Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Kerrfunk's Running Advice
A coworker of my wife's got in touch with me because they want to run the Charleston Distance Run in 2017. I don't know the man, but I ran the CDR in 2015, and I was more than happy to offer my advice for training.
Here's what I wrote to him:
So you want to run the Charleston Distance Run 2017
I think that's great!
I started running around the year 2001, when I was going on 30 years old. I was never one for gyms, and I liked swimming as an exercise, but that takes too much effort (you need to have a pool, you need to go there, with a swimsuit, during open hours, too bad if you're traveling, etc). so I started running.
I still remember the one mile route around the block. I would walk a bit, jog a bit, walk a bit, jog a bit, until I was able to run the whole thing.
It wasn't long before my friend Scott started to get me signed up with 5Ks. It's good to do those because you run different when you run with other people.
I don't know how he did it but he talked me into a half marathon. I don't remember what I did for a training plan, but in February 2003 we did my first half marathon. I remember that thrill, and also the thought that I wanted to do another one, but not soon. I told myself I'd do a half marathon in odd numbered years.
And so every other year I'd plan a HM, just so I'd spend a couple months training for it. And true to form, I ran HMs in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2015. I think I had one in 2012, just because.
Some time late 2014 I learned about the CDR, and I knew I had to run it, so I registered for it. I did my 2015 HM in April, and then in June I started my training program (the one you've seen at the blog)
All that being said, and since I don't know you,
here's a couple words of advice:
Do this for you. You're not running against anyone else and you don't have to compare your performance to anyone else. I stopped running with a stopwatch about ten years ago. If you have to walk for a bit, go for it. No shame. Don't sweat your pace if you're not satisfied with it. There are ways to nudge your pace.
Get good running shoes and replace them appropriately. I run about 300 miles per pair, and I have a good relationship with Robert's in Huntington (there's one in Charleston, too). I like Asics gel.
I used to think running underwear was a scam, but I love the pairs I have. They're 93% polyester and 7% spandex, long boxerbriefs.
Get in the habit of running three to five times a week. Vary the distances and the routes. Run on a track every now and then, cuz you can pay attention to some different things. Set a monthly distance goal -- maybe 35 miles, maybe 60. Something that you can do and that will challenge you to improve (if you're training).
Make sure to do some crosstraining. Lift weights, or do the "W" workout on my blog, or do zumba, or something. Crosstrain 1-3 times a week.
Do intervals. That is, while you're running, alternate high intensity and low intensity. Sometimes on a 3 mile run I'll count paces. I'll run maybe thirty paces really fast, and then fifty or sixty paces of a comfortable recovery pace. Repeat for the duration of three miles. Sometimes the recovery will be walking!
You can also use a track for intervals. Run the lengths, recover the curves. Run 200m, recover 100. Mix it up. But intervals help with endurance and with pace as well.
Run somewhere with hills every now and then. Especially because there are some significant hills in the first half of the CDR. I can help you with hills, too. The second half of the CDR is pretty much perfectly flat. It got mind numbing, actually.
Last thing for now: Until the CDR, I had never run more than a half marathon, not even in training. If you can run 13, you can run 15.
Here's what I wrote to him:
So you want to run the Charleston Distance Run 2017
I think that's great!
I started running around the year 2001, when I was going on 30 years old. I was never one for gyms, and I liked swimming as an exercise, but that takes too much effort (you need to have a pool, you need to go there, with a swimsuit, during open hours, too bad if you're traveling, etc). so I started running.
I still remember the one mile route around the block. I would walk a bit, jog a bit, walk a bit, jog a bit, until I was able to run the whole thing.
It wasn't long before my friend Scott started to get me signed up with 5Ks. It's good to do those because you run different when you run with other people.
I don't know how he did it but he talked me into a half marathon. I don't remember what I did for a training plan, but in February 2003 we did my first half marathon. I remember that thrill, and also the thought that I wanted to do another one, but not soon. I told myself I'd do a half marathon in odd numbered years.
And so every other year I'd plan a HM, just so I'd spend a couple months training for it. And true to form, I ran HMs in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2015. I think I had one in 2012, just because.
Some time late 2014 I learned about the CDR, and I knew I had to run it, so I registered for it. I did my 2015 HM in April, and then in June I started my training program (the one you've seen at the blog)
All that being said, and since I don't know you,
here's a couple words of advice:
Do this for you. You're not running against anyone else and you don't have to compare your performance to anyone else. I stopped running with a stopwatch about ten years ago. If you have to walk for a bit, go for it. No shame. Don't sweat your pace if you're not satisfied with it. There are ways to nudge your pace.
Get good running shoes and replace them appropriately. I run about 300 miles per pair, and I have a good relationship with Robert's in Huntington (there's one in Charleston, too). I like Asics gel.
I used to think running underwear was a scam, but I love the pairs I have. They're 93% polyester and 7% spandex, long boxerbriefs.
Get in the habit of running three to five times a week. Vary the distances and the routes. Run on a track every now and then, cuz you can pay attention to some different things. Set a monthly distance goal -- maybe 35 miles, maybe 60. Something that you can do and that will challenge you to improve (if you're training).
Make sure to do some crosstraining. Lift weights, or do the "W" workout on my blog, or do zumba, or something. Crosstrain 1-3 times a week.
Do intervals. That is, while you're running, alternate high intensity and low intensity. Sometimes on a 3 mile run I'll count paces. I'll run maybe thirty paces really fast, and then fifty or sixty paces of a comfortable recovery pace. Repeat for the duration of three miles. Sometimes the recovery will be walking!
You can also use a track for intervals. Run the lengths, recover the curves. Run 200m, recover 100. Mix it up. But intervals help with endurance and with pace as well.
Run somewhere with hills every now and then. Especially because there are some significant hills in the first half of the CDR. I can help you with hills, too. The second half of the CDR is pretty much perfectly flat. It got mind numbing, actually.
Last thing for now: Until the CDR, I had never run more than a half marathon, not even in training. If you can run 13, you can run 15.
