Question about running

[brian21johansen]

Does anybody know of any exercises I can do to strengthen my hamstrings? First off, I'm awful at running (1.5 miles in a little over 12 minutes). I've been running a lot for the last 2 months, eating right, and taking days off to recover but I'm still really bad at it. It's mostly my breathing-I try different styles but they don't seem to work. The next big factor is that my hamstrings and even my calves get really tired after running about half a mile. I think this might be the biggest reason why my running is awful (other than the fact that I might approach my running training the wrong way). If anybody has any tips or advice it would be greatly appreciated-my problem has nothing to do with stretching, I always stretch, especially my legs.

One more thing.....I'm not some lazy poolee who thinks everything should come to him easily; I've been an athlete all my life (mostly football) but have always been bad at running. I try to get better and ALWAYS put out but I think I need to find a better running program.

My results for the IST:
Crunches in two minutes: 94
Pull ups: 15 (overhand grip;very Strict form)

[immaproshooter]

control your breathing like breathe in on your left foot and out on your left foot type of thing......in through nose out through mouth....stretch your stride whiel running lean forward...... stretch your muscles out before AND AFTER you run......excercises are imprtant....also run mroe...through weight on use boots and sweat pants or something that way when you run in reg PT gear itll be soo much lighter for you...and youll be faster then with all taht stuff on and as far as the pain goes i get the same problem..jsut ignore it dont think about it and push yourself harder...

[Billd]

Consistant with your training, Stop worrying about speed, work on endurance first. You can lengthen your stride, but speed is about foot turn over. The less time your feet spend in contact with the ground the faster you'll be. Throw in some hill running if you want to strengthen the "hammies" Not too much though. Hills can do cause injury same as doing too much speed work too soon. Get to where you can run 45 -50 fairly comfortably before starting intense speed work or hills. Stretch before and after the run (more so after the run), other than that it's sounds like you're going about it all the right way. Lunge exercises are another great way to increase leg strength. I use two 25 or 35 dumbells, one in each hand, when I'm doing lunges. Do three sets of eight to ten reps each.
Hope this helps.
SemperFi

[brian21johansen]

Thank you, I will try your idea out when I run tonight.

[WalkingMan]

Does anybody know of any exercises I can do to strengthen my hamstrings? First off, I'm awful at running (1.5 miles in a little over 12 minutes). I've been running a lot for the last 2 months, eating right, and taking days off to recover but I'm still really bad at it. It's mostly my breathing-I try different styles but they don't seem to work. The next big factor is that my hamstrings and even my calves get really tired after running about half a mile. I think this might be the biggest reason why my running is awful (other than the fact that I might approach my running training the wrong way). If anybody has any tips or advice it would be greatly appreciated-my problem has nothing to do with stretching, I always stretch, especially my legs.



You didn't mention weight, but if you are overweight, that could screw up your time, and worse, cause injury.

You didn't mention if you smoke... if you do... stop doing that, it's really bad for you.

You didn't mention if you eat or drink anything before running. I eat a bagel with butter and jelly, or the equivalent, washed down with a little coffee or water or both (I run around 6:00 AM).

I focus first on form, second on endurance, and last on time.

I run 5 miles in early morning, 6 days a week, and unless I get a rock in my shoe, I do the run in under PFT qual time for my age group, 46 and over... I'm 59 years old.

First, I do about 15 minutes of stretching exercises.

I have a chronometer, to time my runs, and better, to keep track of how long it takes me to complete each mile.

I 'run tall', not hunched over or forward, and I avoid bouncing, and pay attention to my stride (not too long, not too short and choppy), and I go for the most efficient step, one that doesn't shock heels and knees too much... 'running easy', not wasting energy.

I hang back a little on mile one, getting my stride right, my step light, and moving at a cadence that lets me breathe normally... same as walking.

Going into mile two, I pick up the cadence a little bit, but do not lengthen my stride, so that I am breathing a little more like I am running, and so that I am getting all nice and sweaty, so I know my heart is pumping good.

