Sprinter wanting to get into long distance running?

Question

hey guys and girls. I'm 14. Only good for short bursts of energy. I'm a fairly big guy, I'm guessing I weigh about 180 pounds but in no way obese, just unfit.

if I remember correctly my best 100 sprint was roughly 13.60. I've been 'out of action' for a while, recently got back onto my bike.

Anyways, I want to be able to run long distances. I know I'm not 'built' for long distance running but I just want to get my endurance up. First off, i want to get into jogging as the way I cycle is far too easy on the body (for my taste anyway).

What is the most ideal way to jog?

Do I jog until I'm sprawled on the ground? :P

Would I jog for 15 minutes each day, and increase the intervals by 5 minutes? Or do I jog for as long as I can, take a breather then make my way home?

Lastly, would increasing my endurance also increase my sprint times??

thanks in advance

Answer 1

me too i was a sprinter too then the coaches try me out for the distance and did ok i run 3 to 1 mile day to do good in long distance.

Answer 2

Whatever you do, gradually progress it. If you haven't been running regularly for awhile, maybe it would be best to start off very simply.

Try jogging only 2 x the first 2 weeks for 10-15 mins. Try progressing that to every 2nd day for a further 2-3 weeks. Once you are comfortable with that distance/time, try increasing the duration of the run by 5 mins every 3-4 weeks.

The extent of the progression will be determined by your overall goal. Would you like to be able to run 5k or 10k? Maybe once you have progressed to about 25-30 min runs, it would be worthwhile varying the length of the runs. You might like to try 1 run of 15 mins, 2 runs of 20 mins and 1 run of 30 mins per week? Sometimes this approach can provide variety.

If you are confused or would like to seek further support/advice, try contacting you local running club. They are usually very helpful. Goodluck :)

Answer 3

Yes; you would run for 15 minutes each day. But you wouldn't increase it by 5 minutes a time, just by one or two minutes each time. But don't just keep increasing the time... increase the speed at which you run. So when you get up to longer intervals it's beneficial to go back to a shorter interval at a higher speed. For example, if you run 30 minutes at a 9:30 mph pace, increase it the next week for 30 minutes at a 9:00 mph pace, and so forth... mix it up a little bit: "longer" and "shorter" runs (but they all are still "long" anyway, haha).

Answer 4

i think you should just run until your body is about to give out then walk most of the way back home and sprint then rest of the way. and it on your last question, it depends if your slowing down when your sprinting. if you are then yes it would probably help.

Answer 5

I assume you are over 5 foot 10 inches as anything below that height, with a weight of 180 pounds would mean you are overweight, and it never hurts to lose a few pounds, but at 14 years old I wouldn't focus on that at all.

Start of running or jogging for 200 metres and walking 200 metres, repeating up to 5 times. Break down you sessions into repeats of med to high intensity followed by a low intensity period - try to walk or slowly jog in the low intensity periods as this keeps you going (called active recovery) and gets your body used to the effort. Increase the distances as you feel stronger, and start to reduce the recovery distances as well - as in run for longer, walk/jog for shorter. It will take time - 2-3 months doing 3-4 hours a week - at an estimate if you want to do this, but at the end of that you should be able to run up to 5 kilometers at a regular pace without stoping (or killing your self). Never try to run your self in to the ground, remember to stay hydrated (drink before, during and after exercise, especially when you begin a new training program). One way to measure if you are dehydrated after an exercise session is to weigh your self before, and after, and the difference is usually the weight lost in fluid - if you lose 1kilo in weight, you have lost 1 litre of fluid, so try to replace by re-hydrating. I you are trying to lose weight, do not take this weight loss as a sucessful weight loss - its only fluid and not replacing it will leave you unhydrated - weight loss should come though regular exercise and healthy eating.

Once you have built up some stamina, vary you running sessions into Distance (as in running steady for longer distances), Intervals (doing short bursts of intensity (sprinting for instance) followed by active recovery - doing this would increase your sprint time), and Tempo (running the same distance over different times, or taking the same time, and running different distance in that time).

Keep at it - at first its really hard work, but stick with it - see if anyone else wants go running - find a club for instance who you can do runs with (running with other people is far more motivating than on your own).