Laura Lewis – Graduate of Beginners May 2019 and newly qualified Leader In Running Fitness
Well, you are no longer ‘Beginners’!! Well done on even getting out of your comfort zone and getting to the first session, never mind now being able to run 30 minutes, NON STOP! It’s been wet and windy, but you’ve won the mental battle of getting your trainers on when what you really wanted to do was snuggle up in the warm, and that’s just as big an achievement as the run itself. You’ve committed and done what you set out to do.
In the initial Induction Session, Susan always tells beginners “You won’t believe you can go from 8 minutes to 20 minutes, but you can”. And Susan is always right! You can, and more!
So what’s next?
Well we don’t just say goodbye now, off you go, see you later. We are all still here to support you on the next stage, if you would like to join us. This is affectionately called ‘Graduates’, but this basically means the LiRFs (Leaders in Running Fitness) will now start to extend your runs by 5 minutes each time, at your pace, until you can run for an hour. YES, AN HOUR. It feels great, especially now we have lighter nights and we can take some of the more scenic routes!
Graduate runs will start after your last Beginners session on a Tuesday and Thursday at 6pm. This will be at the pace of the group (we won’t leave anyone) and the first week will be 35 minutes, steady. We’ll then increase by 5 minutes every week over the next 8 weeks. Don’t worry, if anyone needs to stop, we stop! Some non-graduates might join this run also so you will meet more people and also people that might normally be in your ‘Group’ for the usual club runs. Once you have managed to extend your stamina up to an hour running, you might then join the usual club runs, which are at 6.30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Intervals on Tuesday will help improve your fitness, so don’t be daunted by them. They have a range of abilities and I usually end up laughing so much I can’t run!
You do have the option from now of joining our regular interval training group on Tuesdays which are is 6:30. Just look for Angie.
There are also sometimes other social or training runs on a weekend so keep an eye on the Pacers Facebook Group for any upcoming planned runs. They usually incorporate ‘loops’ so you can just do part of the run with no pressure, and coffee afterwards.
So, which ‘Group’ should I be in?
The groups for the usual club runs are based on your pace, how you are feeling and what you want to get out of your running but to start with you can try Groups 3, 4 or 5 and then adjust as you feel. The Pace bands are below and included on the newsletter every week. The main point is, we will not leave anyone behind! And you will have done some ‘re-Grouping’ in beginners, we do this in group runs too, so no one gets left behind.
I keep hearing about Socials, can anyone come?
YES! There are regular socials and charity nights. Watch the newsletter and face book page. This can be daunting if you don’t know many people, so don’t feel you will be left out if you aren’t there! They aren’t obligatory, but they are fun.
My advice to a graduate……
Get stuck in. You get out of the club what you put in. If you can Marshal at an event, do it. You’ll meet people you would not have met before and that’s how you will get to know people. Join the socials even if it’s just ‘for one’. You might then find you want to stay for another, but the pressure is off. Bring a friend? We always want new people to learn to love running with us! Most of all, enjoy it….
Pace Bands for Thursday club Runs
We have 5 groups, and within each group we have leaders running at the at different paces to help runners who might want to progress to step up through the groups (or step down if desired). These pace bands may need to be tweaked, and they may work better in different groups than others, we look forward to your feedback.
Group 1 – Sub 23:15 parkrun
quicker than 7:30
Group 2 – 23:15 to 30:20 parkrun
G2.1 – 7:30 to 7:45
G2.2 – 8:00 to 8:30
G2.3 – 8:45 to 9:15
G2.4 – 9:30 to 9:45
Group 3 – 31:00 to 35 minute parkrun
G3.1 – 10:00 to 10:30
G3.2 – 10:45 to 11:15
Group 4 – 35:45 to 39:00 minute parkrun
G4.1 – 11:30 to 12:00
G4.2 – 12:15 to 12:30
Group 5 39:00+ minute parkrun
G5 – Slower than 12:30