The first half of mile three, I hang back just a little, so I can get up a head of steam for the last half mile, where I start letting it out, first, pushing the cadence up, and in the last quarter mile, stretching my stride out to the max, and just plain hauling ass... running flat out.

The finish leaves me off about a block from my house... enough distance to slow myself down gradually, as opposed to making an abrupt stop.

[HurricaneRJ]

Thanks. Cpl. I will try your routine.

[brian21johansen]

Thank you Cpl., I'll have to give that a try as well.

I don't smoke(or drink-never have never will.

In the morning I tend to not eat before I run as I feel that it will cramp me up and make me feel "slow". I always eat breakfast though, just not before I run.....maybe this is a problem. At boot camp do you eat breakfast before you run and PT?

Also, I'm not overweight. I'm sure I could lose a little more weight though. Right now I weigh in at 195 pounds, and I'm almost 6 ft. tall. That might seem kinda big but I have a good amount of muscle on me from playing football. It just seems that for the most part that every exercise and movement I did in football (anerobic) is different than anything I'll need to do at boot camp and later in the marine corps(aerobic). During football I weighed in at around 210 pounds(I played guard)

[MKinney]

Brian don't say never hahah :P.
Yes you'll eat breakfast about 30-1 hour before PT.
If you are looking to cut a bit more fat, mix in HIIT workouts. They will drain you quick, but bump up your metab high and burn calories fast. You can do HIIT on a treadmill or bike or regular running. Basically you keep a moderate pace for a bit, then go all out for 15-30 seconds. Bump down to the moderate pace again and repeat that about 8-10 times, or more if you can. It doesn't sound hard, but try sprinting full out for 15 seconds. It'll feel like you just ran a mile.

[brian21johansen]

I know it's bad to say never....cause usually that means it'll end up happening.

Ill give that a try though, and I think I'll start eating a small meal before running, maybe an apple or something. There have been times when I ran an hour after eating and I thought I was gonna die, not to mention I felt really slow.........it probably all has to depend on what you eat. Thank you

[WalkingMan]

Thank you Cpl., I'll have to give that a try as well.

I don't smoke(or drink-never have never will.

In the morning I tend to not eat before I run as I feel that it will cramp me up and make me feel "slow". I always eat breakfast though, just not before I run.....maybe this is a problem. At boot camp do you eat breakfast before you run and PT?

Also, I'm not overweight. I'm sure I could lose a little more weight though. Right now I weigh in at 195 pounds, and I'm almost 6 ft. tall. That might seem kinda big but I have a good amount of muscle on me from playing football. It just seems that for the most part that every exercise and movement I did in football (anerobic) is different than anything I'll need to do at boot camp and later in the marine corps(aerobic). During football I weighed in at around 210 pounds(I played guard)

I was in boot camp in early 1968, so I really don't remember, but PT was something you might be doing any time at all, for punishment, or just 'because'. :)

We did most of our actual runs later in the day, though, if I remember corectly.

I picked up a lot of really good running tips from I book I got for free at a book exchange, titled 'A Step Beyond: A Definitive Guide to Ultrarunning'.

Ultrarunning is beyone Marathon running, mostly 50 and 100 mile runs. I mostly am interested in the K races, 5K , 8K 10K, etc... between 3 and 10 miles... but the tips work just as good for those short distances, as the long ones, so I would say it is a pretty good book for anyone interested in running, and if you see a copy for cheap, grab it.

I never had any trouble cramping but I eat pretty light before I run, just a bagel or something, and then eat more later, after the workout.

Sometimes if I start out at too fast a cadence, I get cramps in my calves, but if I just lay back a bit, they go away.

I really pay attention to what my body is telling me, because, I'm doing this for myself, not to pass any test that has to be passed, and I figure it is better to not risk injury, or even a bad strain or sprain, because the time lost, recovering from the injury, is a bigger setback than just running nice and easy for a day or two.

Once you get into boot camp, you are going to have to keep up, but pre-boot camp training gives you a chance to get your head and legs working together, so git-er-done now.

