Any Runners?

[kppolich]

Runner here. Many marathons, boston twice, 50k and 50 milers under my belt at 28 years old. Coming from playing college football at 205 and dropping down to 155 now. I can't do anything more than 4x a week so I split up running and biking to try to avoid burnout. Never had an injury problem, run year round here in Iowa and ride on the trainer 3x a week using TrainerRoad.

*The key for me avoiding injuries is yoga and taking days off. If I don't feel good or have excess soreness I'll take the day completely off or ride easy for 1 hour on my bike

It is possible to build good running fitness with 3-4 runs a week. I usually do something like this:

Sunday: Ride inside 1 hour TrainerRoad
Monday: Run 3-7 miles easy to shake the previous weeks long run out of my legs
Tuesday: Run -Focuesed speed work or hill repeats
Wednesday: Ride inside 1 hour Trainer Road
Thursday: Run -Group Trail run 12.4 Miles at 5AM
Fri:OFF/or long RUN depending on what I'm training for. I've found that back to back longish runs build fitness quickly.
Sat: Ride inside 1.5 Hours or long run solo

[Dave Ferris]

I haven't posted in a long time…too busy running . The bike has been pretty much an afterthought most of the year.

Back to running 6 days a week , maybe once a month I'll hit 7 days. But then I take a day or two off and hit the gym.

Haven't been on the Potts since Sept. 16. I occasionally feel guilty looking at a 9K mtn. bike that's just sitting there. But that guilty feeling is soon forgotten about 45 seconds into my daily 6 -7 mile run.

With this morning's 6 miler, I'm at 1610 miles for the year. My goal is 1700 by 12/31. I'm way up from last year's recovery total of 1167 but down from my 18 consecutive years between the ages of 38 to 56 where I averaged 2100 miles for the year.

At 63 I'm not certain I have it in my legs to get to 2000 again. The 32 miles a week average seems to be about at my breaking point. I've been able to string together some 40 mile weeks this year but then I need to take it down for the recovery for a week or two.

On 12/31, I'll be exactly two years out from my last radiation treatment for the Prostate Cancer. I still don't feel 100% of where I was before the radiation. So maybe in year three I'll get even stronger and be able to hit 2000 miles again.

I have slowed WAY down in the last 2 years and my strength on steep, long continuous hills has practically vanished - before the radiation the hills used to be one of my specialties. Still, I just feel lucky and blessed to still be out there grinding away at 63 when many of my friends - younger in their 50s and faster then I ever was, have stopped altogether - due to nagging injuries or burnout.

The only downside is - man they aren't making running shoes near as durable as they used to. I used to get easily 400 miles out of a pair. These days all manufacturers make the shoes lighter and more flexible- I'm lucky to get 200 miles out a pair before I crush the outsole. I'm at 155 and a neutral runner , no over pronation.. Couple that with the price increase to $120-150 - running is not as cheap as it once was.

[deechee]

Hey DeadMan,

Have you tried Hoka shoes? I'm also a heel striker, and I've used racing flats, but honestly, Hokas have been a life saver. When I was doing long distance tri, with my legs already messed up, the Hokas with the extra padding helped a ton, and kept my plantar fasciitis at bay. Running with a metronome also helps to up the cadence which I find helps the foot injuries more than thinking "oh I gotta run like a bunny" or whatever.

[Dave Ferris]

I ran in the Brooks Dyad (104E) for many years. Back in early March I switched over to the Hoka Bondi 4s (10 2E). I alternate Hoka days with the Altra Torin 2.0 (10.5). The Torins are now at version 2.5.

The Hokas are way more durable then the Altras. But I highly like the zero heel drop of the Altras, and the much lower heel drop of the Hokas compared to the Brooks Dyad.

If you come from the traditional running shoe, you need to allow time for your body to acclimate to the lower heel drop -- cut your mileage in half or even just do walks with them - for at least 3 weeks. They said a month but i'm too impatient. Once I got used to the new tech though, I feel much more in touch with the ground and more stable on my feet. I'm picking my feet up more and tripping less to hardly at all. At 63 and older, tripping is a common occurrence as the stride shortens and we don't have that same spring and flexibility in our legs.

I don't ever seeing myself going back to the traditional 12mm heel drop shoe. I will walk around, maybe even a hike, with the Dyad or go to the gym in it. It still fits my foot great and feels super comfortable but won't run in them anymore.

[redir]

I just got a new pair of Brooks but I think I'm going to take them back. They seem to run too wide. I just replaced a pair of Saucony which were great. I think if I find a pair I like I should buy 3 of them!

[Ryun]

Back to the winter running routine. 4-5 times a week while the girls are at soccer practice and squeezing in 3 bike rides a week. Not so much cold here in Florida is lack of daylight.

Did a half marathon on thanksgiving and another on the 18th. I find a competitive event every couple weeks keeps me motivated even tho I am not really age group competitive.

