I think I'd expected post grad runs to transform me into a proper runner. I'd read so many reports of distance and times on here and I saw no one as slow as me. I built up to 36 mins jogging and covered 3.8k. I know, I know, I know that that's ok and a great achievement on a personal level but subconsciously I was getting disheartened. I tried to perk myself up by choosing a lovely route through a deer park on a sunny evening, but that was the worst run yet...35 mins for 3.3k! .. I felt like a beanbag full of lead pellets dragging myself round being laughed at by the deer and the ducks! Had 3 days rest and forced myself out today saying that if Ifeel like I' m rubbish today that's it, my last run, accept I'm not a runner.
Did feel rubbish... For 15 mins then forgot about comparisons and sulking..... snuck up on myself and kept going until I'd completed MY FIRST 5K!!! in 45 mins!
Lesson learned... Don't give up, I AM a runner and must bat away that giving-up-gremlin. Yippee. Happy gremlin free running to all x
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Jaqs99
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Well done I think we all have that 'I'm not going fast enough gremlin' I have no idea if I'll ever break that magical 5k in 30mins as I'm still stuck around the 33-34min mark on a good day, instead I've decided to concentrate on distance for my HM in September. Hope the rest of your runs get better!
Well done for (a) getting out there again, (b) running for 45 minutes - wow - 45 minutes, really that's an achievement, (c) running 5km - again a great achievement, please don't compare your pace to anyone else and (d) learning the lesson that you ARE a runner.
I'm very impressed. My fasted 5 k is 48 mins so you are well ahead of me. To be honest that includes my warm up as well. So that is what I am working on now a full 5k of complete running. I started with my first 5k being 53 mins and then went down to 49 mins thne back up to 54 mins and then down to 48 mins. To be honest I'm not too bothered about the slowness. I'm sure it will get faster in time. I'm just glad to be doing something close to 5 k running.
Marc, that's such a great attitude! Just keeping doing it and knowing you'll improve in your own time, if you want to... Well done you too, 5K ( or thereabouts) running is cool!
Look, fellow runner, we all get hung up on stats and times and they are one of the best ways of measuring progress, but maybe you just need to ditch your tracking every now and then and enjoy the scenery. Enjoy the fact that you are out in the open experiencing the world first hand, rather than on the couch watching the gogglebox. Enjoy the fact that you can do this thing called running and enjoy the fact that you are not called Mo Farah, the poor bloke has to run hundreds of miles every week and we all expect him to win every time.
That is so true IT. It has taken me some time to realise it though. Today my run through the forest was spent 100 per cent concentrating on my gait and trying to correct my collapsing hips and lack of propulsion from my glutes (I think that's what the PT said) . Halfway through I thought 'I'm really not enjoying this'. Thinking so hard about what my legs were doing meant I didn't smell the hawthorn blossom or hear the curlews. And THAT I realised is what i like about running. It gets me out in the countryside and I see and experience so much more of it than if I walked for the same distance. I will keep trying to improve my style, if only because it should make me less injury prone but I won't get so hung up on my time any more. Running keeps me healthy and it lifts my spirits. I'm not at school any more. I'm not going to be marked for my efforts. Running is for me...
No I haven't Jaqa but after reading your post I looked it up on Amazon and read the taster. Very tempted to buy it. The trouble is that the extract stressed what a huge multi-million pound industry the leisure running market is and I realised that I am as guilty as anyone of buying the latest miracle fix in the forlorn hope that it will transform my running. Respecting the author's message I think I will try to borrow his book
Thanks for the pep-talk Iannoda. I'm reading "Running Free" by Richard Askwith. ... Same message... I totally agree with it. I think I got seduced by my new Garmin. I might well take your advice and sneak out without him for a few runs. Yes, hadn't thought about comparing myself favourably to Mo Farah before.. but it works! Thanks again. Happy smiley running to you too. x
Please have a go at this -- pick an amount of time (or distance) that you want to run today. If you pick an amount of time , say to run for 45 minutes, do not look at how far you have run !!!! If you pick a distance to run , say 7 klms, do not take a watch or look at how long it took you to run that distance. Just do whatever task you have set yourself - run a time or run a distance , but not both!! Do this for some time - maybe a few months - and then consider what your pace is.
Unfortunately, I have until now been cursed by the fact that I DID NOT do what I am now advising. I am now finding that it is absolutely empowering and invigorating to run either a length of time or length of distance and trying to forget pace. Thus I can now say to myself (and others) -- I CAN RUN ( actually run/walk) 10K's!!! or I CAN RUN NON-STOP for 45 MINUTES!!
That is great advice. Thank you. I like the idea very much. You still have a goal but your pace is happening by itself unbeknownst or agonised about. Thanks for sharing that experience. Will give it a go.
Well done! You are running so are clearly a runner! I intentionally went out today to enjoy my graduation run and actually ran faster than usual - sometimes stopping thinking about all the details makes everything come together!
I totally agree with the others. Why don't you just put away the Garmin for the time being and either run for a specific time or a fixed distance without worrying about speed at all. Look at your stats again every couple of weeks to note your progress. Getting hung up on the stats can ruin your enjoyment of your runs! Have fun!
