Want to start running but having not run more that 100 yards in 25 years, how easy is it when you first start?

I am pretty fit when it comes to cycling but I imagine the muscle sets will be different even though they obviously both use your legs.

My plan of attack is to start off with slow, short distances and gradually build it up. Would this be the correct approach? Any good tips for a novice runner would be very much appreciated as I don’t want to knacker my knees?

walk away from your house* for 10mins, turn around a run slowly home.

see how you feel the next day, and the day after (1 rest day is good, 2? – why not? you’ve earned it).

build up slowly from there

if it hurts, go slower, if it still hurts, stop.

(*ideally, run somewhere nice, like a forest, or near a lake/river, or hills, or etc. don’t feel guilty if you need to drive somewhere to do this, even if it is only for a 5min run)

stretch after. you may not have too but I find if I don’t stretch for ten minute after I’m crippled a day later.

Hmmm…

There have been a couple of threads about this sort of thing… I’ll try and find them. If you are starting from scratch and are prepared to start slowly then it may be worth completely re thinking the way you use your feet….

Did you ever run? Have you ever had any running related injuries?

I think the consensus is to build up very slowly, no more the 10% per week

Give this, or something like it, a go:
Couch to 5k

Worked pretty well for me; not just as as gradual buildup, but also as a motivator to keep at it – felt like I should be keeping up with the program, so I went out running on days I probably would otherwise have given it a miss.

Dave

and the day after.

i would recomend having a rest day. seriously.

other than that sounds like good advice. i as managing about a mile when i started running lat year – first few times out i was walking 1/3-1/4 of that.

My plan of attack is to start off with slow, short distances and gradually build it up.

perfect.

I did the same, went 3 times a week, for 2 miles then 3 then 4. soon build up some stamina and speed, I didn’t need special trainers, and don’t seem to get injured much, so lucky *touches some wood* but some on here think that getting your gait analyzed and some new trainers is a good way to avoid lots of injuries. Lots of shops offer this services (which is why I’m suspicious of it, LOL.

Did you ever run? Have you ever had any running related injuries?

The only running I have done is the 100/ 200 meters at school and I use to play Cricket.

I will still want to ride three times a week which are Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday and hope to fit in two runs in between.

Is shoe fitting important? If so, do I need to find a specialist shop?

getting your gait analyzed and some new trainers is a good way to avoid lots of injuries

This x 10 – especially if you are a bit heavy

I’ve gone from a 10 min trot to a 40 min run three times a week in about two months, I’m convinced that my supportive shoes have helped no end.

My approach is;

Run for an hour using an HRM to gauge the effort you’re putting in (i.e. run at the same HRM you know you can ride all day at).

Get home feelign like you’ve had a good exercise.

Be unable to climb any stairs without going sideways and doing them one at a time for a week.

Wait a month.

Repeat.

I’d say if you don’t get injured doing the sports you already do, you’ll probably be OK.

Read about forefoot striking and heel striking.

I used to be utterly crap at running and hate it passionately until I learned how to do it properly… night and day. There are those on here who will say not to worry about such nonsense and just run, but then again there are those who naturally fall into a decent stride and I wonder if there’s a lot of overlap there 🙂

It was just a crap experience from start to finish until I started to land forefoot first. Then I got even better again when I realised my hip flexors were really short and they needed stretching out so I could push my foot back much further…

Oh yeah – don’t just chug out slow junk miles – it won’t help much. Mix it up, sprints, hills etc.

I’d say if you don’t get injured doing the sports you already do, you’ll probably be OK.

Not quite sure how that follows…. the sport he is doing now is cycling… which doesn’t involve repeatedly pounding your feet into the ground.

Gait analysis and all that jazz is nigh on essential if you don’t have ‘neutral’ gait. If your feet/arches/ankles are perfectly neutral, you’ll probably be fine with normal trainers. I over pronate like crazy, so can’t run more than about 10 paces without pain in shoes other than my running shoes.

Go and get analysed, and you’ll know whether you need special shoes.

Dave

I’m doing the NHS couch to 5k thing, using the podcasts. Done a month now, and it’s going fine. I find that I want to do it more often than 3 times a week as it recommends, and run for longer once I’ve started, but have tried to stick to the program rather than risk overdoing it.

I got some oxymoronically named barefoot running shoes as well. That’s going fine too, even for me on the wrong side of 18 stone. In fact, although it feels a bit of a strange way to run, it’s definitely less tiring for me than traditional running, if that makes sense.

Read about forefoot striking and heel striking.

Don’t worry about such nonsense and just run: the most important thing is to build up distances and times very gradually. Switching between running and walking works well.

