Hiro11

Anyone else race? In my last 5K last year, I broke 19 minutes (averaged 6:05/mile) and got passed in the last mile by a 13 year old. The little fucker flew past me on a downhill and I just couldn't catch him. What the hell kind of 13 year-old can run under 6 minutes/mile in a 5K?

I'm my first 5K about four years ago, I got beaten by an 8 year old girl who ran 8 minute flat miles in tennis shoes. Yikes.

eisenreich

I've already done a 4mi race barefoot earlier in the year, pace around 8:20. Coming up is a half-ironman tri in June, Olympic distance tri in Sept, and the Marine Corps Marathon in Oct.

I've never been overly fast, but I will say that minimalist/bf running has really made my workouts more enjoyable.

For those just getting their VFFs, I'd highly recommend reading the following sticky from a forum I read. Lots of good stuff, but the section on Form is the most revelant for beginners:
http://www.runnersworld.com/communit...ers-start-here

Ghym

Yeah, I race. I'm getting ready to run my 7th marathon in less than two weeks. I'm hoping to qualify for next year's Boston Marathon. I need to finish in 3:15, but I'm shooting for 3:10.

I've mostly focused on longer distances, like marathons and halfs, and I've only done a couple of 5k's. The last 5k I ran was last November after just starting to train again after my last marathon, and I ran it in 19:53 (6:22/mi). I'm pretty sure, if I focus on 5k distance, I can run one in a sub 6 minute pace. I just ran the Capitol 10k here in Austin a few weeks ago, after running 20 miles the day before, and ran it in 40:43 (6:33/mi).

I was running a 10k a few years ago, and I was behind a dad and his two sons, who looked to be 11 or 12. I figured they would tire out like most kids, but I chased them the whole race and couldn't catch up. I don't know what's worse, being beat by kids, or getting passed by guys pushing strollers uphill.

Th0r S1mpson

My wife has run two half-marathons (once after each pregnancy). It blows me away. She doesn't really "race" in that she isn't going for time, but that's about 4 times as far as I've ever run in my life.

Sdallnct

That's why I say "I sweat like a pig"....

...oh wait...LOL

Hiro11

Running a marathon just seems like absolutely torture for me. I've done a bunch of halfs and they really, really hurt. I have immense respect for people that have completed a full marathon, especially people who do them relatively fast. I have a friend who's over fifty and finished Chicago last year averaging 6:45s. He was close to being top 500 overall (which is insane in a major marathon). The guy's an animal.

That's awesome. My goal is to break 40 in a race I'm doing in June. That's 6:27s. I've been doing 4 mile tempo runs at right around 6:45 and mile repeats on a track at 6:10, so I think I'm getting close.

asabase

I race, but I'm way back in the pack at around 27-28 5k times. I've always half assed the training and this time I'm taking it much more seriously so I should hit low 26s. The race is memorial day, so I still have some time.

Pharoh

Might I suggest/request a title change? Perhaps the official Running thread? There seems enough of us to continue the thread going, and it might be more encouraging to new entrants to have a more benign title, one without Thor's travails. (Sorry Thor).

Pharoh

I did a few 50Ks before some setbacks a couple of years ago. More recently I've done a couple of 25ks. Always wanted to do a 50 miler, but haven't been able to get back to a sufficient weekly mileage level. It's like my body has plateaued, and lower than it was. I think I can run further, but my body, (back, ankles, knees), won't let me. Maybe I should just stick to fat assess. Any thoughts though on breaking through a barrier?

U6C84

Ok...did 3 miles in my VFF's today and I don't know if I'm doing something wrong or if I just put the shoes on wrong, because about 5 of my toes have blisters on them now. I guess I shouldn't have gone so far for only my 2nd run.

Th0r S1mpson

Just because lots of people are doing it, that doesn't make it not stupid.

