Taking a dive back into running

[vi edit]

I'm 37 and did varsity cross country in high school and my freshman year of collage before I exploded the arch in my right foot overtraining and ended up with essentially career ending plantar fasciitis. It took me *years* before I was able to exercise without pain in my foot.

I stopped exercising, gained about 50 pounds in weight and just turned into a turd. In my late 20's I got back on the fitness bandwagon and started working out and playing some basket ball to keep in decent shape. A few years ago I started doing of the P90x workouts and getting into better shape again. But nothing overly cardio related outside of weekly games of basketball.

This summer my wife really started making an effort to burn off her baby weight and get back into shape. She was an all state runner in high school and also ran in college before she ruptured a disk and had to stop. She gave it a shot before pregnancy and really ran well. Then had a kid, never got super motivated, had a 2nd kid and a c-section that really left her belly messed up and she was carrying more weight than she wanted.

She started running in May and for a number of reasons I started to get more interested in trying it again. I did about 3 weeks of casual running with her and nothing more than a few 3 mile runs before doing a 5k this weekend. I ran a 23:08 with about 30 miles of training over a 3 week period. Of course she kicked my ass and placed first in her age group with a 22:09

She's signed up for a half marathon in October, I'm not ready/interested in anything that long right now. Maybe next year. But the fire has definitely been stoked and I'm excited to get some more miles under my belt and a foundation built back up for longer runs.

My goal is to get under 20 minutes by next fall for a 5k and maybe do a half with her next year. That seems like a realistic, yet still challenging number to hit. I'll be rabbiting her half marathon pace runs for my distance days and then eventually working in some interval days to work the speed side of things.

This post is really nothing more than a blog...and something to keep updating as I hit certain milestones. Then I can look back in a year and see if I was crazy or not

 

[blackdogdeek]

Good luck, OP.

 

[vi edit]

Thanks Deek. It's something I hope we can get our kids interested in as well. Mom definitely doesn't suck at running...and Dad ain't bad either. I think my daughter will be a hell of a runner if she actually wanted to do it.

Next race is this...

http://www.lexingtoncasa.com/#!superherorun/coca

Wife is already shopping for catwoman outfit.:wub:

 

[blackdogdeek]

It's something I hope we can get our kids interested in as well.

I think my daughter will be a hell of a runner if she actually wanted to do it.

My eldest daughter got into running as a 10 year old by doing this program: http://www.girlsontherun.org/ which is all about girls feeling empowered and empowering each other (I think) though to be honest she only trains when the 5K comes up as opposed to throughout the year. She was a competitive gymnast so she's already got good athletics.

Incidentally, the girls on the run program lets a parent run with the child so my wife, who has never EVER been a runner (read: got tired slogging to the corner), used c25k to get up to completing that 5K. Now, she's training to complete this year's NYC marathon.

I used to run xc and winter and spring track in high school. I have no desire to ever be a runner again .

Wife is already shopping for catwoman outfit.:wub:

WIN!

 

[Mursilis]

Good luck and report back on your progress! Your times, both you and your wife, are very good given your minimal mileage. You both should see huge gains with more regular training.

 

[vi edit]

Did my first 5 mile run in close to 17 years on Saturday. Those negative splits are purty. Getting my internal pacing clock honed in. I'm getting a feel for pacing back faster that I would have planned. Most training runs that my wife and I do are negative splits.

https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

Here's the data from my 5k:
https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

The 2nd mile was going up a gradual incline the whole time. I always ran negative splits competitively. Happy to see I still have that timing down.

 

[RagingBITCH]

Did my first 5 mile run in close to 17 years on Saturday. Those negative splits are purty. Getting my internal pacing clock honed in. I'm getting a feel for pacing back faster that I would have planned. Most training runs that my wife and I do are negative splits.

https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

Here's the data from my 5k:
https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

The 2nd mile was going up a gradual incline the whole time. I always ran negative splits competitively. Happy to see I still have that timing down.