Oh yeah – don’t just chug out slow junk miles

hmmm, sort of agree with this, iDave had me doing sprints to get my 10k times down (which worked more than I belived!! Still amazed at how fast i can run a 10k now compared to just a few months ago, BUT…I luv going for long slow runs in the morning, I feel like I could just run and run, sometimes do 15-20k, now, I guess there just “junk” but I feel sooooo happy after them, I could never not do them

I started last week, did three runs of a mile each in around 8 minutes which I know is poor, but have never been able to run more than a few hundred metres and haven’t tried for about 17-18 years, I did used to be a really good sprinter in school though. I’ll go a little further tonight or tomorrow. Bought some asics trail shoes for my supinated feet and also forefoot striking seem to have completely eradicated the bad shin pain I used to get.

a mile each in around 8 minutes

8 min miles aren’t slow.

Just don’t overdo it to start with. And think in terms of time spent, not distances run. Enjoy it. And, really, really, really: a bit of warm up before you start and a but of stretching when you’re finished.

I enjoy junk miles 🙁

8 min miles aren’t slow.

Hmmm I assumed it was but I think pacing myself is a problem of mine, on a bike I find it difficult to just pootle along.

Oh yeah – don’t just chug out slow junk miles – it won’t help much. Mix it up, sprints, hills etc.

Personally I’d ignore this till you’re comfortably running 3 or 4 miles.

It’s good advice to get quicker, but you need to build a base you are capable of comfortably maintaining just like bikes, before worrying much about speed, hills etc. If you run off road you’ll probably get a reasonable mix anyway. Don’t be ashamed to walk the hills to start with, you really won’t feel the pain (as a ‘trained’ cyclist) till a day or so after.

i think if i tried running i’d trip and fall onto my belly 🙁

I’m pretty confident ‘Junk miles’ is just one of the those made-up Junk Terms trotted out by the likes of Runners world magazine.
Pretty much every mile on a mountainbike would be a junk mile using the definitions they have 🙂

Go and get analysed, and you’ll know whether you need special shoes.

If you do take this course, also realise that your gait will change over time. So most beginners will be analysed as over-pronators because they haven’t developed a suitable muscle structure. But whereas if you’re analysed as left-handed your pretty much likely to stay left-handed, unlike your gait which may well change a lot.

I can do 6min 45sec miles.

*Showing off*

I guess it all depends on why you want to run

If it’s just a keeping fitter thing, just go out and run and don’t worry about pace or form

I can do 6min 45sec miles.

*swoon*

personally i think the oft repeated +10%/week is utter bo110xxxx
starting at 20minutes = 12weeks to run for an hour?

20,22, 24,27,30,33,36,40,44,49,54,59

The term “junk miles” means miles that contribute nothing to your fitness. For example a competitive athlete (say a good 5-10k club runner) would seldom run slower than 7 (ish) minute miling during training.
To run slower adds little in terms of competitive preperation. Those miles may have some minor benefits but running always puts you at risk of injury and even fit athletes get tired running slow 10 milers for example.

20,22, 24,27,30,33,36,40,44,49,54,59

or, from quite short runs (3 or 4 k), to running for an hour, in only 3 months.

(sounds quite good to me)

i’ll be very happy with that rate of progress when i finally man-up and enter a marathon…

I saw that couch to 5k thing but it sounded a slow process so i just borrowed my mates shoes and ran 5k outright in 30mins i felt great but knackered and had to recover for two days! Doh – i need my own shoes and learn to warm up and down before my next attempt

What about shoes? I live on the edge of a town so footpaths and woods are only a couple of minutes away and this would be more appealing than pavements. Are trail shoes okay to cross over onto tarmac or is it just marketing?

I can do 6m 45sec miles too.

Just the one though. The rest would be about 9 minuters after that.

You might have just turned it into a four pager with that last question MM 🙂

I can do 6m 45sec miles too.

*swoon*

What about shoes? I live on the edge of a town so footpaths and woods are only a couple of minutes away and this would be more appealing than pavements. Are trail shoes okay to cross over onto tarmac or is it just marketing?

I run 95% off road in Roclite 295s. They are fine with the odd bit of tarmac I hit joining up sections. The treads/lugs might wear down a bit quicker though.

i once rode my bike a mile. i wasnt timing it, but if you were to minus the time that would’ve added up from my stops to get my breath back and have some snacks i think it would’ve been under 7 minutes.

can i join your club now? 😥

Like I said surfer, just like mountain biking. 😀
Most of the miles don’t contribute to fitness, and there’s the ever present chance of falling off, but you’d be laughed at if you told the majority of riders not to waste their time with them 🙂

Personally I’d ignore this till you’re comfortably running 3 or 4 miles.

It’s good advice to get quicker, but you need to build a base you are capable of comfortably maintaining

Intervals are not just for building speed. They build stamina as well. I think you need some longer runs to condition your joins and tendons and things, but only some.

I can do 6m 45sec miles too

Thats a dangerous game of oneupmanship you are playing DD