Getting down about pace

[Ealaigh]

Been back to running since May after a few years off for babies/ill health. I’m 39 with about 10kg to lose (have lost 10kg). Started with couch to 5k, built up to comfortable but very slow 10K. Running 20-30km per week. In general loving it but getting down about my pace. Currently around 715-8mins/km and am struggling to get any faster. I’m losing weight and doing tempo/hill sessions but flat out pace for me is a gentle jog for most people! Husband went out for his first run in years yesterday and did a 5k in 25 mins which has really got me down as after months of working hard at it I’m still at snails pace. Any words of advice?!

Firstly, don't compare yourself to your husband of all people! Whenever I glance at my Strava feed, across all levels of commitment/ability the speed gap between men and women is pretty stark.

I am a big believer in 80:20 to increase speed - run 80% of your mileage at a deliberately easy pace (so if that is 8min/km do that and ignore the numbers - don't cheat yourself by running your slow miles fast!) and do 20% properly devoted to speedwork (which I would probably do as intervals rather than tempo or hills). I hate intervals but they do make a difference for me where tempo runs don't so much, partly because I suspect I don't really tempo run as distinctly 'fast' as I should do.

Might also be worth looking at drills to improve your cadence?

I'm sure lots of seasoned runners will be along with advice soon but wanted to throw my tuppence in.

First, you're doing brilliantly! Well done for getting into it and turning things around.

Second, men are built differently. They just are. My husband has huge muscles without even weightlifting - my daily work in comparison yields almost nothing. They have bigger lungs and entirely different physiologies. There are reasons we split by sex in competitions.

Third, personally, I don't think we were meant to run long distances as humans. We were built for quick sprints when needed, and a lot of slow movement generally. Slow, controlled steady jogging is much better for you (and your knees) then sprinting at speed for ages.

The main thing to focus on is, does it make you feel better compared to you before? (Not compared to anyone else, they don't matter.) Are you feeling improvements over time in other ways than speed?

Don't compare yourself with men, they're naturally taller and faster!!

I find that pace comes with power so doing strength exercises as well as running makes a big difference. So lunges, squats, clamshells. There should be some on YouTube - Runners Strength would be what I'd search but I don't have any specific recommendations.

I had a very similar thread back in July!

Interval training has helped me

As another poster wisely said "you have to run faster to run faster"

So try putting in some 1min faster,1min slow

However I have joined a local running club which do intervals as part of their weekly sessions which means I don't have to think, just do as I'm told! Maybe see if you have one local to you?

What is it you want out of running? Weight loss or to improve fitness? Personally if you're wanting to lose weight I'd focus on that first and foremost. Back when I actually did running (like yourself before DC and getting fat), there was a point where I was eating like a horse because I burned so much off. And I never lost any weight.

Mmm...you've found a form of exercise that you love, that works for you, and that is helping you lose weight, which you want to do. I'd say you've hit the jackpot .

There are lots of good ideas here and on other threads if you want to train to go faster, and I'd add in doing some very brisk walking up hills or a bootcamp/HIIT class as alternatives if you want variety. Don't compare yourself to other people especially men though - they have much more explosive power. And they may not enjoy their exercise regime, or be able to sustain it. And you can!

The way I increased my pace was something that I read on here. A type of fartlek training where you run as fast as you can for 10 steps, usual pace for 10, then as fast as you can for 20, usual pace for 20 and so on until up to 100.

You can play around with it by going up to 100 then back down through the 10s or reducing the usual pace steps between sprints.

It worked for me because all I had to do is count, no complicated heart-beat measuring, tempo runs or intervals or all the other things my runner husband talks about.

A running club where, as pp says, you don't have to think sounds good too.

first off: don'g compare yourself to dh.
males just are faster/bigger/stronger generally.

I think your distance is awsome and your time very respectable.

how are you measuring? by app on phone is less acurate than by smart watch. I shaved half a minute of just by switching to a watch

Thanks everyone. I do try not to compare but I’m disappointed about how slow I am now. I ran in the past and a comfortable pace then was a 27min 5k, 55min 10K roughly and I’d like to get back to something I feel is respectable! I’m not running to lose weight, I don’t think any exercise does much for weight loss I’m afraid. Just working on weight loss alongside it. I was on steroids for most of last year and had several surgeries so gained a lot of weight and lost a lot of fitness.

I’m using a garmin watch which is pretty accurate I think! And doing one of their training programmes to try and improve my 10k time. I’ve stuck to it fairly rigidly (missed just one easy run in 6 weeks) but still find my easy pace isn’t really getting any faster and I’m still really struggling with intervals etc.

Currently as per my garmin coach app I do two “easy runs”- one 45 mins and one longer. And then 2 other runs- could be hill, tempo, progression, fartleks, stride repeats etc. I was feeling very confident about getting down to under 70mins for a 10K (which is still very slow!) but have struggled the past few days to even do my usual easy runs.

I’d love to join a running club but my local ones say 30mins for a 5k is their starting point and I’m at least 5mins off that. I’d really like to do a half marathon next April but feel I need to be a bit faster so I’m not getting chased by the clean up crews!

I am also 39 with 10kg to lose! I am a very slow runner. I have been second-last in a race and I'm sure one day I will actually be last. I find when I've had time off for break, for whatever reason, it takes me much longer to get back up to "speed" (very relative term there) compared even to five or so years ago. The best thing for my speed though is doing weights. I think it must be something to do with muscle mass and ageing/hormonal changes. Last year I did a lot of kettlebell sessions (FitnessBlender) during the first lockdown and I came straight out of it to set a PB on a local run I do that was 10k with 700m+.

