Before January of this year, I’d not run more than a couple of miles in one go since my teens. It should be noted that I ran for Derbyshire cross country in my teens but the twenty year+ gap in the middle and 5 million bike miles ensured my legs went funny on me so any run meant my calves were so painful I could barely walk for over a week after a run.

So, in January I start running, I follow a couch to 5k path but accelerate it. By mid-Feb I’m running 5k’s in 24 minutes. I can still barely walk afterwards but that only lasts a couple of days. My legs have hurt constantly since I started, but I’ve been able to walk.

Tonight I ran 6.3 miles in an hour. To say I am chuffed would be a huge understatement. It’s not very quick and I get that but I did it. That’s probably the main point of this post, a bit of a boast. 😉

Here come the questions then.

Socks. Normally I’d laugh at people buying sport specific socks but every run I do, my toes come through my socks. Any advice on which ones to get?

Shoes. I searched for ‘cheapest running trainers’ on google and bought the ones for under £15. I should probably buy some that are better now. I will be doing on and offroad running. Any suggestions. 50-70 quid I reckon.

Christ it’s boring on the long straights, any tips to make the time flow faster? I’m just about to buy an armstrap and lock-on ™ headphones so I can listen to music.

Any useful tips on how to stop my calves feeling like they’ve been stabbed?

Ta. You’re all lovely and everything.

I’ve been pondering running – never really got in to it, but might be able to get out before work, which I won’t on the bike :/ On the side I don’t seem to be built for running.

This might make it more fun for you – https://www.zombiesrungame.com Seems well liked 🙂

Loop stitched socks are good. Running Bear in Alderley edge are good VFM. Hilly Mono Skin socks are good.

Shoes – IMO you need to go through a few pairs / styles until you find what suits you, some people like different aspects of different shoes.

If you’re going to do trails and road work then Adidas Kanadia’s are a good shoe to start with (available at Sports Direct / anywhere), although they’re a bit narrow so go up at least half a size. If you get more seriously in to off-road try out different trail / fell shoes.

Calf pain – could be overdoing it but IMO a few minutes of stretches every night help, but its worth starting some conditioning exercises now that may help prevent injury later on. Doing heel raises, squats (single and double), lunges, clams all help.

I don’t get on with music as its a distraction – I don’t feel right listening to it and when I’m having a good run the endorphins are way better. I also think that the beauty of the ‘boredom’ allows you to drift off and leave all that normal stuff / thinking behind – music hinders this.

Enjoy and stay injury free.

Enter some races, it’ll transform the sport for you.

I’m not reading all that shit, it’s bad enough I have to read it on Twitter.*

*Socks – I have used cycling socks before, if you need something a bit more robust. Either that or any puma/nike sports half sock from SportsDirect/Amazon etc.

Shoes – Check out the Cheviots 2 for off road running on Start Fitness. SALE10 code gives 10% off. Can’t help with roadie shoes, as only run off road….as I find it more interesting, which leads into:

Christ it’s boring on the long straights, any tips to make the time flow faster? – Sprints/Fartlek. Or do what I do, and just think about what your doing with your life, what you want for tea…SQUIRREL!

Any useful tips on how to stop my calves feeling like they’ve been stabbed? – Rest and run more. Also, eccentric stretches. Although what might work for one person, might not work for another.

I think trainers would be the best bet… go to a “proper” (i.e not Sports direct) running store and get them to help you pick. You need to decide (or be helped to decide) how much support you want and how much gait correction you need. It sounds like you might support if you’re going through socks at every run.

I don’t like running with headphones but I”m in the minority; two reasons though – easier to be aware of your surroundings and if you’re in competition then it’s not uncommon to ban headphones so if you only run to music it can be strange to suddenly not have that crutch for the actual race.

Calves = more stretching!! I like to stand half on a step and really drop the calf down to get it fully stretched out.

The long straights are for meditation, like a long alpine climb. Just let go.

Your calves will hurt for as long as you run. Unless your soles start to hurt (this can turn into plantar fasciaitis, v nasty) don’t worry. I can’t see that stretching them (i.e. making them longer) will help unless that’s actually affecting your gait. Strecthing your hamstrings may help though, as they will be shortening as they get stronger.

ps I’m the world’s worst runner so maybe don’t listen to me…I do about 10 miles a week and it takes me ages.

