Platypus' Beginners Guide to Running

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Yes, think i heard something similar. I wasn't too bad Saturday night and we only shared a bottle between us, however i'd also bought a bottle my wife didn't like so yesterday i had 1.5 bottles which definitely hasn't helped and made me less likely to go for a nice easy recovery run today!

Went for a dog walk yesterday and had forgotten something in the car, we were probably only around 500m from the car, so started jogging back and my right hamstring just said no chance. So i ended up in a weird hobble run. Must've looked ridiculous to anyone around us!
 
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My new Asics are here, feel a good fit. Possibly a little narrow but my feet feel secure in the heel etc so that bodes well.

My try and get out at dinner. My only hesitation is that i had my PT session this morning and tired rapidly. First few exercises i felt good and upped the weights a little, second run through i had nothing!
 
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My new Asics are here, feel a good fit. Possibly a little narrow but my feet feel secure in the heel etc so that bodes well.

My try and get out at dinner. My only hesitation is that i had my PT session this morning and tired rapidly. First few exercises i felt good and upped the weights a little, second run through i had nothing!

Saw the pic in the other thread, are they the Novablast?

I've a pair on the way but Asics are so slow to ship/deliver.
 
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Got my size 10 Reebok Energy 3 today. Much better fit than the 9.5. About a centimetre of toe space at the front. My feet don't feel compressed and can breathe. So I'll return the 9.5.

I guess it's personal choice, some would prefer the more snug fit of the 9.5. My cheap size 10 runners are a more snug fit than the Reebox 10, somewhere between the 9.5 and 10.

I also ordered Energy 3.0 as my first pair and they've been great so far. Really comfortable and feet aren't hurting post long walks and light jogs. Bargain price with the discount code and the recent reviews have been favourable also.
 
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Yeah, the Novablast. I ordered from Runners Need on Friday and they came yesterday. I've always found their service very good.

Ah ok, I ordered direct as I wanted the option to be able to return them. Few people say they feel unstable but I don't know if that's just the youtube reviewers over analysing everything as normal. Hopefully they'll be here Thursday according to the tracking!
 
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I also ordered Energy 3.0 as my first pair and they've been great so far. Really comfortable and feet aren't hurting post long walks and light jogs. Bargain price with the discount code and the recent reviews have been favourable also.

Yep, I was on the fence for a few days because I wanted more snugness like the 9.5 but not as tight as those, and thought the 10 didn't feel quite snug enough. I thought there was a little too much toebox space going on in the 10, almost like a clown shoe. I nearly returned both pairs and was going to start over for another shoe.

But I watched a video last night about good fit for running shoes and it said not to feel for toe space while seated but do it standing it up because the foot will move further forward into the shoe. Once I did that, the toespace felt just perfect, just under a thumb's width.

Now I'm completely decided and am very happy with the 10 and have returned the 9.5 for a £60 refund. They're super comfortable, let my feet breathe, no constriction at all and very light. At first my feet rolled inwards and I thought maybe I had over pronation. But it seems it was just about getting used to the curve of the midsole. I've never worn shoes with a curve like this so I guess my balance had to adjust to it.
 
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Yep, I was on the fence for a few days because I wanted more snugness like the 9.5 but not as tight as those, and thought the 10 didn't feel quite snug enough. I thought there was a little too much toebox space going on in the 10, almost like a clown shoe. I nearly returned both pairs and was going to start over for another shoe.

But I watched a video last night about good fit for running shoes and it said not to feel for toe space while seated but do it standing it up because the foot will move further forward into the shoe. Once I did that, the toespace felt just perfect, just under a thumb's width.

Now I'm completely decided and am very happy with the 10 and have returned the 9.5 for a £60 refund. They're super comfortable, let my feet breathe, no constriction at all and very light. At first my feet rolled inwards and I thought maybe I had over pronation. But it seems it was just about getting used to the curve of the midsole. I've never worn shoes with a curve like this so I guess my balance had to adjust to it.

I was in exactly the same boat. I ordered a half size above and below my usual and thought the size lower was snug and my actual size had about a thumbs gap at the toe but after watching a few videos and pictures online came to the same conclusion that the gap is needed. Sent the other two back and went for my walk. My heel slipped ever so slightly a few days then got used to it and now it's really comfortable and feet are fine. For the price I'm very happy as my first proper shoes.
 
