should my time be really slow on a winding course?

since im losing weight, i suppose the most important thing is how long i run, now how fast my time is.

0.5/10 on the trollmeter.

At the speed you run it should have no bearing whatsoever, even at elite level it wont matter THAT much - maybe 20-30 seconds

Get your a$$ out of the restricting yard and into a 10k you'll run a 1:19:46.73 and the girls will fall allover you-

word up bro!

i think you completely mistook my post. im not a troll, im limited to my yard right now because i basically live off a highway and its not suitable to run, i.e. no sidewalks, etc. its a 4-lane highway in a rural area and the track is 20 miles away.

what im asking is if doingg 7 sharp turns within 140 meters is gonna have any effect on how far i run. i like the response of the second poster saying it should be about 20 to 30 seconds faster without as many turns. its grass the entire way.

Seriously, it sucks to be caged in by highways but there has to be a park or better neighborhood nearby for you to use. Drive there then run.

Major roads are like an anaconda where I live. I used to be able to run out my door and be on a country road in less than 5 minutes. Now running the same route I feel like Frogger and the country roads are now four lane roads.

astoriaroom4rent wrote:

Get your a$$ out of the restricting yard and into a 10k you'll run a 1:19:46.73 and the girls will fall allover you-

word up bro!

lol, i think im faster than that. i havent ran since high school and in high school i was running a mile and a half in 10 minutes. i think the number of turns with so little distance between them has a noticeable effect on the time. im talking 90 degree turns in some cases.

* wrote:

Seriously, it sucks to be caged in by highways but there has to be a park or better neighborhood nearby for you to use. Drive there then run.

Major roads are like an anaconda where I live. I used to be able to run out my door and be on a country road in less than 5 minutes. Now running the same route I feel like Frogger and the country roads are now four lane roads.

thats my situation as well. the two-lane road was converted to a 4-lane highway, and now its unsafe to run alongside it due to the high volume of semis that come through now.

I agree with *. Can you drive or bike somewhere else to run? If you're making 7 turns every 140 metres, that's pretty terrible, I'm sure near enough 100 turns in your 12-13 mins of running isn't going to be very good for injury avoidance.

Sharp turns definitely have a big effect.

My old yard was a rectangle that was 6 laps to the quarter mile.

It was basically 2 long straights and 2 other turns that were very short, 10meters or so.

When I was just starting to run again and probably could only do a 7:00-7:20 mile I couldn't break 9:30 in the backyard.

When I was in about 6:15-6:30 shape I could only run about 1:40 for a quarter mile in the back yard.

I only broke 1:35 for the quarter once, and I was in about 5:40 shape.

wow, im glad im not the only one who starts in their yard. i have three 90-degree turns. 39 meters to the first one, 31 meters to the second one, and if i remember correct, the third one is about 20 meters from the second one. i had to measure it manually using a yardstick around my yard, so its a straight line approximation and may be longer than 140 meters, but not by much, maybe 145 meters smoothed out.

im confident that im in at least 7:15 mile shape right now. I ran the 2000 meters (14 laps) once so far, on thursday, to make my transition from 12 laps to 16 laps starting sunday. I add 4 laps every 2 weeks. and should be at a little over 2 miles by the time i reach 24 laps. im more interested in the length of the run, since weight loss experts say its how long you run, not how fast, that matters.

if nothing else, i'll at least become a better tactical runner due to the changes in pace i have to make so many times. i have to be tactical just to avoid injury and yard hazards like tree roots. 2 weeks ago, i wasnt careful and hurt my ankle slightly, but now im more aware and modified my stride from heel-strike to ball-strike. that helps me avoid hazards better.

Do you run both ways? Make sure you run the course backwards so you don't have a muscle imbalance.

Take all the times with a grain of salt, it's a lot different on a course or on the road, and even more different going onto the track. I just took times from when I started running and then sometimes would try to run in the yard when I was in shape to see where my times differed.

You'll definitely feel a lot different on the road since you can't get into as good of a rhythm in the yard.

I'd recommend trying to go elsewhere when you get in better shape. But if you are only running 15-20 minutes, it's probably not worth a 20min drive anywhere to go running.

hmm, thats something i hadnt thought about, a muscle imbalance. all my turns right now are left turns, but isnt that the same with a track in most cases? i usually only run one direction when i did run on a track.

i think im gonna have to try doing it backwards, my time might even change a bit. but you\'re right, i cant get into a rhythm, and almost have to stop for the 90-degree turns.

Today, i ran 16 laps (2240 meters) in 12:44 and on my pace from the 14 laps i ran friday in 12:39.

140-meter pace friday: 53 seconds, 14 laps

140-meter pace today: 48 seconds, 16 laps

Its my first attempt at 16 laps and so i wanted to do a time trial to see my initial fitness for the distance. If I do the 12 laps (1692 meters) all-out, i can probably do it in 7:30.