RULES

I am a total beginner and have signed up for a half marathon in may next year. I am currently almost half way through my beginner 5km program through the Runna-app. My current running program will end jan 10.

I have a lot of time til may and I don’t know if I should start a 10km program, a half marathon program or another 5k program next.

What are your thoughts?

I usually run in shorts or pants (wwith underwear), so I am clueless. Do I need to wear underwear with tights/half tights/bike shorts? It feels weird to go without, but it also seems like that's how these styles are designed. Thanks!

Basically the title, I’ve been running in 20-30 degree weather for the past week or so and my face and lips hate it. Does anyone have a recommendation of a product they slather their face/lips with before going outside? I have the big aquaphor stick but I find it doesn’t seem to last very long, and my normal summer Fridays chapstick doesn’t seem to do much either in terms of lasting.

recently i have started training my deep core using exercises like hollow body hold. i've seen that the days on which i do those, running is much harder due to soreness in my ab region. usually i strength train early in the day and then run in the evening. if the soreness is too much, i usually come back. just wanted to check if this is something others also go through?

I could really use this community's help when it comes to recommendations. Looking to get a Christmas gift for someone I know - she just moved to Boston and is looking for a good pair of warmer running pants. She moved to Boston from Florida, so everything she owns that is longer is obviously much thinner. She has also complained about things not wanting to stay on her butt and sliding down while running. She's training for a half-marathon currently, and I would love to gift her a solid pair of high waisted running pants!

I figured this community would know best and can help guide a clueless dude.

How's everything going? This is a space to celebrate victories, get support, and share anything that might not merit its own post.

Did you have a really good run recently?

Find some really cute shoes or an awesome running outfit? (Feel free to share social links here!)

How's your training for the next big event going?

Want to share something random that's going well for you right now, or need to vent about something in your life, even if not running-related?

This is the place for it! Brag, vent, whatever you need!

Pump it. LOUDER! Give us the goods so we can fist pump for you! What day is it? It's TRIUMPHANT TUESDAY!

Hello all, just wanted to share that I completed my first half marathon this Sunday. This post doesn't really have a purpose but I just wanted to write about it.

I've always hated running, this was almost a personality trait, I've always been active and athletic-ish but I would do everything I could to avoid running and would try to substitute with literally anything else. I don't really know why but changed my mind and started running last year (still hated it) and did my first 10k last December and built it up this year to my first half marathon. My only goal was to cross that damn finish line. The training was horrible, I hated waking up at 5am to go running, I have chaffing everywhere, piles of laundry and so much money spent on gels. I've had multiple knee injuries in the past, I gained some weight, and I never thought I'd be able to do something like this.

I was feeling pretty good until km16-17 and then I mentally checked out, I was so done with it. My body felt ok-ish but I had blisters on my feet and it was really painful. But the feeling of crossing the finish line and getting that stupid little piece of metal around my neck... I couldn't stop crying. I had a pretty shitty year and to end on this accomplishment, I'm feeling quite proud of myself.

Thank you if you read all this, I'm really grateful I found this subreddit, it gave me lots of inspiration during the last few months and I'm proud of all of us. It's a really stupid sport and I never thought I would enjoy it, but now I'm already looking for a next race...!

Onward and upward!

I have been running for about two years. I run my first half in two weeks. Already signed up for a few 5k’s and another half mid next year. Basically, I’m booked and committed to running through June 1, 2025.

I turn 40, end of next year. My dream is running a Marathon to celebrate my 40th bday!

However, just super freaked out and completely overwhelmed by all of the fueling tips/strategies I see online (mostly social media and podcasts here and there).

The carb loading before, the ensuring you’re hydrating and fueling properly during!

As someone with ADHD I’m really rigid about following a plan while running/training but diving into the proper nutrition world seems like a beast.

Is it really THAT difficult/complicated?

How are some of y’all so damn fast? How do you keep up a 7-9 min mile pace for an entire 10k or longer? Does it feel like you’re “settled in” or is your body pushing 90%-100% for the whole race? Is it enjoyable? Have you always run like someone is chasing you?

