I now have a few 5 ks under my belt after finishing the c25k program. I have managed to go from 41 minutes down to 29 minutes. I have added a long run into my training now, currently 5.5k (the recommended 10% more). I have lowered the pace to stay in my aerobic state which is currently just above walking pace. My calves feel great at a higher pace run but the much slower pace makes my calves ache, it seems strange but I'm sure there is a normal reason for this. Can anyone help identify the cause?
Many thanks.
Written by
ckp82
Graduate
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I deliberately slowed my running at one point (not that I was ever fast) for longer runs .Not only will you need to reduce stride length but also increase cadence .
I also found that my calves hurt more when I went slower. I think it was a mixture of change of stride and posture... I felt more upright going slow so maybe the impact was hitting different muscle fibres? Not sure the actual cause but after just a couple of runs and doing plenty of heel drops and raises it's improved massively. I'm not doing your sort of distance though. Another thought is, are you landing on the same part of your feet by changing your pace? Weight and impact maybe being displaced slightly differently.
Thanks for your reply brokeybusted.I'm still trying to master my posture to be honest. Its getting there, it slips once I start to get more tired, maybe it may be something to do with this?
I will try doing the raises and dips, is this a calf strengthening exercise?
I think I'm consistent with my foot landing but I guess changing tempos could change the displacement?
I think the heel drop is more for stretching out than strengthening but the calf raises are a strengthening exercise I'm currently doing with a physio. I start with double legged calf raises (3 sets of 10, 2 seconds up and 2 seconds down tempo) then end of the week I change one set do single leg raises for more intensity.
The posture was more an observation I had in week 6 - haven't looked much into it as just happy to flap my arms and legs about. I was finding it difficult to find a "comfortable" pace. Too slow, legs aching but breathing easy. Faster, legs were great but couldn't do the conversational pace. Drinking plenty and doing the calf exercises definitely helped in my case. It could be just the body getting used to the different stride also - If you're a fast walker then try to do a very slow walk I found that went for my calves also.
Thanks for your reply John_W.I have just checked my stats and they are very similar. I guess I need to pick up the cadence. The only problem I'm having is staying in the aerobic zone without going into the anaerobic zone.
4. You've clearly been reading about zones - why the current obsession with them?
How have you worked them out? What device are you using? Is it accurate?
Cadence - I've answered below as well, but 150 is very slow and *might* be a contributing factor with your niggle. The sooner you can shorten your stride and increase your cadence, the better it will be for you. If that takes you beyond aerobic for the moment, then so be it - it will take a few weeks for your body to get used to a different cadence/stride length,
1. I graduated around a year ago but got lazy and didn't pick up again until around August/September, I then got lazy and stopped again. I've started again at the end of february but this time I have a running buddy who helps motivates me.
2. When I started back up it was slow. I had no real direction as to what i was doing or where I wanting to achieve so just ran. Overtime I've got quicker, I haven't picked up my breathing yet, I still get out of breath.
3. I didn't know when I started up what I wanted but after seeing my 5k times come down from my 1st one being 41m22s to my latest being 28m33s, I would like to do a 5k in 25 mins. I would also like to work my way up to a 10k too.
4. I was reading about 10k training and the things that kept cropping up were about running slower than your 5k pace and keeping in your aerobic zone. I thought this would tie in well with a run I wanted to do which is to extend the distance a little at a time until I hit 10k.
I have a smartwatch that probably isn't as accurate as the more premium watches but up until now its served me well. It displays the zone your in aswell as your heart rate. I just try to keep in the aerobic zone and back off if it goes into anaerobic.
What might be a slow run for you could be a fast run for others.
When you're not trying to run slowly are you more comfortable? This could be your natural gait.
You could try increasing your cadence whilst shortening the stride. Your target should be about 160-180 steps per minute. Land on your forefoot with your foot touching down directly underneath you.
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Aches and pains *help*
Advice on Post-Grad runs
Still slow...!
Why do I keep getting tight calves/soleus?
No more interval runs! 🙂
