How to improve running??

[LikeThatNotThat]

I'm feeling a little despondent. I decided to try and improve my fitness a while ago and thought running was the way forward (the main appeal being cost!)
I did the couch to 5k app and sort of completed it, it took me way longer than the 9 weeks cos I had to repeat so many sessions. I managed 30 mins non stop once, and haven't since.
I joined a running club. I've been going to park run. I try and run once a week on my own too.
I've seen little to no improvement in over 6 months. I still can't do a sub 40min 5k. I'm in the bottom 10% at park run every week.
I will keep at it, because it is better than doing nothing, but is there anything I can do to improve? Should I be running every day? I'd love to be able to join the movers on "move up week" at running club 😂
Thanks for any advice

I don’t think you need to run every day, but I would be aiming for 3 - 4 days a week.

What do you do at running club? Have you asked them?

Most of the focus should be on running “easy” - so that you should feel comfortable and capable of chatting during your run. If that’s not possible, slow down, and walk if you need to.

If you are running “hard” at parkrun and run club, then focus on running easy on your other runs. The “rule of thumb” is 80% if your running should be easy.

Well done for sticking with it though! Getting your trainers on and getting out there is the most important thing

I also struggle with running but what can help is watching you pace. Do you have a smart watch like a fitbit or Apple Watch?

To improve your pace you don’t have to run constantly for 30 mins. You can do 800m at say 7 minutes per km, take a minute break then repeat 5 times. Then you can get used to running faster

Welcome to our “low cost” running club 🤣 At least my DC are no longer stuck for Christmas presents!

For me, realising that I could just run and time and competing doesn’t really matter so much to me was a revelation. I do still time and try to improve, but it’s not what drives my running in the way it did earlier on.

Interval running helped me to develop stamina or speed, depending on which I focussed on. Also joining a really supportive running club, not one which purely focused on speed and competing. We all run together, the faster runners either slow down, or run ahead and then muster and support us slower runners. Consistency is the key, if it’s your long term goal to build speed then 3 runs a week, one focussing on slowing down, one on speed intervals and one longer run might help.

I usually run 3 or 4 times a week, but currently not able to following a medical procedure. Really missing it!

How fit are you in general? Do you do much walking as well? Are you overweight?
I think in the early days of running it's just practice and building up your stamina. Most people start off by running too fast which means they crash n burn too soon. At your easy run training pace you should be able to hold a chatty conversation. I would focus on being able to run 5k non-stop and then look at doing some interval speed work to help you go faster as well as further.

I’m a plodder but I do find interval training increases speed and stamina.

I got faster over shorter distances when I started to run longer distances. Since I’ve been doing the hill and interval track sessions at the running club my speed has also improved. If you work on your distances, even if you have to go very slowly at first, the speed will come in time.

as others have said you want a mixture of different runs. So a mix of easy, long, tempo and intervals will help improve.

well done for sticking at it though. You’re doing well. Also once you’re really into it it does stop being such a cheap hobby! I’ve got a bit addicted to buying shoes and entering races 😂.

A mix of longer slower runs and intervals will help. Like someone said earlier, most runs should be easy, conversational pace with a harder speed/hills rep session weekly. If your club runs intervals, give it a go, if it’s a good club, no one will care how fast/slow anyone else is and all sessions can be adapted by coaches. If not, there are loads of session on line to try.

Thanks so much for all the replies. I appreciate all the advice! I have been told before if I am struggling to just "run slower" - I physically cannot go slower, my husband can keep up with me when he is doing a fast walk 😂
No running is easy for me. I feel exhausted from the first 3 mins, I go slow and steady at park run and will chat to people if possible but 5 mins in I'm out of breath and pouring sweat, and I get so hot!
I am overweight (part of my reason for trying to get fit!) BMI of about 26.5. I don't drive so I walk a lot, I usually get my 10k steps!
The running club is friendly, we are in groups according to speed / distance, I started at group 2 having mostly done the couch to 5k and I can't bear the thought of moving down, but it is hard going! We run about 6k in 50-60 mins so stopping along the way.
It always feels impossible. None of it feels easy. I'm proud that I still attend and still complete the runs but I could cry with how hard it all is!

I'm not at all competitive and don't care about being better than others, but I'd like to get to a point where I enjoy it. Right now I still really hate it 😂

I really appreciate all the replies and advice and will take it all on board!

I can't go any slower than I already go 😂 and I don't find any runs easy, not ever. It's hard from the moment I set off.

OP I promise you can run slower than you currently do. If you can jog on the spot, think of that as 0 speed, and then just put a little bit of forward motion into it, and that's you running slowly. It honestly doesn't matter if that's some people's walking pace, anything that makes the actions involved in running less painful and difficult is going to allow you to do more of it, and that's what's going to help build your strength and stamina, which will then allow you to naturally get faster for the same level of effort.

OP I am a fellow slow runner.

