The Running Thread (formerly How fast can you run a 5k?)

[09bballer]

Managed to run a solid, steady 20km today when intending to only do 18. 5 weeks to HM so happy now.

[VLC86]

1 hour ago, sdb said:

Got a really weird pain in the inside of my right knee. Sometimes it's there, sometimes it's not. Sometimes running seems to tweak it, but other times it doesn't. Sometimes it just goes when I walk. Got 2 10ks in the next 2 months. Really unsure how to play it? Rest? Train through it? Hope for the best? 

I guess it depends on how intense the pain is and how much it impacts your run but generally it’s probably best to have a physio look at it before it gets worse.

 

When you say the inside, do you mean the left hand side of your knee rather than literally inside your knee IE under the knee cap?

[sdb]

22 hours ago, VLC86 said:

I guess it depends on how intense the pain is and how much it impacts your run but generally it’s probably best to have a physio look at it before it gets worse.

 

When you say the inside, do you mean the left hand side of your knee rather than literally inside your knee IE under the knee cap?

Yes, directly on the left of my kneecap. I did Chat GPT it last night 😂 and it advised no Incline running for a bit. Did 4k today without pain so that's a good sign, but only so long I can get away with that!!

[Chelmofox]

Put on a load of weight over the last 6 month. Simply lost the willing to carry on which is sad as i was doing so well. Thankfully i walk the dog about 5-6k every day so the weight could have been much worse.

 

Big dog walk in the morning and a 5k run at lunch. Its going to take a while, but i will break that 22min 5k barrier i nearly got a year ago. Just might take me 3-4 months to get there.

 

 

Edited 9 February by Chelmofox

[CosbehFox]

Just had a fk it moment - Manchester Half - 4th October. 

 

Going to target something like a run in the UK's ten biggest cities over the next three years

[Sol thewall Bamba]

Another 10k PB in the bank, hope I didn't miss anything in the first half against Southampton!

[VLC86]

Thought I had recovered so ran 5k yesterday. No issues on the run but an hour later it was feeling pretty ****ed again.

 

Highly unlikely to be running the Ultra in May which is pretty shitty but I’ll probably give it another week off. Any other suggestions for cardio replacements which don’t involve me sitting on a bike and won’t knaker it?

[Mark 'expert' Lawrenson]

On 09/02/2026 at 23:45, Chelmofox said:

Put on a load of weight over the last 6 month. Simply lost the willing to carry on which is sad as i was doing so well. Thankfully i walk the dog about 5-6k every day so the weight could have been much worse.

 

Big dog walk in the morning and a 5k run at lunch. Its going to take a while, but i will break that 22min 5k barrier i nearly got a year ago. Just might take me 3-4 months to get there.

 

 

Good luck, I’m quite similar although mine was a leg injury which stopped me from running properly, I made the mistake of trying to run before I was ready and that put me back even further. 
I got my time last year to 22.30 for 5k which at 58 was about my best I could do, now I’m back running again and managed a 5k in just under 25minutes. 
I wear a knee support now which helps.

Its been a real struggle, I was able to run 10k before the injury now I’m struggling to run 5k the voice in my head telling me to stop and walk for a bit was overwhelming 😂 but I managed to keep running although I was blowing out of my arse 😂 

Apologies for rambling on good luck again 👍🏻

[VLC86]

12 minutes ago, Mark 'expert' Lawrenson said:

Good luck, I’m quite similar although mine was a leg injury which stopped me from running properly, I made the mistake of trying to run before I was ready and that put me back even further. 
I got my time last year to 22.30 for 5k which at 58 was about my best I could do, now I’m back running again and managed a 5k in just under 25minutes. 
I wear a knee support now which helps.

Its been a real struggle, I was able to run 10k before the injury now I’m struggling to run 5k the voice in my head telling me to stop and walk for a bit was overwhelming 😂 but I managed to keep running although I was blowing out of my arse 😂 

Apologies for rambling on good luck again 👍🏻

To be fair I feel the same way doing 5k, but if you keep going past that it gets easier. Granted, I’m not 58 with a ****ed knee though…

[Heart-Shaped Fox]

On 11/02/2026 at 11:20, VLC86 said:

Thought I had recovered so ran 5k yesterday. No issues on the run but an hour later it was feeling pretty ****ed again.

 

Highly unlikely to be running the Ultra in May which is pretty shitty but I’ll probably give it another week off. Any other suggestions for cardio replacements which don’t involve me sitting on a bike and won’t knaker it?

All I'd say is swimming mate. Doesn't offer the same buzz for me but somewhat fills the gap. I only swim once a week generally but when I was injured was going a lot more. 

 

Had a few injuries now and swimming never flares them up. Can't even feel pain when swimming tbh

[VLC86]

1 hour ago, Heart-Shaped Fox said:

All I'd say is swimming mate. Doesn't offer the same buzz for me but somewhat fills the gap. I only swim once a week generally but when I was injured was going a lot more. 

 

Had a few injuries now and swimming never flares them up. Can't even feel pain when swimming tbh

Cheers, that’s on the list.

[waddadamadda]

On 11/02/2026 at 11:20, VLC86 said:

Thought I had recovered so ran 5k yesterday. No issues on the run but an hour later it was feeling pretty ****ed again.

 

Highly unlikely to be running the Ultra in May which is pretty shitty but I’ll probably give it another week off. Any other suggestions for cardio replacements which don’t involve me sitting on a bike and won’t knaker it?

Whereabouts are you? I can recommend an incredible osteopath. He’s based in Scraptoft but has clinics throughout Leicester. He’s got me through several marathons and ultras injury free. 

