How often per week?

[Nicholas]

This refers to training days...of course.

How many days a week do you run? What cross-training do you do and how often? Have these numbers or this mix changed as your body has "matured"? Can you tolerate the same physical stress you used to? Has your weekly mileage increased or decreased?

This is targetted at the older end of the group...just want to see how we adapt.

I used to run 6 days a week, with Saturday the only day off. No real cross-training other than soccer. I now run 4 times a week and try to do a couple of core routines a week plus the occasional bike session. And still playing soccer, now twice a week. Weekly mileage is down from before. Even during marathon training I peaked in 2007 at 75K a week with an average of 60K over the 16 week schedule. In the past I have got up to 100K a week at times during training.

[JacSprat]

wrt training...
The activities I’ve been involved in have changed over the years and I didn’t start getting into sports until my mid 20s (having been born in a dark land and time where sports were for boys) so it’s a bit difficult to compare then and now. My sports life started in speed skating in my late 20s 30s and I trained every day for that. Running and strength training mostly. I ran faster then than I do now, but never more than 10k. Now I run HMs. And since I started training for running events a couple of years ago I don’t think I’ve put as much into it as I could - I hope to this year so maybe will have be in a better position to comment then. When I was younger I could train every day no problem. Now I try to run 5 days a week (edited to add: when I'm in training mode) but am more likely to do 4 with cycling on other days. I’d say in general:
I take longer to warm up than I used to;
I can’t go as fast;
I can go long though, no problem;
I need more rest days.

That being said, I’m probably fitter now than I have been in 20 years. And loving every minute of it

[DougG]

I find that 4 days a week is optimum for running/cycling. I can do 5 if I plan carefully, but after that I get very fatigued, and seem to feel more aches and pains. That may be from a lack of fitness, or from medical reasons. Or, I'm just getting old.

[chunkymonkeymelonhed]

4 days/week for me

Edited to add that I've just marked my 2 year running birthday! Turning 40 is what got me off the couch and out the door!
My biggest challenge has been balancing work, kids, coaching with my love of the run. Last year was 3 days a week, I've bumped it up to 4 this winter and am finding myself much stronger.
Ideally I would like to add one more day but realistically for me it's not there right now.
I will have to find it later in the year as I build up a bigger base for my planned marathon debut may 2010.

[Jwolf]

6-7 days/week running.

I haven't slowed down because I only started when I was in my late 30's.

[ratherBrunning]

Right... running...

Depends on the time of year. Used to lay off running in the winter and head to the gym to CT exclusively, but that's too hard on the old bod come spring training season.

Circuitous answer: 5 X /wk, optimally; 3-4 X /wk, in reality.

[Jo-Jo]

I started running at age 50 so I can't compare to the past. I was active in my 20's and did nothing until my mid 40's when I started hiking once in a while.
I run 4 times a weeks. Sometimes I'll throw in a short 5th run. I'm "supposed" to do core/strength work twice a week but have been very remiss in the past few months. I'm dealing with lost of strength and pain in my right wrist since my dog bite and finding it hard to do exercises that require me to use both hands.
My mileage has increased since I started running but is low in volume compared to many....3 and half to four hours of running during this maintaining base winter schedule.

[La]

I also started late(er) in life, at 34 (it's been 11 years now). The most I ever ran in one week was five days (and I think I only did that once). For a while, it was only two days, but now I'm settled at three and that works pretty well. Of course, I'm also cycling three days a week (and will eventually be swimming), so it still takes up a lot of my time. I do get more tired now than I used to.

[Spirit Unleashed]

I have run since I was 13, with only a few remissions in all those years. I ran 5 or 6 days a week up until 2006, when I read about Supbraha Beckjord and the 3100 miles Self Transcendence Race.

Supbraha is about 53 or 54 now, but is the only woman to have finished the race and the only one to have finished it all 11 years in a row. The race runs/walks around a 0.5 mile block in New York City every day all day until the distance is covered. The winner covers 70 or so miles a day. Supbraha covers 55 miles a day.