It's very unfair to see guys getting back into it whose runs are better than my own But awesome job...especially looking at your HR, definitely capable of more

 

[vi edit]

I've been a little shocked at how quickly I was able to step into things. And I'm running at the heaviest weight I've ever been active at. I'm 6' and 180 pounds. It's a pretty lean 180...but still about 20 pounds more than what I used to run at when I was competitive. My upper body is stronger than it's ever been though and that's readily apparent when pumping up hills. I live in a very rolling neighborhood. Deceptive amount of hills. Use my arms to help chug through them.

This weekend I could have easily pushed for the full 6 miles and dipped down into the 7's for pacing. Still had a lot in the tank. Later this fall I may try and shoot for a 46 minute 10k.

 

[vi edit]

Well...I ran 5 miles @ 38:30 last Saturday by myself. No running buddy. It was definitely a brisk pace, but not full effort. That 46 minute 10k doesn't look that far off.

4 mile run this morning was @ 8:08 pace and it took everything I could to keep off the throttle. We were trying to keep pace for my wife's half marathon in October. HR was averaging in high 150's for the run. Getting my conditioning back. Yay!

 

[Mursilis]

Impressive progress! You're probably ready for a half later this year. 13.1 really isn't that hard if you just pace yourself properly.

 

[vi edit]

Yeah, I probably could. But I won't do a half just for the sake of doing a half. Too cheap, too competitive. I'll consider one when I'm ready and able to give it a good effort.

I don't need a 13.1 sticker on my car. I'd be a lot happier with a "I broke 1:30" sticker instead.

 

[Mursilis]

Good luck at going sub-1:30. I've been chasing that one some this year but missed both times. I'm hoping I may be able to fitness from my Nov. full into some decent Dec. or Jan. half times. We'll see how it goes.

 

[vi edit]

Yeah, it's a very aggressive goal. Back in my younger days I ripped off a 20k race @ 6:47 pace without really training for that distance. I was coming off of 3 mile cross country race training.

I'm stronger, smarter and more stubborn now than I was then. Plus endurance doesn't take the hit like raw speed does as you get older. I think with a good balance of training and recovery (which I never gave myself when I was younger) I've still got some tread left on the tires.

 

[vi edit]

So I've been doing a lot of reading and going to change up my approach a bit. I've been studying up a lot more on the research of different aerobic/anerobic zones and I'm thinking that in a lot of our runs we're starting push that "no mans land" of pace where I'm not getting much of an aerobic benefit...or much of an anaerobic benefit either. It's just wasted energy.

So I'm backing off my pacing and *really* trying to keep my HR in that upper 140's to very low 150's range. Combing that with "feel" and the ability to maintain a full, fluid conversation while running to fully build up my aerobic base.

I'm cool with it. My wife is hating it. She's like an on/off switch with one speed. "GO FAST". I did my long run with her last weekend. I did 7 miles and she went on and finished at 9 miles. It was very humid, it's not an easy route (1300 feet of elevation change over 7 miles) and I was struggling to keep in that "comfort" zone of high 140's at a 9'ish per mile pace. At around the 6 mile mark she was getting pissy with the speed and eventually pulled away. She's running with a HR monitor too and is constantly in that 160+ range. I wrapped up my 7 miles and she dropped the hammer and put down her last two miles (8 & 9) at 8 minute pace.

We're starting to divert in philosophies here. I felt great after my 7 miles. No bonking, crashing or woozing. Legs felt good. That was Sunday. Today was a simple 3 mile training run and again, very humid. I kept it casual with an average HR of 151 and a pace of high 8:30's. She pulled away again in the last mile trying to turn up the speed. Her average HR was 161 the whole time.

Tomorrow is a "race pace" run for her half marathon. It's 5 miles and since it's her first half I have no idea what her "pace" is. I'm guessing somewhere in the 8:15-8:20 range. So we'll knock that out tomorrow with an expected higher exertion.

I've really been trying to get her to scale her training runs back a bit..but she's not hearing any of it. I'm just waiting for her to crater or get injured running that hard that often.

It's not going to be a pretty "I told you so" moment.

I'm just going to keep on plugging along on the slower days and let her do her own thing. Let all that research on aerobic training do it's thing and when the weather starts to get cooler and less humid I'm going to get a natural bump in speed through the ability to actually breathe.

