'Join my run challenge: How far can you go in 2014?' blog discussion

JDN5

My name is Jim, and my target is to get my spreadsheet set up by the end of 2014 so that it will work out cumulative totals on each line, whilst hiding the formula from rows which have yet to have data entered. Not sure I'll have much time left for running though.

kevsan

My name is Kev and my running challenge running target is 1000km.

Currently have a half marathon in March and the London 10k in july booked in.

As of today 24km into my target for the year... 976 to go...

mandysims

My aim this year will be 800km. I started running when my eldest daughter was training for the specials, she didn't continue but surprisingly I did! Four years on aged 47, 2014 is going to be a tough year, I have places in both the London Marathon and The Great North run! When our youngest daughter was granted her 'wish' by the charity 'When You Wish Upon A Star' after being diagnosed with a massive Brain Tumour aged 7, it made such a difference to her life that I decided that I had to make that possible for other families and running as played a large part in me being able to give back! Good luck to everyone out there trying their hardest!

jenwiss

I am completely new to running.

I am 27 living in Devon so have lots of beautiful countryside to run around. I went for my first run the other day and did 4 1/4 miles mixed terrain in 1 hr, some of it was fast walking. Didn't realise how unfit I am.

I want to do the race for life this year and possibly the great west run.

Twiggy_34

Hey guys, I'd like to join in with this as my new years resolution is to improve my fitness level and lose weight (with a money-saving aspect of not having to buy bigger clothing as I'm currently bursting out of half of my clothes and am unable to fit into the other half ). As my name suggests, I'm usually pretty slim (well, skinny in my younger years) but I'm sad to admit that's no longer the case!

In response to Martin's questions:

Age (if you’re willing) - 33 (almost 34)
Fitness level. - pretty unfit
Whether you have any official races planned - Nope
And whether you have a running spreadsheet. - Nope

I'm not going to post a target just yet as this is all new to me. I used to walk to work 5 days a week but changed jobs 18 months ago meaning I now have to drive and have piled on a stone & a half in that time. I downloaded the NHS "Couch to 5k" podcasts about a year ago, finally put them on my phone about 6m ago, and then ordered my sports earphones last week so that I can jog and listen to the instructions without the earbuds falling out every 5 mins! Said earphones arrived on Friday while I was at work so I was able to start the first podcast that very evening and clocked up my first 3.4km.

As Martin asked the question, I've chosen the Runkeeper app to keep track of my activities, and only because I noticed a friend was using it and logging her activities on facebook. It uses GPS to measure the distance travelled, gives you 5 minute updates telling you what your average speed is at that point, and it calculates how many calories you've burned. You can set goals (so mine is to lose 6kg) and link your account with friends which I think will be helpful to spur each other on. There is a paid (elite) version too which has more functions.

Does anyone here happen to have any experience of manual treadmills, compact exercise bikes or cross trainers? I need something that folds up & isn't too expensive (under £100) so that I've got something to use in miserable weather when I lack the motivation to go out. I was looking at the Pro Fitness non-motorised folding treadmill which I can buy for £50 and seems to have good reviews...

danothy

My name is Danothy, and my running challenge target distance for 2014 is 2,500km. Since the start of the year I've run 49.6km.

Stats: Late 20s; Average fitness; Speed 10-11 kph longer distances, 11-12 kph shorter distances; 2014 races include Llanelli marathon, Bwystfil y bryn, Rat Race Dirty Weekend, and no-doubt some others; Ran 1,395 km in 2013;

The_Grateful_Ghoul

Hi All,

My name is Neil and in March 2012, I couldn't even run for a bus and needed to lose some weight. I started running using the Couch Potato to 5K in 8 weeks running app.

In week 1, I was struggling to run for 30 seconds to 1 minute, but by the end of the 8 weeks, I was running for 5k and then officially caught the whole running bug.

If anyone is reading this and even thinking about starting running or getting fit, I am living proof that you really can do it.

Age: 40
Fitness level: Average
How fast you typically go: A steady 09:50 a mile.
Whether you have any official races planned: Nothing yet but possibly the Birmingham Half Marathon.
2012 Running Total 296.5 Miles (476km)
2013 Running Total 378 Miles (608km)

Running App Runkeeper I love how this app stores all of your runs and allows you to track your progress.


My Spotify Running Playlist

My running blog

It’s going to be tough but I will also aim for the Martin Lewis target of running a total of 434 miles (700km) in 2014. I am hoping that signing up to this challenge will be just what I need to keep me motivated for another 12 months.

Me and my big mouth, what have I just committed to? :shocked:

macca64

• Age - 31
• Fitness level - Quite active, ran my first 10 mile last year.
• How fast you typically go - Depending on distance, between 7 and 10 minute miles.
• Whether you have any official races planned - Not yet, but hope to do a few 5km park runs and maybe a half marathon.
• Distance run in past years, if you know it - 300km (185 miles) in 2013.
• And whether you have a running spreadsheet - No all recorded on an app called Map My Run.

My name is Steve and my target for 2014 is 400km (250 miles)....sounds quite far, doesn't it!!

Twiggy_34

The_Grateful_!!!!! wrote: »

Hi All,

My name is Neil and in March 2012, I couldn't even run for a bus and needed to lose some weight. I started running using the Couch Potato to 5K in 8 weeks running app.

In week 1, I was struggling to run for 30 seconds to 1 minute, but by the end of the 8 weeks, I was running for 5k and then officially caught the whole running bug.

If anyone is reading this and even thinking about starting running or getting fit, I am living proof that you really can do it.

Having just started couch to 5k by doing my first run on Friday your positive comments are reassuring to hear! I'm due to go for my 2nd run (repeat of podcast 1) tomorrow, I'm just hoping the weather isn't going to put me off!

The_Grateful_Ghoul

Twiggy_34 wrote: »

Having just started couch to 5k by doing my first run on Friday your positive comments are reassuring to hear! I'm due to go for my 2nd run (repeat of podcast 1) tomorrow, I'm just hoping the weather isn't going to put me off!

Stick with it and you won't regret it, the first month is hard but its amazing how quickly your body adjusts. The best advice I can offer is remember the old saying that running is 99% mental/1% physical and you will be fine.