Her advice for budding ultra-marathoners was to run every day, 3 to 5 miles, and do long runs on the week end. I immediately started this routine, upped my weekly milage from about 25 to 50 miles. I ran 2 marathons in 2006 faster than I had even when I was 19.

I also think raw foods, no meat, spirulina/chlorella, royal jelly, juice fasting and weight loss help a bunch in energy level and healing. I may cheat on eating; but I am religious about no preservatives, additives, sugar, yeast meat, dairy. Getting unnecessary chemicals out of your body is a must as far as I am concerned. This year, I weigh less than since I was 18. I think my morning workouts will help. In the morning, I lift weights, ride the exer-bike, jog on the trampoline and do a speed-mile on the TM.

I'll admit to not being perfect; but I am sure about what is good for me.

[garth]

During the winter i am more apt to follow a plan so i run a half marathon training plan with runs 5 days a week with a couple rest days.

On the rest days earlier in the plan when runs are not too long I may go and to some "leisure" exercise (walking, light rowing etc). Nothing to intense but enough

Once I get into the higher mileage then the rest days are rest days.

During the summer (mid June- mid Aug) I try to ride my bike to work (25 km round trip) but will do some runs if cool enough. May run or ride 7 days and then take a few days off but we always try to walk at least 5k a day with the dog.

[Doonst]

I too am a late starter, beginning at at age 47; I've been running less than 5 years. I play recreational volleyball once a week.
I usually run 5 times a week, resting Fridays and hiking Sundays. Less in the off-season of November. As a newer runner my mileage is still increasing when not slowed by injuries. I've always tried to temper my enthusiasm with caution; as tempting as it is to add distance I am painfully aware that it is different at a certain age. Some say, let rest days be rest days, others suggest that easy half hour on slow days is a beneficial thing. Who knows? I do like hiking 2-4 hours the day after my long run, its almost like my version of stretching.

[Strider]

Last year for the most part I was 5 days a week with Mon/Fri off. This year the plan is 7 days a week. But the runs on those days will be shorter and maybe some doubles too. Why? Cause I need it for what I am training for. Not recommended for everyone.

However the body needs a lot more stretching and strength work which I have to be more committed to.

Food and nutrition wise I really suck - I agree with Spirit, just wish I could do it....

[tri princess]

I can relate to several others here. I started running later in life, at 36. I grew up in a time when sports were for "jocks" who did team sports and I never saw myself as an athlete (even when I was on the swim team in high school!). So anyway, I have been running for almost 11 years now. I started triathlon five years ago but got more serious about it this year. On one hand, I am training more than ever now but on the other, I realize that my aging body does set limits on what I can do. If I do too much, I get too tired and sore and also mentally tired. Right now, I run three times a week, spin twice and swim once and that's OK. Changing sports makes it easier on the bod. When I was training for a marathon, I found running five days a week to be a lot so some weeks I cut it back to four, which was good mentally and physically.

[tri princess]

However the body needs a lot more stretching and strength work which I have to be more committed to.

Food and nutrition wise I really suck - I agree with Spirit, just wish I could do it....

Ditto for me.

[दिवंगत]

Starting running at 39 (42 now), I found/find it hard to run more than four times a week. Now I am into Tri, I train six days, of which three include running.

[horselady]

When I was in my 20's I was quite into aerobic classes and did run as well. I would do aerobics classes 6 days a week and probably run 3 days on top of that, sometimes after an aerobics class. When I trained for a triathlon I justed added all the biking and swimming on top of all of that... I seldom got injured.
I kept that up until kids came along and then I had a period of more sporatic stuff, aerobic, some running, cycling etc....got more sporatic...put on 40lbs...and then 7 years ago, picked up running and fitness again more regularily. Dumped most of that weight and became considerably fitter.
I certainly find I take longer to warm up and I have more aches and pains when I get out of bed in the morning. I am slower as well...although I never really did any races longer than 10K's in my 20's. Not likely I will get back to my 10K PR..( 42 min.. ) I would be happy to break 50 min.
I can run 5 days a week with a couple spin/trainer sessions and a couple strength sessions, which means there are days that I do back to back stuff... but do need one day off where I don't do anything.
I do find if I am horsebacking riding alot on top of this though that I can easily injure my back, so that I have to be careful .for sure no cycling/spinning on days I ride.

