theres a really good book i'd reccommend that you read.. "Once a Runner". you cant go wrong. trust me on this one ;)

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i dont think you're overdoing it. if you feel the need to walk, then walk. dont feel pressured to run. brisk walking gives similar CV exercise that running does.

you will feel sore 2 days after a big session. the soreness may last anywhere between 1-4 days, but with wither away. as long as you keep up the regular running, it will go away and get less and less.

its perfectly normal. if you're sore, it means you're doing something right.[COLOR="DarkSlateGray"]

Depends on the distance. If it's just a short one - say 5K (or 3 of your American miles), I don't bother much with water. More than that and I'll take a little water before hand and use a Fuel Belt to carry extra.

Personally, I think hydration is one of the most critical things in staving off injury, simply because of the way the body prioritizes it's own hydration needs.

If it's a long run and its a warm day, for instance, then the body draws moisture from less critical components of the body (skin then muscle) to protect more critical components (the brain), leaving those areas more open to injury.

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I tried to read it once but I seem to recall it being so badly written that I just couldn't get through it.

Yes. It will probably last another 3-10 days as your body adapts to the new stresses you're putting on it - which is good. You can shorten the length by drinking lots of fluids (water is much better for flushing lactic acid than sports drinks, etc.) and stretching the sore muscles several times a day. The BEST possible thing, though, is to keep running, because that soreness is just lactic acid build-up in your muscle tissue. Your body is currently not very efficient at eliminating it. It's basically just a waste-product of muscular energy conversion, and once it's out of your muscle cells, you'll feel much better. The best way to do that is to get lots of hydrated blood flowing past those cells to make the transfer more efficient. And what better way to do that than by going for a run?

This is all predicated on the idea that what you're feeling is entirely muscular and you didn't have some sort of impact injury you haven't told us about.

As the guy that recommended that book to dlish, let me wholeheartedly support that. It never won a Pulitzer, but the first time I read it I thought the author, John L. Parker, Jr., had crawled into my head during training runs and races. I've never found any other book that even gets close to describing what it feels like to run a race to win (as opposed to finish, which I know is a righteous goal for most) but even more importantly, what it feels like to do the training to be in the position to win. And for those of you who have read the book, I've done 3/4th of the quarters workout (thought I was literally going to die at the end), and I've run the Tobacco Road route with a guy who was the basis for a minor character. Everyone in that book is based on a real person at the University of Florida. If someone's interested, we can start a separate thread to discuss that since I don't want to derail this one any further.

[This is one of those times that I hate the way English can be so imprecise. My idea of "long" and "short" are always different than everyone else's, just like my idea of "hot" and "cold" are too. If the heat index is over, say 95F, and the run is over about 6 miles (meaning that a training run for anyone here is going to last between 36 and 54 minutes), water is probably a must-have. That doesn't necessarily mean you need to drink it - cool water on your skin can temporarily halt dehydration for a few minutes - so running through a sprinkler or spraying your face may be enough. For Charlatan in Singapore, though, drinking it may be more important. Again, our bodies are designed to run long, slow distance (compared to 4-footed prey) over harsh terrain, so with proper acclimation and preparation and forethought, you can handle a little more than you think (which is what running is all about).

highthief and I completely agree on how important hydration is. In my head, the top 3 things to prevent injury are strength (lifting etc), flexibility (stretching) and hyrdation. Those won't stop you from stepping off a curb funny and rolling your ankle, but they will definitely help with lots of overuse injuries.

HERESY! BURN HIM! ;)

Re: Once a Runner - it was long ago but I do recall it being badly written. I work in publishing so I have a low threshold for bad writing as I have to deal with so much of it at work!

:)

i run and i love it. i started on a running plan early this year, and i was shocked that i like it so much. its so relaxing to me and it starts my day off right. its my time to just think and clear my mind. i just hope i don't zone out so much one day that i run in the street and get hit by a car lol.

I tried running in 2004, really liked it, and injured my knee after a few weeks. After years of on/off PT, I can now run again! Which is awesome :).
We have a lake near our apartment with a 5K loop around it, so I've done that a few times already (and managed to do it without stopping last time, so that's good).

However, at times I felt quite tired from such a 30-min run, so I'm wondering what's the best thing to do in this case. The_Jazz (or should I say, Abou Crompsin), any suggestions? What would be good to eat before/after the run to have some energy? And how long before running should I refrain from eating something?

Thanks!

Ktsp

firstly, welcome back mate!

if you've injured yourself previously because of over-use and havent figures out why, then i'd advise that you ease into your running instead of throwing yourself into it.

if you are going to increase your mileage, add 10% a week and work upwards as a rule of thumb. 5km in 30mins (average of 6mins/km) for someone whos never run competitively is quite good.

there are many ways to beat the tiredness.. but is it tiredness, or phasing out?

as far as nutrition goes, your body starts burning fat and/or protein stores after 20mins for a non competitive runner. try keeping hydrated throughtout the day and before your run. try some sports drink that you feel comfortable keeping down.

i normally eat 3hrs before i run. but everyone is different, see what suits you best. i make an effort to go to the bathroom before i run too. the worst thing taht can happen is to feel like you need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the city or park with no utilities.

try having something high in carbohydrates beforehand, and make sure you include protein and carbohydrates afterwards to replenish your stores.

im not sure how detailed you'd like to go with the nutritional stuff, but she-lish is a wealth of knowledge and a certified dietition. Baraka is on holidays right now, and he's a brainiac for nutritional advice as well.