Like you, after never having run any distance since high school days, I just decided to start running and was soon doing 5ks then the occasional 10k. TBH can’t see what all the fuss is about. Put on shoes, go outside, run, stop.

I’ve been wearing a couple of different Salomon trainers – XA Pro 3Ds for harder surfaces and Speedcross 3s when it’s softer (I generally get on well with the Salomon last). Socks are just any sort of trainer/gym sock I have handy.

I’m about 50:50 with music. Sometimes (especially early morning) I like to just hear the birds and whatever. If running at night I’m usually listening to some trance.

I’m like you. But went to a proper running shop. Foot traffic in bolton. Put me on the treadmill and analyse my foot strike. Bought some asics gt 1000 and it honestly feels so much better. Did my local loop of 5.5 miles in 43 minutes last night. Not mega fast but faster than I have ever done it

I can still barely walk afterwards but that only lasts a couple of days.

This shouldn’t be happening. I think you are doing too much too soon and you’re going to injure yourself. Throttle back a bit and build up more slowly.

Any useful tips on how to stop my calves feeling like they’ve been stabbed?

As above

splendid, as usual you are all awesome, even Jamie.

Now I’m at 10k, which was my target, I’ll not be extending myself beyond that. Just settling into a nice steady series of runs which will hopefully get more offroad, I enjoy that more.

I’ll read your responses in more detail tomorrow. Ta.

bit like the OP with toes coming out of the socks, which will lead to toes coming out of the trainer.

Socks – choice is the 3D Dot Compress Sport
Really comfy, and (touch wood) have yet to pierce the front yet, and they have done quite a few km.

Last year I started running in earnest after that god awful winter we had. However I chose to trail run and not hit much road at all, so I bought Sals SpeedX3’s whilst on sale at Snow & Rock for £80 and used my cycling socks. I hit the woods and parks near me first, took me about 3-4 weeks to hit the 5k threshold. Like you I’ve been cycling/racing far longer than running and my calves too were tight as ****. I had a couple of injuries, ankle, knee which kept me away from running early on but then I backed off pace and built back up again and so on. Now I run 10k easily, trail run that is, and can hack the woods no problem. With that in mind I don’t get bored so don’t suffer boredom so don’t need music, however when I’m in London working I run Greenwich park/Canary Wharf 10k route that takes me along a few short road blasts, here I lick up the pace to get them over with quickly.
So, socks – use your cycling ones, shoes – find em in a sale but make sure they fit well, pace – mix up boring flat bits with sprint uplifts and then pace back to add variation, location – I’d say hit the trails it’s way more interesting than roads.
HTH

Samuri! Running is bad for you you ckck, especially at your age.

I got 5 pairs of brooks running socks for £11 at sports direct (Trafford) before Christmas and they are great.

Socks? Madness. I run in inov8 trailrocs. Most of my running is a km or two on lanes then woodland trails or open moorland. Mostly muddy. So with the comFort of the minimalist trainers and constant mud, I don’t wear socks.

Enter some races, it’ll transform the sport for you.

personally I couldn’t think of anything more likely to make me give up running, but there you go.

Calve; glad to hear it’s getting better, it’ll hurt for a bit yet. Proper stretching after a run is about it really.

socks; pointy toes? if like me, you have, you get used to going through socks. funnily enough Sports Direct sell a half decent Karrimor pairs that aren’t too bad (£5.99 for 3 pairs)

Shoes; there’s so much info out there, you don’t need me muddying the waters

I started running in November and actually enjoy it now.Started with Parkrun and joined a club last month .I have met loads of new faces and listen to the same sort of road v offroad banter that you get on here !.I am now facing up to a half marathon next week(if my calf is ok !)Still not sure which race shoes to get and bought a pair of pikes for track sessions !

bought a pair of pikes for track sessions

Sticklebacks are where it’s at for track work.

I went from 0 to 10k last year in about the same time after a thumb injury stopped me riding.

I quite enjoyed it and got to 10k in an hour and kind of left it at that.

I guess the fact I’ve run once since last June probably indicates that I *really* prefer ridign a bike even through the recent weather but I think that’s as much about being able to go out for a 3 or 4 hour ride that is just not doable on foot as anythign else.

