Showing posts with label time. Show all posts
Showing posts with label time. Show all posts

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Ran/walked 1 hour 2 minutes

My wife and I drove to the trail-head at 100th South, and we went north. I ran/walked for 1 hour 2 minutes, going about the same distance (2.8 miles) that I've been going. I want to run this time several more times before I increase the time.

There were quite a few runners, walkers, and cyclists on the path. The temperature was in the mid 40s (F), the sky was sunny with no clouds, and it was another nice day to be out (no wind). I added 5 seconds to my walking and running, giving me 40 seconds running and 60 seconds walking. While I'm getting used to the total time, as mentioned above, I will also be getting used to the longer phases of running and walking. It's good for runners, especially older runners like me, to make small changes in distance and/or pace so our bodies can get used to the higher levels of activity.

I've been careless in not stretching very much before and after I run. I'm trying to get back to my practice of stretching, and I feel pretty good. I'm also getting 7 hours of sleep each night, and that helps, too.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Increased distance to 2.8 miles or 1 hour of running/walking

My wife and I drove to the parking lot at 100th South and went south. She walked 2.9 miles and I ran/walked 2.8 miles. The temperature was in the mid 30s (F), not much sun, and there were south-wind gusts of 15-25 mph. It was nice having the gusts push me on the way back. I made the distance with no rest stops.

My distance is long enough that I need to change from distance to time. My weekly goals for time are 1 hour, 1.33 hours, and 1.66 hours, representing a rest run, a medium run, and a long run. It takes me about an hour to do the 2.8 miles, so I think I'm ready to start using time instead of distance. The advantage of time is that for the same time, the distance covered varies according to how the runner feels, and this change is automatic. I'll start using time and then increase the mid and long runs a bit as I get stronger, until I reach my goal for the three times. I'll keep the rest run the same time as today. I run 3 times per week, and that allows me to do all three times each week.

I've been running 30 seconds and walking 50 seconds, but I changed to 35 seconds and 55 seconds earlier this week. These changes are small, especially for younger runners, but they work fine for older runners like me. I like Jeff Galloway's run/walk method. It allows me to go further than I would go if I did no walking. When I was younger, though, I would do only running. I later learned about the run/walk method and changed to it.