when do you know you’re ready to step up?

[Cantrun-icanrun]

I graduated almost 4 weeks ago and have maintained my running 3 times a week. I’m very slow and steady at the moment but really want to increase my pace a little now. What’s the best advice to do this ?

[SueAppleRun Graduate]

I increased distance and realised over time that my slow wasn't quite as slow and my fast I could keep going for longer. I really like Nike Run Club guided runs too and learned about different places and efforts, my only real advice would be don't rush, it takes time to build on your run Ng legs

[Cantrun-icanrun Graduate in reply to SueAppleRun]

thanks I’ll check out the guided runs 👍

[Mummycav Administrator Graduate]

hi Cantrun-icanrun …sounds like your consolidating has gone well…have you tried the stepping stones runs?? Stamina & speed runs, they will help you to increase your pace…but…what’s the rush?? If you’re running comfortably & at a pace that doesn’t feel hard, you’re doing everything right…

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Hello and well done.!

You have had some ideas here, and one of the best things is... in addition to the ideas. .. just keep running ! The more you do the more it evolves.

Short runs, middle distance and then, some lovely gentle, slow , ( yes slow), see where you get to runs. Those runs are the ones which for many, many folk do lead to improvement in strength and stamina, distance, pace and yes, eventually.... speed

Enjoy!!!

[Yesletsgo Graduate]

The Nike Running Club guided runs are fantastic for making you improve your running, not just speed but posture and mindset too.Don't feel you have to run fast every time. You build strength and stamina in slow runs and these are easier on your body.

Be realistic in your expectations too. As a 60+ woman I know that to run 5km in 30 minutes, for example, would push me to my absolute limits. If I was a 25 year old man it'd be a doddle.

Occasionally I can run at that pace for a short time and it feels good but if I tried to keep it up it'd kill me. I'm just not built that way. Or rather, to put in the training to reach that 30 minute goal would take such intense training it would dominate my entire life. I'm not prepared to do that 😁

The only thing that seems to speed me up is running with other people. The competitive streak wins lol. Try a Parkrun. It's not a race but the atmosphere may push you to run a bit quicker. Word of warning, first time I did it I injured myself through over enthusiasm. You get an age grading on your time which is an objective measure of how fast you are compared to others of your age and gender.

Finally, don't get too hung up on speed as an end in itself. If it's what you love that's different, but there are a lot of us tortoises plodding along and enjoying ourselves immensely 😁

[Cantrun-icanrun Graduate in reply to Yesletsgo]

really appreciate the tips and advise - thank you ❤️

[Chinkoflight in reply to Yesletsgo]

Hi Yesletsgo, just a note of caution re the age grading. It relates to the fastest time run by an individual in your age group. ie I bet Seb Coe still runs a whippet like 5km🤣. So I run an average 40min 5k which is around 45% (I don't hold accurate metrics in my head) of the best. There are a few of runners my age,(70) members of the local athletics club, who run sub 30 5k's . But they are runners and I'm a jogger hoping to run, but may have peaked!😢😉😁

[Yesletsgo Graduate in reply to Chinkoflight]

Absolutely, comparisons are odious! As you get older they have a smaller dataset to compile the stats so the Sebs have probably skewed the numbers 😁

[MissUnderstanding Administrator Graduate]

I agree with everyone else! My pace increased slowly over months rather than weeks. That came through mainly increasing the time (and consequently distance!) I was running for by doing Juju’s magic plan to get to 10k. That’s over on bridge to 10k. You haven’t talked about wanting to increase your distance but those longer, lovely slow and comfortable runs really do make a big difference to your basic pace over time. My new easy run pace is about a minute faster than it used to be. The great thing about the magic plan is that is has a short run (which could be a slightly quicker one), a medium and a longer one so you can choose nike run club guided runs that match the times and keep using the app. I didn’t know about Coach B when I did it and I wish I had!

Building strength could help too. If you’re not already doing some strength work, that’s a great thing to pick up with. The strength and flex forum has loads of ideas and guidance. Hills are brilliant to incorporate into your runs-often described as speed work in disguise!

Take it slowly with going faster. You don’t want to hurt yourself. There’s absolutely no rush. The key thing is to keep going and keep enjoying yourself!

[Cantrun-icanrun Graduate in reply to MissUnderstanding]

thanks so much for the advise ❤️

[nowster Graduate]

As with MissUnderstanding my pace improved with my gradually increasing run durations.

I did try to focus on increasing speed a few times, but that usually led to me hurting myself in some way.

[Cmoi Graduate]

As others have said, it's the slower, longer runs that will help give you the aerobic base to increase your pace  Cantrun-icanrun .

I used the Magic Plan after consolidation and it worked brilliantly for me, but I've never tried most of the other suggestions. All I can say is give them a go and see if they suit you. Fwiw, I'm not much interested in increasing pace and I've never, ever felt ready to step up, I just kept on moving the goalposts!

Have fun finding out the sort of running that suits you.