General Discussion Triathlon Talk » ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run Rss Feed  
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2014-04-15 10:58 AM

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Subject: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

Since I hadn't run in 2mos, I decided to re-start low.  I began with 20min runs and plan to increase using the 10% per week "rule".  This week I am up to 24min.  My question regarding this is whether or not the number of runs/wk matters.  Does it?  I am currently running 2 or 3 times/wk.  If it is only 2, should I do the 10% increase less than every week (every 1-1/2wks)?  So far I've felt fine while running only in Z2.  Thanks.



2014-04-15 11:17 AM
in reply to: dbrook1

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

Frequency is more beneficial than just time. I find running 4x a week helps me make the most gains.

Also 10% increase each and every week can be an issue depending on some factors. Why were you off running? Injury? Busy? How long were you off?

It is refreshing to read about someone being smart getting back to running instead of overdoing it right out the gate.

2014-04-15 11:26 AM
in reply to: KathyG

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

Frequency is the best option.

And keep in mind 10% is the high end and you don't need to increase every single week. 

2014-04-15 11:34 AM
in reply to: dbrook1

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run
I think 2-3 runs/wk is acceptable. If you can hit the 3 more often that would be more beneficial as long as your body isn't telling you otherwise. Like it was said earlier 4x a week seems to work best for me when seeking gains. I too recently came back to running from injury (took 8 weeks off)

Use the 10% as a general guideline and not a hard 100% conformance rule. By running short like you are doing adding an extra run each week shouldn't injure you. Listen to your body if you feel you can go a bit farther, do it but don't push too hard. And if your body wants to stop. Stop, patience goes a long long way when building run fitness.

For reference (I used miles not time) I started at 3 2mile runs ea week running 6mpw and now 9 weeks later I am up to 20mpw and am running healthier and more pain free than ever before.

Sorry to ramble...
2014-04-15 11:48 AM
in reply to: Brian W

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run
Can you map out that increase from 6mpw to 20mpw for me? I wholeheartedly admit to being slow when it comes to all things running.
2014-04-15 12:20 PM
in reply to: gbswan

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

10% has generally worked fine for me. I tore my calf in December and am now up to 22.5-25 miles per week and going up. Don't be too dedicated to the 10% every week, if you feel that you need a break, take it, better to avoid injury by not increasing for a week than to stick to the increase and end up back on the couch for 2-3 weeks.

I will also agree with the frequency. I tend to do much better if I run 4-5 times per week than if I run 2-3 times per week. Something about the time off makes it harder when I get back to the run a day or so later. I am currently going 5 times per week and it is working very well. 



2014-04-15 12:51 PM
in reply to: Aarondb4

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

Agree with the above re: frequency being your friend, and to pay attention to how you feel (not just percentages - drop down a week if you feel you need to).

Follow up question:  what was your weekly time/mileage before you stopped 2 months ago?  The re-starting time/mileage certainly shouldn't be "high," but I think that is somewhat relative (if you were only running 10 miles per week, you'd likely be in a different spot than if you had been running 50 mpw - even with the 2 months off).  

Sorry if this was somewhere in the thread - looked and didn't see, but was also trying to listen to the Better Half while doing it (and now I have the response half typed). 

I've been considering a related topic.  I'll have taken a couple weeks off running and am starting back shortly (knee tweak).  I was around 35 mpw and am starting at 15 mpw (per ortho's reco), but have been noodling the same kind of questions.  I plan to come back faster than 10% of 15 miles per week, as 8 days ago I had ~4 months of consistent 35mpw, but will go by feel…  Hence, my comment about where you were when you stopped (and I'll second the question on why you stopped, for similar reasons).

Wasn't asked, but I'll add that you will likely want to add intensity in only after you get pretty close to your goal mileage when coming back to running (IMO)...

Matt

2014-04-15 1:41 PM
in reply to: mcmanusclan5

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run

The time off was due to laziness/cold weather/laziness/life/laziness/EXTREME cold weather/etc---pick any or all.  As posted on another thread, I also was trying to recover from an injury to my left hip/glute/sartorious that I've never experienced before.  Looking back, it looks like I was off more like 3 months (still doing other exercise--biking, P90X3). My most recent block of running prior to that was about 12-15mi/wk.  Due to scheduling reasons, it's not likely I will be doing more than 3 runs/wk.  With everyone's input and since it's been going well so far, I think I'll stick with the 10% increase/wk but make sure to not increase if I feel compromised in any way (tightness, injury, illness, etc).  As usual, thanks all for your help!  Everyone's input has helped me a ton over the last 10mos as a true "Beginner Triathlete".

2014-04-15 4:55 PM
in reply to: dbrook1

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run
Remember the "10% rule" is not supposed to be a goal- it's supposed to be an upper limit. Many weeks your increase will be lower especially as mileage increases. At your starting point it may be a good amount to increase but it doesn't have to be every week.
2014-04-15 5:06 PM
in reply to: 0

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run
Didn't read all replies so forgive me if this is redundant.

I always do 10% build for three weeks/1 week rest/three weeks build/1 week rest/etc... Some clarifications:

I always measure by TIME, not mileage.

Rest week - same number (frequency) just slower pace and shorter times (so, instead of doing 4X per week @ 40 minutes each, do 4X per week @ 30 minutes each - easy pace.

Build process: After you get to the optimal amount of weekly runs (frequency) - you may want to consider picking a day for a weekly long run.
For example: after you get to say 4X per week at 35 minutes each and your comfortable, it may be best to train for longer runs by doing a weekly long run. So, you can pick a day (usually a weekend) and add 10% to that run, and repeat the same 3week build/1week rest but only for that weekly run.

So, for me - my weekday runs are at 40 minutes each but I've slowly built my long Sunday run to 1:50:00. My rest week consist of all runs @ 30 minutes, including my weekly long run.

Make sense?

Good luck!

Frank

Edited by Frank in St. Louis 2014-04-15 5:08 PM
2014-04-15 6:06 PM
in reply to: 0

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Subject: RE: ? RE: weekly 10% increase on run
Originally posted by gbswan

Can you map out that increase from 6mpw to 20mpw for me? I wholeheartedly admit to being slow when it comes to all things running.

Wk. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Total
1 1.5 2 2 5.5
2 2 2 2 6
3 3 2 2 2 9
4 3 3 3 3 12
5 2 4 5 11
6 4 3 5 3 15
7 4 3 6 4 17
8 5 4 7 4 20

EDIT: wow this is hard to read. 1st number in ea row is the week #. Last column is total weekly mileage. All the others are the run distances that week (3 or 4 runs/wk)

I truncated the decimals so it rounds out even. Let's be clear, I have a strong running background (not that I've accomplished some impressive feat here) so I was able to up my mileage more than what the 10% rule would allow.

I am a 20-25 mpw kind of guy when training multisport and much much more if just running. So these were very "easy" weeks in terms of total mileage (notice my long run is maxed at 7-usually I'd run 12-16). This worked for me and my body kept telling me I had more in the tank and I wasn't pushing too hard. For some this progression would be waaaay to slow , for others it might be blazing fast.

There's nothing that says youn can't stick with the same mileage for a long period of time...more is not always better. Cheers,



Edited by Brian W 2014-04-15 6:07 PM


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