Also, I mainly do pff-road/trail running now, and can more easily train for longer distances, rather than speed, so maybe you could change your goals that way, rather than worry about speed over shorter distances? Incidentally, I can run my "fastest" 5ks when I am half marathon fit, so it might also improve your straight-out speed anyway.

Oh and one of the books I have on running says that lots of people run their easy runs too fast, which is actually counterproductive. It had a way of calculating what speed your easy run should be and mine was pretty much slower than walking

Ah, OK, I see why you'd like to crack it. Have you tried taking a few days off, if you are struggling to do your normal pace? And are your trainers worn down? - I find that makes my legs feel heavier and less bouncy. And are you OK health-wise now, including not being anaemic? When I restarted running in my early 50s, I found it very hard and it turned out I was pretty low on iron.

I’d love to try trail running arootin and would love to go longer but I have small children and don’t want to spend too much time away from them! Also would need someone to help me navigate!

I have brand new trainers, have done 80km in them. I’m great health wise I think after a terrible 18 months or so. I was pretty iron deficient after my last surgery but did complete my replacement so that should be fine now. My resting heart rate has been a bit high for the past few days so maybe a few days off would help. Also looking into trying some strength training. I don’t feel I need to be really fast, just would like to feel I’m achieving something!

My husband can literally cycle almost 2x faster than I can.
It would not be healthy to compare my pace to his.

May I suggest that you broaden your definition of achievement?
Your existing achievements include staying off the sofa, getting fresh air, maintaining cardiovascular fitness, keeping weight gain at bay, reducing risks of many chronic diseases. And other benefits you can think of about your specific exercise routine.

Thanks lljkk. I do recognise the benefits but I suppose I’d like to see some progress on the speed front. I’d love to do a half marathon and not be on my feet for 3+ hours. I’d also like to feel I’m getting back to being fit after a few years of illness and seeing my time gradually improve would help me with that.

Maybe get your iron levels checked as so individual? I'd take a few days off I think, rest and eat well, and do some brisk walking if you feel like it - I found that helped my running without taking it out of me. Maybe Pilates with a leg strength element, gentle and form-focussed start to strength training (Lottie Murphy on youtube is good and works whole body)? I do lots of other strength work and find Pilates helpful in the mix.

I’ve been in your position and tbh some of it is just genetics and age. I’ve accepted I’ll never be faster, my HM pb is 2.20, my ParkRun PB was 29min but now I’m currently around 33min again after injury niggles. Strength training makes quite a difference but I find it dull. Just doing 20mins of squats/lunges/plank/push ups etc 4x a week will make a difference plus the intervals along with long slow run training. My 5k didn’t drop from 34mins until I started HM training. I was doing 3 runs a week including a slower longer 1.5-2hr run weekly at 7.15-7.30min Km pace, a mid week 1hr run at 7min pace and a parkrun fast as I could. My husband has 20min parkrun and recently ran hilly 20m trail at 5.30min pace. He’s also 2st lighter than me 🤣
There are podcasts you can listen to with intervals and music in them the NHS 5k+ had one. I’d enjoy what your doing reduce the performance stress and celebrate just getting out there and having some good runs. I’ve taken up trail running more now as I forget completely about pace and just enjoy the challenge and head space

Thanks Martini- my core strength is definitely an issue. Been doing Pilates on YouTube and think I need a face to face class. Have had quite a few abdominal surgeries in the last few years so I’m very weak there (can’t do a roll up and really struggle to hold a plank.

Biking I was never particularly fast but could hold a 530-6mins/km pace for 60mins comfortably. Though this was before my second child, several operations and 10kg lighter I suppose. I will look into some strength exercises and continue with the garmin plan for now.

If you can do that distance comfortably but have no space I'd take bets its core/glutes limiting your power. I'm the opposite as my legs would like to cruise at around the 5 - 5 min 30/km pace but my cardiovascular system would prefer 7 minutes/km. I'm quite strong but not as cardio fit as I'd like, although my core could probably do better. I find the suggested pace feels almost uncomfortable and heavy/jarring and I have to focus on slowing down for an easy run. So I'd guess leg power and possibly core is affecting your leg lift - can you video your form and see if anything looks wrong?

random that’s a good idea though I think I’d probably cry if I had to look at myself on video! My core is very weak so I’ll definitely look into some strength training.

I'd say don't worry about pace, you've not been back at it six months yet. It takes a long time to get strength & speed back, so getting fitness back is the first objective and you're achieving that.
I'd also do some core strength work, really makes a difference to stability - planks, crunches, yoga for runners, squats.
Third how about going to parkrun occasionally? That helps me to push myself more than running on my own.

Oh if you've got a weak core, I would really focus on that, if safe to do so. Get some f2f Pilates from someone who really knows their stuff if you can. I wouldn't focus on pace till you've built some core strength, and I would perhaps cut down to 2 runs a week while you do so. I've found brisk walking (in gym kit, up hills, raised HR) and HIIT (including leg and core work) help my running too, mix it up a bit if safe.

I’ve been looking for face to face Pilates classes but I’ve recently moved back to rural Ireland and there’s very little back face to face yet. Might see if I can splash out on a 1:1 session.

have a look at physio therapists specialised in running.
I sometimes attend a running group led by one. last session was themed 'core'

we did planks and mermaids, crunches
running with knees high, lifting belly button...
it was good to have supervision, some of the exercises really hurt.

Pilatesforrunners on Instagram is good - lots of little mini sets of work outs to target specific areas