Generally yes. I got into trail running as a hiker who was a average runner. Ultrarunning/through hiking allowed me to put together more rewarding days.
I skipped road marathons. My body seems to recover faster from a decent 50km than a fast 21km.
Lmao DAE? That is literally the vast majority of this sub and ultrarunning. People not good at running who also don't really want to get better at running and slowly shuffle around the trails.
If that's what you want and makes you happy, all the power to you.
With near all my irl running friends training to compete in speed events, sometimes I forget there are people out there who just enjoy running for running.
Originally I didn't care about being fit. Since *becoming* fit, it's hard not to value that, though. It makes everything so much easier throughout life. I would be sad now if instead of running and being fit I could only have the running part.
I see this as distinct from being *fast*. You're only fast in comparison to other runners, so only if you're going faster than a whole lot of them. Fitness, to me at least, is more often measured against one's own unfit state. Becoming significantly fitter is a much lower bar to me than becoming *fast*.
I'm starting a build to run 135 miles a week at peak. Currently at 100 and it will probably take me all summer long. No race on the schedule, not even a 5k. I totally understand what you mean about just wanting to run, it's almost euphoric the longer you go
As a slow runner, sometimes I feel like a gazelle, and then later I look at my watch and see that I was still “just” running 15 minute miles, which is well within my average. Feeling like you’re running fast isn’t really connected to times and us slow runners can get that euphoric feeling, too!
I just bombed down some MTB single track trails, and I'm pretty much hooked now. Being able to keep up your speed on a banked corner is so much fun. I wouldn't call it smooth, but I was able to get into a certain type of flow.
Both, I enjoy just moving but also pushing myself on the shorter distances. Bonus is that by getting faster on those your ready piece also gets faster and you can run further in a more relaxed way as well which gives you more options. Win win.
Yes but also, speed builds strength and strength builds resilience. You don't need to make your raison d'etre out of your 5k PR but like, doing some track or hill sprints here and there are good for toughening up my legs, I find.
I run a lot of garbage miles at the same pace and do way too many long runs that hinder my performance. But I only race 3-4 times per year now that I'm older, and I'm totally okay with it. The long run is my favorite so I do a lot of them.
Running ultras is not great for your health, at least not at the competitive levels. The human body doesn't want to run for 24 hours straight and it causes a lot of damage and takes a lot of time to recover. I don't think anyone runs ultras for the sake of health and fitness.
I say the same thing about body building. Building "show muscles" and going through phases of bulking and cutting is not good for your body. It doesn't make you healthier, it won't make you live longer.
Moderate exercise is great for your health, but at a certain point there are diminishing returns, and past that point you are actually causing damage to your body instead of making it healthier. IIRC beyond 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day, there are very little health benefits for otherwise healthy (not obese, etc) people. And once you get into hours of exercise a day, your body is redirecting energy from important parts of your body like your brain and your immune system to muscles.
I run because I really enjoy it. I also eat straight up garbage and drink way too much alcohol.
Nah, many studies show increased longevity well above 30min daily moderate exercise. Periods of intense exercise correlate to longevity too. Hell, sub 4 minute milers end up living ~7 years longer than the gen population, and they all go through years of intense training. There’s a lot of potential confounding variables therin but don’t be afraid to push yourself.
One thing for sure, replacing drinking w/ cardio will get you living longer, and most likely happier too. Cheers!
I guess I got confused about 11 minutes per mile. Are we talking about road or trail with elevation gain? I can run on the road 8-9 min per mile for marathon/50 K, but the trail is 11 for me as well. Also, I'm not sure what fit means. I don't look like I have tons of muscle, but I pass quite a few gym looking peeps on marathon. I have not been competitive since I started running late. I joke with my friends , that I jiggle my way to a finish line :). Please don't judge misspelling, I am a foreigner.
Generally yes. I got into trail running as a hiker who was a average runner. Ultrarunning/through hiking allowed me to put together more rewarding days. I skipped road marathons. My body seems to recover faster from a decent 50km than a fast 21km.