Thanks dlish!

Yup, I'm being more careful this time. I've been building up to reach this 5K mark. I'm currently debating whether to increase my speed over the same distance, or increase my distance until I get to 10K/6 miles (if I do so, I figure adding half a mile a week would be safe).

My previous injury had to do with uneven muscle strength (which caused patellar rubbing), so a lot of the PT I've been doing is focused on getting my muscles to be even across the two legs.

Thanks for the nutritional advice :). I get tired sometimes at the gym too, so it's not too surprising that running can be tiring too. Usually eating something carby around then gives me back some energy though. I don't want to lose weight from running, and certainly not lose muscle protein, so I figure I need to make sure I eat a bit more... Would taking something like whey protein after a run help?

Hope she-lish and babylish are doing well! :D

Jazz is the running expert here, but as an on again off again runner I definitely know what getting started feels like.


FWIW, prior to joining the military my father in law coerced me into running a 5K thanksgiving day race with my wife's family. I got off the couch and ran it without having run for several years prior. And I paid for it dearly, I messed up my right ITB so badly I could barely walk for a month.

The best advice I can give (as a reluctant runner) is to listen to your body and ease into it a little at a time in order to avoid injuring yourself. If something hurts (badly) which didn't hurt the day before, take it slow until you can determine if it is just discomfort or the beginning of a real problem.

As far as running style, I get made fun of every time I run, but it is usually as I am passing someone. I am not an efficient runner, my toes point out, I over pronate and my right leg hooks around in an odd fashion. I am naturally biomechanically inefficient, and no amount of training will ever fix that. I hope you aren't like me.

As a result of my poor form, I have been plagued by shin-splints my entire life. I have been able to manage them (though they always hurt, even when laying in bed) by taking Naproxen before bed to get the swelling down over night, stretching, running on soft surfaces whenever possible, changing shoes frequently (though not frequently enough I suppose), cross training (elliptical, bike, swimming, etc.) and pretty much just running through the pain. I hope nobody here has continued problems with shin splints, but these steps will markedly reduce the symptoms if you do.

Slims

kstp - daddylish gave some good advice there. Hydration is more important than food, generally since anything that you eat (excepting sugars) is going to take several hours to process. I'm rarely hungry for at least an hour after running, even if I skipped lunch, but that's me. If you're hungry after you run, eat. Definitely, however, drink. You might try some sort of sports drink within the hour before your run to see if that helps with the post-run fatigue.

It sounds like you know the cause of and solution to your injury, so just keep doing whatever it is you're doing - in other words, don't drop PT because you've started running. They need to work together.

Slims, I know your IT Band problems all too well. They put me in the pool for 2 months in college and probably cost me some hardware at the end of the season. I hope that yours cleared up and don't reoccur.

As far as efficiency goes, there's a theory that I've heard for years. It may have been completely disproven by the smart folks, but it states that runners naturally adopt the most efficient stride/form for their muscle strength, tightness, etc. Whatever you're doing is right for you, and what you're hearing is bitterness as people get a good look at your heels. That said, the two most exciting American 800M runners I've ever seen (both of these guys were world class and one held a world record in a seldom-run track event) had absolutely horrible form. Both were Olympic finalists (one of them twice) and both looked more like they were dancing the cha-cha than running, but in their prime they were faster than pretty much anyone you've ever known.

And again, I'm not an expert. I've just done it a lot and found what works for me. That's why I'll never tell you that your form is wrong.

I don't get running, never have. Walk? Sure. Saunter? Why not. Strut? Anytime I'm given the chance. But run? Unless I'm being chased by a homicidal maniac, I'll pass thanks.

^^ Running is really running away from something and towards something at the seame time. When you run, you have the feeling of achieving or even accomplishing goals and destroying obstacles at the same time.

Running is very staisfying but unlike masturbation ...

I've learned a lot about myself in the last two weeks.

Saturday is my "long run" day. I'm building that long run to 10 miles, in advance of my half marathon. From literally less than a mile, starting out.

Last Saturday, it was 1.5 miles. I've got to tell you, the first whole mile was complete agony. My calves were screaming the whole way. I got most of the way around my neighborhood, a point where my planned path went straight, but every left turn would be a shortcut home. Every intersection, I considered it, then stayed straight.

I got to the point where I needed to turn right and head one block away from home, to make it an even 1.5 miles, and I thought about turning left for probably the whole time I could see that corner coming... And then I watched myself turn right.

Finally I got to the point where I turn left and head up the long .5 mile hill to home, and I just let myself relax into my stride, I started rotating my spine, I started focusing on peeling my feet up at the end of my stride, and I just fucking RAN that last half mile. I got home feeling like I could do another mile or two, easy. It was the fastest part of my run, painless, I was flying. I sat down in my yard to stretch, and.. there was nothing to stretch. I'd done my stretching in that last half mile--I was totally loose. (I stretched anyway, of course!) It was amazing.

And then Monday was brutal all over again. I never really did hit my stride. I didn't short my run, but I worked the whole way around it.

Every man, woman and child should do a five mile run at least once in their life.

Hell, part of me wants to say that every man, woman and child should do a five mile run daily. But given that I'm probably not capable of running five miles right now myself, that would be a bit hypocritical.

ratbastid's above post describes part of the experience. Toughing it out, going the whole way. Sometimes it's hard, sometimes it's not. Sometimes everything just clicks and you're a goddamn machine. But when you get home, you always feel great.

well done rat. was wondering how you were doing with it. glad to see you pushing along.