[giverdada]

it's late in my old-man friday evening now. i'm old enough to have too much crap to do tomorrow but not old enough to be staying up, drinking good scotch, writing out my memoirs while enjoying a stuffed leather chair and the crack of hardwood in a fireplace. i'm heading out on my daily run in a few minutes. in the dark. in the cold. hell, it might even snow a little more.

as it rests, i've been enjoying my biggest run streak of my life, ever, these past few weeks. somehow, this is the first time in my life that i've been able to pull of back to back days, back to back runs, and bear no debilitating injury consequences, like shin splints or screaming ITBS. and my shoes were on sale! (have to find more though, as they've been discontinued and are increasingly rare.) i don't know why, other than daily stretching/yoga and foam-rolling, the right shoes, and an amazing physio who works with me and can kinda hear my body. he's also not trying to get me back in every week; we just work together when it's necessary, and then i spend the rest of my time running. i feel bad about hanging up my bike so much of the season and now the off-season, but i've never been hit by a car while running (close, for sure, but still not actually hit), and with so much of the 'day' in darkness these days, running is the safer workout. i am also using it as therapy for dealing with the crap that this year has ended up being.

i think you may have asked about winter running specifically in your original post, maybe even from years ago. there's lots of stuff to do to make it good or tolerable or whatever, and i'm sure many others have covered it all, but i do want to put in a plug for duct tape, and keeping your feet under you. i often get to run where it's dry (not snow-covered) down on a salted path near the lake, but the wind still rips through me there, freezing my feet. so i duct tape the toe boxes of my regular runners, and i'm good to go for at least a couple of hours. and in terms of stride length/gait/mechanics/not falling on your ass, keeping your feet underneath you when your foot strikes the ground is pretty helpful in many respects. the winter respect is that you're not reaching a long limb way out from your center of gravity to possibly land on a slick surface far from your center of gravity. it also smooths out your gait, lessens overall impact, and helps with injury, all these in my own experience, and YMMV.

anyway, good to talk about this stuff. now i'm a little more motivated to get out there in the driving wind and dark. give'r, eh.

[Jad]

I love to run. After a glorious fall of cyclocross, I'm working my way back up to ~25 miles a week w/ some 10ks dotting the schedule. There's a 50k I want to do in May, but spring riding tends to get the better of me.

Timewise, you get a lot of bang for the buck. I'd been faithful to my Asics and Brooks for a while, but the tires I put on my feet these days are Altra Instincts, which have a nice roomy last and fair cush. Impact is good for the bones!

[Dead Man]

Originally Posted by Jad

I love to run.

how is this even possible

[wc1934]

Originally Posted by Dave Ferris

.....
The only downside is - man they aren't making running shoes near as durable as they used to. I used to get easily 400 miles out of a pair. These days all manufacturers make the shoes lighter and more flexible- I'm lucky to get 200 miles out a pair before I crush the outsole. I'm at 155 and a neutral runner , no over pronation.. Couple that with the price increase to $120-150 - running is not as cheap as it once was.

Have you tried ASICS GT-2000-4? I've been using asics for a zillion years. They've gone thru some changes etc but this model is a solid dependable fairly neutral shoe.

[Jad]

Originally Posted by Dead Man

how is this even possible

Haha--fair question. Running gets me as much or more into the moment as anything, so that's part of it. And for little time input, running is good stress management. The right shoes help too, of course.

By the way, what shoes do you use?

[Dave Ferris]

Originally Posted by wc1934

Have you tried ASICS GT-2000-4? I've been using asics for a zillion years. They've gone thru some changes etc but this model is a solid dependable fairly neutral shoe.

I too used to run in Asics exclusively - probably from around '88 up until maybe 2000. Then at around age 47 or 48 , my foot starting really spreading out and even the 4E in all the Asics models were still too narrow. That's when I started getting into the Brooks. It just seemed to fit my foot better. Even their 2E seemed a much more comfy fit then the Asics 4E of my Cumulus.

Also I did run in New Balance for a few years. Plenty wide but the worst fit for my feet….constantly flopping around in those boat anchors.

I noticed the GT2000 comes in a 4E. I could check it out be I'd bet it would be too narrow. Like you said they have long been a presence in the Asics line. Not that I think about it, I probably have tried them on a long time ago….not sure if it was a 4E though. Plus again, I'm highly digging the lower heel drop on the Hoka and Altra models I mentioned earlier. But hey thanks for the suggestion, I will give them another try on.

The Brooks Dyad 6 & 7 were solid, durable shoes. But then they phased them out and the 8s are just terrible with regard to the rubber on the outsole wearing down prematurely !! I see now they are at version 9 but I wouldn't expect a return to the good old days. Why make a shoe that can last for 400-600 miles when you can get the younger higher mileage runners indoctrinated into spending $150 every 2 to 2.5 months ?

[estilley]

Originally Posted by Jad

Haha--fair question. Running gets me as much or more into the moment as anything, so that's part of it. And for little time input, running is good stress management. The right shoes help too, of course.



By the way, what shoes do you use?

That's it!

I too love running.


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[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by Jad

Haha--fair question. Running gets me as much or more into the moment as anything, so that's part of it. And for little time input, running is good stress management. The right shoes help too, of course.

By the way, what shoes do you use?

Gotta agree. Running is simple, cycling is great but much 'busier' and much more expensive. Injuries saw me stop(achilles tendons) and now much heavier(from about 170 to 'more'). So...I'll ride but I really enjoyed running(7 marathons, a bunch of 1/2s, 10 milers, 10ks). I grew up in the Jim Fixx world of long, slow distance. 75 or so mile weeks common. Built for comfort, not for speed. Ran a marathon about same pace as 10k..meaning the 10k slow but I could run all day. Brooks vantage/Vantage supreme, Asics Excaliber GT.

Back in 'those days', wife said I wasn't running but 'running away'..maybe some..things better now, I'll stay on the bike.

[TBLS]

Running program is year round...15-20 weeks off cycling season, 8-10 in season.

Now a bridge to XC skate season.....c'mon snow!

Thoughts on sizing up running shoes? Always wore my std size 10.5 asics. Running store sized up to a 12 brooks ghost. Felt like clown shoes at first but after a few hundred miles, while still not snug, no foot pain, etc.

May try 11.5's but convert so far.