I've got a 5k on tap this weekend and the weather is going to drop almost 20 degrees vs. what we've been running in. It will feel awesome. I'm going to be shooting for around 22:30, which is not an aggressive goal given my run in August. But I've done zero speed work or interval runs. It's all just been basework. So curious to see how that plays out.

 

[Mursilis]

I can sympathize with your wife. When I go out and feel good, I want to stretch the legs and push the pace, but you're right, you need to get in the slow, easy miles to build the aerobic base. So you know what 'cured' me of the 'too many fast miles' problem? Upping my mpw average. Right now as part of marathon training, all my weeks are at least 50mpw, with some into the 60s. This includes at least one long (10+ mile) run, one speed workout (usually 10+ too after warm-up/cool-down), and one tempo workout (also usually 10+). The other 3 days are all 'easy' days, with one rest day. Believe me, I look forward to that rest day, and holding easy pace on the other days. Your wife might want to add structured speed/tempo workouts 1-2 times per week, and up her miles on the easy days, and maybe then she'll want to back off a little on the other days.

 

[RagingBITCH]

So I've been doing a lot of reading and going to change up my approach a bit. I've been studying up a lot more on the research of different aerobic/anerobic zones and I'm thinking that in a lot of our runs we're starting push that "no mans land" of pace where I'm not getting much of an aerobic benefit...or much of an anaerobic benefit either. It's just wasted energy.

So I'm backing off my pacing and *really* trying to keep my HR in that upper 140's to very low 150's range. Combing that with "feel" and the ability to maintain a full, fluid conversation while running to fully build up my aerobic base.

I'm cool with it. My wife is hating it. She's like an on/off switch with one speed. "GO FAST". I did my long run with her last weekend. I did 7 miles and she went on and finished at 9 miles. It was very humid, it's not an easy route (1300 feet of elevation change over 7 miles) and I was struggling to keep in that "comfort" zone of high 140's at a 9'ish per mile pace. At around the 6 mile mark she was getting pissy with the speed and eventually pulled away. She's running with a HR monitor too and is constantly in that 160+ range. I wrapped up my 7 miles and she dropped the hammer and put down her last two miles (8 & 9) at 8 minute pace.

We're starting to divert in philosophies here. I felt great after my 7 miles. No bonking, crashing or woozing. Legs felt good. That was Sunday. Today was a simple 3 mile training run and again, very humid. I kept it casual with an average HR of 151 and a pace of high 8:30's. She pulled away again in the last mile trying to turn up the speed. Her average HR was 161 the whole time.

Tomorrow is a "race pace" run for her half marathon. It's 5 miles and since it's her first half I have no idea what her "pace" is. I'm guessing somewhere in the 8:15-8:20 range. So we'll knock that out tomorrow with an expected higher exertion.

I've really been trying to get her to scale her training runs back a bit..but she's not hearing any of it. I'm just waiting for her to crater or get injured running that hard that often.

It's not going to be a pretty "I told you so" moment.

I'm just going to keep on plugging along on the slower days and let her do her own thing. Let all that research on aerobic training do it's thing and when the weather starts to get cooler and less humid I'm going to get a natural bump in speed through the ability to actually breathe.

I've got a 5k on tap this weekend and the weather is going to drop almost 20 degrees vs. what we've been running in. It will feel awesome. I'm going to be shooting for around 22:30, which is not an aggressive goal given my run in August. But I've done zero speed work or interval runs. It's all just been basework. So curious to see how that plays out.

HR is definitely the way to go...something I only caught onto a year ago, despite years of training. She's gonna do what she wants - no point in trying to argue with her. (I have the same convos with my own) Given your runs so far I'd think you could easily hit 21:30 if not less. I'd err on the side of balls out vs regretting not going all out. Good luck!

 

[vi edit]

On the topic of injury imp...I got bit first

Was doing a very casual recovery run after a harder day yesterday. At about mile 2.9 of 3.0 I was coming down a hill and my calf cramped up on me. Finished up that list bit and walked home. 6 hours later it's still tender. Leaning more on the side of a minor strain than cramp at this point.

