Tips on Parkrun please!

[ruralrob]

Hi all! new to this forum.

Have been doing parkrun for about a year now and really feel I'm not improving with it at all,any tips? I'm 50 , weigh around 13st (after losing roughly 1.5st).My best time is 32.20 but lately its been around the 34 mark and today it was 36.I've completed 30 parkruns in the year which is the only running I do apart from a few mins on the treadmill when I manage to get to the gym.Would appreciate a bit of advise .ps I should add I did put on about 6 pound over Christmas(lowest weight is 12st 9) so I'm guessing that could be part of the reason for this morning!Thanks

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Welcome to the forum and well done on your progress.

This guide to post C25K running may be helpful healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

It is always beneficial to run more than just once per week.

In the above mentioned guide you will see the recommendation to spend 75-80% of your running time at an easy conversational pace, to build stamina and strength.

I suspect that you are trying to beat your pb each week, so are not developing your endurance. Just running flat out on every run is the commonest mistake made by new runners.

Most recreational runners apparently spend too much time running in the middle range, therefore not developing stamina and not maximising speed potential.

So spend a lot more time running slowly, possibly for longer, and learn to really push harder on those short sharp runs.

[ruralrob in reply to IannodaTruffe]

Thank you I will check out the link and hopefully will help with improvement.

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Try and run more...and more..as IannodaTruffe suggests..it is the running which helps things like distance and speed evolve...There are also...this week actually..some great tips on improving PR times..on the PR Site...all about Tempo running...I tried the technique out in a workout run this week..it was interesting! I'll see if I can find the link for you...

[ruralrob in reply to Oldfloss]

Many thanks for the tips. Looks like I need to do and extra run in the week then.

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate in reply to ruralrob]

Lots.. as and when you are able... Here is that link..

blog.parkrun.com/uk/2019/01...

[UnfitNoMore Graduate]

If you’re only running parkrun and short treadmill sessions then progress will be slower. To target a PB properly, and with less pain on the day, you need a combination of runs... and the biggest one will be the long run... nice and slowly. 5k athletes push this run up to 16k or more... but every extension will add to the tank. I’d run long every 7th run, nice and slowly. Then when you have the bigger tank, some speed work (again about every 7th run) o other intervals, a fartlek, or a tempo run... this run will put strength in the legs and the tempo gets you used to the new pace. Your other 5 runs should be recovery runs... nice and short and varying lengths. On of those can be parkrun, butrun slowly.

Then target a date for a PB attempt... drop the speed session and go for it at parkrun... running a pace that you are used to.