[VLC86]

1 hour ago, waddadamadda said:

Whereabouts are you? I can recommend an incredible osteopath. He’s based in Scraptoft but has clinics throughout Leicester. He’s got me through several marathons and ultras injury free. 

South Leicestershire mate, yeah send the details over. Think I’ve already decided to pull out though as after a couple of weeks rest I’ll be a month behind with only a couple left. It’s a bit 

 

It’s a shame but it is what it is. I’ve bullied my other half into a half marathon at the end of next month and I’m not going to be able to do it 😂😂😂.

[LcFc_Smiv]

20k ticked off on this mornings Manchestee marathon prep, enjoying it far more than i thought I would. Fuelling on the move is an art i need to master, trying to take a gel on and ended squeezing the sachet as i was breaving out, and then inhaled a full leo lion (knock off percy pig) causing me to cough and splutter everywhere.

 

For anyone whos done half-marathon distances, at what point do you consider needing fluids? Ill be honest I havent felt the need for them yet, but aware with my heavy sweat rate and being a high sodium sweater I probably need to consider.

[The boy Linacre]

On 09/01/2026 at 18:47, Ric Flair said:

I've started to obsess over fuelling and fluids now i'm stepping up to marathon and beyond distances. I think in the past for most of my running I've not taken enough on and probably get away with it but i'm conscious of the volume of mileage in the training block means i'll need to be better in the lead up and then on the day over 4 hours of running.

 

What do folk do for training runs for 2-3 hour runs and then for the marathon itself?

 

Looking at it, I think it's at least 500ml of water every hour with electrolytes, will throw in a Lucozade Sport as well and then somewhere between 30-50g of carbs and hour which is going to be mainly gels (that I fcukin hate)

Make sure though that you have tried and tested everything in training & know its available in the Marathon itself, nothing new, no surprises, I hit the wall at 18-19 in Docklands, and I was a a very experienced runner.  That obstruction is there, walked the last 6 miles and always regret it, even jogging/trotting I could have run 3.20/25 not the 3.47 I did.  Don't deviate from your finalised plpan

[CosbehFox]

31 minutes ago, LcFc_Smiv said:

20k ticked off on this mornings Manchestee marathon prep, enjoying it far more than i thought I would. Fuelling on the move is an art i need to master, trying to take a gel on and ended squeezing the sachet as i was breaving out, and then inhaled a full leo lion (knock off percy pig) causing me to cough and splutter everywhere.

 

For anyone whos done half-marathon distances, at what point do you consider needing fluids? Ill be honest I havent felt the need for them yet, but aware with my heavy sweat rate and being a high sodium sweater I probably need to consider.

Around 12k-13k for me - I’m a heavier sweater and I can sometimes feel very poorly afterwards. 
 

I was told your body has approximately 16k worth of juice in it without assistance. But you want to be ahead of the bonk 

[VLC86]

1 hour ago, LcFc_Smiv said:

20k ticked off on this mornings Manchestee marathon prep, enjoying it far more than i thought I would. Fuelling on the move is an art i need to master, trying to take a gel on and ended squeezing the sachet as i was breaving out, and then inhaled a full leo lion (knock off percy pig) causing me to cough and splutter everywhere.

 

For anyone whos done half-marathon distances, at what point do you consider needing fluids? Ill be honest I havent felt the need for them yet, but aware with my heavy sweat rate and being a high sodium sweater I probably need to consider.

I think liquid wise it depends on how much you sweat but I’d say make sure you load up on electrolytes in the week leading up to the run is as important as taking on a bit on the race.

 

For a half marathon, you shouldn’t need to take on loads during it if it’s not too warm.

[waddadamadda]

19 hours ago, VLC86 said:

South Leicestershire mate, yeah send the details over. Think I’ve already decided to pull out though as after a couple of weeks rest I’ll be a month behind with only a couple left. It’s a bit 

 

It’s a shame but it is what it is. I’ve bullied my other half into a half marathon at the end of next month and I’m not going to be able to do it 😂😂😂.

MSK Osteopath -Avin Patel. When I lived near Lutterworth I’d see him at his Wigston Clinic but most recently I’ve been to Scraptoft. He’s a genius.

 

https://www.avinpatel.co.uk

 

 

[VLC86]

Thoughts and prayers for anyone out there this morning. I was going to do a 2 hour bike ride and called it off at 40 mins because my hands, feet and face were in agony they were that cold.

[Trumpet]

17 minutes ago, VLC86 said:

Thoughts and prayers for anyone out there this morning. I was going to do a 2 hour bike ride and called it off at 40 mins because my hands, feet and face were in agony they were that cold.

7 miles for me. It’s the first time I’ve been out running and had big red splodges all over me afterwards. Assume it’s where I’ve been blasted by the windchill. Serves me right for going shorts and T-shirt 

[westernpark]

Training for an ultra marathon in July. Really enjoying the training, as the distances are long but the speed is incredibly slow! 

[VLC86]

9 minutes ago, westernpark said:

Training for an ultra marathon in July. Really enjoying the training, as the distances are long but the speed is incredibly slow! 

Which one you doing?

[westernpark]

19 minutes ago, VLC86 said:

Which one you doing?

Peak District- Ultra Challenge. I think it works out to be 52k.

[VLC86]

Just now, westernpark said:

Peak District- Ultra Challenge. I think it works out to be 52k.

Nice one, that will be class.

[SecretPro]

Motivation has been so bad since Christmas. The weather truly hadn't helped. Had signed up for the Leicester 10k on 1st March but dont even know whether to bother. Feel like id only bumble round in a half-arsed time and feel like its not worth bothering with if you know you're not going to better your previous times. Is that silly or do other people feel like that?