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I was in exactly the same boat. I ordered a half size above and below my usual and thought the size lower was snug and my actual size had about a thumbs gap at the toe but after watching a few videos and pictures online came to the same conclusion that the gap is needed. Sent the other two back and went for my walk. My heel slipped ever so slightly a few days then got used to it and now it's really comfortable and feet are fine. For the price I'm very happy as my first proper shoes.

Ah, so you've kept a half size above or you're wearing your actual size? My actual size is 10 with a good toespace. A half size bigger (10.5) would have been loose and too long. What colour did you go for? :) I've got the radiant blue, it's nice. :)
 
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Ah, so you've kept a half size above or you're wearing your actual size? My actual size is 10 with a good toespace. A half size bigger (10.5) would have been loose and too long. What colour did you go for? :) I've got the radiant blue, it's nice. :)

Sorry for the confusion. I went with my actual size which was a 8.5 and it had good toespace. Oddly if you check their sizing guide it's different to my regular everyday shoes even though they are also 8.5. I wasn't daring enough to go with the blue and chose the dark grey with neon yellow. They look good in person.
 
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Ah ok, I ordered direct as I wanted the option to be able to return them. Few people say they feel unstable but I don't know if that's just the youtube reviewers over analysing everything as normal. Hopefully they'll be here Thursday according to the tracking!

Got out in them for the first time last night.

They're very cushioned which felt odd at first. Similar to Hoka trainers where you feel very high off the ground, but i settled in quickly. I suppose my only complaint was that my arches seemed to fall in a little, particularly on the right foot when i started, but that seemed to fix itself towards the end of the run.

All in all, i'm very happy with them so far.
 
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Got out in them for the first time last night.

They're very cushioned which felt odd at first. Similar to Hoka trainers where you feel very high off the ground, but i settled in quickly. I suppose my only complaint was that my arches seemed to fall in a little, particularly on the right foot when i started, but that seemed to fix itself towards the end of the run.

All in all, i'm very happy with them so far.

Nice. Mine have gone back already. Even after completing their size finder, they were too small. The tongue was causing a pain on my foot and they did just feel pretty unstable. Shame really.

Think I may just wait until the running shops open again and then try to find some new ones. Tried a few now that are raved about in reviews and they just turn out to be terrible.
 
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Yeah, that's a shame. There's definitely no substitute for trying them on. Maybe just re-buy your current trainers if you need some sooner since you know they work for you?

Yeah, I've been using the Hoka Rincon which have been amazing except for the fact they're dead after 200 miles. I'm tempted just to get another pair of them but it bugs me that they don't last long at all. It's probably the best option for now as by the time I've worn those out, hopefully in a couple months all the shops will be back open.
 
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I thought I'd update to my post here about trying to increase my cadence, in case anyone else was attempting to do the same.

This week I've been able to keep up 180 steps per minute without needing a metronome. I am still consciously thinking about my cadence but it's becoming more natural run by run. I have now managed to get my heartrate back down to 142 bpm, where I was before, but my easy pace seems to have increased around 5%. I've not done any fast sessions yet so don't know how much that's improved but I'd be very happy with 5% increase there too. That would be like taking 1.3 miles off a marathon.

What I needed to do to get my HR to just run slower but still at a high cadence. This is however a lot harder than it sounds! What really helped was running the uphill sections whilst listening to the metronome. You naturally have to shorten your stride uphill at high cadence or you run out of puff very quickly. Once I had done this a few times it was a matter of applying these shorter strides on the rest of the run, which seems to have worked.
 
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What do you guys think of this slow jogging tutorial? It would make sense for me to do this to avoid heel landing and be able to jog more continuously. I'd be happy doing it but is it going to burn many calories, is there enough exertion and isn't it going to look a bit old man'ish and silly with such short steps, lol? Also, he recommends flat shoes to land mid foot but I just bought cushioned shoes.



edit: Actually, I tried it today. It's not bad, I think it will definitely burn enough calories and is easy to maintain. But it does look wimpish, it's about 19 min/mile. I think to save embarrassment I'll find some more private places to jog rather than the park until I decide I want go faster with a slower cadence.
 
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