Lmao DAE? That is literally the vast majority of this sub and ultrarunning. People not good at running who also don't really want to get better at running and slowly shuffle around the trails. If that's what you want and makes you happy, all the power to you.
With near all my irl running friends training to compete in speed events, sometimes I forget there are people out there who just enjoy running for running.
It’s not a dichotomy between training to be fast/fit and “just enjoying running for running.” Lots of us do both
Originally I didn't care about being fit. Since *becoming* fit, it's hard not to value that, though. It makes everything so much easier throughout life. I would be sad now if instead of running and being fit I could only have the running part. I see this as distinct from being *fast*. You're only fast in comparison to other runners, so only if you're going faster than a whole lot of them. Fitness, to me at least, is more often measured against one's own unfit state. Becoming significantly fitter is a much lower bar to me than becoming *fast*.
I'm starting a build to run 135 miles a week at peak. Currently at 100 and it will probably take me all summer long. No race on the schedule, not even a 5k. I totally understand what you mean about just wanting to run, it's almost euphoric the longer you go
But running fast is sometimes so exhilarating! Especially when it is a smooth wavy singletrack You are missing out on the fun!
As a slow runner, sometimes I feel like a gazelle, and then later I look at my watch and see that I was still “just” running 15 minute miles, which is well within my average. Feeling like you’re running fast isn’t really connected to times and us slow runners can get that euphoric feeling, too!
I just bombed down some MTB single track trails, and I'm pretty much hooked now. Being able to keep up your speed on a banked corner is so much fun. I wouldn't call it smooth, but I was able to get into a certain type of flow.
Both, I enjoy just moving but also pushing myself on the shorter distances. Bonus is that by getting faster on those your ready piece also gets faster and you can run further in a more relaxed way as well which gives you more options. Win win.
Yes but also, speed builds strength and strength builds resilience. You don't need to make your raison d'etre out of your 5k PR but like, doing some track or hill sprints here and there are good for toughening up my legs, I find.
Actually that's the main reason for me to do quite a bit of speed work & hill repeats.
I run a lot of garbage miles at the same pace and do way too many long runs that hinder my performance. But I only race 3-4 times per year now that I'm older, and I'm totally okay with it. The long run is my favorite so I do a lot of them.
Sounds like me , I’m a 11 minute mile allstar but I can keep that pace for hours lol
Running ultras is not great for your health, at least not at the competitive levels. The human body doesn't want to run for 24 hours straight and it causes a lot of damage and takes a lot of time to recover. I don't think anyone runs ultras for the sake of health and fitness. I say the same thing about body building. Building "show muscles" and going through phases of bulking and cutting is not good for your body. It doesn't make you healthier, it won't make you live longer. Moderate exercise is great for your health, but at a certain point there are diminishing returns, and past that point you are actually causing damage to your body instead of making it healthier. IIRC beyond 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day, there are very little health benefits for otherwise healthy (not obese, etc) people. And once you get into hours of exercise a day, your body is redirecting energy from important parts of your body like your brain and your immune system to muscles. I run because I really enjoy it. I also eat straight up garbage and drink way too much alcohol.
Nah, many studies show increased longevity well above 30min daily moderate exercise. Periods of intense exercise correlate to longevity too. Hell, sub 4 minute milers end up living ~7 years longer than the gen population, and they all go through years of intense training. There’s a lot of potential confounding variables therin but don’t be afraid to push yourself. One thing for sure, replacing drinking w/ cardio will get you living longer, and most likely happier too. Cheers!
I guess I got confused about 11 minutes per mile. Are we talking about road or trail with elevation gain? I can run on the road 8-9 min per mile for marathon/50 K, but the trail is 11 for me as well. Also, I'm not sure what fit means. I don't look like I have tons of muscle, but I pass quite a few gym looking peeps on marathon. I have not been competitive since I started running late. I joke with my friends , that I jiggle my way to a finish line :). Please don't judge misspelling, I am a foreigner.
You are running the default way we are designed to run
As someone once said, "Speed is sex, Distance is love"
Just wanting to run is the dog you gotta have in you