A badge and advice on fatigue, please!

[Adflab]

Hi Everyone.

I’ve been lurking here since February, when I started C25K, so it’s a 1st time post. I’ve found all the posts and replies, over the last 6 months very helpful, thank you everyone.

I’ve now done 10k 3 times, so can I have a badge?

I feel very tired at the end of 10k and for the following 24 hours. I do all the right stretching etc, but the fatigue is very slow to go away. Has anyone got any advice on this?

Thank you.

[GoGo_JoJo Graduate10]

Well done! How's your hydration and fuelling on the way round?

Maybe you should consider having some type of recovery drink after. I find it really works although I tend to only need them now after 10 miles or more.

Try a For Goodness Shake from your local supermarket before investing in a sports specific.

[backintime Graduate10]

Your badge is well deserved !

I find eating carbs the day before helps. And some fizzy water, lemon juice and a pinch of salt helps after. But I'm no expert. Some people recommend eating protein after.

More experienced people than me will have better ideas but that's what works for me

[roseabi]

Here's your badge - congratulations!!

You don't say what food and drink you are taking before and after your runs, so it's a little hard to comment. However, I think that it could well be that you are feeling tired just because you are not used to running longer distances yet! Give it some time for your endurance running fitness to develop, and one day soon you will be wondering what all the fuss was about 💗

[davelinks Graduate10]

All good info given out, especially roseabi, remember how it felt in the early days of c25k and feeling wiped out after the runs, well, I think its similar,and it can take a couple of years to build runners legs, maybe strength and flex exercises would be beneficial..

[Mummycav Administrator Graduate10]

Welcome to the forum ...10k three times a week def deserves a badge!! As far as your fatigue goes..are you drinking plenty of water? And I'm not just saying the day before, I mean in general...these warm muggy days can take it right out of you...and the power of bananas is amazing too...if I could be anything other than human I would be a monkey...I love a banana!!!

[Irishprincess Graduate10]

Congratulations and well done on your 10K's! Now you can go out and do one just because you can 🙂

Your body has to get used to longer distances. It'll get better in time and you won't feel so tired. Just make sure you're well hydrated the day before and that you eat/drink some protein as soon as you can after your run. My go-to for longer runs if chocolate milk as apparently it contains everything a runner needs. I make my own with milk (your choice depending on your needs) and two teaspoons of good quality cocoa powder. You can add a banana to that if you want. I find this fills me up and keeps my energy levels up.

[Glynis1 Graduate10 in reply to Irishprincess]

Sounds delish I’m going to try that, thanks Irish Princess. 😁

[UpTheStanley Graduate10]

Why wouldn’t you feel tired after running 10k? I do, and I’ve been running for ever .... Unless you’re a marathon runner who’s doing 10k to stay loose, tiredness is your body saying “good effort, now gimme a rest!” 👍

[Adflab Graduate10]

Thanks everyone, there’s some great advice in there, which I’ll be following. I’ll try to stay hydrated, but that brings its own challenges to a man in his 50’s, but that’s a completely different post for another nhs forum🤣. Cheers

[GoGo_JoJo Graduate10 in reply to Adflab]

This calms down after a few weeks once your body adjusts to the extra fluids and weirdly "comfort breaks" return to normal levels 😉👍🏻

[triwoman]

All the comments above are fantastic but you need to examine your sleep patterns and see if you're getting enough quality sleep. Also, do some strength work and two shorter runs with just the one 10k per week until you stop feeling so fatigued. Check that you are getting enough iron in your diet. These are all things which worked for me in the weeks before London Triathlon when I was really feeling wiped out after a training session.

And by the way - I'm a lurker too and everything I've read on this site has helped to rebuild my running confidence after a serious back injury last year. Started like a beginner with C25k and the tri was a dream. So thanks everyone.