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how much time would you recommend to cross train if you plan to run no more than 20mi/week? (Read 1300 times)

laurita


    Hello everyone!!

     

    This is the first time i post here, anyways, i thought it could be good to try sharing something.

     

    To give you some background of my self, I stopped running at the end of last year because i started feeling pain on my heel.  Towards the end of january i finally decided to start training box, which i found to be really fun and helpfull after work. I recently started running ~3mi on the weekends only.  (no pain anymore, got my shoes changed for new ones, the previous ones had ~500mi on them). Iam just about to start a training program for a half marathon and currently Iam not sure what to do with the box class, continue going 4-5 times a week, or maybe cut it down to 3,2?

     

    In the other hand, what to do about weight training? i believe this helps running better and speally not getting hurt.

     

    How much time would you recommend to cross train and what would you prefer to cross train with if you plan to run no more than 20mi/week?

     

     

    Thanks!!!

     

    Hope this question helps others too =)

     

    Half Marathon 2011

    time: 1:53:49.30
    pace: 8:42 min/mi

     

    Half Marathon 2009

    time: 1:54:45
    pace: 8:46 min/mi

    CanadianMeg


    #RunEveryDay

      I think it really depends on what your goals are.

      Are you training for fitness or are you working toward a specific goal race?

      Half Fanatic #9292. 

      Game Admin for RA Running Game 2023.


      A Saucy Wench

        If your major goal is running then

         

        Stuff that you KNOW (not just speculate) helps you not get injured - as often or as much as you want to or need to

         

        Stuff that is neutral (doesnt prevent injury but doesnt cause it) - only as much as it doesnt affect your quality workouts and recovery for running.  For some this is a little, for some this is a lot - it really depends on you, the activity and your fitness level.  If the half marathon is your current goal then you need to self monitor and see if you feel the boxing class AND running is making you too tired.  Pay attention.  Adjust accordingly.

         

        If your major goal is just fitness and running is only one aspect of it for you ie you ENJOY the boxing  then it doesnt really matter, do what you want. 

        I have become Death, the destroyer of electronic gadgets

         

        "When I got too tired to run anymore I just pretended I wasnt tired and kept running anyway" - dd, age 7

        laurita


          Hi!! Thank you for your feed back !

           

          ive thought about your comments and i think i understand what you are saying. IF my current goal is running a race, then focus on the race or races and leave only as much as i can for the other activities. And that will depend on me, whatevers works better (need to find this out), also i need to consider that some activities help me more to run better than others do.

           

          All right, ill try do to that =)

            Hi!! Thank you for your feed back !

             

            ive thought about your comments and i think i understand what you are saying. IF my current goal is running a race, then focus on the race or races and leave only as much as i can for the other activities. And that will depend on me, whatevers works better (need to find this out), also i need to consider that some activities help me more to run better than others do.

             

            All right, ill try do to that =)

            As both wise ladies previously said; it all depends on what you want to accomplish from your exercise(s).  Bottom line; you need to do what you feel happy about.  Even running--though it's what clicks for me--should not be what you should be doing so often if that becomes a source of stress as I'm sure some of you in the audience can relate to.

             

            There are different exercises that you can flip-flop if you want depending on what you are trying to achieve.  For example, if your goal is simply stay fit (as a general term), you can run, swim, bike, tai-chi...or whatever.  As a matter of fact, I'm in Boulder right now and just got back from a nice run along Boulder Creek.  I saw an old lady performing tai-chi and that was pretty cool (I wish I had carried a camera...).  I'm perfectly happy with my nice easy 40-minute run and I'm sure she's pretty happy with what she was doing--I hope she's not trying to run Chicago Marathon by doing that sort of exercises all the time.  If your goal is to stay injury-free while training for, say, a 5k; then you may substitute your easy runs with swimming, biking...  But when training for a half marathon or a marathon, I would not recommend switching your long run with swimming or biking because, in the latter exercises, you won't get any pounding in your legs at all.  I'm sure those who had felt "I was fine at the end of the marathon; I could talk but I couldn't move my legs..."  In marathoning, if you can't move your legs, it won't do you much good.  

             

            We did some calculation before with a renowned exercise physiologist, Dick Brown of Oregon.  He said if you want to equate other form of exercises with running, in terms of oxygen uptake, then you can count of most exercises with triple the duration of running.  So if you want to get a 30-minute worth of running with, say, biking, do it for an hour and a half.  But when it comes to preparing for running--because it's a specific exercise, then 15-minutes of running would equate 120-minutes of any other form of exercises.  I know it sounds extreme but I used some 30+ guinea pigs to collect some datas and, when we plugged in the former formula (X3), the estimated VO2Max came out way too high in relation to the actual running performance.  In other words, maybe the calculated VO2Max was pretty close to the real figure with X3 formula, when it came to running, their actual performances were nowhere near what the calculated figure indicated.  It really proves that such "equation" would really have to take into a consideration of what you're trying to achieve.  And this I'm not talking about training for a marathon--we used a 5k race time.  In other words, even for a simple 5k race, you need to train your legs--event specific muscles--to do the task and a whole lot of push-ups or sit-ups or splashing in the pool won't help as much as most people would like to think.

