starting out running

Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

It depends on your current fitness level, if you're overweight, etc.

When I started last October I began on an elliptical machine for
about 4 months, building up to 30-45 minutes at a pace where my
feet were starting to lift from the pedals. This gave my joints
and tendons a chance to adjust without the pounding they would
take from jogging. I also dropped around 20 pounds at the same time.

I then started running on the health club's indoor track. (It was
winter in Colorado. You do the math.) At first I could only run
one lap (1/13 mile) then walk for a half-lap, but I could do it
for 30+ minutes from the start. I spent several months doing that
with the proportion of time spent running slowly increasing. I
think this approach is much more satisfying than the "run 1
minute, walk 9 minutes; run 2 minutes, walk 8 minutes;..."
approach many people recommend. As the weather got warmer I moved
more and more of my runs outdoors. (N.B., you can use cheap shoes
on the elliptical trainer, but need to get shoes from a speciality
store once you begin actual running.)

As stupid as it sounds I then started a 6 month marathon training
program before I was consistently running 3 miles without having
to stop to catch my breath. I had absolutely no expectation of
being able to run a marathon this year but thought it would be
cheap coaching. I honestly expected to stay with the marathon
group for maybe a month (until the long runs hit 6 or 7 miles),
then drop back to the half-marathon group through early summer,
then just hold the long run mileage steady at maybe 8-10 miles.

What I quickly learned is that I was running _way_ too hard even
though I was still among the slowest runners. It's impossible not
to when you're just starting out since you literally can't slow
down any further. But it left me trashed after all of our runs.
So I bit the bullet, listened to my heart rate monitor, and spent
a lot of time walking for the next month or so even as our mileage
increased.

This turned out to be exactly what my body needed. Within a month
I was comfortably running 8-10 miles nonstop, albeit at a slow
pace, and in the next three months I've increased that distance to
21 miles (a few weeks ago) and my pace has picked up.

The main lesson to be learned is to have patience. Nobody wants
to hear that it will take over six months to run 3 miles
comfortably (even if you're over 40 and a couch potato), but doing
so lays the groundwork for some incredible progress during the
following six months.

Bear

Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

Putting one foot in front of the other.

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Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

I started out with walking. Increased the vigor & length of walks. Started
adding bits of jogging. And so on. I do what feels comfortable on any given
day. If I've got a race coming up, I don't run the day before -- it's too
much for me.
bj

Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

Go for duration, not for speed.

Keep going for 30+ minutes, to start with. Walk as-needed.
When you get out-of-breath, walk for a couple minutes,
then start running again.

Try to run slow, and to run as long as you can before walking.

Do this 3 or 4 times a week. Do not try to run every day.

Take a day off whenever you feel any muscle soreness.
Take multiple days off, until the soreness is completely
gone, whenever you feel any soreness in a knee or ankle.
(Too much running before your body is strong enough
causes over-use injuries -- so don't over-do it.)

Gradually, over a period of months, you will walk
less and run more. You will eventually be able to
run for a solid 30 minutes. Then you can gradually
increase your duration beyond 30 minutes.

Gradually, over a period of years, you will
take fewer days off.

Steve

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

Right, left, repeat.

no, no, no, its,

right, left, swear, repeat

"Barf Bag" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

Right, left, repeat.

Use the time method: five sessions 20 minutes a week.
Jog until you breath hard, walk until you catch your breath, then jog again.
The first session you might start breathing hard in only 10 seconds. Thats OK.
The first two weeks you will also have muscle soreness in your legs. That
will pass.

At some point- it may be two weeks or twenty weeks- you'll be able to jog
the entire 20 minutes.

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Quoted message said:

What is a good method to start running?

A couple folks mentioned a walk/run interval. My wife started running
with me a couple months ago, and we built up like this:

Week 1: 1 minute running, 4 minutes walking (5 minutes total per rep,
6 reps)
Week 2: 2 minutes running, 4 minutes walking (6 minutes per rep, 5
reps)
Week 3: 2 minutes running, 3 minutes walking (5 min. rep, 6 reps)
:
:
et cetera. Basically, just keep increasing running time by 1 minute
every 2 weeks, and decreasing the walking time by 1 minute from the
previous week. You keep the reps at either 5 or 6 minutes, and do a
solid 30 minutes (plus 3 minutes to warm up and another 3 to cool
down). At some point, you'll feel ready to tackle 30 minutes straight
of running. From there, add time and/or mileage, but not more than
10-15% per week.

Your mileage may vary--but I've gotten her from "I hate running!" this
past April/May, to "Yeah, I could do a 5K in October" this week. (C:

Jim

run / walk / run / walk / and do some arm weights ... make sure you wear
running shoes ... not tennis shoes ...

PC Gameplayer said:

A couple folks mentioned a walk/run interval. My wife started running
with me a couple months ago, and we built up like this:

Week 1: 1 minute running, 4 minutes walking (5 minutes total per rep,
6 reps)
Week 2: 2 minutes running, 4 minutes walking (6 minutes per rep, 5
reps)
Week 3: 2 minutes running, 3 minutes walking (5 min. rep, 6 reps)

The problem with this approach is that your muscles will cool down
between running segments. I'm a big fan of keeping the walking
segments down to 30 seconds, and gradually increasing the amount
of time spent running. This approach requires you to find another
way to get into good enough shape to start out with at least a 1:1
ratio - it's just not practical to run for 15 seconds at a time.

In article <7KK3d.227542$Fg5.161154@attbi_s53>,

Bear G said:

PC Gameplayer said:

A couple folks mentioned a walk/run interval. My wife started running
with me a couple months ago, and we built up like this:

Week 1: 1 minute running, 4 minutes walking (5 minutes total per rep,
6 reps)
[etc.]

....

Quoted message said:

The problem with this approach is that your muscles will cool down
between running segments.

If this is a concern, one might be able to keep muscle temperature
from varying too much by alternating faster walking and slower running.
My slowest run almost seems more effortless than my fastest walk.

IMHO. YMMV.
--
Ron Nicholson rhn AT nicholson DOT com http://www.nicholson.com/rhn/
#include <canonical.disclaimer> // only my own opinions, etc.