I started out maybe 15 years ago doing a 35 min parkrun, in the first year I managed to get down to 32 minutes, but since then I have become slower and slower, particularly now as menopause appears to have struck. I play a game where I try not to be in the last 10, but quite often I don’t succeed. Sometimes- humiliatingly - I have been over taken by walkers.

However I try to comfort myself with the fact that I am faster than the people who have decided not to do parkrun at all. I focus on achieving my milestone numbers - 250 next ! - and doing parkrun in different locations.

Keep going OP - oh and slower you are, more calories you burn !

I'm probably not much help as I don't like distance running and have accepted I probably never will even though I can comfortably hike about 10 miles. Intervals are more my thing.

What I would say is that you're doing really, really well in keeping at it even though you hate it. Is it worth getting some individual coaching either at run club or possibly having a few sessions with a PT if you can afford it? I really enjoyed PT and wish I could still afford it.

Does your running club have coaches, do they have suggestions?

When you are new to running, to get better you need to simply run more! If you do park run, a club run, then your third session could be nice and easy, maybe even running/walking. Could you leave the watch at home and try new runs? This time of year is great for getting out in nature and enjoying the changing seasons.

You are doing great, you will have improved your fitness and health already.

Thank you for the further replies! The running club doesn't really have coaches just people who lead each group, it's quite informal. I definitely can't afford a personal trainer or running coach but I will definitely try and run more and do some easy (haha) slow and interval runs in between the club and park run.

My goal when I started was to get better at it, right now my goal is just to keep showing up and not die 😁

Which area are you in, roughly?

Do you record your times etc? It’s nice seeing a slow (!) improvement over time. For me running is about me vs me. There’s zero shame in being in the slowest 10% group. Just by running I’m sure you’re in the fittest x% of the population. Feel proud of that and keep going

I'd improve stamina with a gradually increasing longer run/ walk, like early days of C25k. Have a look at "Jeffing" (Jeff Galloway method)

Make one session shorter with some faster intervals. "Strides" are a good place to start. I sometimes do them at parkrun with running most at my comfort pace, with a short burst pushing hard (20-30s is enough) and return back to comfort pace to recover. They can also be done in bursts at the end of a run.

Some really good advice about improving pace- but honestly if you still can’t run 30 mins I think you should seriously consider going ‘down’ a group. You’ll probably find you push yourself less hard and you find running 30 mins easier. Just accept running doesn’t come easy for you (I do!!) but you will still improve over time

Just a thought - look up symptoms for hypothyroidism and if you have them get tested.

From a bit of a different perspective, maybe it’s something that needs to change psychologically? I noticed you said that you really hate running and always find it hard - do you have good enough and meaningful reasons for wanting to continue? I think it’s amazing you are still going despite being so fed up with it, but perhaps running being better than nothing isn’t giving you enough morale to head into a run with. And then it’s hard to enjoy it if you’re focusing on how tired you are and how hard it is from 30 mins in. Perhaps focusing on getting some enjoyment from it rather than improving would help motivation and from there you can set more improvement-related goals.

Maybe add some fun runs into your schedule? Very easy 5 min ones just to focus on enjoying it? Or go to a beautiful place so you can look at the views as you run? Experiment with music/podcasts/audiobooks to see which ones you can get lost it and distract you from thinking about how tired you are? Experiment with different routes to see if circular, there and back or whatever suits you better?

I felt the same as you and got through the couch to 5k program hating every minute, always finding all of it hard and feeling rubbish and knackered afterwards. Couldn’t understand the ‘runners high’ T all! I gradually built up to 6k but always v slow, took me about an hour every time and I was much younger than now! Then I gave up for a bit and periodically tried to pick it up again but never really did more than the beginning bits of couch to 5k.

Then 2.5 years into having my first child I needed a way to get out of the house (!) and suddenly I started enjoying it. Leapt up the couch to k5 program (still running v slowly but wasn’t repeating runs like before) and managed to get into a totally different frame of mind mentally where I just jogged along stuck into something on my headphones and not paying much attention to what I was doing/how far I’d gone or how much time or distance was left. It suddenly felt much easier even though I wasn’t any fitter (probably less so even) than when I’d tried previously. I honestly think my change in mindset helped massively - getting out of my head with it helped me to find it easier, which helped me push myself to longer or faster runs.

It may help to improve your fitness by crosstraining, such as swimming, for example. And some strength training would help too. Try doing some squats each day to strengthen your leg muscles and core. It will all help with the running.

I do have hypothyroidism and am on thyroxine 👍

South east London

Yes i have a Fitbit and always record my time and distance. I think that's what is frustrating for me, I'm not seeing any improvement!

I will keep doing it cos I know it's good for me but I've got running club tonight and I'm already dreading it!

First off, don’t be too hard on yourself, just sticking with running for 6+ months is a huge achievement.

If you want to see more progress:

• Try running 2–3 times a week instead of just once.

• Mix things up: do one easy run, one run with short faster bursts, and one longer run.

• Focus on endurance first and speed will come later.

• Add a bit of strength work like squats, lunges, core to make running feel easier.

• Celebrate the small wins, like recovering quicker or lasting longer at the same pace.