[scottp]

I did 3 days a week for about 20 years (except for training 5d/w for my first marathon in '81). I switched to 4d/w when I hit 40 to get more competitive, also doing 2-3 days of weight work a week.

I'm now back on 5d/w for 18 weeks of marathon training. I'm pretty sure I need those 2 days of rest both mental and physical.

For me, doing 6/7 days a week would get boring plus I don't like short runs ( under 7-8k ).

Scott

[endurox]

Experts say you can get away with 3 quality workouts, speed, tempo and long. When I have a marathon on my plate then its 6 days. In my off season I still do about 30 miles but shorter runs more often. I still think the key to a good marathon time is lots of miles if your body can hold up. I am hoping mine will this season.

[Size5]

It varies.... At 41 I've run 6 days a week without issues. Now I'm training 6 days a week but its tri. I think I could flip back to 6 days a week of running. Maybe I'm just lucky, or maybe it is my profound lack of speed that keeps me out of physio

S5

[flexrun]

I am 43 and have only been running for just over a year. I find that for me 3-4 days is just about right per week and I am training for a marathon. My workouts are speed, tempo and a long run. I am a amputee runner and need the rest days in order not to get injured. Therefore I try to focus on quality instead of quanity. Sometimes more isn't better.

My coach said that since I don't put in a lot of mileage (70-80km at my peak) and I am lucky enough to have the endurance still for the marathon then this will be fine.

My #1 lesson learned is listen to your body - easier said than done I know. We can be our own worst enemy sometimes! Its a big disappointment to get injured and loose all of your hard earned training!

[s rasmussen]

I run 4 times-weakly....I mean weekly.
No, maybe I don't.
Simon.

[Jogger Barbie]

Another late blooming runner here. I started running regularly in my mid to late 30's and did the half marathon distance for the first time on my 40th birthday. First 30 km and first marathon were within a couple of months of each other in 2007 so effectively right around turning 46.

Four days a week seems to be the optimum amount of running for me. One day hills/speedwork, one easy run, one race pace run and one long run. The hills/speedwork are done more faithfully when I'm actually training for something; if not, they're a second race pace or a tempo style run instead.

Ever since my injury back in 2005 I've been loathe to run two days in a row, and this schedule means that only happens once per week. Usually it's hills/speedwork and an easy run the next day.

For years I did virtually no cross-training - it was either a run day or a rest day. Currently I swim once a week, and do weights/core/stretches once a week. I need to find the time and discipline to do the latter at least once a week in the evening as well.

Saturday is almost always a rest day, although "rest" is relative - housework, gardening and yard work burn through a fair bit of energy depending on the specific jobs that need to be done that day.

Definitely I notice that over the last couple of years I am more aware of random aches and pains, and a lot more cautious in general. But since that coincides with the increase in distance, I don't know if it's age-related or mileage-related. Probably some of each.

[Spirit Unleashed]

I wonder...since i really don't do speed work, maybe that is why I can run every day. In races, I usually have to be satisfied with a 9:30 to 9:40 mile.

[Jo-Jo]

I wonder...since i really don't do speed work, maybe that is why I can run every day. In races, I usually have to be satisfied with a 9:30 to 9:40 mile.

Hmm...possibly...or perhaps you have a body who doesn't mind being out there on the roads every day. I do know that after a speed workout my legs are sometimes sore the next day.

Re your race pace:...do you run your races at pretty well the same pace you do your weekly runs at?

[Spirit Unleashed]

I wonder...since i really don't do speed work, maybe that is why I can run every day. In races, I usually have to be satisfied with a 9:30 to 9:40 mile.

Hmm...possibly...or perhaps you have a body who doesn't mind being out there on the roads every day. I do know that after a speed workout my legs are sometimes sore the next day.

Re your race pace:...do you run your races at pretty well the same pace you do your weekly runs at?

I race much faster than my daily runs. Don't know why except maybe Gu hypes me up!