Bad runs, and running in the morning?

I just had a horrible run today. I went from doing mile(s) to not being able to do 400 meters at a time. WHAT? Has anyone had a bad run? I'd like to know if I'm not alone here.

Also, I run for weight loss. Would it be detrimental to jog before breakfast? Soon enough, I will have school with classes beginning at 8:40, and I'd like to get a run in before my morning class. You know, to actually be awake during them. What's the pros and cons there?

Thanks. :)

Are you a new runner? It could be that you are extremely sore because you tried to do too much at one time.  I sometimes get that way when I've worked out for several days in a row.  My legs don't want to work no matter how hard I will them to.  I guess I can't give you much help until I know a little more about your schedule/fitness level/etc.  I'm not an expert but I've been running for several years and maybe can give some help.

As far as running in the morning, I absolutely love it and prefer to get it in before breakfast.  There is nothing like running while the sun comes up.  I didn't check your profile to see where you are from, but it definitely is much cooler then running in the hot afternoon sun.  It's hard to get started (I want to throw the alarm clock across the room sometimes) but once I'm out there, I don't want to stop.

There are different philosophy's about running before eating.  Some say you should eat about 30 minutes before you work out because it will allow you to go for a longer period of time.  In the same article they did state that your body breaks down more fat if you go before you eat, but again, you may not last as long.  Depending on how long your runs are, this may not be an issue for you.  I guess you need to figure out how you feel and if you are starving before you even start your run, you will probably need something in your belly.

I'm not sure if this is much help but I tried!

You did help...thank you!

I'm a very new runner. I just finished Couch to 5K, and I'm doing about 2 miles a day, 3-4x a week as a recovery week. The most I've ever run is 2.5 miles. For my weight (about 200), I am a little above average fitness-wise. That is, I can probably move quicker than most 200 pound women. :P

I'm not a morning person whatsoever, but all I hear is raves about the morning run. I'm currently in New Jersey and run a circuit near my house, but I move back to Philadelphia in about a week. I guess I can get a run in around Fairmount park if need be.

I don't mind running before breakfast, but I tend to weigh myself first thing in the morning.  That's the only issue I have. I guess I can just weigh myself every other day I'm not running.

i can't run first thing in the morning.  i have to have my coffee and a light breakfast first.  i prefer to go just before i get hungry for lunch (yeah yeah, i know, some people have real jobs ;)).

you should definitely be taking a recovery day between runs.  when i was starting out in a running clinic, the coach didn't want us to do more than three days a week, and always with a day off in between (i did 4, because i'm like that).  it's in recovery that you build muscle, so especially when you're starting out, those days off are really important. 

i'm a very sporadic runner: i'll go consistently for a few weeks, then not at all for months.  and i always take walk breaks; the most i can run without a break is 8 or 10 minutes, and that's when i'm fresh. 

i've just recently discovered something, though.  i've always shortened my stride and slowed down when i get fatigued.  then i end up going so slowly, i figure i might as well walk.  well, lately i've started picking up the pace a little when i feel fatigued.  it makes me feel stronger just to know that i can ;)

It sounds like your body just needs a little break.  maybe you should try to mix it up a little this week.  Have you ever taken a spinning class or do you swim? I absolutely love spinning.  It might be tough the first few times you do it (your butt will hurt) but it's a great add on to anyones routine.  You may want to shoot the perky instructor, but you'll learn to ignore her! :)   I'm not a fan of the elliptical, but it's a good way to get a workout in and stretch out your legs when you are tired.  If you really want to keep running, do intervals when you are having a hard time running the whole thing.  You can always do the walk/run workout.  You can pick any amount of time, but I usually run for 2 minutes and then walk for 1.  I'm able to force myself to do that 2 minutes even when I'm dying cause I know i get a break.  I actually end up running harder because it's for short bouts.

Congrats on doing to couch to 5K!!!  That's awesome!  You are almost up to the full 5K amount.  You should try to find a local race and schedule it now.  That will give you something to work towards. 

As for weighing yourself in the morning.  I would do it before you run.  I can lose up to 3 lbs from running.  Of course that's all water weight and it's just because you are dehydrated.  I always love that number but unfortunately it's not accurate.

If your not a morning person, running in the morning might turn you into one.  It really is peaceful and you feel so great the rest of the day.  You will find that you are sore in the morning so make sure you start out slow and stretch when you are done. 

If I knew the secret for how to undo the bad days/weeks/months for running, I would already have it marketed and be writing this post from my condo in Monaco. All I can say is that it happens. Sometimes, it means rest, sometimes it means toughen up. I'm in much the same boat as you, with less novelty to my running. All I can say is you are most assuredly not alone.

Personally, I run in the morning, because after a day of stress and strain in the office, that's when I'm beat, whereupon in the morning I'm just groggy.

Arclipper nailed it as regards food. The topic is debated, so I tend to say it's a matter of personal preference. Personally, if I have even the most slight of food, I feel incredibly sluggish if I run anywhere short of around two hours later. Thus, I run without breakfast, though, now thinking on it, I may try switching that around to see if it shakes me from my current doldrum.

Thanks, everyone! Good insight here.

I try to take days off, and I've been running 4x a week for the last..well, since I started running. I ran every other day for C25K. I do agree that I might need a break. I'll take tomorrow off as planned and then see if I'm up to it on Sunday.

arclipper, I don't currently do either but I'm a decent swimmer. The facilities at my college are mostly ellipticals, treadmills and stairclimbers. There are spin classes and I've always wanted to do one. I just might this fall! :)

Philadelphia oddly doesn't host many 5Ks. Obviously, they have marathons and I believe they hold half-marathons as well. I think I'm going to wait until spring and enroll in a 8K or something.