I think you are doing too much too soon and you’re going to injure yourself.

As a word of caution, when I first got into running fairly recently I did about 35 miles in a week, including two hill runs totalling over 6,000ft. Felt great, times were reasonable for a novice…then I couldn’t walk without being in pain for a couple of weeks 🙂

My errors: too much too soon, too many miles on poor/no technique, trying to push myself to attain times without having any form of base/technique, not resting properly between runs.

What I found odd, and presumably how I ended up being injured, was that I felt fine when running. No warning signs, just ended up in a lot of pain one day that took a long time to go away!

Easy does it for now 😉

I’d struggle big style to do the boring bits without music. Bollocks to this meditation and contemplating life…you’re too busy being awesome for that kind of navel gazing shite.

Once you’ve been listening to music for a while, you’ll probably find some songs which have rhythms (BPMs) to which you naturally run. If you’re happy with that pace, there are lots of sites out there that list mixes with your BPM range. If you want to up your pace then throw in the odd 175-180 BPM song and use that as an interval to keep things interesting.

Speaking of intervals, they’re the one thing that made running more interesting for me and actually increased my pace.

Shoes – as others have said, to a proper running shop, tell them what you are doing, where it hurts, then have a bash on the treadmill with various shoes until you find what works for you.

Socks – i got a pack Thousand Mile socks from wiggle, my pointy toes wreck most socks but these work and are really comfy too.

Music – i really like running to the prodigy, i have a playlist of the Fat of the Land and Invaders Must Die, good and pacy selection. I also have the run keeper app, tells you distance/time/pace via voiceover as you’re running, but i’m a bit of a statto so i like to know.

I’ve gone from being a non-runner in November to doing a half marathon in 1:45 a couple of weekends ago. Really enjoy running but i’ve lost my climbing speed on the bike.

If your calves are killing you and you’re going through socks that fast perhaps your form isn’t that good? It sounds like you’re running on your toes – your heel should briefly touch down on each step…

Perhaps check out some of the running form exercises on Youtube – you look a bit stupid doing them but they do help.

That said:

Socks: I use Decathlon socks, but not the super cheap ones. The 500s seem to last a fair bit. Make sure your toenails are short. It could be that your shoes are a bit too small, too.

Shoes: I’m not 100% convinced about the arguments either for or against specialist fittings, whether you’re a pronator or whatever, but it’s probably worth going at least once to a proper running shop to see what they say. If you’d rather buy them elsewhere at least make sure they fit properly, you need a thumb’s width of space in front of your longest toe.

Boredom: music is the obvious answer, you could also install Endomondo which tells you how fast you’re going, and how far.

Socks: decathlon run 800 (think they call them something different now) for road, Smartwool PHD run for wet trail runs. Trim your toenails, buy shoes half size bigger than you need.

Shoes, buy the best you can. Get fitted at a shop for your stride, then buy last seasons, or the last model of the shoes you like from an outlet.

Calf pain, stretch maybe, but running hurts. Build up slowly, best way to avoid injury. Many recommend 10% more each week max. Listen to your body, knee injuries suck ass.

I found the Archers omnibus helped my Sunday morning running. Just about the right length of time too.

If you are using the C25K app that I have the stretches for warmup/down are in the app and well worth doing.

re toes coming out of socks, sod all you can do mine always do it too all of my sock have a little hole by the big toe just carry on and ignore it.

my personal sock choice is bridgdales, good amount of wool which is much nicer if you end up with wet feet imo.

off road is way more interesting, no music here, find a running buddy or a club if that suits, I’ve got a mate who I run with a lot. we swap between starting at/near his or mine and pick different routes all the time. We use gpsies.com to map out new routes and stick ’em on garmin watches to use as a guide

shoes my personal choice again is something grippy and not too high for off road, salomon speedcross, la sportivas… but it’s very personal as said early on you’ll need to try a few to see what suits.

do some stretches the aches will ease as you get more used to it

enjoy

You’ll find after a while that your toenails will no longer go through your socks as they keep falling off and never get long enough to do any damage.

Yeah, cut your bloody toenails ya dirty tyke.

I go through socks like mad, I like the double ones that are good for not getting blisters.