I’ll go first: aggressive stroller pushers

Finally caved and bought a BOB stroller for my husband and I. We’ve got a 14 month old who is pretty active. What are your tactics to get a decent run in with your child? How long until your toddler decides they’ve had enough? We bought a snack tray and we have a park .7 miles from the house, but I was wondering what else we could do to help. I’m not sure how long he’ll sit happily in there before getting bored. I don’t run very fast (maybe 11 min pace but that’s before pushing a stroller) and I normally do 5 so that’s about an hour of running

I know this question comes up all the time, but I'm looking for advice on how to dress for an upcoming half-marathon with a forecast of 28 to 33 degrees F. I'm aiming to PR the race by coming in just under the 2 hour mark, so around 9:00 min/mile pace. The course is rolling hills, probably low wind and sunny.

I've never run a race at these temps. Usually, for easy training runs under these conditions, I'd wear long tights, a thin long sleeve shirt with a heavier shirt or jacket on top, mittens, and a headband/earwarmer. That allows me to take off layers or roll up sleeves.

However, I know from experience that I like to feel cooler during races because I'm working much harder and I hate feeling like I'm overheating. For comparison, I raced a 7 miler a few weeks ago where temps were in the mid- to upper 40s and I ended up in shorts and a tank top (I started with arm sleeves but removed them almost immediately).

So, for this upcoming half, I'm very tempted to wear shorts with calf sleeves and a thin long sleeve shirt (along with mittens and a headwarmer). Or maybe a tee shirt with arm sleeves I can roll down or remove?

I imagine before the race, I'll have a on a hoodie or sweats I can toss and leave at the start.

Does wearing shorts sound reasonable, or do I risk being too cold?

*EDIT*: thank you all for weighing in and giving me some reassurance!

How's everything going? This is a space to celebrate victories, get support, and share anything that might not merit its own post.

Did you have a really good run recently?

Find some really cute shoes or an awesome running outfit? (Feel free to share social links here!)

How's your training for the next big event going?

Want to share something random that's going well for you right now, or need to vent about something in your life, even if not running-related?

This is the place for it! Brag, vent, whatever you need!

51F, 5'4", 181lbs. Ran a 5k last Sunday after almost completing the C25K programme, at 44 mins. I feel fit, have been doing bodyweight squats, lunges, vinyasa with glute and core strength boosts for several months, on and off.I want to keep running, and currently run 2-3 times a week for 30 mins without pain, but am worried about the longterm stress of my weight to the joints. But losing weight is proving hard, even though I am not a pizza-burger-heavy carbs person. In fact I have gained weight afterstarting the running - even though things are a bit leaner and tighter all round. ED: I wanted to post a screenshot of my run stats but can't seem to add a photo.

Running nyc next November and I want to get closer to 4h. I’m currently in 5+h zone, I want to know if it’s possible to shave off an hour in 11 months lol 😂

I'm finishing up my free base plan in the Run With Hal app in a few weeks, and looking to start my first marathon training plan. I've done a couple half marathons (1 I actually trained for 😅) and I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations for paid training plans you love, free ones that you love, whatever.

I ran my half at an avg pace of 12:52, my goal is to up my speed and in a dream world, finish in under 5 hours - though I'd honestly just be happy with finishing.

TIA!!

So I started running in January after primarily lifting weights and biking and when I say started I mean I could run 0.1 miles in extreme pain. Did physical therapy, had a gait analysis and I can now run with much more comfort and have increased milage gradually every week. I have been training for a 12K at the end of the year and recently switched to more road running to give myself more time on pavement and more experience with everything that running outdoors entails.

That leads to my question. Most of the people I have spoken with say they are faster on a treadmill because they don't have to think about pace. According to my Garmin, I'm running significantly faster outside at a pace that feels natural and sustainable to me. My heart rate stays high but I can hold it for a long time. Heart rate does something similar when I'm lifting weights. It just goes high and stays high.

On a treadmill, my base jog is about a 17-minute mile (we get there when we get there, sloths unite). Outside without looking at my watch and just settling into what feels right, I'm running between a 12- and a 14-minute mile and can sprint to an 8-minute mile. If I try to set any of those speeds on a treadmill, I don't feel in control of my body. What gives?

TL;DR: Can I shave 1min off my p/km pace in 8 months, from 7:30 to 6:30 /km following a half-decent training plan?

Realistic expectations + helpful hacks most appreciated:

Newish runner here. 44y/o cis female. Healthy and active but have never been athletic nor cardiovascularly fit, although I've been improving incrementally over the past weeks/months. I'm running at about... Let's call it 7:30/km pace, or roughly 5k in ~36 minutes. I have just started training for my first 10km run which is in 8 months' time, so I have some time (I'm using my Garmin's adaptive training plan). I'd really, really like to improve my fitness quite a bit, and my goal is to shave a minute off my pace, so run at an average 6:30/km pace, coming in at 1:05:00.

