I mean, am I going to benefit from running in this manner? do I need to run longer or more often?

I guess my end goal is to just be in better shape and have greater stamina when playing hockey. I don't think I would have the stamina to run for 20 minutes if I wouldn't have been playing all these years. But I'm down to one ice-time per week!!

I've inadvertently dropped 15-20 lbs since November because of a new car payment and reworking my budget (no more money for fast food). Will I continue to lose weight by this routine or stay the same as long as I continue not eating fast food more than a couple times per week?

also, is it really true that a bad or improper workout is better than no workout at all?

 

[skace]

If you assume the second you step on the treadmill that you hit your target heart rate, then the 20 minutes at target heart rate would be the minimum and not a bad effort. That is most likely not the case though. So you should try to put 20-30 in at target heart rate. What you are doing isn't bad though, and if it is working, why the concern? You will probably naturally progress past the 20 minutes as you become better.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

What type of mileage were you doing back when you had shin problems? I used to suffer from stress fractures and shin splints, and I found that it's directly related to the amount of mileage I ran (i.e. as soon as I hit over 100 km/week, I developed problems, but anything less was fine).

You'll want to throw in a couple interval sessions since hockey is an anaerobic sport. For example, after running at a warmup pace, you could try 5x1 min or 5x30sec. Early on, give yourself a decent amount of rest (i.e. run slowly until your heart rate drops) - 3 or 4 min? Once you get fitter, drop the rest down until you get to a 1:1 ratio (e.g. 1 min hard, 1 min slow running). Then you can add more repetitions or increase the length of the interval.

I would start off with just one session per week and work up to two sessions. Do an easy run the day after intervals. Keep a log so you can track your progress. Don't increase either volume or intensity more than 10% per week, to avoid injuries. Have some harder weeks (two sessions) and some easier weeks (one session) - try 2 hard weeks, one easy week.

The three steady runs per week are good. Try to work up to 30-45 minutes if you can. It's good that you're doing the weights and crunches after the steady runs.

Eventually, you'll be up to 4-5 runs a week (1 or 2 sessions being intervals) and 2-3 weights/ball sessions. Monitor your shins and knees, and back off if you're feeling discomfort.

Oh, and good job on losing the 20 lbs!

 

[meltdown75]

Thanks for the great replies. I enjoy this subssection of the boards.

Back when I had the shin pains, I was doing interval training jogging that was 30 minutes total. 1min on, 30 secs off IIRC.

Someone here at work suggested it was because I was wearing cross-trainers and not actual running shoes.

the treadmill i am using doesn't have a heart monitor or anything so I'll have to check into that a little further, as far as taking readings and how long it takes me to get to my target rate.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
Someone here at work suggested it was because I was wearing cross-trainers and not actual running shoes.

:thumbsup:Yea, this is a biggie. Go to a running store (Running Room for example) and get properly fitted with the right type of running shoe. Get orthotics if you need them. You will save yourself a lot of injuries and disappointment.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
Thanks for the great replies. I enjoy this subssection of the boards.

Back when I had the shin pains, I was doing interval training jogging that was 30 minutes total. 1min on, 30 secs off IIRC.

Someone here at work suggested it was because I was wearing cross-trainers and not actual running shoes.

the treadmill i am using doesn't have a heart monitor or anything so I'll have to check into that a little further, as far as taking readings and how long it takes me to get to my target rate.

Ok, let me make some clarifications (and I'm saying this in good faith, so if my "tone" looks wrong, then I apologize ). Hockey is NOT cross country. The metabolic pathways the body uses for hockey and distance running are completely different. Hockey is a much higher intensity burst sport (phosphagen and glycolytic pathways), while cross country is a steady, long jog (oxidative pathway).

To benefit anything from your cardio FOR HOCKEY specifically, you should do high intensity workouts. You can do HIIT (high intensity interval training) on the treadmill or you could even do some sprints out at a track. Either way, you want to warm up. Considering hockey is mostly very high intensity bursts, it will use the phosphagen pathway mostly, with some glycolytic involvement. This means for HIIT, you should do anywhere from 10-30 seconds of very high intensity running (or swimming or biking) and rest 30-90 seconds (a work to rest ratio of 1:3). You want to do a fair amount of cycles for this, but when you start, it will kill you. You should research it further to learn about it yourself so you can maximize your results.

 

[IGBT]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
Thanks for the great replies. I enjoy this subssection of the boards.

Back when I had the shin pains, I was doing interval training jogging that was 30 minutes total. 1min on, 30 secs off IIRC.

Someone here at work suggested it was because I was wearing cross-trainers and not actual running shoes.

the treadmill i am using doesn't have a heart monitor or anything so I'll have to check into that a little further, as far as taking readings and how long it takes me to get to my target rate.

..you might check your shoes. If I use too firm a shoe I get shin pain. My latest running shoe are New Balance 870's All Terrain shoes. Very absorbent. No shin pain.

 

[gramboh]

Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha

Originally posted by: meltdown75
Someone here at work suggested it was because I was wearing cross-trainers and not actual running shoes.

:thumbsup:Yea, this is a biggie. Go to a running store (Running Room for example) and get properly fitted with the right type of running shoe. Get orthotics if you need them. You will save yourself a lot of injuries and disappointment.

This is really important. I'm just starting to get in decent shape over the past 6 months or so, prior to that I tried running a few times and had horrible shin splints/knee pain that prevented me from going for more than ~30min or 5km. I went to a running shop (Tech Shop here in Calgary) and got a pair of neutral New Balance (model #1023) shoes fitted for my wide feet. I then bought a pair of orthotics (paid for by my work's wellness plan) made and fitted. After this I still experienced a huge difference and can run much longer (although running is not a focus of mine). Definitely spend the money.

Another thing is stretching. After running now I use a foam roller to stretch out my legs (quads, hamstrings and IT band). I didn't even know what the IT band was until recently, but stretching it out has a huge impact on how your legs feel after running (especially around the knee).

 

[meltdown75]

This is all excellent advice. I appreciate it greatly. Thanks for the replies.

 

[StageLeft]

Some shin pains are just because your body has to adapt to the running. I have gone through a multitude of pains that eventually go away. And one or two that didn't (those are the nasty ones).

IMO, 3X 20 min/week will give you something. If you want to make it worth more merit, spend 5 minutes warming up (slow jog), 5 min running fatser, then 10 min busting your ass. That will give you a significant cardio increase, though the high proportion of "speed work" may predispose you to additional pains, so it depends on how you can handle it.

 

[Koing]

Hockey isn't the same pace for 20minutes...

You are better off varying your speed. e.g.

warm up
dynamic stretchs

jog 5mins
sprint for 10seconds
jog a minute
sprint for 10seconds
fast walk 2minutes
sprint 15seconds
jog a minute
sprint 10 seconds

repeat for 3 or 4sets.

Sure it is good for a basic level of fitness but hockey is not the same as running 20minutes at the same pace. You SAVE A LOT of energy by running at the same pace, if you sprint, jog, walk randomly it taxes your body MUCH more.

How long have you been doing what your doing? Switch it up like this.

Ditch the physio ball ab work. Do incline sit ups instead.

Koing