[brian21johansen]

Thanks for everyone's advice. Yesterday at PT I did a little better when it came to running. Half way through I realized why I'm so bad at it too. It turns out that after runnign for a little bit I always lower my head and look at the ground or my feet (I don't know why I do this, but still a sign of bad running teqnique.) The minute I lift my head after lowering it my breathing is really short and I pretty much weeze. Later that day, I made sure I kept my head up while running-I wanted to lower it for some reason but I made sure I kept it up high and took deep breaths. I didnt focus on breathing in for 2 steps and out on the third and all that other confusing garbage. I just made sure that I didn't breath in TO deep or TO short. The moral of this story: If your bad at running check your teqnique. One small glitch could be destroying your workout. this post is already long enough but I just wanted to point out that for some reason my hamstrings and calves didn't really get tired for some reason this workout....

[marinegreen]

Does anybody know of any exercises I can do to strengthen my hamstrings? First off, I'm awful at running (1.5 miles in a little over 12 minutes). I've been running a lot for the last 2 months, eating right, and taking days off to recover but I'm still really bad at it. It's mostly my breathing-I try different styles but they don't seem to work. The next big factor is that my hamstrings and even my calves get really tired after running about half a mile. I think this might be the biggest reason why my running is awful (other than the fact that I might approach my running training the wrong way). If anybody has any tips or advice it would be greatly appreciated-my problem has nothing to do with stretching, I always stretch, especially my legs.

One more thing.....I'm not some lazy poolee who thinks everything should come to him easily; I've been an athlete all my life (mostly football) but have always been bad at running. I try to get better and ALWAYS put out but I think I need to find a better running program.

My results for the IST:
Crunches in two minutes: 94
Pull ups: 15 (overhand grip;very Strict form)

Your problem is, running is not your speciality and when its time to go your body tenses up and your brainhousing plays games with your concentration. Dont physic yourself out when you hear the word run, control your breathing and relax. Its all mental really. I had a CO who smoked like a friggen chimney and there was nobody who could outrun the guy. Hell we hit the PI and went out and ran 10 miles and when we got liberty later that morning I was headed out the gate that afternoon and the CO runs by me with a friggen cigar in his mouth:scared: .But if you wanna strengthen the legs do a few duck walks, do the lunge walk( its brutal but effective)

[TrevelyanInc]

The most important things about running.

1. Your body will not quit unless you die, pass out, or give it permission to.
1a. Don't give it permission to.
1b. You won't die or pass out because of 3 miles.

If you can do 3 miles in 24 minute, which is your current pace, you pass.

[JCam0331]

Does anybody know of any exercises I can do to strengthen my hamstrings? First off, I'm awful at running (1.5 miles in a little over 12 minutes). I've been running a lot for the last 2 months, eating right, and taking days off to recover but I'm still really bad at it. It's mostly my breathing-I try different styles but they don't seem to work. The next big factor is that my hamstrings and even my calves get really tired after running about half a mile. I think this might be the biggest reason why my running is awful (other than the fact that I might approach my running training the wrong way). If anybody has any tips or advice it would be greatly appreciated-my problem has nothing to do with stretching, I always stretch, especially my legs.

One more thing.....I'm not some lazy poolee who thinks everything should come to him easily; I've been an athlete all my life (mostly football) but have always been bad at running. I try to get better and ALWAYS put out but I think I need to find a better running program.

My results for the IST:
Crunches in two minutes: 94
Pull ups: 15 (overhand grip;very Strict form)

Dude, honestly, just keep running. Cardio cardio cardio.

[JCam0331]

The most important things about running.

1. Your body will not quit unless you die, pass out, or give it permission to.
1a. Don't give it permission to.
1b. You won't die or pass out because of 3 miles.

If you can do 3 miles in 24 minute, which is your current pace, you pass.


3 miles in 24 minutes is an awful goal. I can run that backpedalling.

Aim for 3 miles in 20 minutes or so. Don't aim to be like those fat Marines you see around, the bottom 50%

aim to be the top 10%. Marines are supposed to be athletes. Uphold the tradition. PT hard.

[Haffner]

Trev -- take the word, "pass," out of your vocabulary. No mas. Replace it with, "excel."