Stepping stone run - update - am I really cut out for this malarky?

[Chocotwit]

Well, I got through it and at times it felt good, so I'm glad I did.

The "stepping stone" run involves going much faster than I did for my graduation runs. You run in time to the music, with 10 minutes at 150 beats per minute (bpm), 15 minutes at 155 bpm and another 5 mins at 160 bpm. When I did this run on Thursday I realised that I had been doing more like 120-140 bpm for my graduation plod *ahem* run.

So the upshot of this all today was that about half way through the first 10 minutes I was already really tired! But from time to time I forgot about my aches and pains and felt a bit like a runner. And I managed to get to the end, but only because by the last 5 minutes I had reduced my stride length so much that a toddler could crawl past me!

Sitting with frozen peas on my knee now, as it started to lock as I walked back.

Am I really cut out to be a runner? (say yes!).

Chocotwit

[Fraz73 Graduate]

YES!!!! Keep it up and rest that knee!

[Oldgirl Graduate]

Well done on trying it again, it is a hard workout especially if your finding its giving you aches and pains at the end. Trying to up your speed is hard work, have you tried Speed yet, its fast but its shorter so there doesn't seem to be so much strain on your legs. Hope the aches and pains settle down, perhaps take an extra day to recover. I admire you doing it twice in a row, thats good going.

[Chocotwit Graduate]

Thanks for the words of encouragement. The frozen peas seemed to help, I'll try Speed on Monday (the podcast that is LOL!)

[wilmacgh Graduate]

Might be worth thinking about what surface you run on and trying something with a bit more give.

runnersworld.co.uk/general/...

I'm lucky enough to be live near a school with an astroturf and I've been using that for the stepping stone and speed training. It's dead boring even though I vary it - round the edge, between the goal posts, along the 100m track. However it's an easy surface to run on and all you have to think about is the timing. I'm not naturally well coordinated and struggle with even 1,2,3,4!

[Gridlet Graduate]

Well done for getting out there when you really didn't feel like it! That on its own says you ARE cut out for this malarkey! Some good advice here which I will use myself!

[mark909 Graduate]

Someone sent me this list of how bpm equates to km/min. Of course lots a variables can alter this but I think it's good to get some idea how fast you might do a parkrun for example.

120 bpm = 8:00 /km

138 bpm = 7:00 /km

155 bpm = 6:00 /km

160 bpm = 5:30 /km

170 bpm = 5:00 /km

[Chocotwit Graduate]

Thanks everyone for your kind words of support. Thanks Mark909 for the paces - hmm, I guess it does depend on stride length a bit, I suspect mine might be on the lower end of the bell curve! I reckon a parkrun would take me about 45 minutes. I might do the St Albans one in a few weeks if I can manage to extend my normal runs either by 10 minutes or by a few hundred additional metres.