And it was in jest any way. Still going to run. This is actually a great discussion and I think runners will check it out, if not at first to defend their beloved past-time. It's working so far. Don't make boring what ain't broken!

aktick

Any thoughts on the Nike Free shoes? In the past whenever I've been motivated and started running, I quickly get shin splints and end up saying screw it.

glassdragon

Keep your self cardio tips to yourself. I don't care how "interesting" it is

Tom Banjo

Cool thread.
I started the C25K about a month ago, but got lazy again after a couple of weeks. Trying to motivate myself to start over right now.

eisenreich

I ran my first marathon 3 years ago in a pair of Nike Frees and loved how flexible and lightweight they were. Back then they were more of a minimalist shoe with a low heel, now there are a range of options available:

The Nike shoe scale goes from 10.0 to 0.0 with a '10' being a fully supportive shoe, and '0' being completely barefoot.[4]

Example: The 5.0 Nike Free is like running halfway barefoot, the 3.0 is even less shoe, and the 7.0 is a bit more supportive.

Shin splints are likely a sign that you're going out and doing too much too soon. Find a plan like the popular "Couch to 5k" program and stick to it.

Probably a sign that you're still pushing off your toes when you run. With a more built-up shoe, you can get away with this, but you need to change your form with the VFFs.

"The focus on lifting the feet will also help prevent another common problem among new barefoot runners: “pushing off”. Many runners mistakenly believe their forward motion is created by using the foot on the ground as an anchor point and pushing off against that anchor to generate forward motion. This “pushing off” technique causes undo stress on the body, especially the legs and feet. It also causes runners to land with much more force than they would if they focused on lifting the feet."
- from the Lift Feet section of the post
http://www.runnersworld.com/communit...ers-start-here

Ultra marathons really interest me. If all goes well with my half ironman this year, planning on doing the full iron in 2011. After that I may venture in the field of Ultra distances; just fun continuing to see how far you can push your body.

One thing you may want to look at for your barrier problem is nutrition. I never really paid much attention to it before, but I've done a lot of reading and experimenting lately. Properly hydrated (Accelerade Protein Powder) and fueled (Gu, proper carb/protein ratio of foods), I've noticed a significant improvement in my strength and stamina during workouts.

That said, you also have to listen to your body and if you're experiencing significant pain, it may not be worth pushing yourself to the next level.

The best way I've found to do this is to find a local race, register, and pay for it. If it's simply an arbitrary goal, you'll be less motivated to get out there and do your program. Good luck, though, it is a lot of fun and one of the healthier addictions out there

The Dude

Gah! Got the boot off today, but it looks like it will be four more weeks before I can start running (quasi) seriously again...stupid stress fracture.

TimeandTide

Doing my first in May. The 12K Bay to Breakers in SF.

This might have been mentioned up-thread, but a great resource for finding local running routes is mapmyrun.com. There are a ton of user-uploaded routes from all over the U.S. and it's a cool tool to use when trying to map your own outdoor runs.

WallyOPD

to the title change!

Pharoh

How do you guys deal with illness? Do you run through it, or do you wait until you are relatively healthy? I am talking about bad colds, flu, strep throat, and the like.

cungar

Running through colds was a lot easier when I was 35 than when I was 45. I don't even try it now at 49. I hear it's a bad idea at any age.

Venusian

I hear it can lead to respiratory illness, not sure how true that is. I've also heard that you can work through head colds but not chest colds. If I'm feeling like crap, I'll usually take a break. Once I start feeling a little better I've run and it actually helps me feel good.


I've ran a few times on the VFF. Different so far. I feel my feet a lot more during the runs. My ankles seem to hurt after running on them and that almost never happens with shoes.

cungar

Vff?

Venusian

vibram five fingers (talked about earlier in the thread)

Hiro11

Perfect running conditions here in Chicago yesterday, upper 50s and overcast with no wind. Watched the second half of Avatar on blu-ray with the kids and then went for an eight-miler alone:

5 miles @ 6:40 (during the third mile of which I was convincingly dropped on the running path by some skinny high schooler in basketball shorts and a Paul Konerko Sox t-shirt. Goddamn it.)
2 minute break
3 mile fartlek: 3 minutes off, 2 on. I averaged about 6:50 a mile. Fartleks are seriously hard, it's difficult to change pace like that. The last "on" segment was death.

I felt good, but damn I needed a nap after the run. Instead I took the youngest kid to the pool, which was seriously exhausting...

DVD Guy ATL

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