I've decided to just train how I want. I don't follow a system, coaches, or training cycles.

This, totally. If you're gonna do it on your own, which is awesome, keep a log and look back through it periodically. So useful.

I'm the opposite, I need an exact plan that I simply have to follow no questions asked, with only a minimal amount of modifications when necessary. I would rather freestyle it as well but have had terrible results. I second guess every tiny thing and in the end, nothing even rhymes. I totally understand how some people would thrive on winging it, but for others like me it just doesn't work. It's more fun but performance-wise it's nowhere near worth it.

I think you need a very high degree of emotional intelligence/stability to make so many right decisions on the fly for yourself, even with lots of experience in the bank. It's much, much easier to do this for someone else, but for yourself it's quite difficult.

If you're looking for sheer happiness and willing to pay a price in terms of performance, that is no problemo. But I think it is really rare to find somebody that is able to coach themselves and achieve superior performance.

I wing it. I try to listen to my body. I keep a record. But I admit that chunks of my records are still filled with 'broken down again'. Oh well. I know that if I had a coach who was scheduling workouts, I still would be unable to do many of them. I'm just saving the dollars.

lax wrote:

I did exactly what you did 20 years ago at exactly the same age. I ended up breaking all of my college track prs in the process (best time a 3128 10k). Some people are just better geared for less structure.

This.

Mr.Bird wrote:

lax wrote:

I did exactly what you did 20 years ago at exactly the same age. I ended up breaking all of my college track prs in the process (best time a 3128 10k). Some people are just better geared for less structure.

This.

Well.....guys and gals that never experience what a world class coach can do for them will always be thinking what could have happened and never get the answer.Check this online coach up:

He never fails and is still relatively cheap in fee.

I agree with the above.

I ran my first marathon a year before I planned without using any training plan. I had been running 35 to 40 miles most of the summer. I looked at my 10 mile race time and half marathon time with 90-some percent humidity and temperature in the 70s. The online marathon time estimation tools indicated I had a shot at getting a BQ--3:30 at the time. I knew nothing and ran a 16 mile hilly training group run the Sunday before Last Chance BQ2 Grand Rapids to make sure I could run 16 miles fast enough. I got my BQ 6 days later by 5 minutes. So I had success and met my goal without following a training plan. Two months later I ran another marathon since I was still healthy and expected 20 some degree cooler weather. I ran my PR of 3:10. Both races were in trainers. I ran 3 more marathons after that with 2018 Boston being my last and worst due to injury. I switched to HM, 25K and 10 miles races last summer as I lost the motivation to run marathons but thought I could break my prior PRs in shorter races based on my training runs. That is where I like have a running log. Strava makes it easy to compare my current runs to prior runs when I was in peak shape so I can see if I am ready to try for another PR. I signed up for the four races last summer 7 to 10 days before the races which was as late as I could. At that point I knew I was likely to be healthy on race day and had some idea of the weather forecast. Last year I just ran what I wanted for training. No specific tempo runs. I did finally add interval workouts. I did about 5 interval workouts throughout the summer. I run faster when faster runners show up at weekly group runs and maybe one other day during the week when my legs feel fresh. I go on long runs on weekends when there is either a long group run or I just feel interested in doing so. I have skipped some recent early morning Saturday group runs when I can run later in the day when it is say 40 degrees rather than 15.

I question the value of maintaining running streaks especially if they run just one mile many days. I also think that one should take a day off if they need the rest or their work or family schedule does not allow enough time. I think I would find maintaining a streak would take away of the freedom I enjoy in my running.

I still get injured about once a year--3 times with hamstring injury. I switched to a different physical therapist recently who I think is now addressing my weak glutes and other underlying issues.

One injury happened after peaking at 60-some miles for several weeks for a marathon I ended up having to sit out. One injury was made much worse after running a fast 10 miles in a group run 2 days after a race in which I hurt much more than normal immediately after the race and the day after. I should have listened to my body and run half the distance that week and kept the pace say 30 seconds slower.

I run at a pace and distance I enjoy, each is different, but I enjoy it!

