5K Let down
So after the big 5K last weekend.. it took a few days to want to jump back in to my training. And once I did, I have to say, it felt a little disenchanting. Time to choose my next 5K… I need something to get motivated for. I am definitely noticing my stamina is improving… but still 2 miles is my “with ease” point… I have a way to go to hit that “3 miles with ease” goal. Also… I can’t figure out how to get my 5 foot tall body to move any faster than 5 mph… which means almost impossible to ever finish a 5K in under 30 minutes (my goal). Not sure how to make my legs move any faster other than a flat out sprint… and that won’t last for 30 minutes….. Any ideas?
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5 Comments: :
5K Let down
October 3rd, 2008 5:42 pm
adarian says:
What are you doing in an attempt to go faster? What are you doing in your workouts to go faster?
October 3rd, 2008 6:42 pm
Brad Hefta-Gaub says:
First of all, Congrats on your first 5K and Welcome to Sweat365!
Second… it’s not unusual to feel a little bit of a let down after a race… that’s very common. And you’re doing the right thing by setting your sites on a new goal.
Now, as for how to run faster… Here’s the secret:
Oh man… don’t you hate it when it’s an answer like that. Well… unfortunately its true.
Now, there are some very well understood techniques for training yourself to run faster, and as Adarian is likely going to ask… which of them are you using today?
Some common workouts are:
Track Workouts - These are workouts where you go to a track (local high school, college, or if you’re lucky maybe a city park) and you run laps around the track. The idea is to run 1 lap (or more) as fast as you can, and then rest a little, and then repeat. These are also often called intervals. The basic idea is that you can train your body to get used to running faster by pushing it harder than you normally do but for a shorter period of time. Since you say 2 miles is your “with ease” point… then I’d say that if you’re running fast enough, then you won’t be able to do more than say 6 laps (1.5 miles or work). But eventually you’ll be able to work up to doing more and more laps…
Tempo Runs - These are sort of like a normal run, but you should run it faster than you normally do. Maybe 25% faster than normal. Which of course means that you won’t be able to run as far. I’d suspect that if you ran at ‘tempo’ pace then you’d get maybe 1 mile before you’d feel really tired.
If you start mixing these kinds of workouts into your weekly routine (maybe once or twice a week) I am sure you will see an improvement in your running speed.
You can do it!
Good luck!
October 3rd, 2008 9:01 pm
ross33 says:
Great Tips Brad!! I am the slowest runner ever. I don’t really mind, I go for distance, but it would be great to break a 10:00 mile. I had know idea how to improve, but now I do..tnx
julskane-nice work on the 5k!!
October 4th, 2008 12:28 am
julskane1 says:
Thanks Brad for the new strategy! This is all so new to me… it’s great to have so much support out there!!
I’m going to give the track idea a try…while the weather’s still nice!
October 15th, 2008 6:26 pm
leisa says:
The interval training that Brad mentions is key Also, try Googling ‘fartleks’. Here’s one link http://www.active.com/story.cfm?SIDEBAR=13&CATEGORY=running&CHECKSSO=0&STORY_ID=10455
Some years ago, running fartleks really helped me build up my speed–well that just took me from molasses to maple syrup! But it really helped. I used these with my heart rate monitor—rather than distance. Running as fast as I could until the alarm sounded at my cut off point and then walking back until my heart rate recovered. They are very hard to do at first–but they make a surprising difference. I’m not quite there in my training yet to introduce these into my plan.