             

            By the way, this is a different topic and something that had been addressed many times before.  IF running is really your goal, swimming wouldn't help as much as most people would like to believe.  It's better than nothing and I certainly wouldn't discourage people from doing it (well, I guess in a way I am...).  But constant pointing of your toes in the cold water actually may even hinder your range of motion.  If you absolutely have to substitute your running with some other form of exercise and a pool is the ONLY place to go, then aqua running is better than swimming.  

              Generally running is good for running. The trouble is that too much running can injure you, so you have to build it up slowly. In the meantime, other things can help with general cardio-vascular fitness, weight loss and general well-being. I like to have something else to do when I don't feel like running. It's good to be in the habit of doing some other kind of exercise regularly - then if you don't feel like going for a run it's no big deal to (for example) hop on your bike and go for a ride.

               

              Walking and cycling also provide opportunities to do something active when running isn't really appropriate - I go into town to do shopping or other errands on my bike or on foot, for example.

               

              Irrespective of whatever cardio type stuff you do (including running) a bit of strength/weight training is good for you. Daily press-ups, crunches, pull-ups planks, dips etc. will make you stronger over time and won't build big bulging muscles. (Despite what the adds tell you it's hard work to significantly increase muscle mass - unless you take steroids - especially as you get older. Also you need to eat a relatively high-protein diet with a calorie surplus to bulk up - runners tend to go the other way - relatively high-carb diet, always trying to lose weight...)

               

              Almost any exercise is better than doing nothing, unless it injures you.

                The trouble is that too much running can injure you...

                Says who?  

                 

                ...so you have to build it up slowly. 

                 

                This is true.

                 

                But seriously, what do you mean by "too much running"?  30 miles per week?  3 x 20 milers?  I'm telling ya; it's amazing how much FAULSE information, or belief, is out there.  Whenever I hear some PT telling people "too much running can injure you", I just shake my head.  I guess back in 1970s and 80s, while all those "runners" were running 100 miles a week, we should be seeing hundreds and thousands of skinny cripples walking around today.  Far more today's 30-40MPW runners are injured than back in the days 100MPW runners.  Why do you think that?  And do you think it's really the amount of running that contributes to "injuries"?  Rubbish.

                  Says who?  

                   

                  This is true.

                   

                  But seriously, what do you mean by "too much running"?  30 miles per week?  3 x 20 milers?  I'm telling ya; it's amazing how much FAULSE information, or belief, is out there.  Whenever I hear some PT telling people "too much running can injure you", I just shake my head.  I guess back in 1970s and 80s, while all those "runners" were running 100 miles a week, we should be seeing hundreds and thousands of skinny cripples walking around today.  Far more today's 30-40MPW runners are injured than back in the days 100MPW runners.  Why do you think that?  And do you think it's really the amount of running that contributes to "injuries"?  Rubbish.

                   

                   

                  It's hard to know what is too much in advance. But many of we runners have injured ourselves through some combination of excessive intensity or volume. We don't deliberately set out to become injured - but many of us do.

                   

                  For myself I know that things start to become problematic if I try to stay over 100km a week for a time; but maybe eventually I'll be able to tolerate that better.

                   

                  Some people can tolerate more than others, and it's no surprise that the world class runners are the ones who can put in the big mileage. But there are very few people who regularly do 100+ miles a week.

                   

                  Injuring yourself and crippling yourself are very different things - most running injuries are soft tissue damage that will recover given the right kind of rehabilitation - but they can stop or limit your ability to run (or indeed do other things) whilst they're still there.

                   

                  Back in the day there were fewer runners, and those that ran were those that could compete. Now many more people do it to participate. It's not surprising that on average people do lower mileage. Everyone has different capabilities, but those capabilities can change with training. 

                   

                  So sure - many people injure themselves by running too much, or too hard, for their current capabilities.

                  laurita


                    is very interesting how one question can yield to so many things and at the end lots of them are like " well it depends".

                     

                     I appreciate all of your comments, i believe there are some basics that apply for everyone, that and our personal goals help us select what we prefer to do, the hardest part is what is better for us in terms of being able to keep running in the long term with no injuries. in my case i love just doing almost any exercise, specially outdoors, lately ive enjoyed so much boxing too,  but the greatest thing is running =)

                     

                     

                    PS. loved the words "Bottom line; you need to do what you feel happy about"