Forums >Running 101>Just ran for the first time in 5 years!!!!
Hi, I am new to posting on RA, but I have had this account for about 6 years. I went out tonight for the first time in 6 years, and only managed to do less than half a mile - pretty pants I know!!!
I came home and checked my old logs from 2007 and I was running at least 3 -4 times a week, chucking in a couple of 10K's a week to boot! I remember then I would not bother lacing up my trainers for any less than a 4 mile easy - I seriously cant believe how difficult I found my run tonight. Oh I was not expecting to be able to do much, and I am just glad I got out there. I must be a at least a couple of stone heavier now, had a beautiful baby and live a very sedentary life! But I will be 41 in 6 months and I do not want to feel at 41 how I felt on my 40 - fat and unfit!
What I want to know is, can I get back my fitness. I am not wanting to run half marathons, or even 10K's, I would be happy if I could run for 30 mins right now. And I imagine once I get there I will then push myself further, but this weight I am carrying I find really hard to run with!
Has anyone else come back to running after such a long time and managed to get back to where they were?
Looking forward to hearing from anyone with words of wisdom or encouragement..
I think you did the right thing by getting out there. Not every run is perfect but GETTING OUT THERE is perfect. Just remember that. In 3 months you will lose the weight and be running 10ks again. Just give yourself the time to come back. Be careful and have fun !!!
5k = 19.48 10/1/13
10k = 45.28 4/16/13
Half Marathon = 1:38.53 Summer Sizzle 7/13/14
Operation Jack Marathon 12/26/12 4:39.11
Solo O Marathon 06/02/13 3:52:10
Operation Jack Marathon 12/26/13 3:40.34
That's awesome! Welcome back! I'd recommend checking out the Couch to 5K group/program. You can definitely get your fitness back. I've done C25K maybe 3 or 4 times and One Hour Runner 2-3 times. They work!
Call me Ray (not Ishmael)
I took an 18 year break from running (non running related knee injury) and resumed about 4 1/2 years ago. I started (foolishly) with a nice easy 6 miler and was painfully reminded the next day that I needed to start slowly. It was hard to get started again but the fitness has returned and I am a better runner now than I was then. I hope to beat my teenage 5K time in the next few years and will enjoy the journey to get there.
Good stuff getting started again. The most important thing to focus on is getting in some easy miles 3-5 times per week. The rest will take care of itself.
Welcome back to the club.
Rebuilding my aerobic base....racing next year.....nothing to see here....move along now.
Welcome back to running!
Given your history/background, I think you can get back to where you were quite easily. Just take a long term approach. There aren't any quick fixes.
not bad for mile 25
Bronnie, congratulations on getting out there again! The toughest part is getting out the door. You don't have to be speedy, nor to run far; just be persistent in getting yourself out the door. Think of it as a long-term life choice, too. You're doing it for yourself and for your baby!
You have taken the first step. Good for you. Now make sure you take the 2nd, 3rd and 4th steps as well. Keep going. Try to run a few times a week. If you have a bad week, try to at least run once. It may take a while before running feels like a habit again. Just keep at it and it will get better.
And to answer your question about getting back to where you were, yes this is absolutely possible. I am about your age and I started running again two years ago after 9 years of not running. In the past year, I have set lifetime PRs in several distances.
But don't worry about pace for now. Just get out and run on a regular basis. Ramp up your mileage very slowly and you will be on your way.
2013 goals: 800m: 2:20 | mile: 4:59 | 5k: 18:59 | 10k: 39:59 | HM: 1:32 | Marathon: 3:20
I've taken long breaks, and what I've learned is not to rush things and to be where I am, and enjoy the journey. Otherwise, I'd be just becoming self-victimized by a self-created frustration trying to recapture a time that might never be again. Take it easy. Make sure you're going easy enough. Good luck, I hope you find it rewarding.
I'm in the same boat as you.
In 2005 I was cut, lean as hell, you could slice paper with my calves. I would do 15-18 miles on my weekend long runs. A 5 miler on a week day was a piece of cake.
Ran a marathon (although not that well, I went out too fast, but I still did it).
Now I'm 60 pounds overweight and trying to get back into the swing. Only, at 50+, it's a lot more difficult than it was.
I try to tell myself, even if I only have time, or desire, or, whatever, to only run a mile, or 3/4 of a mile, or 1/2 mile, it's STILL BETTER THAN DOING NOTHING.
That hasn't sunk in on me yet.
It seemed so easy last time.
I'm a work in progress.
Jeff
an amazing likeness
"Stop the madness!", I say. Back when you (both) were running, you wouldn't have tried to run 100 miles/week after training at 15 mpw, would you?
If you truly want to do this, then set a simple goal that can NOT be skipped, something like "30 minutes / day". Every day. No Matter what. Walk, run, skip, stroll, hop, whatever...for 30 minutes each and every day. No matter what.
Start there.
What you want is a habit. A 30-minute per day habit. You miss it, you feel guilty, you feel sloth-like. Make it part of your identity...get people that you don't know to start saying "...aren't you that person who is out there every single day, wow...you're nuts". When that is incorporated into who you are, then start running.
Acceptable at a dance, invaluable in a shipwreck.
One day at a time
Yes, this works! Really often, friends or even just acquaintances will say, "I see you out on North Road running, all the time!" So I feel guilty if I stop. A few people have said they even started running because of me, and that's the best feeling in the world.
No more marathons
Bronnie - I stopped running in 1985 after a disappointing DNS at what was to be my BQ attempt in marathon number four.
Fast forward 23 years to 2008 when I started back running because my DS began running on his HS team.
I started back slow and intermittent, but back none the less.
Am I back to where I was then? Not by time (no way 60 year old legs can run as fast as 35 year old) but cerainly by miles and efforts. And last year I did what I failed to do as a younger man - got my Boston Qualifer.
So a 5 year hiatus is no big thing - just start back slow and easy and it can be done.
Boston 2014 - a 33 year journey
Lordy, I hope there are tapes.
He's a leaker!
some call me Tim
Yeah, you probably lost a little potential between 35 and now, but I wonder how many of us realize that full potential anyway due to constraints on training time. I can tell you this: I have had to train more to get the same times, but recently, 1 year after having started again following a 20 year break, I matched my personal best from when I was 17. I'm 37. There's tons you can do.
ME WEBLARG
Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and you'll get it done.
Half Fanatic 12680
Has anyone else come back to running after such a long time and managed to get back to where they were? Looking forward to hearing from anyone with words of wisdom or encouragement..
I took a 25-year "break" from running and came back stronger (eventually). I was running regularly as a grad student in my 20's and even ran a couple of marathons, but stopped when I became pregnant with my first child. After that, fitting in time for running with children and work became very difficult. I ran occasionally, but years went by without any running. Then in 2005 I developed high blood pressure and osteoporosis, both of which are ameliorated by exercise, so I had a new reason to start run again. It took a while to get back into the habit, but after running consistently in my 50's I became faster than I was in my 20's. In 2007 I beat my 1980 marathon PR and I'm doing triathlons as well.
I think the most important thing you could do now is commit to running at least 3-4 times a week without worrying about speed or distance. With consistent effort, it should get easier and more rewarding. Listen to music or books on tape, explore new neighborhoods and parks, find a running buddy; just do whatever it takes to make this fun for you so that you stick with it.