Need to speed up my 1.5 mile run in 6 weeks!?

Question

OK, I need to be able to run 1.5 miles in 14.31 minutes within the next 6 weeks! I ran it today in 18 minutes :( I am 40 years old,6'0" 200 lb., play baseball in a mens league to keep in some kind of shape and have been doing a low carb diet for the last 6 months (lost 50 pounds)

My lungs felt like they were on fire (do not smoke or drink) but my legs were not too bad at all, felt ok after the run (well, jog/walk!) Have had shin splints in the past so want to avoid them like the plague!

Bottom line, I need to knock off 3.5 minutes by July 12th to get a government job that is mine if I pass! Is it even possible? I need help from an expert! Anybody in the northwest burbs of Chicago a trainer/runner? HELP!!

Answer 1

Keep running it every day. Push yourself, listen to music and get pumped. After the first week of doing this every day, try to jog the whole way without walking, that can take off minutes. Also practice using correct form. Read up on some websites for form tips.

For shin splits after you run you can put your legs in cold water. In track we would always soak our legs in the river, to give you an idea for the temperature.

Oh yeah, run it in the morning or evening when the temperature is nice and use running shoes.

It would also be a good idea to keep up this routine even after you reach your goal. Running can keep you very healthy.

Answer 2

this should be a piece of cake. in 6 weeks you can do more than you think you can.  

The simplest thing to do would be to run everyday 20 to 30 minutes easy, very slowly.

But, if you want to cwork up to  to avoid those dreaded shin splits, i recommend you get out every day, go for a long walk or a hike or even for a bike  ride, these will help to strenghten your lungs, your heart and your legs.  try to run every day, but just getting out and being active everyday will be a good start.  to be able to run 14.31 you probably won't  need to be running every day but if you work up to it and get to running over 20 minutes every day, you;ll be able to run faster than 14.31 easily and maybe you might find that you like  it,

HOPE THIS HELPS,

SLYFOX

Answer 3

run everyday..duh!!  simple but it works

Answer 4

1.  See a doctor for a complete physical exam first

2.  Run 1.5 miles 6 days a week, rest 1 day; for 2 weeks.  Evaluate any problems that come up.

3.  Beginning week 3, run 1.5 miles 5 days a week, rest 1, 1 day at the track.  Run 10x100s; speed on the straights, rest relax jog, walk the turns.  Stretch and warmup and cooldown always.

Now about preventing shin splints.  Shin splints are caused by muscle imbalance. The front muscles are weak and the calves are strong.

The way to correct Shin splints is to strengthen the muscles at the front of the legs.  Lie face down in bed with your toes hanging over the edge.  Pull your toes upward against the resistance of the mattress. Try to work up to 3 or 4 sets of 5 – 10 reps each.

There are other variations of this, such as heel walking, hanging a paint can on your toes, or using the angle iron on bleachers to slip your toes under.

Good Luck

Answer 5

Well you are going to have to start putting in some good miles on but don't increase your mileage to much to fast. start off with 2 miles a day and next week add 400 meters and see how it feels if that feels good than add 1/2 a mile the next week. as long as it still feels good add another 1.2 mile on the next week. That will be plenty enough mileage for just 1.5 miles. That will leave you 3 weeks to work with so than add in a good hill workout and an 800 meter repeat workout. When you are doing the 800s just do 5 or 6 of them at about 90% of the pace you will be using to race.  You can continue to play basketball and if you start to get sore just cross train for a little while, so that means biking, elliptical machine, or swimming. They are all great, low impact and they will keep your endurance up.

As for the lungs feeling like they are on fire. they is a normal thing. If they air was dry or if it was hot out they could be reasons or just the fact that your body isn't used to running a whole lot. Your body will get used to it and the lungs will stop burning after a while.

With doing all the excersise there is no problem with eating some carbs, especially the day before you run the 1.5 miles. I would 1 or maybe 2 times a week eat some pasta just to get your glycogen restored. Eat plenty of protein as well, chicken and fish are really great. lean beef would also work but chicken and fish are better. the protein will help build and repair your muslces. Potassium will help you from cramping up. As you probably know bananas are great for potassium and strawberries and kiwi has even more potassium than bananas. good luck with getting the job.

Answer 6

really you need to build up your endurance. do sprints gassers specifically. that's where you run on a football field to every ten yards and back then again adding another ten yards until you get done with the whole field. what i mean is start at the endzone then run to the ten yard line and back then the twenty and back and so on until you get done with the field or until you passout wich ever comes first. it's a great exercise to build up endurance. you don't need to improve much just try to make it where you can keep a steady (faster than walking) pace for the entire mile and a half. take longer strides too. try to glide not bounce when you run. remember to breathe right and keep your head up.

if you don't want to do that try running a half mile everyday and when you get comfortable with that move it up to a mile and so on. just keep up the running, make it apart of your life if your serious about this job. endurance is the key here, really a mile and half is not that bad.

Answer 7

a low carb diet huh?

I have always though fad diets didnt work, but if it is, more power to you.

I am not an expert,but I do have some good tips, and I will say that I know northern chicago *pretty well*.  Six weeks may be doable. If you want to avoid shin splints, do this.

sit on a table or other surface that allows your legs to dangle with space below them. take a bucket, fill it with water, and place that on your toe. Do this for a set amount of time (start with one minute) and switch. Make sure you have the right kind of shoes. if this is really important to you then consider finding your foot type and buying a good pair of running shoes, which may be from 60-120$ depending on how much you're willing to pay and your foot type.

if you are going to knock off 3.5 minutes then you need to run often. At least 5 times per week. Also running in a race or two (or more, if time and your body allow it) should be good too.

Also find someone to run with. Running is always much easier, fun, and motivating when you have a running buddy, especially one who is at your level so you can push one another to run your best.

Because of your age, consider making a point of stretching and/or going for a warm-up, about 8-12 minutes before you run. I dont know why, but I hear that stretching becomes more important as a runner as you get older. For a 1.5 mile race/test, you should be doing alot of speed work of 400 meters to 1 mile. Try just plain repeats of ....

run X distance. Rest 2-3 minutes run X distance again. rest again Run X distance again.

for shorter repeats you should rest less than for repeats of a longer distance. 'ladders' are also a good idea. one is as follows, with a rest of 2-3 minutes after each repeat

run 200m rest

run 400m rest

run 600m rest

run 800m rest

run 600m rest

"     400m  "

"    200m  "

cool-down and stretch.

***always stretch and cool down after speed work. you will recover faster and you will feel better afterwords.

Check online for a 1.5 mile running plan. If you cant find any, then look for a 2 mile or 3 mile plan and decrease the distance of the farthest runs and maybe increase the speed runs somehow. You dont need to do 7-9 mile runs for a 1.5 mile race/test.

get 7-8 hours of sleep. Taper your runs for the last week before the race. google that term to find out more. basically you just tone down your runs, run less distance and less intense.

if you are not allready, take a multivitamin to eliminate and prevent any nutrient deficiencies.

if you really want to do this, and put your mind to it, you can do this.