Will have to see about that race on Saturday. If it's still nagging me I'll skip it even though I pre-registered. Turns out that men nearing 40 are high risk for calf injuries according to most running sites.

Booo. I've been so busy lately maybe it's good to take a bit of a break and get in some more strength training. Been getting really bad about that since upping the miles/days I was running.

 

[|JosephB17331|]

From what I've gathered , down hills can be dangerous as it stresses different muscles..
Age doesn't help either I'm sure

 

[vi edit]

Ran a 21:57. Calf was a little gimpy, 2nd mile was uphill and with a wind right in my face. Plus it was a special Superhero run and in the second Mile you picked up figures on the ground and brought them to the finish. I ran 2.1 miles with a 12" plush Spiderman in my hands.

It was a small race. Less than 700 people. I was 7th overall. Third in my age group by place. But since the guys in front of me took 1st and 3rd overall I actually fell into first place for the 34-39 bracket.

Could have been faster... But still only been at this for less than 2 months and had a busted wheel(calf).

 

[RagingBITCH]

Ran a 21:57. Calf was a little gimpy, 2nd mile was uphill and with a wind right in my face. Plus it was a special Superhero run and in the second Mile you picked up figures on the ground and brought them to the finish. I ran 2.1 miles with a 12" plush Spiderman in my hands.

It was a small race. Less than 700 people. I was 7th overall. Third in my age group by place. But since the guys in front of me took 1st and 3rd overall I actually fell into first place for the 34-39 bracket.

Could have been faster... But still only been at this for less than 2 months and had a busted wheel(calf).

Good job sir! Knew you had a 21:30 in ya...you wouldn't be running 8's as your easy runs if you didn't.

Take it easy the next few weeks - heal up.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Nice!

 

[vi edit]

Thanks guys. Here's the data from the race:

https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

I didn't know the course (not something I could drive before hand since it was a private park) and was lazy and didn't fight for the front of the pack at the start. So I went out too aggressive trying to work my way through all the morons that sprint the first 1/4 mile and die. Went out a little fast then had to stop and pick up my giant spiderman doll a little after the 1 mile and then hit that continuous climb + wind. You can see a sharp drop in pace about half way through the 2nd mile and then I wind back up in pace. That's a hard u-turn going back down the hill with a nice strong kick at the end. I didn't finish as aggressive as my race back in August which was a bit disappointing, but still had an over minute faster time on a harder course. So..eh.

Calf feels better...going to give it a go tomorrow and get back on the saddle.

Since I'm starting to wind into form I took care of a midlife crisis bucket list item...got my first tattoo

I'm a star wars nerd...scum and villainy baby! I also do a ton of X-wing miniatures table top gaming and I always roll with the bounty hunters as my pilots/ship of choice.

https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

 

[vi edit]

Signing up for my first half marathon..

http://www.thezionhalf.com/

Next March. Looks like a beautiful race. Will fly into Vegas, drive up to the race and then spend a few days "recovering" in Vegas afterwards. Course finishes at 4000 feet in elevation. I live and train at 1000 feet. It's not *super* high up, but I'm sure I'll feel some effects of the thinner air there. I've got another 6 months to really get my base built up. Just hope this winter doesn't suck like last year and I can still get in some good weekly miles.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Good luck! That area looks beautiful. Zion is on my Big List of National Parks to Visit Eventually.

 

[vi edit]

Couple updates...just to treat this like a psuedo log...

Did 1st half marathon in October
Time: 1:47:10

Been in sort of a lazy training cycle since then, just a bunch of 5 mile runs with some 8 mile long runs on the weekend. My wife has been injured since the half marathon...some sort of sciatica pain hasn't really been training.

We start back a true training cycle in December she's trying to get healed up for.

This morning I was short on time so instead of doing a long run I did a tempo run...it went decent.

https://onedrive.live.com/?id=E46BB...2A&group=0&parId=E46BB480E134A82A!128&o=OneUp

Did that by myself and with no real warmup other than the first mile. Now I'm real curious to see what sort of 5k time I can drop. I'm guessing I've got a sub 21 in me. That 7:02 split actually felt kind of easy.