Trainers: try as many as you can be bothered to

Calves: mine still ache!! Mostly had after a track session on flats

Music: go for it!! I love singing along to stuff on my shuffle, would go mad on long runs without it. Try different earbuds though as iPhone/iPod ones fall out of my ears

Welcome to the family 🙂

I’d struggle big style to do the boring bits without music. Bollocks to this meditation and contemplating life…you’re too busy being awesome for that kind of navel gazing shite.

Stop messing with my Chi, Sgt. Buzz Killington.

my 2p.

I don’t like running, but I do it all the same every now and then – means to an end and all that (tis the Army’s fault)!

Socks – I found that after fannying around with lots of socks, the thinner the better -tis hard to explain, but you get less rub with thin socks. I currently use Thorlo Pads 11.

Trainers – are you on road or off road?

If on Road, some might argue that you need to adjust for gait, pronation, stride etc, to an extent it’s true, however plenty of studies have said it’s all bollox as well – I currently use Asics Kayano’s – they are ridiculously expensive, but I got em cheap, they do seem to fit the best for me.

If off-road – a neutral shoe would be best – I’v got Saucony Guide TR 3, they were cheap, but have good grip in the slop.

don’t get waterproof – let it in let it out!!!

If you go to a running shop, they will have a tread mill and you can try on all sorts and actually get some “experience” before buying. The conclusion on shoes, really comes down to what feels best.

For the running part, ideally you should always build up the length of a run slowly. Just set off – don’t stretch -take it easy and gradually build speed up. During this build up phase, kick your legs out and back, raise you knees, then kick your arse – then run normal. As cyclists we have large thighs that take an absolute pounding when running and they need to “bed in” or get used to it, this takes time.

Concentrate on building distance over speed first, then knock back the distance and concentrate on speed, think of it as 1 step back, to go 2 forward!!

There’s some good advice on here.

Socks – as above I prefer thin ones, so whatever’s on offer at Sports Direct/Decathlon etc.

Shoes – everyone’s different, but I did find as I got faster (and lost some weight) that I didn’t need as much cushioning, so went from an Asics cushioned shoe to a less cushioned (and lighter) Mizuno.

My mate likes Saucony – they gave me blisters on my arches so bad I needed treatment from the nurse at the local surgery (infected). Everyone’s different.

Samuri, I’m surprised you need to ask but

Socks: You shouldn’t wear any – they’re for girls.
Shoes: girls.
Ipod: girls.

Massage your calves for 10 minutes each after you’ve run.

I do mine when I go to bed, using massage oil from Body Shop .

Don’t go too hard/long/fast too soon as injuries will crop up.

I get injured lots from running, silly niggles to currently struggling with PF. Normally if I “change” something. So if its working don’t change it!

Enjoy it. I love the simplicity. And the peace. And I do think I meditate a bit during the long runs, and I’m not remotely “spiritual”!

Socks wise I was recommended by some rather good runners the more mile London socks. They are the dogs dangley bits.

good amount of wool which is much nicer if you end up with wet feet imo.

Wool is better when your feet are going to get very wet and muddy.

your heel should briefly touch down on each step…

Not true.

buying running shoes is best done in a runners shop where they have a good range of different makes in lots of sizes. The good places have treadmills so you can try them out. There’s a lot of bullshit in running shoe marketing but the right pair will feel comfortable and fast. I recommend trying them on late in the day when your feet are bigger. I didn’t do this, put them on to run that evening and realized my big toe now hit the end.

All splendid advice, thanks. My ankle is hurting at the moment after the 6 mile run. We did a very easy 2 miler this morning and it’s still hurting. I’ll take a few days off running.

My wife wants some proper shoes as well now so it looks like the best thing to do is nip to a running shop and try some pairs on. The one mentioned earlier in Bolton is close enough.
Could be an expensive visit.

your heel should briefly touch down on each step…
Not true.

Yes it is 🙂

Unless you’re sprinting, of course.

Anyway, check out any video of pro and amateur athletes, the good ones – their heels touch down briefly.

Anyway, check out any video of pro and amateur athletes, the good ones – their heels touch down briefly.

Tell you what. You show us.

Unless you’re sprinting, of course.

So to paraphrase. All runners heels touch the ground, unless they are running err fast….. when they dont 🙄