I'm currently also learning about fuelling for fat-loss and training in the early days (I'm a healthy 21.5% bf but am aiming for an ideal racing "weight" of around 17-18% bf -- wherein I think I'll feel much more comfortable running in the heat, and with less load on my joints, too). Am currently strength training ~2x per week, and will shortly transition to a run-specific strength training program. Injuries have been a killer for me: I'm hypermobile and get funky knees and hip bursitis, so am also about to commence a physio-supervised running "pre-hab" program. (Yes, I'm probably perimenopausal, too. yay.)

The Garmin adaptive training program has me running about 4x per week at this stage, a solid mix of different runs, and it thinks I can make the pace by that date. (In fact it estimated 1 minute faster, lol I don't think so) But my question for more seasoned runners is, does this sound reasonable to you? This amount of pace improvement from a noob in 8 months? And if so, have you any hot training tips / hacks you can offer from your own journey? I want to take this super seriously, but also be super smart about it.

A weird one maybe but I wondered if anyone else had noticed that they run differently depending on what stage they are at in their menstrual cycle?

Currently due a period very soon and my 10k felt awful today although my pace was ok. Runs generally feel harder in my luteal phase! On the flip side when I’m ovulating I could run forever.

Anyone else?

On my own - not even a race 😁 my new training plan pushes me to try paces I'd have thought unreachable a few weeks ago! I felt strong during the whole workout- what an amazing feeling!

Training for my first marathon (nyc 2025) and I use my Apple Watch 9 and have the paid $80/year Strava. I’m thinking of switching to garmin. Mainly for battery life and training info. My current pace estimates my marathon time to be 5 hours. I’m hoping to get that down before next November. Interested in opinions on watch. I tend to use my watch for pacing a lot during races, to keep an eye on my exertion vs performance. I do track my vo2 max, and trying to get that up. I also track BBT via wrist temp over night.

How's everything going? This is a space to celebrate victories, get support, and share anything that might not merit its own post.

Did you have a really good run recently?

Find some really cute shoes or an awesome running outfit? (Feel free to share social links here!)

How's your training for the next big event going?

Want to share something random that's going well for you right now, or need to vent about something in your life, even if not running-related?

This is the place for it! Brag, vent, whatever you need!

I'm following this 5k workout plan, which I got from the wiki. I'm confused about the workout days, ie, the yellow boxes. for eg: workout 1 is (3x800m = 2.4k). how can I do 6.44k along with this workout? am I missing something? 🙏 in advance

I didn't realize it even could fill up because it's a virtual event, so I didn't hurry to sign up and when I finally got around it was full.

Anyway, the idea was to run or walk a certain distance every day for the first 12 days of December, "ultimate challenge" being 12km x 12 days which is what I wanted to do. Anyone here interested in doing it unofficially with me for some cameraderie? Doesn't have to be 12k, any distance you think would be fun and safe for you to do for a 12 day streak is cool!

33F. 22ish HMs, first full in May, a handful of sprint triathlons this summer and fall, and my first sub 2 hour HM in October. I was following the Daniels 12 week plan for a mid Dec full, but life has happened drastically in the last 3 weeks so: 1. I haven't run more than 9 miles consecutively since election day. and 2. I can no longer go to the marathon I registered and have been training for bc I have a commitment that weekend. My weekly mileage is probably 30-35 right now, but was higher until life fell apart a few weeks ago.

There is a singletrack trail marathon here tomorrow locally out on the mountain bike trails I sometimes ride. I would like to do it, just to have one more full marathon completed in 2024. It's 4 laps of the trail, so I can plant my triathlon transition bag near the start, and go back and forth, take off layers in the cold, change earbuds if they die, grab extra gels for my belt if I run out, and even change shoes if necessary (I've done 16 miles in deep mud in my trail nikes, but never a full).

I also have enough glycogen to fuel a rocket from thanksgiving.

Can I half ass a full marathon tomorrow if i do it slow and walk a bit? Or am I nuts?

First full marathon under my belt. Goal was just to finish and I sure did. Learned so very much and can’t wait for #2!!!!