As for intervals, I'm trying to focus on distance and slowly building a foundation. 2 miles is tough on me right now but I can manage it. I want to get up to 10K distance in 4-5 months. Is that too big of a goal?

When I feel tired, going slower makes me feel worse. I try to cover as much asphalt as possible, since I know I'm fighting it. Don't know if that makes any sense.

As for the morning runs, so no food? I wouldn't mind since I think eating before running (even allowing an hour between for digestion) makes me sluggish. I'll try to drag myself out of bed and see what I can do on Sunday.

I can't run in the morning.  If I don't eat my blood sugar gets too low and I can't do 1/2 what I can normally do.  Plus the rest of the day I'm tired and cranky.  If my blood sugar gets whacked out it really doesn't get better until the next day. 

However, it's totally up to you (and your body) whether you can run in the morning before breakfast or not.  Some people love it.  For others like me it's a bad idea. 

I'm not huge about running before breakfast. I really love running at round six thirty ( in the summer) about an hour after a light dinner. I feel my body has more fuel at that time.

I used to do about three miles at 5:30 in the morning, but I'd always have a banana before or something. The few times I actually run before breakfast without anything, I only do aobut 2 and a half miles and they are not my fastest.

I have bad runs as well. I pretty much run 5x a week, for between 3-6 miles each time. Sometimes, I honestly just can't push myself to run. I think it is partly my natural laziness about that. I just finish my run walking and hope for a better run next time. I really should just keep running but I find it horrible to do that and prefer to enjoy my exercise, whatever I'm doing.

Do what you like doing. I have a bad run about once a week now, it used to be alot more! Typically I get between 20-25 miles in per week. The three mile ones are fine, as are the five, but for some reason four and six are really difficult for me! Go figure.

I love to run and I have good days running and I enjoy it but distance wise I have bad days running.

I run most days I can run around 4 miles a day and then I have days where I can run well over that and I'll run in the morning and evening then I will have days where I just do 2 miles.

I think that my body will do what it can do on the day....

But my life is like that too I have productive days and not so productive days.

I'm not huge about running before breakfast. I really love running at round six thirty ( in the summer) about an hour after a light dinner. I feel my body has more fuel at that time.

I used to do about three miles at 5:30 in the morning, but I'd always have a banana before or something. The few times I actually run before breakfast without anything, I only do aobut 2 and a half miles and they are not my fastest.

I have bad runs as well. I pretty much run 5x a week, for between 3-6 miles each time. Sometimes, I honestly just can't push myself to run. I think it is partly my natural laziness about that. I just finish my run walking and hope for a better run next time. I really should just keep running but I find it horrible to do that and prefer to enjoy my exercise, whatever I'm doing.

Do what you like doing. I have a bad run about once a week now, it used to be alot more! Typically I get between 20-25 miles in per week. The three mile ones are fine, as are the five, but for some reason four and six are really difficult for me! Go figure.

I'm absolutely no expert on this subject because I have only recently started to attempt running. However, I have been walking 4 miles every morning. I find that 8 oz of orange juice with some protein powder is perfect before I go out. Then I just have "breakfast" after I get back and cool off. I just thought I would suggest that idea as a compromise for those of you who feel like you need something before you run. It works great for me.

~ Beth

Wow, thanks everyone!

So I got up around 9 and was out the door soon after. It was SO NICE. Barely any cars or people, and it was nice and cool outside for a change. I'm a convert - I had my exercise basically done for the day and I had a long day of moving ahead of me and I didn't need to worry about when I was going to exercise.

Hopefully I can get up much earlier during the school year, but I did feel like I was wide awake for most of the day today. Yay! Thanks again. :)

As you know, I LOVE LOVE LOVE running the morning.  I have always run in the morning since I started last year and always before breakfast.  I find it doesn't really make a difference in my run or my weight loss if I do not eat before I go for my run, I just try to eat immediately after getting back.  If I am doing a long run (anything over 7 miles), I usually take something small with me to eat while on the run.  I have found that eating before my runs doesn't work for me because I am up at 5/5:15 and out the door about 10-15 mins later.  I do always have a big glass of water before I do though.  You can try it either way, eating 30 mins-1 hr before you go running if you have the time, or eating something easy to digest (i.e. a banana, a piece of toast, etc) shortly before going and then eat breakfast right after you return (best to do it within about 15 mins of finishing your run even if you do not feel that hungry), or try going on nothing.  Its really about what works for you, everyone is a bit different.

As for bad runs, I have had them, and had a few early on after finishing C25K, and as everyone else said, get some rest.  It took me awhile before I could comfortably run two days in a row and then three.  Now, my bad days usually come after I have REALLY overdone it the day before or have just been training hard for too many weeks and when that happens, I back down my mileage for a week to let myself recover.

"Back in the day" when I was in college, I ran at 6 am every day I had class plus 1-2 more days each week. I LOVED the way I would be relaxed but energized and motivated all morning. I even scheduled classes according to when I needed more energy or less, morning or afternoon (afternoons were for huge lecturer classes that were fairly passive on my part).

Morning running is the bomb! We have a support thread going here; join us!

Good luck, whatever you do!

Everyone who runs has bad days once in a while, don't let one bad run discourage you.  I like to run in the morning before eating breakfast.  I drink a little water before I go.  In the summer months it is just too hot to run in the afternoon or evening, and I have family commitments anyway so I start running before anyone (including the sun) is up.  Make sure you are getting enough sleep.  Lack of sleep can really throw your running off.