Forget It wrote:

I'm 36 and have been running for over two decades. I used to follow "training programs" balanced with long runs, easy runs, interval workouts, tempo runs, etc. Recently, I've somewhat tired of this and have found myself mostly just running intervals and tempo runs. I don't really bother with other mileage. At first I worried but started to just accept it. I feel like just doing what I want to do keeps me more enthusiastic about running at this point and will keep me in it long term. Also, racing-wise I plan on just running middle distance and shorter distance races, eschewing "moving up" because, again, I just want to do what I want to do. Has anyone else ever just given up on "training" and just came to do what you feel like doing each day? How much success did you have, both performance-wise and psychologically?

cool. i train exactly how i want, to feel good. plus throw on discipline if i feel lazy.

still i use principles for goals, it works well.

like warmup, i might run, run walk, or do light exercises before hand.

or weights, its 3 times per week on different parts, basically to f**up the muscle and recover.

i got to work in a long cardio day, which is like sunday going from pub to pub along the river, like 1-2km walk run sprint, next. all afternoon with 4 or 5 beers.

i got a PR for bench press and leg press this way, though we're not going to win anything running.

my body looks a hell of a lot better than any runner, so say WOMEN

why not have fun?

but come on, have a method to your madness.

lololololol wrote:

The Crisco Kid wrote:

You know he's not Amstronglivs, right?

There is something wrong with you.

Or maybe you could see the pattern, that I dislike these two posters' habit of insulting people every single day.

You don't see me addressing other posters like this, do you?

I forgot to mention that I am considered the hottest guy in my memory care center. Creepy Joe Biden doesn't get anything near the granny tail that I do. Some grandpas too, just because I'm confused.

YMMV wrote:

lololololol wrote:

Or maybe you could see the pattern, that I dislike these two posters' habit of insulting people every single day.

You don't see me addressing other posters like this, do you?

I forgot to mention that I am considered the hottest guy in my memory care center. Creepy Joe Biden doesn't get anything near the granny tail that I do. Some grandpas too, just because I'm confused.

You're a sh..t stain on this forum please go away

Welcome to the club.

I ran middle-D in college. I liked my coach, but he had no miler system. You were a half-miler or a "distance runner".

I trained my way on the semester break my junior year. Intervals on the streets in the freezing cold, it was fun. I won the next race with a PR. Maybe because I "believed". I knew I'd win before the race.

Keep doing it your way. If you feel stale or injured, take time off. Enjoy.

Now out of college I just don't like intervals. I run distance and tempo runs. Never enjoyed running more. Onward.

The Ginger Runner has a Coach.

Coaches suck. Useless profession.

Just like teachers. Overpaid to do less than zero.

When I qualified for my first trials in 2016 I didn’t follow a training plan and ran sub 1:15. It worked for me. I was burned out after college and just needed to enjoy running. I probably ran roughly 70 miles a week. Ran a long run ( 1-2 hours depending on how I felt, no real workouts just fartlek training and through an occasional hard mile in the middle and raced a lot on Saturday’s. If I couldn’t find a close race I would run bridge repeats. To this day I ran prs of (4:51, low 16s, 34:10 10k, 1;14:53 hm, 1:32 25k.

bug dik wrote:

The Ginger Runner has a Coach.

Coaches suck. Useless profession.

Just like teachers. Overpaid to do less than zero.

There are "coaches" and real great coaches. Check this online coach up. He just delivers and delivers!

Just magic! wrote:

bug dik wrote:

The Ginger Runner has a Coach.

Coaches suck. Useless profession.

Just like teachers. Overpaid to do less than zero.

There are "coaches" and real great coaches. Check this online coach up. He just delivers and delivers!

www.coachjs.se

Can you stop posting in the 3rd person

Forget It wrote:

I'm 36 and have been running for over two decades. I used to follow "training programs" balanced with long runs, easy runs, interval workouts, tempo runs, etc. Recently, I've somewhat tired of this and have found myself mostly just running intervals and tempo runs. I don't really bother with other mileage. At first I worried but started to just accept it. I feel like just doing what I want to do keeps me more enthusiastic about running at this point and will keep me in it long term. Also, racing-wise I plan on just running middle distance and shorter distance races, eschewing "moving up" because, again, I just want to do what I want to do. Has anyone else ever just given up on "training" and just came to do what you feel like doing each day? How much success did you have, both performance-wise and psychologically?

Right on brother..I am 32 and play the father/husband role. Running has always been in the mix for me going back to childhood. I love it but I'll never let it consume me. I was running on the track/roads/trails/treadmill long before I had any concept of counting miles or what day called for specifics.

I aim to get out for a run 5-7 days a week, usually take a down day somewhere in the mix, I listen to my body and don't force anything. I mix in speed, easy, and strength. I listen to my body or whatever I am "craving" at that given moment. Running should always be enjoyed.

I've held very similar beliefs in regards to running streaks for a long time, and as of recently, that belief has been cemented with some profiles I've come across online. Overall, these seem like genuine people, family men and women that somewhere along the way just fell into this weird attachment to a running streak, even among citing their mind and body being exhausted, burned out possibly even injured, yet the next paragraph cite their run streak day number and how blessed they feel?

I just can't believe that they're actually becoming more efficient, productive runners by simply going year after year and so on with no days off from running. Just my 1.5 cents, but it's likely some kind of obsessive compulsive nature they deal with.