Run starts bad....ends good

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2008-04-09 2:13 PM

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Champion
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Alabama
Subject: Run starts bad....ends good

Rencently many of my runs start off with me feeling terrible!  During the first mile or so I'm thinking "Dang this hurts.  I feel like crap.  I'm gonna have to cut this run short today.  I feel weak and tired.  Running sucks!"

But then, after about 2 miles I'm feeling good and thinking, "Man, this is cake!  I believe I could run all day!  I'm gonna run a little faster.  Man I feel great!  Running is wonderful!"

Some days it just seems like the longer I run, the better I feel.

What's going on?  I don't start off fast and pretty much run the same, consistent (slow) pace.   Any ideas? 

~Mike

2008-04-09 2:14 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Champion
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Fountain Hills, AZ
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
Why do you think they call it a "warm up"?!
2008-04-09 2:15 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Master
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Harvard, Illinois
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
I agree, the warm up makes all the difference in the world.
2008-04-09 2:24 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Master
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Olney, MD
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
That sums up about every run for me.  Sucks in the beginning then it starts getting better.  I hardly ever start out feeling good.  It usually takes me 10 - 15 minutes to get into it. 

Edited by vball03umd 2008-04-09 2:24 PM
2008-04-09 2:25 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Master
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St. Louis
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
The ol' 2 mi barrier... dont we all basically have that? Once you are passed that, its great... until you hit your next "barrier" you have to push through... rinse and repeat.
2008-04-09 2:28 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Champion
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Fountain Hills, AZ
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
Figure it takes 15min or so to get the blood flowwing in you legs, your HR to settle, your respiration to even out and voila, you feel awesome!

2008-04-09 2:31 PM
in reply to: #1326613

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Cycling Guru
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Fulton, MD
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good

I usually have my "crap" miles around 3 - 5 in my runs, then it gets better.

On some of my longer runs I have felt better after an hour or two of running then when I started that day ... kinda weird!

2008-04-09 2:33 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Champion
5781
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Northridge, California
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
Depending on pace, it pretty consistently takes me 17-20 minutes to "warm up"...same scenario everyone's relating here.
2008-04-09 2:34 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Champion
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Carlsbad, California
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good

A lesson that my marathoner friends taught me and I get constant reminders of:

"Don't let how crappy you might feel dictate the quality of your workout".

Today, I usually discount how I feel when I wake up, and how I feel during my warmup and just focus on getting in a good run. More often then not, for me anyway, it is very much a mental and not a physical thing.

Seems like the only time I feel creaky is the workout after a no-run day for some reason.

2008-04-09 2:46 PM
in reply to: #1326636

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Elite
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New City, New York
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good

That's why old guys like us go long. It takes a while to get the ole motor going, then were good.

Leave the short stuff for those youngsters  

2008-04-09 5:37 PM
in reply to: #1326546

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Master
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Flagstaff and Phoenix, AZ
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good
Same here, I need at least 15 minutes to warm up.

I've never understood why people find bricks so hard... I feel so much better during the first 15 minutes of a brick-run than during the beginning of a solo run because my legs are already warmed up.

2008-04-09 5:51 PM
in reply to: #1327081

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Sensei
Sin City
Subject: RE: Run starts bad....ends good

Let me start this by saying I'm not a doctor or coach, and I don't even play one on TV.

But I read in a running book a long time ago, what is commonly called getting a "second wind" occurs because your body has to change energy sources.

The body has a very limited amount of a high energy source for fight or flight needs.  That get used up in about 10 to 15 mintutes (so I have heard).

Your body says "whoa, this is not just a quick run to get away from a T-rex, we are in it for the long haul".  Your body then starts using much more efficient energy sources for fuel.

That's why the second wind hits everyone about 10 to 15 minutes in and why a warm up helps.

I like that I read, so I'm sticking to it!

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