2020 Fretboard Virtual Running Club

fields5069 · January 2020

That was partly what drove me into minimal shoes - always being told to change shoes every 600 miles etc. Gets bloody expensive. The first pair of minimal-ish shoes I had were Inov8 flite 230, which I only chuckled when the uppers fell apart after 1500 miles.

musteatbrain · January 2020

If anyone is getting a bit geeky about this and has 10 mins, I found this a useful article to give some insight in to stride length vs cadence

https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20822244/the-great-cadence-debate/

It’s an easy way to help you identify potential easy ways to reduce your times.

although you could argue if you just want to get fit and burn calories, running in the least efficient way possible is the most effective.

if you look at me running you could assume that’s what I’m doing!

WiresDreamDisasters · January 2020

Nothing to write home about really, but I'm down from 94.5kg to 92.1kg. Been exercising every other day and watching what I eat. Aiming for 85kg.

Deadman · January 2020

Cheers @mcsdan great info.

TTony · January 2020

Image: https://www.fairhavenneighborhoodnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Week-4-Winner-Graphic.png

Right, that's week4 of my c25k routine done.

On schedule.

I think I'll try week5 next.

[edit]
2.3miles run this evening, according to the treadmill, and it felt like I could do more at the end. I upped the speed back to 6.5mph for the last couple of minutes, so I'm feeling positive.

mcsdan · January 2020

fields5069 said:

That was partly what drove me into minimal shoes - always being told to change shoes every 600 miles etc. Gets bloody expensive. The first pair of minimal-ish shoes I had were Inov8 flite 230, which I only chuckled when the uppers fell apart after 1500 miles.

The altra brand shoes I run about 60-70%of my runs in are zero drop and neutral so minimal in that sense. However the sole thickness varies depending on the use of the shoe. I have maxi cushioned for really long runs, less cushions for normal and almost no cushion for faster runs. Agree without the more minimalist style lasting longer due to not needing the support. Mine are usually thrown once the sole wears through or they simply fall apart. Doesn't take long when running mostly off road for the shoes to be hacked through!! Plus I like trainers lol

mcsdan · January 2020

TTony said:

Right, that's week4 of my c25k routine done.

On schedule.

I think I'll try week5 next.

[edit]
2.3miles run this evening, according to the treadmill, and it felt like I could do more at the end. I upped the speed back to 6.5mph for the last couple of minutes, so I'm feeling positive.

Great stuff Tony. Good to hear you have some left in the tank.

mcsdan · January 2020

Just back from 5miles/8km off road in the dark through the woods. Just me, a head torch and the woodland animals. Didn't see anyone. Well, it was really dark lol Some cross-training tomorrow with MTB ride and gym. Then longer run on Sunday probably 10-11m. Week 1 of plan almost done!

mcsdan · January 2020

WiresDreamDisasters said:

Nothing to write home about really, but I'm down from 94.5kg to 92.1kg. Been exercising every other day and watching what I eat. Aiming for 85kg.

That's a good weight loss. It's better to come off gradually since it'll more likely be fat as opposed to muscle or water. Maintaining muscle via exercise and losing fat works doubly since you'll keep metabolism up to burn more even whilst sitting. 2lbs/1Kg a week is considered good/healthy btw. Great work

mcsdan · January 2020

musteatbrain said:

If anyone is getting a bit geeky about this and has 10 mins, I found this a useful article to give some insight in to stride length vs cadence

https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20822244/the-great-cadence-debate/

It’s an easy way to help you identify potential easy ways to reduce your times.

although you could argue if you just want to get fit and burn calories, running in the least efficient way possible is the most effective.

if you look at me running you could assume that’s what I’m doing!

Increasing cadence is not only great for speed but also reduces injury risk since the foot tends to land less out in front of the body/knee i.e. heel striking. With the heel under the knee and centre of mass there is less load on the body and more efficient.

However many articles promote the 180 steps per minute as being ideal. This was based on a study of olympic athletes who were in their prime and running at maximum biomechanical efficiency for their discipline. In practice the ideal cadence is one which is efficient for you and varies for the speed and distance. A 5km for example would have a higher cadence than say a marathon. I'd run a marathon bang on 180spm, a 5km around 190-200spm, a 50k around 160-168spm. In the field I've seen lots of runners with a low cadence for 5km usually around the 155-162spm range. Increasing this slightly upto around 168-174spm yeilds good results. Too high and many wear themselves out with cadence.

Another benefit of the slightly higher cadence as hinted at above, is the foot landing underneath the knee or body. This changes the mechanics of the run from a pull with hamstrings when the foot is in front, to a push from the glutes (bum) when it lands closer to the centre of mass. This is crucial since the glutes are far stronger and designed for this purpose. Hence more efficient to run longer or stronger to run faster. Win, win.

As for increasing cadence, don;t try to do it all in one go. If your cadence is say 160spm try increasing to 166/168 a minute or so at a time during a run. Over time it'll get longer and part of the natural stride. A useful tip for gauging this is to count the beat in your head (use a metronome to get a feel for it). Try using an odd number so that the 1st beat alternates every time. So

1-2-3,1-2-3,1-2-3

L-R-L, R-L-R,L-R-R

You can also find music that is in the beat to what you want or apps that speed up/slow down music accordingly.

Great to see you're getting geeky about it.:)

TTony · January 2020

mcsdan said:

Just back from 5miles/8km off road in the dark through the woods.

Hmmmm ... I think I'll stick to my treadmill, indoors, in the light!

I presume you're running on reasonably well maintained/marked footpaths rather than just tramping through the undergrowth?

fields5069 · January 2020

Undergrowth can sometimes be fun, though you’ll end up with lower leg rash I guess. I can run around a local hill fort, though you have to watch your ankles as most paths follow the contours and have a slope going across the path.

fields5069 · January 2020

I actually increased cadence in regular running shoes quite successfully. Due to the heel to toe drop I found I was pretty much landing flat footed.

RedRabbit · January 2020

Just done my first run for a couple of weeks. I've had a bit of pain in my right knee so have been resting up.

Managed 5km at a steady pace and both knee and ankle (previous injury) felt okay. Just need to keep putting the effort in now. Half marathon is only 16 weeks away.

fields5069 · January 2020

7 miles today. I was considering ParkRun but wanted to just run and take it slow so I went up our local canal.

drofluf · January 2020

First time out in a week for me this morning.

musteatbrain · January 2020

About to try and run a mile with legs that my grandad wouldn’t want after a very large volume of front squats earlier today

musteatbrain · January 2020

That was a terrible idea

octatonic · January 2020

Ran today,
5k in 28:39.

Deadman · January 2020

No exercise for me today, because it's FATurday.

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2020 Fretboard Virtual Running Club

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