Don't seem to be getting fitter.

[Trevrev]

As hard as i'm trying, my fitness doesn't seem to be improving.
I'm 45, cycle 14 miles day for work, run 5k twice during the week, 10k or more on a saturday, hectic hour of badminton on a sunday. But every time i run, and i've been running for a good couple of years, i still ache far too much as far as i'm concerned. Surely my body should be used to it by now. I'm average speed, 5k 23-24 minutes, 10k 45-46 minutes.
I really want to up my mileage. Any tips on where i could be going wrong.

 

[amaferanga]

If you're just doing the same thing week in week out you won't improve. Run further - gradually build the distance each week. If you get tired then have an easy week. Simple.

 

[Trevrev]

If you're just doing the same thing week in week out you won't improve. Run further - gradually build the distance each week. If you get tired then have an easy week. Simple.

This last couple of Saturdays i've done 8 miles, last Friday i ran to and from work which is 14 miles round trip. So i have been mixing it up a bit.

 

[Garz]

If you're just doing the same thing week in week out you won't improve.

+1 on this.

You have hit a plateau. Adjusting your regime to shock the body can help, although in most cases training less but putting in more intensity is a better compromise. If your trying to get fitter there's more than one way to skin a cat. However 'fitter' is so broad your not really capturing the purpose of a goal, try to be more specific.

 

[mr Mag00]

rest helps improve fitness too

 

[Trevrev]

+1 on this.

You have hit a plateau. Adjusting your regime to shock the body can help, although in most cases training less but putting in more intensity is a better compromise. If your trying to get fitter there's more than one way to skin a cat. However 'fitter' is so broad your not really capturing the purpose of a goal, try to be more specific.

Maybe i've worded it wrong, i'm not understanding why i hurt so much after excercise, my muscles take a couple of days to fully recover. Surely my body must be used to the regime by now.

I done 5k last night, and it was a proper struggle all the way.

 

[Garz]

Could be a sign of over-training, lack of recovery/nutrition.

 

[Crackle]

Maybe i've worded it wrong, i'm not understanding why i hurt so much after excercise, my muscles take a couple of days to fully recover. Surely my body must be used to the regime by now.

I done 5k last night, and it was a proper struggle all the way.

This is running right. Maybe that kind of approach is wrong for you.What I'd suggest is you run less more for a few weeks until it's comfortable and then increase the distance. The back to back runs are important but I'd suggest every other day for a few weeks before you put them back in and to run 4 times a week instead of 3.

Some people can just run that kind of distance with minimum training, I'm not one of them and I need to build up and put in a good base to do runs like that and it sounds like that could be your problem. You can do it but there's not enough base build up to do it comfortably and your cycling and badminton fitness is covering for a lack of base running miles. Slow down too. At least for some runs or for a good part of them.

 

[Arsen Gere]

There is some good advice here, like over training and a bit of rest. I don't think your expectations are unreasonable in terms of the volume you are doing, but if the intensity is high for everything you are destined for failure.

Other things to consider are nutrition, are you eating enough to keep this going, does your weight vary ? Do you get enought salt in your diet ? All this low salt stuff is good for the general population but if you are sweating buckets you can get low just drinking water.

Tinker with one thing at time and see what works for you. Try something for a week or too, like easier sessions over the same distance with one or two fast 5k's a month not one twice a week.
HTH

 

[Arsen Gere]

Oh I forgot, how do you measure your fitness ?
Distance covered, resting heart rate, speed round a course ? You may be doing better than you think. It always feels hard, you just get faster.

 

[Trevrev]

All good advice guys, thanks. I've never really thought about nutrition, i just generally eat and not worry what.
My main concern is my running.
I always drink 500ml of well diluted squash on my runs, as i sweat buckets. I'm a very big sweater!
Always have a milk, banana and chocolate smoothie after all runs.
I measure my fitness on distance and time, although i've just started to wear my HR monitor again for a couple of runs. Resting HR about 39/40.
Never think i'm running too fast though!

 

[Arsen Gere]

So a 39/40 HR for a 45 year old sounds very good to me, given your max hr will come down and min hr go up as you age.
If running is your main concern, how do you measure performance in that. Do you do park runs or tt's for reference.
Try running at a fixed HR and see how long it takes to cover a set distance or how far you can run in a set time like a MAF test. ( Dr Phil Maffetone introduced the MAF test in his book ).

 

[Glover Fan]

Do you race or do you run with a running club?

If no to either, give it a shot. It will make you faster and you only have to be minutely competitive to do so. Also, up your cycling. I find it is great for muscle development which in turn makes me run quicker.

Just to put it out there, I don't run very often anymore but I can cycle 60-80 miles in one go no problem. I'm entered for the Bristol 10k and last Friday I ran 10k training in 45 minutes. I surprised myself to be honest and my hamstrings were sore for days, but cycling has made my legs so strong.

Coincidently my fastest 10k time before I ever cycled and concentrated on running only was just under 50 minutes.

I am 24 though, so my age obviously helps in some respects.

Jon.

 

[Trevrev]

Do you race or do you run with a running club?

If no to either, give it a shot. It will make you faster and you only have to be minutely competitive to do so. Also, up your cycling. I find it is great for muscle development which in turn makes me run quicker.

Just to put it out there, I don't run very often anymore but I can cycle 60-80 miles in one go no problem. I'm entered for the Bristol 10k and last Friday I ran 10k training in 45 minutes. I surprised myself to be honest and my hamstrings were sore for days, but cycling has made my legs so strong.

Coincidently my fastest 10k time before I ever cycled and concentrated on running only was just under 50 minutes.

I am 24 though, so my age obviously helps in some respects.

Jon.

No, i don't run with a club. I work out routes on walkjogrun, and pound the streets. I'm not sure how accurate it is, but thats what i use to measure distance. I used to drive my car around to work out routes and measure distance with the odometre.
I've hit a barrier with regards to my pace. My fastest 5k is 22.30 minutes,now i can only manage between 23-24 minutes.
My best 10k is 45minutes dead,now hovering between 45-46 minutes.
I'm slowly upping my distance at weekends. Up to 8 miles now, hoping to get to 10 miles soon.
Maybe timing myself and putting myself under pressure to get faster could be the reason for my muscle fatigue.
I find it hard just to plod. I want to run and not jog!!

 

[Glover Fan]

Get yourself to a local club. I guarantee you will get faster.