Parkrunners unite!

[IsThatTrue]

Right, lets find all the park runners we have on here. I did my first park run on sat.

I am very impressed with my time of 33.18 :) I am ridiculously pleased with myself.

So park runners, where are you?

Thanks IsThat... will have to find some time somehow!

Oh and eugenes you are pretty local to me, my local is Banstead woods :) but I also run Nonsuch park some weeks.

Welcome cinnamon well done on all your volunteering! I've run 10 now and volunteered once. I'm volunteering again in a couple if weeks. I do pre event set up or post event close down so I can still run. I aim to volunteer once a month.

Eugenes, I ran my first half earlier this year, and came in just under 2:30. I'm pretty slow, by running standards. I think they had 3 hours as their time after which they started closing up shop.

My challenges for 2014 will include running a sub-60 10k, and earning my 50 ParkRun Tshirt.

Eugene -look online for the race results from last year and that will tell you the range of finishing times

Also you should follow a proper training programme -there are plenty free online . Soon you will be running longer distances and be better able to estimate your time

Dont think of runnig and walking the rest on the day Once you are a bit more experinced you will find a pace that suits you And you can keep up for the whole race.

Most big races have a pace runners. If you run with the correct one it will keep your motivation up

Good luck

Hello Parkrunners !

Some great running this weekend - PB's, 50 tee shirts, fast times...well done one and all!

No PB for me yesterday, but another sub-29, which will do me. I ran a 10K with DSIL today, pretty slow as it was mostly on dirt tracks through a country park, and very undulating. Waiting for our times.

Eugenes - I've run 5 half marathons in times between 2:45 and 2:20. I have always followed a Runners' World training plan which has got me running the whole distance (with a very small amount of walking at water/loo stops). A friend of mine did a very fast half by alternating running and walking when she was injured - I think it was 3 mins running, 2 walking, but she kept it up throughout.

I am booked on my first half in November and the time limit is 2hrs 30... Eeekkk! I did a 8.9mile race today in I think 1hr 22 so pleased with that was expecting about 1hr 30 :)

Oo good luck cinnamon I can't imagine running that far.

Hi ohone fx for a good time on your race.

I really felt like a run this evening but way too much going on here. :(

Thanks everyone; that sounds good advice. Although it will only be for a month or so, I'm hanging onto the fact that from Jan both DCs will be in pre-school Wed afternoons, and I'll be able to do some long runs. Before then I think my folks can cover me and I have some good local babysitters. Evenings are tough as DH gets in late ish and I do quite a lot already... choir and things. I feel an idiot for signing up really but I bet when I've done it I'll get 'the bug'... like I did after my first 10k!

IsThat - I'll look up Banstead Woods! We've only been here two years... although I've heard many names I don't actually have where they are located down well.

cinnamon - you sound fast! Which half are you doing? I am toying with doing a local one in December - I did one in January so thought it might be nice to end the year with another one .

St Neots half. The furthest I've got to is 11 miles and that took 1hr 50 so not massively fast. My parkrun seems to have slowed though since I've been increasing distance :(

As long as you have done 10 miles in training you should be fine . Maybe you are running your parkrun at half pace and need to remind yourself to speed up when it's a shorter distance?

Good luck with your half!

Definitely faster than my half pace but I feel like I'm going to die! Keep thinking perhaps I'm just more suited to a long steady plod than a speedy 5k. I'm still around 27m but I'm much fitter than I was and can't beat my pb :(

That sounds like me - better at distance than speed!

Yup - one-speed runner here too!

We do speed, interval and hill training at my club but perhaps I need to do it more regularly or push myself harder!

Inspired by this thread, I did some speed work this afternoon! 5 min jog warm-up, then sets of 20 second full-pelt sprint followed by 1min recovery speed-walk. Not sure how many sets I did, but was knackered afterwards!

holmes that's the sort of intervals I do. Although I count strides and try and get to 80 in each sprint burst, jog to recover (which ends up being not much slower than my normal running speed) and then sprint again. This has been amazing for my pace.

Urgh - 80? My legs were aching after much fewer than that! I guess I can increase as I become less of a wuss improve .

Well done on your half Issy!

And well done holmes on your speed training . My plan has had me running 6 or 6 half mile intervals with 2 minute breaks in between. It's a killer, but it works.

at IsThat's 80 paces.

Yep issy I just run as fast as I can, focusing on getting my knees up and pumping my arms faster (god knows why but if I pump my arms faster my legs go faster). I don't time my recovery but I basically just jog until I think I could possibly sprint again. Prob 200-300m or so.

I've only done this over 2.5 k, usually after a fairly normal 2.5k run.

My provisional time for Sunday's 10K is 01:05:05, so no name change coming up (current nickname is my 10K PB from the London 10K I did with the Woolly Hugs team). I was hoping for better, but it was a rough course with lots of hills and gravelly paths with potholes so I took it easy.

I just ran my Parkrun course in 30:55 - it just goes to show how running with others helps you go that bit faster.

I can't go to Parkrun this weekend and am already a bit miffed about missing it. By Saturday I will be really fed up .