Thank you Rockette. Feeling more positive now. I think the more often you manage to plough on thru the give-up- gremlin, the easier it becomes... That's the theory anyway!! Happy running to you. X
I take no notice of other people's times and distances now. I'm never going to be in the Olympics. I'll be doing a race for life this year again and will power-walk/jog alongside my walker friends. I do around 3.5-4k in 40 minutes depending on how I'm feeling. Your time of 5k in 45 minutes is brilliant. Keep going. As someone on here said, we're all lapping those still sat on couches.
Thanks for the reply, smellydunlin. I'm finally getting the message about enjoying it and not caring about times etc. you sound like you're enjoying your runs/walks/jogs. Good luck with the race for life. Well done you.
That's fantastic Jaqs, 5k!! Well done, it doesn't matter about speed, but then you know that really don't you. You are out there, you can run, you are a runner. If you choose to run/walk/jog it doesn't matter. Sometimes we just have to forget about time, speed, distance and enjoy it. Think of all the positive mental and physical benefits. x
Thanks NoExcuse. You're right...... It's just sooo maaaany people here mention their times etc and there's always a buzz around 'improving' and 'achieving' faster times, it's hard not to be affected. Maybe I should start a 'stats free' sub group..lol. How's your running going? Are you still loving it? X
I do know what you mean, I think sometimes some of us get carried away with our personal achievements and don't realise that others may find it a bit demoralising. But a 'stats free-run for the enjoyment'- group sounds good! I try to not think of other people's times/distances, I'm only competing with myself. To me, whatever anyone does on here by running, jogging, walking, then they are doing great in my view. Yes I am still enjoying the running, Parkrun, a longer run now and again and lots of huffing and puffing is par for my course! x
You're right. Just enjoy others' personal achievements and celebrate with them, but not let the green-eyed monster detract from that. I actually do usually naturally feel that way... I think my bad run had me indulging in self pity which leads to all the other gremlins coming out to party. ... Here we are, back at the mental battle that running is! Brilliant and exhilarating to realise.
Glad you're having happy running, even huffing and puffing
I wrote a post about the "Magical 5K in 30 Minutes" to help give my views on this. It's a difficult one as many people want to improve times/pace/distance and yet equally we all need to recognise that these things can't be compared. We're all different ages, fitness levels, heights, weights and have different "running" or "jogging" styles...
As I said in my post, the important bit is running 30 minutes non-stop by the end of 9 weeks. The advent of GPS and smartphones apps means these stats are readily available... which is both good and bad. And of course naturally each new milestone people meet is worth telling people about... but I don't think it's about comparison (although I could see how you might be tempted - don't)...
Everyone here has their own journey and I personally congratulate EVERY success all of you make...
Happy running and you keep putting one foot in front of the other! I salute you!
Thanks for the salute *salutesback*. Good points made there. I'm focusing on concentrating my own personal achievements , which include just getting off the couch and moving at all! Happy running to you too.
An "inconvenient fact" also - is that some of us are carrying a little bit of extra weight. I know that I could lose an extra 5Kgs . Has anybody tried running when carrying a 5kg parcel - it does tend to slow you down a bit. My mate is 30 kg overweight - so, essentially, he is permanently carrying around the equivalent of 3/4 of a bag of cement -- no wonder his knees hurt when he walks.
Hit a painful nail on the head there Bazza. I too have a couple of 5kg bags I'm trying to ditch! This will all help of course it will.
While I've got you, did you post somewhere about a formula for post grad run/walk intervals? I'm thinking of trying that tomorrow but don't know how to structure it. Going to concentrate on distance and do 5K... in however long it takes but aim to enjoy it while I'm doing it rather than when it's over! Happy running
Hmm - Galloway has "formulas" to use when training for longer races - half marathon , etc and for certain time goals
Other than that, just think back to when we did the early weeks of C25k - did any particular ratio of running to walking feel good to you (or at least "better than others" )? I am using a 2 minute run/1.5 minute walk ratio for my training now on long runs. I do run non-stop for Parkrun up to 5K - but over that I use run/walk. The reason I use that ratio is that I feel that I can run fairly fast for 2 minutes and 1.5 minutes walk allows my heart rate to come a long way down before running again. I did do a 10K run at 2/1 - but felt that the 1 minute walk was not quite enough for my recovery. So I have settle for now on 2/1.5 - and will take that out to the required 14klms.
Thanks Bazza. I'll have a look at Galloway. Not heard of that. But it does sound sensible to allow some recovery ( and maybe endorphins) to ease the effort over a distance. Cheers
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I think we all have that 'I'm not going fast enough gremlin' I have no idea if I'll ever break that magical 5k in 30mins as I'm still stuck around the 33-34min mark on a good day, instead I've decided to concentrate on distance for my HM in September. Hope the rest of your runs get better!
Feel like giving up! 
About to give up, help!
W5R3 - I am strong! I will not give up!
Thinking of giving up
Physio had told me to give up running (got 2nd opinion from Podiatrist who said the same :( 
